Benefits of Kegel Exercises Throughout a Woman’s Lifetime

Kegel exercises, sometimes called pelvic floor exercises, are done to strengthen your pelvic floor muscles. Strengthening these muscles has many benefits throughout a woman’s lifetime.

These muscles and tissues are like a hammock or sling at the bottom of your pelvis to hold your organs in place. Keeping them strong doesn’t take long, yet consistently performing these exercises will result in many advantages.

Recovery before and after childbirth

Women can strengthen pelvic floor muscles before childbirth or after a vaginal or cesarean delivery.

As Dr. Olson mentions in the podcast episode, the use of kegel weights during pregnancy can help women identify the right muscles to assist with labor and delivery.

Pelvic Organ Prolapse

Prolapse can be caused by weight gain, childbirth, hysterectomy, chronic or long-term coughing, or constipation.

Regular kegel exercise can improve pelvic organ prolapse by making your muscles stronger.

Improving Sexual Health

Healthy pelvic floor muscles can contribute to better sexual function and improves sex for both partners.

Read more about kegel exercises with weights for better orgasms.

Strengthening Weak Pelvic Floor Muscles

Weak pelvic floor muscles may be a result of pregnancy and childbirth; however, it can also be caused by surgery, heavy lifting, and chronic straining. Urinary incontinence may also be a symptom of weak pelvic muscles.

Exercising the correct muscles as part of a daily routine can help relieve these symptoms.

If you suspect you have weak pelvic floor muscles, consult your healthcare professional for an assessment. Mention any symptoms you may have and ask for a referral to a women’s health physical therapist.

Improve Bladder Control

Many women experience urine leakage when coughing, sneezing, or laughing.

Kegel exercises help to strengthen the pubococcygeus (PC) muscle. These muscles are activated when one stops the flow of urine.

Stress urinary incontinence is bladder leakage that occurs with strenuous movements such as exercises, lifting heavy objects, or while coughing, sneezing, or laughing. Kegels are the best cure for urinary incontinence.

Using pelvic floor muscle exercises significantly improved quality of life in an assessment of 2400 women with urinary incontinence.

Dr. Olson recommends for those who experience urine leakage get help through a certified healthcare provider, pelvic health specialist, urology clinic, or women’s health physical therapist.

Maintain Pelvic Health During Menopause

Women may experience an overactive bladder, urinary incontinence, and other symptoms during menopause which may benefit from consistent kegel exercise.

Working out the vaginal muscles with kegel weights can be part of your exercise routine.

Do Kegel Weights Work?

According to research, the answer is yes!

Kegel exercises with weights are effective at addressing issues such as urinary incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse when they are performed in sufficient amounts. The research varies as to how many per day are necessary and for how long, however they are commonly prescribed as a contraction of the pelvic floor muscles, held for 3-5 seconds, performed in sets of 10, 3-8 times per day.

How to Use Intimate Rose Kegel Weights

You may have read about kegel balls which I have previously written about in my article about Ben Wa Balls; however, these are not FDA-approved vaginal weights. Intimate Rose kegel weights are FDA-cleared silicone and are easy to clean and use.

Starting with the lightest weight, use it for about 15 minutes daily while going about your normal daily activities. Your muscle contraction will hold it in place. As you get stronger, you can move up to the next weight.

Read more on Dr. Olson’s website IntimateRose.com

Exercise for about 15 minutes a day, five days per week using the intimate rose weights....