Whether you’re gearing up to have your first baby, just had a baby, are starting to experience changes to your pelvic floor later in life, or just want to ensure your pelvic floor is in tip/top shape, kegels are are a good exercise for most people to work into their daily routine.
Why Do Kegels?
We’ve spoken at length here at NAFC on why keeping your pelvic floor in check is important. Not only is the pelvic floor responsible for holding up your organs, a healthy pelvic floor can also keep bladder leaks at bay, and aid you in your overall day-to-day movement.
Strengthening your pelvic floor will help restore muscle function and lessen the symptoms of incontinence. Kegels are the primary pelvic floor exercise.
One of the biggest hurdles women have to doing Kegels is that most of them do them incorrectly. It can be a surprisingly hard exercise to master without the aid of a physical therapist. That’s why we’ve created this video with step-by-step instructions on how to do a kegel. This video will help you visualize your muscles and the action they should be taking to complete a full kegel.
Watch the video by clicking below!
When To Do Kegels?
The good news is you can do these powerhouse moves anywhere and no one is the wiser. But setting up a routine may help you become more regular. Why not add them into your daily workout?
Whether you’re jogging, running, hiking, biking, or playing a contact sport, warming up is crucial to your exercise plan, so why not incorporate Kegel training into your daily routine to help strengthen your pelvic floor muscles?
A Few Ideas For Working Kegels Into Your Workout:
- Walk for 3-5 minutes at a steady pace. Take a break at a corner on your block or a turn on a trail and do 10 pelvic floor holds.
- Do 10 lunges and 10 wall-sits for three reps. Between rotations, practice 5 Kegels.
- Practice a forward fold to stretch your hamstrings and back. Hold the fold for 10-15 seconds, then stand and hold a kegel for 5-10 seconds. Repeat 2-3 times.
- Do jumping jacks or jump rope for 30-second intervals. Between each interval, practice 10 Kegels.
Tips To Remember When Doing Kegels
It is important to remember to let your muscles relax between contractions and to work all the muscles of your core to ensure optimal pelvic floor strength. If you are unsure of the exercises that would work best for you, finding a physical therapist specializing in pelvic floor strengthening can be very helpful in creating a routine.
If you are looking for more ways to warm up before your workouts, we suggest heading over to workoutlabs.com. You can make your own printable full-body warm-up graphic so you always have examples at hand. Print your own sheet out and add Kegels wherever you feel most comfortable.
One Response
Excellent video on how to correctly perform Kegels. Thank you for sharing this helpful guide.