In my classes and personal training sessions I often talk about the pelvic floor and the importance of strengthening it. Not just women, men too. A weak pelvic floor can cause a multitude of problems – impacting your posture, your sex life (that got your attention!) and causing back pain. But how do we train our pelvic floor to avoid such problems?
Most of my clients prefer to work at strengthening the larger more visible muscles. The ones that look good in clothes or on the beach! The hidden pelvic floors are at the bottom of the priority list. However, these are the muscles which should not be overlooked as they support your internal organs (bladder, uterus, bowel, spine) and neglecting them can damage your health in the long term.
My sister, a GP and specialist in women’s health told me that a scarily high percentage of women in this country have at some point suffered with bladder leakage as a result of weak pelvic floor muscles. This is not just a female issue – the same can happen to men. Anything that involves high impact (jumping, weightlifting) can cause incontinence. Hence the importance of strengthening.
A dysfunctional pelvic floor can also cause pelvic and back pain and poor posture. Organs can slip down from their original position because they are not properly supported, causing a prolapse – which is incredibly uncomfortable not to mention alarming. Your sex life can suffer, and it can cause erectile dysfunction in men.
For women, pelvic muscle weakness is made worse by pregnancy and then later on during the menopause. Unless we work these muscles, they will decline – there is no way around it and it is better to start sooner. Exercise of course is essential but with targeted movements. Squeezing and holding the pelvic floor muscles for a few seconds and then mixing it up with some fast squeezes a few times a day is an effective way to tone this area.
Mixing in the targeted exercises with general exercise and functional movement is important. For example, when you are weightlifting, running or jumping. A good fitness trainer will always ensure clients are thinking about their pelvic floor when working out. In my core classes we often do the ‘Bridge’ which is a brilliant core movement encouraging you to squeeze, lift and scoop up! Breathing and control is vital, and I always make sure my clients slow down their movements when performing such exercises. We also cover other movements such as Cat/Cow, Dead bugs and Oblique pelvic squeezes.
As always, consistency is key. Once you get into the habit of working your pelvic floor you will never stop! If you are interested in trying out these exercises, please join my online Core Strengthening classes on a Monday night at 7pm.
Gill
