Kegel exercises were originally developed by Dr. Arnold Kegel to help women with problems controlling urination.
They are designed to strengthen and give you voluntary control of a muscle called Pubococcygeus (pew-bo-kok-ee-gee-us), or P.C. for short.
The P.C. muscle is part of the sling of muscle stretching from your pubic bone in the front to your tail bone in the back.
Since the muscle encircles not only the urinary opening, but also the outside of the vagina, some of Dr. Kegel’s patients found that doing the exercises had a pleasant side effect: increased sexual awareness.
Why do Kegel exercises?
They can help increase bladder control.
They can help you to be more aware of feelings in your genital area.
They can increase circulation in the genital area.
They may increase sexual arousal started by other kinds of stimulation.
They can be helpful after childbirth to restore muscle tone in the vagina.
How to identify the P.C. muscle:
To identify the P.C. muscle, sit on the toilet with your legs spread apart and urinate.
See if you can stop the flow of urine without moving your legs.
That’s your P.C. muscle, the one that turns the flow off and on.
If you don’t find the P.C. muscle the first time, don’t give up. Try again the next time you have to urinate.
How to do the exercises:
Slow Kegels:
Tighten the P.C. muscle as you did to stop the flow of urine.
Hold it for a slow count of three. Then relax.
Quick Kegels:
Tighten and relax the P.C muscle as rapidly as you can.
Pull In-Push Out:
Pull up the entire pelvic floor as though trying to suck water into your vagina.
Then push, or bear down, as if trying to push the imaginary water out.
This exercise will use a number of abdominal muscles as well as the P.C. muscle.
How often should Kegel exercises be done?
At first, do 10 (one set) of each of these three exercises— five times each day. (Do 10 slow kegels, 10 quick kegels and 10 pull in-push out exercises, at 5 different times during the day)
Each week, increase the number of times you do each exercise by five. (Increase from 10 to 15 of all three exercises the first week, 20 the second week, 30 the third week, 40 the fourth week, and up to 50 the fifth week) As you increase in the number of exercises you are doing, remember to continue to do your sets 5 times each day)
Ultimately, your goal is to do 5 sets (or 50) of each of the three exercises, five times each day.
Some tips:
You can do these exercises any time during daily activities that don’t require a lot of moving around. You can do them while driving your car, watching television, doing dishes, sitting in school or at work, or lying in bed.
When you start you will probably notice that the muscle doesn’t want to stay “contracted” during Slow Kegels, and that you don’t do Quick Kegels very fast or evenly. Keep at it. In a week or two you will probably notice that you can control it quite well.
Sometimes the P.C. muscle will start to feel a little tired. This is not surprising. You probably haven’t used it very much before. Rest a few seconds and start again.
A good way to check on how you are doing is to insert one or two lubricated fingers into your vagina. Perform a Kegel exercise and see how strong the muscle feels.
Remember to keep breathing naturally and evenly while you are doing your Kegel exercises.
