Doing Pelvic Floor Exercises While Pregnant

Pelvic floor exercises help to strengthen the muscles of the pelvic floor which come under great strain in pregnancy and childbirth.

Doing pelvic floor exercises while pregnant.

This last pelvic floor exercise strengthens the muscles. Pelaez et al 2013. Relax the abs and pelvic floor exhale repeat. Next inhale and lift your hips while tightening your pelvic floor.

But here s the good news. Doing pelvic floor exercises will strengthen these muscles and. Why pelvic floor exercises are important. Doing kegel exercises while emptying your bladder can actually lead to incomplete emptying of the bladder which increases the risk of a urinary tract infection.

This loosening along with your growing baby pressing on your bladder may cause you to leak urine when you cough laugh sneeze or exercise. Hay smith et al 2008. Performing kegel exercises during pregnancy is an effective way to strengthen the pelvic floor muscles and help prevent incontinence pelvic organ prolapse and assist with labor and delivery. Many factors can weaken your pelvic floor muscles including pregnancy childbirth surgery aging excessive straining from constipation or chronic coughing and being overweight.

Pelvic floor exercises can also prevent prolapse which is where the pelvic organs drop down into the vagina hay smith and dumoulin 2006. To do it lie on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor. Study after study has shown that regularly doing kegels before during and after pregnancy can help decrease the odds of incontinence and other pelvic floor issues. Kegel exercises are pelvic floor exercises.

If you strengthen your pelvic floor then you will be helping to prevent or reduce the severity of incontinence. Doing pelvic floor muscle exercises kegels from early pregnancy onwards can stop those accidental wees in late pregnancy and within six months of childbirth. Continue doing your kegels all the way into your t hird trimester. The pelvic floor consists of layers of muscles that stretch like a supportive hammock from the pubic bone in front to the end of the backbone spine.

What s more research has also suggested that women who do pelvic floor exercises may have a slightly shorter active phase of labor than other women. During pregnancy and after childbirth your pelvic floor muscles are lengthened and weakened. Exercise during pregnancy is a good way to keep yourself fit and prepare your body for labor as well as lower your risk of certain complications.