Why Is Pelvic Floor Health Important?
So you know how mothers joke about crossing their legs when they sneeze? Well that is tied to pelvic floor health! But you don’t have to be a mother to worry about your pelvic floor!
I didn’t even really know about the pelvic floor until I started working out with The Bloom Method while I was pregnant. There’s a great intro course that delves into how to connect with your pelvic floor and engage it. I highly recommend doing this!
However, I want to make this very clear, learning and taking care of your pelvic floor has nothing to do with being a mother. It’s essential for any woman.
What Is Your Pelvic Floor?
The pelvic floor is a group of muscles that attach to your pelvis. The pelvic floor muscles are located between the tailbone (coccyx) and the pubic bone. These muscles support the bowel, bladder, uterus and vagina and help control functions such as peeing, pooping, menstruation, sex, and childbirth.
Weak Pelvic Floor Symptoms
There are several different symptoms women should be aware of when it comes to the pelvic floor, where they might need to see a physical therapist or a medical provider. If you have a weak pelvic floor some of those symptoms might include leakage when you run, cough, or jump. If you have too much tension in your pelvic floor this can lead to not being able to drain your bladder completely, dribbling after peeing, painful sex, or straining bowel movements.
Another issue to be aware of is pelvic organ prolapse (POP), which can occur after an event that causes your muscles and ligaments to weaken, such as childbirth, a hysterectomy, or menopause. So what exactly is pelvic organ prolapse? It’s when an organ in your pelvis moves from its normal position. This is not life threatening, but it can be painful or discomfortable and cause some of the other symptoms listed here. Changes in lifestyle and exercises can help address all these symptoms listed above.
Why Should You Care About Your Pelvic Floor?
Women shouldn’t have to live a life where they have to plan an outing based on the closest bathroom, or experience leakage whenever they sneeze, or never enjoy sex because of the constant pain. There are solutions!
By solutions I don’t mean kegels or trying to stop pee midstream. There are so many resources available to get started and my favorites are listed below, but here are some quick tips you can start including your daily life now:
Don’t do the “just in case” pee! We’ve all done this - personally this is such a hard habit for me to break! I keep hearing my mom’s voice in my head about “pee now, just in case!” But if you keep doing this it can shrink your bladder.
Avoid “power peeing” and hovering - I am once again guilty of doing both of these things. In college when I was staying with my boyfriend at the frat house, I did not want to spend any extra time in that bathroom then needed, so I was a pro at the power pee. Now, hovering, ladies we all know that sometimes this is absolutely necessary depending where you are, but otherwise try to avoid it.
To help with constipation and avoid straining use a stool or something you can place your feet on instead of having your feet on the floor when using the toilet. Don’t forget to drink lots of water and consume fiber!
If you experience painful sex you will need to try to lengthen and relax your muscles. You can use a vaginal dilator, manually massage your perineum (the area between your vagina and butt), or use a water-soluble or natural lubricant such as coconut oil.
Recommended Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy
I am a huge fan of The Vagina Whisperer! She really addresses anything and everything when it comes to the pelvic floor. She shares incredible tips and tricks on her instagram and her membership called the V-Hive starts with a personal quiz to get you set up with a great series of videos to start off your pelvic journey right!
In addition, she offers 1:1 virtual consultations and there is nothing that you cannot ask her. This is an incredible resource and also one I use personally! There is so much to learn and keep working on. Love this!
Cost: 7 day free trial; $29 / monthly, $69 / quarterly, $249 / annually
This app has excellent introduction videos to the pelvic floor - what it is, why it’s important, and more. It then dives deepers to cover everything from how to connect to your pelvic floor through numerous videos on how to strengthen or relax your pelvic floor based on your needs. I highly recommend this app.
Cost: 7 day free trial and a 30% discount for the first month; $29.00 monthly / $74 quarterly / $204 annually
I’ve been following The Belle Method for years. I love her fitness content and how it connects back to the health and wellness for women. On her site you can sign up for a personalized fitness plan and there is a great Pilate Pelvic Floor & Core Restore programme.
Cost: 2 subscription tiers - On Demand 6 month membership $197CAD / $145USD; On Demand + Live Support 12 month membership $247CAD / $181USD
Laura x
P.S. Please note I am not a licensed medical professional or physical therapist. These are recommendations based on personal research and experience.
