This is the ONE exercise every woman should do each day to boost their sex life and fertility
EXERCISE is a vital part of a healthy lifestyle, and keeping things tip top down there is no different.
For girls, this one exercise can help boost their sex life and fertility…as well as helping you bounce back after childbirth.
A strong pelvic floor can help prevent incontinence and makes life after childbirth a little bit easier, something Kate Middleton should be focusing on now that she has given birth to her third child.
Kensington Palace, announced the new prince was born at 11:01 on April 23, and the public got their first glimpse at the Kate and Prince William’s bundle of joy later that day.
After childbirth, and before, doctors recommend women do pelvic floor exercises every day.
Pelvic floor muscle exercises help prevent the unthinkable – prolapse of a woman’s internal organs, something that can happen after giving birth.
In severe cases a uterine prolapse can result in a woman needing to undergo a hysterectomy, leaving her infertile.
And, a recent study suggests prolapse of the bladder, womb or bowel – where the internal organs move down from their normal position – is common, affecting up to one in three women, at some point in their life.
The symptoms of prolapse include a feeling that something is “coming down”, the researchers from Glasgow Caledonian University noted.
Led by Professor Suzanne Hagen, the study funded by Wellbeing of Women and published in The Lancet, examined 414 women in the UK and New Zealand.
Their aim was to identify how beneficial pelvic floor exercises are in preventing prolapse.
Half the women were given one-to-one pelvic floor muscle training during five physiotherapy appointments over 16 weeks, as well as pilates-based pelvic floor classes and a DVD for guided home exercise.
Since taking part… there has been a noticeable difference to the incontinence I was experiencing. I am now more confident when going out, and no longer need to plan journeys around toilets
Volunteer
Meanwhile, the remaining women were given a prolapse lifestyle advice leaflet.
The study found women given the pelvic floor exercise classes suffered fewer prolapse symptoms.
And, over the course of two years, a much higher proportion (14.5 per cent compared to six per cent) of the women who did not have the training, had to undergo treatment for prolapse, including surgery, physiotherapy or GP consultation.
HOW CAN YOU EXERCISE YOUR PELVIC FLOOR MUSCLES?
The pelvic floor muscles are located between your legs, and run from the pubic bone at the front to the base of your spine.
They are shaped like a sling and hold all your pelvic organs in place.
In a woman, that includes the womb, vagina, bowel and bladder.
As a result, the muscles play a key role in your need to pee – giving you control over when you urinate.
As a person ages their pelvic floor muscles naturally weaken, and women who have had kids are more likely to have weaker pelvic floors as a result of childbirth.
The weaker your pelvic floor the greater your risk of incontinence and the worse your sex life is likely to be.
To strengthen your pelvic floor, it is important to workout the muscles each day.
You can feel your pelvic floor muscles by trying to stop the flow of urine when you pee.
To strengthen your muscles, experts recommend:
– Sit comfortably and squeeze the muscles 10 to 15 times in a row
– Do not hold your breath or tighten your stomach, buttock or thigh muscles at the same time
– Once you are used to the exercise, try holding each squeeze for a few seconds
– Each week add more squeezes to your daily routine
– Within a few months you should notice results, enjoying greater sensitivity during sex
Source: NHS Choices
One of the women taking part, said: “Taking part has helped me realise some of the effects childbirth and ageing has had on my body and how I need to look after myself to ensure I keep fit and healthy.
“I feel more positive about ageing and menopause – it is always good to know that you are not the only one going through something.
“I have benefited physically and mentally.”
The volunteer said after taking part in the physio and Pilates sessions she noted a “noticeable difference to the incontinence I was experiencing”.
“I am now more confident when going out, no longer need to plan journeys around toilets,” she added.
“This has made so much difference to my quality of life.
“Talking to friends and work colleagues, it’s amazing how many other women are suffering in silence as they are too embarrassed to go to their GP.”
The researchers said women should all be told to take regular pelvic floor muscle training, even before symptoms set in.
Prof Hagen said: “Knowing that these exercises are lifestyle advice can help to avoid symptoms in the future will allow women to be proactive about maintaining their pelvic floor health.
“Wellbeing of Women has provided invaluable support for an important, but often overlooked and difficult to fund area of research, which has undoubtedly helped many women who are at risk of these problems.”
Professor Hagen is also author of the Cochrane review of conservative prevention and management of prolapse.
The review, first published in 2006, identified no existing prolapse prevention trials, informing her present research.
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