HOW TO PERFORM KEGEL

EXERCISES
Published: January, 2011
To perform a Kegel, you first need to find your pelvic floor
muscles and then repeatedly contract and relax them.
Locate your pelvic muscles. Pretend you are trying to avoid
passing gas; in addition, you can pretend to tighten your vagina
around a tampon. Both actions involve the pelvic muscles. You
will feel a correct contraction more in the back than the front,
like you are pulling the anal area in or stopping gas from
escaping.
Choose your position. You can start by lying on your back until
you get the feel of contracting the pelvic floor muscles. Later,
you can practice while sitting and standing as well.
Practice contractions. Practice both short contractions and
releases (sometimes called "quick flicks") and longer ones
(gradually increasing the strength of the contraction and holding
it at your maximum for up to 10 seconds). Mastering long
contractions may take more practice. Consciously relax the
muscles between each repetition, and hold the relaxation phase
for the same amount of time as the contraction. Start by holding
each one for 3 to 5 seconds, resting the same number of seconds
between contractions. Build up to 10-second contractions, with
10 seconds of rest between contractions.
Keep other muscles relaxed. When doing pelvic floor
exercises, don't contract your abdominal, leg, or buttock muscles
or lift your pelvis. Place a hand gently on your belly to detect
unwanted abdominal action.
Repetitions. Try to do at least 30 to 40 Kegels every day. It is
more effective to spread the exercises throughout the day than
to do them all at once. One simple starting regimen is to do 10
before getting out of bed, 10 standing after lunch, 10 in the
evening while sitting watching TV, and another 10 before going
to sleep. You can do them at other times as well: in the car sitting
at a stoplight, waiting for an elevator, or waiting in a grocery
line.
Other times. You can practice using these exercises to control
urinary symptoms. If you have stress incontinence, tighten your
pelvic floor muscles just before lifting, coughing, laughing, or
whatever usually causes urine leakage. Do the same several
times when you have the urge to urinate and doubt you are going
to make it to the toilet. This should relax your bladder muscle so
you can walk to the toilet under control.
Be consistent. Practice consistently, using whatever schedule
works for you. It may take a few months for you to notice an
improvement in your symptoms.

NOT JUST FOR WOMEN: KEGEL

EXERCISES GOOD FOR MEN TOO
POSTED FEBRUARY 06, 2017

Matthew Solan
Executive Editor, Harvard Men's Health Watch

Most exercises are considered gender neutral. Except for kegels

— those exercises that strengthen pelvic floor muscles. They
have long been tagged as “just for women,” but older men may
be wise to reconsider as they can help with some common
unpleasantries that can come with age. “Men can also have
issues with these muscles, which can cause urinary leakage,
bowel issues, and even erection problems,” says physical
therapist Celia Brunette with Harvard-affiliated Spaulding
Rehabilitation Center.
What is the pelvic floor?
Your pelvic floor area is made up of thin layers of muscle and
tissues that stretch like a sling from your tailbone to your pubic
bone. It does a lot every day. The muscles’ primary job is to
support the abdomen, bladder, and colon, and help with urine
and bowel movements. In men, these muscles also are activated
during erections, orgasms, and ejaculations. Problems can arise
when pelvic floor muscles become too weak or too tight.
Weakness can happen because of age, as with other muscles,
but other causes include bladder, bowel, or prostate surgery,
constipation, and chronic coughing from conditions like asthma,
bronchitis, or smoking. Weak pelvic floor muscles can lead to
stress incontinence where urine leaks when you cough, sneeze,
or are participating in an activity like lifting something heavy or
even hitting a golf or tennis ball.
On the other end, tight pelvic floor muscles can result from
prolonged sitting, general muscle tension and stress, and even
musculoskeletal problems with your back and hips. A tense pelvic
floor is like trying to open your fist after keeping it clenched all
day. “It would be very hard to relax your grip, and you would
lose function of your hand,” says Brunette.
These tight muscles often can trigger pelvic pain, urgent and
frequent needs to urinate, leakage, incomplete emptying, or
straining during bowel movements. You also may suffer from
sudden pain in your low back, hips, or genital area, or have pain
during and after intercourse.
How kegels work
“Pelvic floor muscles are treated like with other muscles,” says
Brunette. “If you strain your back, you massage and stretch the
muscles to get them healthy. The same approach applies here.”
Kegels can be performed while lying down, sitting, or standing,
and unlike other exercises, the movements and sensations are
subtle. Imagine how you would stop the flow or urine, or to hold
back gas. The goal with kegels is to contract and hold only those
muscles and not rely on other muscles like the abdomen or
buttocks.
Don’t go it alone
Brunette says you should not try kegels on your own at first
because if not performed correctly, the exercises could make
muscles worse, or not help at all.
Talk with your doctor to make sure there are no medical issues
related to your symptoms, such as prostate problems or a
urinary tract infection. If your doctor recommends kegels, he or
she can direct you to a physical therapist who can evaluate your
needs and design an individual program. A typical routine
consists of a set amount of “hold” time, followed by adequate
rest between reps. “The therapist teaches you how to perform
the kegels and draws up a schedule to follow in terms of number
of repetitions and sets, so you can then do them at home,” says
Brunette.

STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE TO
PERFORMING KEGEL EXERCISES
Published: January, 2015
Doing Kegels right means find your pelvic floor muscles and
working them.
Kegel exercises won't help you look better, but they do
something just as important — strengthen the muscles that
support the bladder. Strong pelvic floor muscles can go a long
way toward warding off incontinence.
These exercises were developed in the late 1940s by Dr. Arnold
H. Kegel, an American gynecologist, as a nonsurgical way to
prevent women from leaking urine. They also work for men
plagued by incontinence.
Although the exercises themselves are simple, finding the right
muscles to exercises isn't. One-third or more of women and men
who do Kegels are actually working their abdominal, buttock, or
inner thigh muscles. They don't reap the benefits of the
exercises.

Locate your pelvic muscles

Several techniques can be used to find the right set of muscles
to exercise.
Women:
 Pretend you are trying to avoid passing gas.
 Pretend to tighten your vagina around a tampon.
Men:
 Pretend you are trying to avoid passing gas.
 While urinating, try to stop your urine stream.
If you've identified the right muscles, you'll feel the contraction
more in the back of the pelvic area than the front.

Practice contractions
Choose your position. Start by lying on your back until you get
the feel of contracting the pelvic floor muscles. When you have
the hang of it, practice while sitting and standing.
Contract and relax
 Contract your pelvic floor muscles for 3 to 5 seconds.
 Relax for 3 to 5 seconds.
 Repeat the contract/relax cycle 10 times.
Keep other muscles relaxed. Don't contract your abdominal,
leg, or buttock muscles, or lift your pelvis. Place a hand gently
on your belly to detect unwanted abdominal action.
Extend the time. Gradually increase the length of contractions
and relaxations. Work your way up to 10-second contractions
and relaxations
Aim high. Try to do at least 30 to 40 Kegels every day.
Spreading them throughout the day is better than doing them all
at once. Since these are stealth exercises that no one notices but
you, try to sneak in a few when waiting at a stoplight, riding an
elevator, or standing in a grocery line.
Diversify. Practice short, 2 to 3 second contractions and
releases (sometimes called "quick flicks") as well as longer ones.

Kegels in an emergency
If you leak urine when you cough, sneeze, laugh, bend over, or
lift something heavy (stress incontinence), doing one or more
Kegels before a "trigger" may be enough to prevent any leakage.
If you have the urge to urinate and doubt you are going to make
it to the toilet, doing Kegels may get you safely to a restroom.