Mastering Pelvic Floor Exercises: Benefits Beyond the Basics

Dr. Yvonne Huang
12 minutes ago
4 min read

Woman smiling, seated on floor in butterfly pose. Wearing gray top, white pants, on black mat. Wooden floor, white background. Relaxed mood.

The pelvic floor is a group of muscles that form a hammock-like support system at the base of your pelvis. These muscles are incredibly important! They support your abdominal organs and play a key role in several essential bodily functions:

Urination: Controlling when and how you pee.
Bowel Movements: Assisting with bowel control.
Sexual Function: Contributing to sexual sensation and performance.
Postural Support: Providing stability for your core.

Understanding and strengthening these muscles can make a big difference in your overall health and well-being.

Finding Your Pelvic Floor: A Hands-On Guide to Kegel Exercises

Now, let's walk you through the steps to find your pelvic floor muscles and correctly perform Kegel exercises. We'll start with the easiest position, lying down, as it helps you relax and doesn't fight gravity.

Step 1: Diaphragmatic Breathing

First, lie down with your knees bent, and if it's more comfortable, place pillows under your knees. Focus on your breathing:

Breathe in: Your belly should rise.
Breathe out: Your belly should fall.

Do a few gentle breaths like this.

Step 2: Feeling the Pelvic Floor Movement with Breath

Now, pay close attention to your pelvic floor area—the region from your pubic bone to your tailbone, between your sit bones. Without actively doing anything with your pelvic floor, just breathe in and out, and feel the subtle movement.

As you breathe in, your pelvic floor will naturally get pushed away, like a balloon inflating.
As you breathe out, it will gently pull in, like a balloon deflating.

This subtle movement is key to understanding how to engage your pelvic floor muscles for Kegel exercises. Make sure you can feel it!

Step 3: The Long-Hold Kegel Exercise (The "Zipper" Method)

When you're ready, let's try your first Kegel exercise, the long hold. I like to call this the "zipper" method:

Picture a Zipper: Imagine you're gently pulling a zipper from your tailbone all the way up to your lower abdomen.
Squeeze and Lift: Gently pull that zipper up, starting from your tailbone, past your anus, your vaginal opening (for women) or urethra, and into your lower abdomen. This should feel like a squeezing and lifting motion.
Hold and Breathe: Once you feel that gentle lift, hold the contraction for 10 seconds. It's crucial that you continue to breathe normally throughout the hold; do not hold your breath.
Slowly Relax: When relaxing, don't just let go all at once. Slowly "open" the zipper, releasing the contraction little by little, until you feel your pelvic floor completely relaxed and open, as if your tailbone is opening up.

Important Note: If you find yourself clenching your buttocks or squeezing your knees, you're not doing it correctly. The movement should be solely in your pelvic floor area. Most likely, nobody around you would even know you're doing this exercise!

Step 4: The Quick-Flick Kegel Exercise

Next, we'll move on to quick flicks:

Quick Squeeze and Lift: Gently and quickly squeeze and lift your pelvic floor, similar to the start of the zipper motion.
Fully Relax: Immediately after the quick squeeze, fully relax your pelvic floor all the way down.
Repeat: Do a quick flick, then fully relax. The full relaxation between each flick is critical to prevent your muscles from becoming constantly tight.

Recommended Training Protocol

To start strengthening your pelvic floor muscles:

Long Holds: Perform 10-second holds, 10 times.
Quick Flicks: Perform 10 quick flicks.
Frequency: Do this routine 3 times a day.

Progressing Your Kegel Exercises

Once you feel comfortable and confident performing these exercises while lying down, you can progress to the sitting position. This is a bit harder because you're working against gravity.

Kegels in Sitting

Positioning: Sit upright with your feet flat on the floor. Avoid slouching.
Awareness: Get a sense of your pelvic floor, which will feel like it's gently touching the surface you're sitting on when relaxed.
Perform Exercises: Follow the same "zipper" technique for long holds and the quick flicks. Remember to continue breathing and to control the relaxation phase, slowly letting go until your muscles feel fully relaxed and "touching the surface" again.

The same rule applies: no one around you should know you're doing these exercises at the dinner table!

You can further progress to standing exercises once you feel very strong and aware of your pelvic floor in the sitting position.

A Crucial Warning: Do NOT Practice Kegels While Urinating!

This is very important: Do NOT practice your Kegel exercises when you are urinating. Interrupting your urine flow can actually disrupt your bladder's normal signaling to your brain, potentially causing further problems with your urination cycle. Always find a separate time to practice your Kegel exercises.

Final Thoughts

Hopefully, you've given these exercises a try and felt a positive change. Gaining proper awareness and control of your pelvic floor muscles is a huge step toward better health and function. Always remember to check with a healthcare professional to ensure these exercises are right for you. We heal smarter, not harder.

What's your primary goal for working on your pelvic floor muscles?