Pelvic floor exercises: Strengthening techniques for bladder control

Pelvic floor muscles refer to a group of muscles that many people don't think about until they have problems. When these muscles weaken or don't work properly, you might experience bladder control issues, like leaking urine when you laugh, cough, or exercise.

The great thing is that, just like any other muscle in your body, you can exercise and make your pelvic floor stronger.  Let’s show you exactly how to do pelvic floor exercises step by step so you can get better bladder control and enjoy life more.

Understand Your Pelvic Floor

Your pelvic floor is like a set of muscles at the base of your body, down in your pelvis. It's like a hammock or a trampoline that supports everything above it. These muscles stretch from your pubic bone at the front to your tailbone at the back and from side to side.

These muscles act as a supportive base that holds up important organs in your body. These organs include your bladder (which stores urine), your bowel (which stores stool), and, in women, the uterus.

Pelvic muscles perform the following jobs:

• They help control when you pee by keeping your bladder closed until you're ready to use the toilet.
• They help control when you pass gas or have a bowel movement.
• They provide support for your organs so they stay in the right place.
• They play a role in sexual function.
  

Benefits of Pelvic Floor Exercises

If you do pelvic floor exercises regularly, you'll see many health benefits that can improve your day-to-day life and your general well-being. Here are the key perks you can look forward to when you make these exercises a habit:

• Better bladder control: Stronger pelvic floor muscles help you hold urine longer and prevent leaks. This means fewer accidents and more confidence during daily activities.
• Improved bowel function: These exercises can help stop you from accidentally leaking stool and make it easier to empty your bowels when you go to the toilet.
• Support for Your Insides: Strong pelvic floor muscles help hold up your bladder, bowels, and other important bits inside your pelvis, keeping them in the right place and stopping them from slipping down (which is called prolapse).
• Faster Healing After Having a Baby: For new mothers, these exercises can help the muscles stretched during pregnancy and birth heal and get stronger faster, so you recover quicker.
• Better Recovery After Prostate Surgery: For men who've had surgery on their prostate, doing these exercises before and after can help them get their bladder control back sooner.
• Enhanced Sexual Function: When your pelvic floor muscles are strong, it can increase sensitivity and improve orgasms for both men and women, which can lead to more satisfying sexual experiences.
• Less Pain Down There: Regularly doing these exercises can help ease some types of pain and discomfort in your pelvic area that might be caused by weak or tense muscles.
• Stronger Tummy and Back: Your pelvic floor muscles work with your tummy, back, and hip muscles. Making one area stronger often helps the others work better, too.
  

Basic Kegel Exercises

Kegel exercises are the key to pelvic floor strengthening. These simple contractions can be done anywhere, anytime, and nobody will know you're doing them. Let's start with the basics:

Finding the right muscles: If you're not sure where your pelvic floor muscles are, try to stop your flow of urine when you're peeing, just for a second or two. The muscles you feel working are your pelvic floor muscles. Don't make this a regular habit—it's just to help you locate the correct muscles.

Relaxation is key: Make sure you fully relax your muscles between each contraction. Proper relaxation is just as important as the contraction itself.

Start small: Begin with five contractions 3 times a day. As you get stronger, work up to 10 contractions, then gradually increase the hold time to 10 seconds.

Check your technique: Make sure you're not squeezing other muscles, such as your buttocks, thighs, or stomach. Place a hand on your belly to ensure it stays relaxed while you do Kegels.

Progressive Strengthening Techniques

Now that you're comfortable with the simple exercises, let's give your 'down there' muscles a bit more of a challenge with some tougher techniques:

Long holds: Gradually increase the time you have each contraction. Work up from 5 seconds to 10 seconds, and eventually try to reach 20-30 seconds per hold.

Quick flicks: Practice rapid contractions by tightening and relaxing your pelvic floor muscles as quickly as possible. These fast contractions help your muscles respond swiftly when you cough or sneeze.

Combination sets: Alternate between long holds and quick flicks in the same session to build both strength and reactivity in your pelvic muscles.

Different positions: Start your exercises lying down, then progress to sitting, and finally to standing. This gradually increases the challenge as your muscles work against gravity.

Elevator technique: Imagine your pelvic floor can go up levels. Squeeze a little bit for level 1, then a medium squeeze for level 2, and a really strong squeeze for level 3. Then, slowly let go, going back down level by level.

Advanced Pelvic Floor Training

Advanced techniques take your pelvic floor fitness to the next level. These methods can help you achieve maximum strength and control for optimal bladder function:

Biofeedback Tools: Special machines can show you on a screen or make sounds when you squeeze your pelvic floor muscles. This helps you make sure you're doing it right and see if you're getting stronger.

Resistance Devices: For women, there are special weighted cones or balls you can use inside. These give your muscles a challenge, like using weights at the gym for other muscles.

Breathing Coordination: Try to match your pelvic floor squeezes with your breathing. Squeeze when you breathe out and relax when you breathe in. This helps everything work together better.

Reverse Kegels: Learn to fully relax and gently bear down to release tension in chronically tight pelvic floor muscles, which can be just as problematic as weakness.

Scheduled voiding: Train your bladder by gradually increasing the time between bathroom visits, which will help increase capacity and reduce urgency.

When to See Your Doctor?

Pelvic floor exercises help most people, but sometimes you need a professional opinion. Here's when it's time to see a healthcare expert:

• You've been trying the exercises for about 6 to 8 weeks and haven't seen any improvement in your problems.
• You feel pain when you try to do the pelvic floor exercises.
• You find it hard even to know where those muscles are or how to squeeze them.
• You have really bad leaks that are making it hard to do your normal daily things.
• You keep getting urinary infections like cystitis often.
• You feel something bulging down there in your vagina or a heavy feeling in your lower tummy.
• You feel pain during intercourse.
• You've had surgery in your pelvic area or have given birth many times.

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Final Thoughts

These pelvic floor exercises are a simple but strong way to get better control of your bladder and improve your pelvic health. If you do them regularly, you'll likely see improvement in a few months. Just make them a daily habit. If you're having trouble with the exercises or they're not working for you, don't hesitate to get advice from a healthcare professional who specialises in this area.