Pelvic Floor Exercises During Pregnancy
The focus of these exercises is to strengthen the woman’s bladder, urethra, uterus and vagina. Therefore, you can connect the dots, Pelvic floor exercises during pregnancy make the delivery procedure comparatively easier and ensure a quicker recovery. If these Kegel Exercises are done on a regular basis and in the right way, they can be a world of help.
Pelvic floor exercises during pregnancy are also called Kegel Exercises. Two things need to be considered while doing the Kegel Exercises.
• Imagine that you are trying to stop urine or trying not to pass gas.
• Do not move your leg, abdominal muscles or butt during this exercise.
When you have this in mind, Pelvic floor exercises during pregnancy are categorized into two types. The first type of Kegel Exercise during pregnancy is when the woman tightens and releases the muscles around the vagina, around a hundred times on average in a day. The second type is when the tightening and loosening of the vagina muscles is done in a comparatively slower speed. The contracting and relaxing speeds are six and four seconds respectively. During the period of contracting and relaxing the muscles, the woman is asked to wait in between for sometime, so the exercise does not become straining for the muscles. However, the thing to remember here is to maintain a relaxed breathing pattern. Most women tend to hold their breath during the exercise. This takes away the entire benefit of the exercise rendering it useless. However, don’t confuse the Kegel Exercises with Yoga. Both things are different.
These Kegel Exercises are so easy that they can be done anywhere. The woman does not require a complete separate setting to do this exercise. Kegel Exercises can be done while sitting, standing, driving, basically while doing anything. Hence, it does not turn out to be a hindrance in a person’s busy schedule.
A word of advice for the starters, the would be mothers who want to use Pelvic floor exercises during pregnancy to their advantage. Be careful not to overdo it. Begin with only some repetitions during the day, and as time progresses, it can be increased. Exercise in any form will work only if it is done the right way. Same is the case with Pelvic floor exercises during pregnancy. It is important to just move the muscles around the vagina. Do not contract the buttocks or abdominal muscles during it.
Why am I being so vehement about Pelvic floor exercises during pregnancy? Here is why.
Pelvic floor exercises during pregnancy work miracles just by squeezing and relaxing the muscles. It is basic logic, this contraction and relaxation makes the pushing during delivery easy. Pelvic floor exercises during pregnancy not only helps you ease the pain during delivery, it also helps in the postpartum recovery. Pregnant women have the hardest time after pregnancy as they face problems like urine leakage and sagging organs. Pelvic floor exercises during pregnancy help women restore their body’s normal function. Moreover, Pelvic floor exercises during pregnancy reduces chances of hemorrhoids after pregnancy.
After pregnancy sex life becomes an issue, Pelvic floor exercises during pregnancy solve this issue as well. The surprising fact is that non-pregnant women who have tried Kegel Exercises also vouch for this, as their sex life and orgasms have never been as great as they are after doing regular Kegel exercises.
Let us not keep the advantages of Kegel Exercises limited just to women. It is so useful that even men can use this exercise to have a better sex life.
When your time comes and you do Kegel exercise for your nine months of pregnancy you will definitely thank the creator of Pelvic floor exercises during pregnancy, Dr. Arthur Kegel for coming up with this miraculous life saver.