Valentin Bosioc
If you’re wondering how to get stronger pelvic floor muscles, the answer lies in making your workout sessions more challenging. Pelvic floor strength can be improved by incorporating specific exercises into your daily workout routine and performing them correctly.
In this article, we’ll look at four simple exercises that’ll improve the strength of your pelvic floor over time and with consistency. Read on to discover these engaging workouts to help strengthen your pelvic floor and improve your overall well-being.
1. Squats
If you sit on your desk all day, your glutes and hamstrings could use a wake-up call. Squats are one of our favorite exercises for strengthening those muscles. This is a simple, effortless workout you can do anywhere. Squats strengthen your entire core and help keep your pelvic floor in fine shape, and if you’re looking for a killer butt, squats can help you achieve it.
Stand with your feet hip-width apart, knees slightly bent, and back straight to perform squats. Push your hips back, bend your knees and lower yourself until your thighs are parallel to the floor (or as far as you can go). Hold for a few seconds, then push yourself back up to the starting position. Repeat the exercise in intervals as many times as you can. During squat stretches, the deep extension of your spine strengthens your pelvic floor muscles and tones your buttocks.
Tip: You can hold a barbell across your shoulders and squat until your legs are at 90 degrees. Ensure you’re not hunching your back and that you’re pushing into your heels. Squeeze your glutes as you come up, then slowly descend. It’s essential to put your safety first when doing this, so exploring some top picks for safety squat bars could help.
2. 4 Minute Ab Plank
Four-minute planks are one of the most fantastic workouts to help strengthen your core and build up abdominal muscles. A substantial body gives you great posture, making you look like an all-around stronger, healthier person. This is also a good workout for your glutes and back, which are other areas that most women tend to neglect.
To complete an ab plank, get into a pushup position on your elbows with your legs straight out behind you. Place both forearms on the floor and lower onto your elbows. Walk your feet back so that you’re in a plank position, propped up by your forearms and toes. Hold for as long as possible, trying to beat previous times with each workout session. Once you start to lose endurance, rest for seconds before continuing.
3. Kegel Exercises
Kegel exercises are generally designed for women who want to tighten their pelvic floor muscles after childbirth or other changes. They can also help during orgasm and prevent urinary incontinence, which is a common problem during aging. These toning exercises will also help tighten your pelvic floor muscles and reduce your risk of prolapse, and they’re easier than you might think.
There are a few different ways to perform Kegel exercises. The easiest way is to lie on your back and squeeze your pelvic floor muscles as if you’re trying to stop urination midstream. Hold that contraction for five seconds, then relax. Repeat 10 times, once or twice a day. You should feel that area of your body lift slightly, which is how you know you’re doing it correctly.
4. Happy Baby Pose
One of yoga’s most impressive stamina asanas, Happy Baby Pose (also known as Ananda Balasana), is an excellent example of gentle but beneficial workouts. It stretches your pelvic floor and also strengthens your lower back. You can modify it to make it easier or harder depending on what feels suitable for you. It’s also a pose that can continue to be practiced by women after delivery, though perhaps not as often or intensely as during pregnancy.
While lying on your back, pull your knees to your chest and grab them. Pull up gently so that you feel a contraction in your pelvic floor. Hold tight for at least 30 seconds, then release and rest for 30 seconds. Repeat three times with no more than two minutes rest between sets. As you get stronger, hold it longer, but never push yourself so hard that you feel pain or discomfort.
Endnote
Weak pelvic floor muscles are the culprit behind many health problems such as urinary incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse. Learning the best ways to strengthen your pelvic floor muscles can improve the quality of your life. Pelvic floor workouts can be done anywhere, at any time, and require no special equipment other than your bodyweight and open space to get started. The four simple activities discussed in this post will help strengthen your pelvic floor muscles and improve your overall well-being.
