
What the heck are Kegels? Who can do them and for what purpose? Hopefully these notes will clear all of that up.
Kegel exercises are actually a workout for the pelvic floor, which includes, the vagina, bladder, uterus, and anus. Men and women can do kegels. Dr. Arnold Kegel developed these pelvic floor exercises in the 1940s and published his findings publicly in 1948. And the rest is history and herstory!
Kegels help with us being strong in our bladder as we age, helps us recover after childbirth, and is great for the overall reproductive health. If you don’t know what a Kegel is, imagine you are on a roadtrip with the family. You have to go to the bathroom and the next gas station is 20 miles away. The act of pulling up and in works the muscles we are talking about. “Holding it in” is as simple as it gets.
Another way to understand this feeling a little better is to begin by stopping the urine stream multiple times when you are using the restroom. The same goes for the anus while making a bowel movement. Hold it, and then continue with the movement. Repeat a few times a day.
Over time, we can hold it in deeper and longer, further building the muscles of the pelvic floor. There are even small weighted balls for women to place inside the vagina to literally do weightlifting as we get stronger with the Kegels. Men benefit from these exercises as well as women. Incontinence is common amongst the male and female senior population. If we can be a partner in our healthcare, we have a responsibility to do so.
In Health,
KJ Landis
SuperiorSelf channel on YouTube