Kegel Exercises for Pregnant women
Some pregnant women have the unfortunate experience of urine leakage. Sometimes a sneeze or cough, or throwing up can also cause them to urinate some. This is caused because the baby is putting extra weight on the bladder, and your muscles that close that off are not used to the additional strain. Because this can cause discomfort, and embarrassment, most pregnant women are not too thrilled to experience it. However, do not worry, there is something that can be done, and you are far from alone in this experience.
If you are having trouble with incontinence, also referred to as leakage of urine, you may want to talk to your doctor. They will likely recommend you start doing Kegel exercises. These are not the kind of exercises you go to the gym to do, and they are perfectly safe while pregnant, no matter how far along you are.
What are Kegel exercises?
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Kegel exercises are exercises that you perform in order to reduce incontinence (the leakage of urine) caused by the weight of the baby on their bladder. They are used to strengthen the pelvic floor muscles so you can have better control.
You do not use weights or anything else to do these exercises, and the results are not seen in any physical aspect. Instead, you recognize the effects as better control, and tighter pelvic floor muscles.
Kegels are easy, and you can do them any time, no matter where you are. They also only take a few seconds to perform, but should be performed in sets throughout the day. Most doctors recommend that anytime you are sitting in your car in traffic, are on the phone, are sitting at a desk, or standing in a line that you do a few.
How do you perform a Kegel exercise?
Basically the way you perform a kegel exercise is you find your pelvic floor muscles, you tighten them and hold, then release. Basically, the act is very similar to what you would do if you wanted to stop urinating mid stream. No one can see you do it, but it does take a contraction of muscles. So, in order to find the correct muscles, pretend you're trying to stop urinating.
Then, squeeze those muscles, so they are tightened, and hold for a few seconds, then relax. You will feel a pull. If you are still not sure you are using the right muscles you can stick a finger in your vaginal canal and perform a Kegel, if the vagina tightens when you squeeze, you have the right muscles.
You can also do Super Kegels which are basically Kegels that you hold for a longer period of time.
In order to get the best results from doing Kegel exercises, few the following things in mind:
When you tighten you pelvic floor muscles you want to be careful to not tighten other muscles (stomach or legs, for example) at the same time. You want to focus on the muscles you're exercising.
It is also important that while performing Kegels that you breathe naturally. Don't hold your breath while you do them because it's important that your body and muscles continue to receive oxygen while you do any type of exercise, and they will not be properly exercised if you are holding your breath during the process.
Don't do Kegels while going to the bathroom, while it is that set of muscles, doing so can cause problems with your bladder, and may mean you can't fully empty it. This will increase your risk of urinary tract infections.
So, get rid of embarrassing leakage by doing Kegels.
