Pelvic Floor Exercises

Pelvic floor exercises will help to strengthen your pelvic floor muscles. These exercises are common for pregnant women or women who have given birth as these muscles come under a lot of strain. However, all women can benefit from pelvic floor exercises. If your pelvic floor has been negatively impacted due to malpractice during childbirth, then you should speak to a medical malpractice lawyer.

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The pelvic floor is made up of layers of muscles that stretch from the pubic bone to the end of the backbone. When they are weak, you may leak urine, known as stress incontinence. It is very common, especially after childbirth. Luckily you can strengthen these muscles again. You can also perform these exercises before you give birth, as it will aid your healing
process after birth. 

If you have any concerns about your pelvic floor, then you should speak to your doctor.

Top-tips to keep your pelvic floor strong

• Don't go to the toilet if you don't need to, as this will train your bladder to need to urinate more often. 
• Try to empty your bladder whenever you do go to the toilet. 
• Avoid constipation by consuming lots of fiber and drinking water.
• When going to the toilet, lean forward so that your knees are higher than your hips. You may want a step to put your feet on. 
• When urinating, relax your pelvic floor and avoid pushing too hard. 

Exercises
It is good to get in the habit of doing pelvic floor exercises. However, you should take care when doing them as if you do them wrong, you could be doing more harm then good. Speak to your doctor if you have any concerns. You can also watch this video for more guidance.

• Take a comfortable seat and lean slightly forward but keep your back straight. 
• Squeeze and lift your muscles as if you are holding in during urination.
• Hold the squeeze and count to 8 seconds, then relax for 8 seconds. Don't worry if you can't make it to 8 seconds, just do it for as long as is comfortable. 
• Repeat 8 to 12 times. 
• Keep breathing as you exercise and try not to tighten the muscles in your bum. 

Overactive pelvic floor
Some women suffer from an overactive pelvic floor, which means that you are always contracting the muscles and don't realize it. This can be caused by tension after pain or damage. This can make sex, using tampons and going to the toilet painful. It can also cause stress incontinence. If this sounds like you, then you should speak to a doctor.

If you have an overactive pelvic floor, then exercises will still help you. However, you should adjust them slightly to focus on the relaxation part. After tightening, make sure you have relaxed entirely and stay there for longer then you squeezed, around 10 seconds.

Creating a habit
In order to remember to do your pelvic floor exercises, you need to form a habit. The best way to do this is to do it at the same time you do something else. For example:

• After going to the toilet.
• After you wash your hands.
• After feeding your baby.
• When standing in line at a supermarket.