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Kegel exercises strengthen the muscles that support the bladder to ward off urinary incontinence. Hence, it is especially useful for those with weakened pelvic floor muscles due to various conditions, such as pregnancy, childbirth or prostate problems.
Kegels is a simple exercise that involves repetitions of contracting and relaxing the pelvic floor muscles. However, many face difficulties in identifying the correct muscles to work on. In fact, more than one-third find themselves exercising their abdominal, buttock, or inner thigh muscles instead. This makes it impossible to reap the benefits of Kegels.
Identify the Right Muscles for Kegels
These techniques can help to find the right set of muscles to work on:
Women
- Pretend to avoid passing gas.
- Pretend to tighten vagina around a tampon.
Men
- Pretend to avoid passing gas.
- Attempt to stop urine stream while urinating.
Pelvic floor muscles (Source: Harvard Health Publishing)
If done correctly, contractions may be felt more in the back of the pelvic area than the front. Avoid flexing the muscles in the abdomen, thighs, or buttocks. Also, remember to breathe freely during the exercises to keep from stressing the rest of your body.
Guide to Perform Kegels
Kegels can be hard to perform at first. The good news is—Kegels can become instinctive with daily commitment. The step-by-step for Kegels are as follows:
- Identify the right muscle. Stop urine stream while urinating. If you are successful, congratulations! It is highly likely that you have identified your pelvic floor muscles.
- Choose your position. Start by lying on your back. When you are more familiar, practise while sitting and standing.
- Start with an empty bladder. Tighten your pelvic floor muscles for 5 seconds, then relax them for 5 seconds. Try to do 5 repetitions on your first day. As you get better, aim for 10 seconds contractions, relaxing for 10 seconds in between.
- Aim for at least 3 sets of 10 repetitions per day.
These exercises may feel foreign in the beginning. Nevertheless, the longer you persist, the better your bladder health will become. On top of that, Kegels have been reported to increase sexual pleasure as well. Hence, it is encouraged to make Kegels exercises part of your daily routine.
These are some recommended timing to perform Kegels:
- Fit in a set of Kegels during a routine task, such as brushing your teeth.
- Do a set of Kegels after urination to remove last few drops of urine.
- Contract your pelvic floor muscles before and during activities that could apply pressure on the abdomen, such as sneezing, coughing, laughing or heavy lifting.
- Perform Kegels when you have the urge to urinate and doubt if you are going to make it in time. Doing Kegels may get you safely to a restroom.
Seeing Improvements with Kegels
If you do Kegels three times a day, better bladder control should be observed in three to six weeks. A diary to record your urine leakage may help in monitoring for improvement.
Signs of improvement are as follows:
- Longer intervals between bathroom visits
- Fewer accidental urine leaks
- Ability to hold the contractions longer, or to do more repetitions
- Drier underwear, without the feeling of always being wet
Conclusion
Kegel exercises is helpful for those with urinary incontinence to strengthen pelvic floor muscles. However, if improvement is not observed after a month, the muscles for Kegel exercises may be wrongly identified. Consult a doctor or urologist for advice on urinary incontinence and Kegels.
Further read: 6 Tips to Prevent Sudden Urine Leaks [Urinary Incontinence – Part 1]
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by Joanne Lee
Multipotentialite. Loves creating and seeing ideas come alive. View all articles by Joanne Lee.
