It’s a wonderful photo. I snapped it when I was on a walk with a dear friend who had just turned fifty and we were up to our annual birthday banter. For decades now, we have taken turns light heartedly roasting each other on our respective special days. On this particular day, one wisecrack led to another and before we knew it, the birthday girl was clinging to a mailbox trying to stay upright and laughing so hard she was forced to cross her legs. In an effort to not wet her pants, she managed to twist her legs so many times over that she looked like a Dunkin’ Donuts cruller.
There is probably no woman on the planet who can’t understand that dilemma. But do they know that practicing Kegel exercises can help minimize the collateral damage of a good laugh? The exercises are named after the gynecologist Arnold Kegel who instructed his lady patients on their use to help minimize pelvic floor and vaginal wall damage brought on by the strains of childbearing. They are the isolated and deliberate contractions of the pelvic floor which lead to muscle strengthening which can also help fight urinary incontinence and keep thoughts of adult diapers at bay.
Women are the usual Kegel practitioners but men with UI (urinary incontinence) are also encouraged to practice the exercises on a regular basis for the some of similar bladder control benefit. Women are urged to regularly practice Kegels as a means to strengthen the pelvic floor muscles to counteract the strains of childbearing and aging, including the loss of bladder control.
So how does one go about executing a Kegel? There is an interestingly descriptive guide in an NIH (National Institutes of Health) bulletin dealing with female urinary incontinence: “The first step is to find the right muscles. One way to find them is to imagine that you are sitting on a marble and want to pick up the marble with your vagina. Imagine sucking the marble into your vagina.” (http://kidney.niddk.nih.gov/Kudiseases/pubs/bcw ez/insertC.htm)
Men reading the above may not find that particular guidance very helpful for themselves but the actual contraction routine is the same for either gender: Contract and hold for 3 seconds. Release for 3 seconds and then repeat contraction and hold. Breathe normally throughout and consciously avoid tensing stomach, thigh or buttock muscles. Muscle isolation is of key importance. The routine need only be about five minutes long or a series of 30 repetitions.
Ideally, these exercises should be repeated throughout the day in the three basic positions of lying down, sitting and standing. However for starters, most people find them easier to do while lying down. This makes the time just before rising in the morning and drifting off at night ideal times to do Kegel exercises. A noticeable strengthening should seen in 6 to 12 weeks.
Kate Kew has been caring for those burdened with some form of incontinence for many years and is the Director of Web Community Relations for a high-volume online discounter specializing in Adult Diapers and Incontinence Supplies, where she is building a resource collection to help inform and support those who are learning to manage adult incontinence. Please visit this library: Adult Diapers and Incontinence.
Authors bio is coming up shortly.
