Your pelvic floor muscles provide support for your pelvic and abdominal organs. During pregnancy, the pelvic floor muscles support your expanding uterus and baby. You can consciously learn to strengthen these muscles by contracting and releasing them throughout the day. Kegels can provide an enhances sexual experience for both yourself and your partner. They also help ease the pain of labor.
For this exercise, we will do the pelvic floor exercises sitting crossed-legged but you can do kegel exercises anywhere and in any position.
Elevator Kegels
Sitting with your legs crossed, close your eyes and bring your awareness to your pelvic floor- the space surrounding your urethra, vagina, and bottom. Contract the muscles around your bottom and then around your vagina. Continue to contract these muscles inward and upward toward your belly. Imagine moving your energy from your pelvic floor to your abdomen as if you're traveling up an elevator. Hold for a few breaths, then slowly release the muscles as though you were traveling back down the elevator to the first floor. Now focus on how your muscles feel back at the pelvic floor and see if you can soften and release them even more. Continue to release these muscles.
The Wave Kegel
Contract the muscles around your bottom, then around your vagina and into your urethra as though you were contracting these muscles toward your pubic bone. It will feel as though a wave were washing over your pelvic floor from your bottom to your pubic bone. Slowly release these muscles from your urethra back toward your bottom as though the wave were releasing back toward the shore. Start by simply contracting toward your pubic bone and releasing, and then see if you can slow down the motion, hold for a breath at the deepest contraction and then release slowly.
Benefits of Kegel Exercises:
Kegels help prevent urinary incontinence in late pregnancy and postpartum. Keeping your pelvic floor muscles in good town will improve circulation and may prevent hemorrhoids. The perineal or pelvic floor muscles form a figure-eight pattern around the vagina and bumhole. You use these muscles automatically during sex and when you resist the urge to pee. As you practice tightening and releasing these muscles, you will find that you can hold them in the contracted position for longer periods of time. You will also be better skilled at keeping them relaxed when you need to during the final stage of labor. I recommend that you do 50-100 kegel exercises every day! Get squeezing!