- How to know which muscles to contract
- How to do the pelvic floor exercises
- When and where to do the exercises
Kegel exercises, also known as pelvic floor exercises, strengthen the muscles that support the uterus and bladder, which helps to control urine and improve intimate contact. Practicing these exercises during pregnancy also helps in training for normal childbirth, when it is necessary to force the baby out, reducing the pain and the time of labor.
How to know which muscles to contract
An excellent way to find out how to make contractions correctly is to insert a finger into the vagina and try to squeeze the finger. Another good way to identify your muscles is when you pee try to stop the stream of urine. However, it is not recommended to try to do this exercise with a full bladder because it can cause urine to return through the ureters causing urinary tract infection.
When identifying how the contraction should be done, one should try not to shrink the belly too much so as not to spend extra energy by contracting the abdominals, nor to contract the muscles around the anus, which can be more difficult initially. In any case, the gynecologist, obstetrician or physiotherapist will be able to personally indicate, in a consultation, how to perform the exercises correctly.
How to do the pelvic floor exercises
To strengthen the pelvic floor during pregnancy, a pregnant woman should do the following:
- Empty the bladder, eliminating the pee completely; Contract these same pelvic muscles for 10 seconds; Relax for 5 seconds.
The training consists of doing about 100 contractions per day, divided into sets of 10 repetitions each.
Check out the step by step in our video:
The progression of the exercise consists of increasing the duration of each contraction. Thus, each time you contract your pelvic floor muscles you should count to 5 and then relax, repeating this step 10 to 20 times in a row.
Small vaginal cones, which are suitable for this purpose, can also be introduced into the vagina and help to strengthen these muscles even more, increasing the intensity of each workout.
When and where to do the exercises
Kegel exercises can be performed in any position, whether sitting, lying or standing. However, it is easier to start the exercises while lying down with your legs bent, and after a few days, you will be able to perform the exercises in the position of 4 supports, sitting or standing with your legs apart.
You can start practicing this training at any stage of pregnancy, but it may be more necessary after 28 weeks, when the woman is in the 2nd trimester of pregnancy, which is when she may start to notice some difficulty in controlling her urine and this it is also a good time to start preparing for childbirth.
It is also possible to perform these exercises during intimate contact, which can bring more pleasure for both the woman and the partner.
