What is kegel exercise?
Kegel exercises are simply contractions of your pelvic muscles, repetitions that strengthen your pubococcygeal muscles, also called Kegel muscles after Dr. Arnold Kegel and because people get embarrassed when they repeatedly trip over the word “pubococcygeal”. Performance of Kegel exercises on a daily basis is good for the pelvic health of men and women alike. Men can increase their erectile strength and help to prevent urinary incontinence through Kegel exercises. Kegel exercises benefit women by serving as a measure against vaginal prolapse, and they’re particularly helpful for women who are going to go through the physical stresses of labor and delivery. So with Kegel exercises, everybody wins.
Learning how to do Kegel exercises is relatively easy. If you’re not sure what the sensation of contracting the Kegel muscles feels like, try to cut off your flow of urine in mid-stream. There you are, you’ve just done a Kegel exercise. Just don’t make a habit of performing Kegels while urinating—that was just a demo. Doing it long term can lead to a urinary tract infection, never a good thing.
To get into the routine of doing Kegels, practice contracting your Kegel muscles for three seconds, relaxing them, waiting ten seconds, then repeating. Go through ten iterations of this three times a day, and you’re off to a good start. Every two or three days, increase the length of time you keep your Kegel muscles contracted to four seconds, then five, and so forth until you’re able to hold the contraction for ten seconds at a stretch. Once you’ve achieved this, maintain your three times daily regimen wherever you can comfortably fit it in. You’ll find that it’s easy to do your Kegels at your desk, behind the wheel, and just about anywhere else you’re in a comfortable position.
Once you’ve incorporated your Kegel exercises into your daily routine, you’ll find that they’re excellent for maintaining urinary continence and sexual health. You’ll get more mileage out of all the equipment in your pelvis, and that’ll ensure a healthy, happier you for years to come. Happy Kegeling!
