The Floor of Your Core

I do some exercises in the hope that I am never told that I have to do them.  Pelvic floor exercises are at the top of that list.  If you think of your core as a box, the diaphragm is the top, the abdominal and back muscles are the sides and the pelvic floor is the bottom.  If the bottom of the box is weak, it does not matter how strong the sides are, the box cannot hold much.  Having strong pelvic floor muscles is important for men and women.  It can help prevent leaks when you laugh, cough or sneeze.  It can prevent falls.  Imagine how many people across the world will wake up tonight with the urgent need to get to the restroom.  Blurry eyed, stiff and half asleep, they rush through a dark room.  Having a strong pelvic floor can also make time with your mate a little more enjoyable.

The Exercises

There are the traditional Kegel exercises that many people have heard about.  They are certainly a good start.  Elevator exercises and quick flick exercises are a little more comprehensive.  First, you have to find the muscle.  Sitting on a chair, try to tighten the muscle that is between the 2 bones you sit on.  You can also find it by the ‘stopping the stream’ method but please do not try to exercise that way.  That is not something you want to train your body to do regularly.

Now that you have found them, think of an elevator.  Contract the muscles up to the first floor.  Then try to get to the second and third floors.  Now take it back down to the first floor.  The last level is the basement.  Relax the muscles completely to get to the basement.  To exercise, practice going between floors and holding between 5 and 30 seconds.  The quick flick exercises are simply contracting and relaxing the muscles as fast as you can.  You can do these in the car, sitting at your desk or watching TV.  No one will know!  It is generally recommended that you do these 3-5 times a day, especially if you are currently experiencing symptoms.  Next time you start to sneeze, tighten these muscles!  If you are experiencing incontinence symptoms these exercises may help.  You should still speak to your doctor or physical therapist about what is happening.  This is a website that has some good general information about this and pelvic floor pain.  Leaking is not a normal sign of aging!!  There is help out there.  http://www.brookshealth.org/programsservice/womens-health/

http://www.brookshealth.org/gedownload!/UI%20booklet-final.pdf?item_id=2621001&version_id=2621002

Do you Kegel?  🙂