What is Kegel Exercise?
Urinary incontinence is a condition that can be observed in many age groups in society and may occur due to various reasons. In addition to this complaint called urinary incontinence, another problem that can be seen is gas and feces leakage. These problems, which occur due to weakness in the pelvic floor muscles, can have a significant negative impact on people’s daily and social lives. Therefore, they need to be treated appropriately. There are many alternative treatments for incontinence treatment. Kegel exercise is among these treatment options. Kegel exercise is a method that can be easily applied by individuals and yields effective results. Thanks to this exercise, a regression in existing complaints can be observed in a short time. However, proper exercise is important for the desired effects to occur. You can find detailed information about Kegel exercise by following the rest of the article.
Urinary incontinence is a condition that can be observed in many age groups in society and may occur due to various reasons. In addition to this complaint called urinary incontinence, another problem that can be seen is gas and feces leakage. These problems, which occur due to weakness in the pelvic floor muscles, can have a significant negative impact on people’s daily and social lives. Therefore, they need to be treated appropriately. There are many alternative treatments for incontinence treatment. Kegel exercise is among these treatment options. Kegel exercise is a method that can be easily applied by individuals and yields effective results. Thanks to this exercise, a regression in existing complaints can be observed in a short time. However, proper exercise is important for the desired effects to occur. You can find detailed information about Kegel exercise by following the rest of the article.
Urinary incontinence is a condition that can be observed in many age groups in society and may occur due to various reasons. In addition to this complaint called urinary incontinence, another problem that can be seen is gas and feces leakage. These problems, which occur due to weakness in the pelvic floor muscles, can have a significant negative impact on people’s daily and social lives. Therefore, they need to be treated appropriately. There are many alternative treatments for incontinence treatment. Kegel exercise is among these treatment options. Kegel exercise is a method that can be easily applied by individuals and yields effective results. Thanks to this exercise, a regression in existing complaints can be observed in a short time. However, proper exercise is important for the desired effects to occur. You can find detailed information about Kegel exercise by following the rest of the article.
What is Kegel Exercise?
Kegel Exercise is one of the simple and effective methods used to strengthen the pelvic floor muscles. The pelvis is the part of the lower body that contains the excretory and reproductive organs. The pelvic floor is a structure that protects and supports the fixed positions of the organs in this area. There are many muscles with different functions within the pelvic floor. These muscles can be negatively affected as a result of situations where the pelvic floor is under stress, such as birth, surgery, and weight gain. Increasing age is another factor that affects the pelvic floor muscles. As a result, problems with urinary and stool control may be encountered. Kegel exercise is a technique that strengthens the pelvic floor muscles and thus provides an effective solution to complaints such as urinary and fecal incontinence.
What are the Benefits of Kegel Exercise?
Kegel exercise has many benefits for both women and men. Urinary incontinence is a problem defined as the leakage of variable amounts of urine at inappropriate times and conditions. The medical condition that explains urine leakage during activities such as coughing, sneezing and laughing is called stress incontinence. Urge type incontinence is the complaint of sudden urge to urinate and leaking it before reaching the toilet. Dysfunctions in the pelvic floor muscles due to various reasons are the most important factors for stress and urge incontinence. Kegel exercise can contribute to the treatment of urinary incontinence by targeting the pelvic floor muscles. There are many studies showing that Kegel exercise is also useful for fecal incontinence. However, long-term constipation problems, defined as chronic constipation, may also benefit from kegel exercises. These exercises also have significant effects on the health of the reproductive organs. It helps strengthen the uterine and vaginal muscles in women. In men, it contributes to the protection of prostate functions. By adapting Kegel exercise to your daily life, you can benefit from all these positive effects on health.
Who is Kegel Exercise Suitable for?
Kegel exercise can be beneficial in relieving many complaints related to the pelvic floor muscles. Individuals with any of the following characteristics can benefit from kegel exercises by consulting their physician:
- Incontinence: Kegel exercise, which is a simple and effective method against the problem of urinary or fecal incontinence that can be observed as a result of various factors, is a movement that can be easily applied by individuals with this problem. Scientific studies show that kegel exercise can provide effective results against stress and urge urinary incontinence. In addition, this exercise can provide significant benefits in gas and stool control.
- Pregnancy and birth: The amount of load on the pelvic floor increases during pregnancy. During birth, both the uterus and vaginal muscles are under stress. As a result, urinary, gas or fecal incontinence may occur. Experts recommend kegel exercises for pregnant individuals, performed in accordance with physician recommendations. Thus, the pelvic floor muscles, which remain under pressure during pregnancy, can be supported. In addition, precautions can be taken against incontinence complaints that may occur after birth.
- Weight gain: Situations such as recent significant weight gain and excess weight may increase the load on the pelvic floor muscles and cause incontinence problems. Kegel exercises can be applied to prevent such problems that may occur due to weight.
- Sports activities: Pelvic floor muscles may be negatively affected due to excessive load on the trunk, especially during physical activities using loads. Individuals who engage in such activities can benefit from kegel exercises despite possible dysfunctions.
- Surgical procedures: There is a possibility that the pelvic floor muscles may be negatively affected as a result of operations involving the pelvic area. Your physician may recommend kegel exercises after the post-operative recovery period. Thus, incontinence problems that may occur due to pelvic floor weakness can be prevented.
- Prostate diseases: Studies show the beneficial nature of kegel exercise in diseases such as prostatitis and benign prostatic hyperplasia. Thanks to this exercise performed in accordance with the doctor’s recommendations, complaints such as prostate pain and swelling can be prevented.
How to Do Kegel Exercise?
Kegel exercise, which can be easily incorporated into daily life, is an activity that can be performed indoors or outdoors. Individuals who are new to Kegel exercise can choose a comfortable area at home to focus. The exercise is performed by regularly contracting and relaxing the pelvic floor muscles. For this, the pelvic muscles are tightened and held in this position for 3 seconds. Then, all muscles are relaxed and rested for 3 seconds. The exercise is completed by repeating this movement several times. Some individuals may have difficulty when they first try kegel exercise. For this reason, it can be tried for a short time and with few repetitions in the beginning. As you adapt to the technique, the exercise can be intensified by increasing the duration and number of repetitions. However, excessively increasing exercise duration should be avoided. What is recommended by experts is 3 times a day and 10-15 repetitions. The tightening and loosening time can be tailored individually depending on the feeling of contraction in the pelvic floor. As a result, pelvic floor muscles can be strengthened by exercising 3 times a day for about 5 minutes.
How Do I Find My Pelvic Floor Muscles?
Some people who are new to Kegel exercise may have difficulty using their pelvic floor muscles. As a result, incorrect movements may occur that involve different structures such as the abdominal muscles. In order to get the expected efficiency from Kegel exercise, the correct muscles must first be used. For this purpose, different methods that focus on the pelvic floor muscles can be tried. The first of these methods is to tighten the pelvic muscles, imagining that the person is preventing the person from passing gas. In the meantime, you can focus on which muscles in your body are used and try squeezing these muscles during exercise. Another method is to stop urine output during the toilet and focus on the muscles that are active at that time. These muscles, which help stop urination, are located in the pelvic floor structure. However, this method should not be applied constantly. Otherwise, a situation called residual urine may occur, which can cause bladder infections. While performing the Kegel exercise, there is a pulling sensation in the vaginal and anal area. When a sensation of the type mentioned occurs, it can be said that the exercise has been performed correctly. If the pelvic muscles cannot be found as a result of all these methods, information can be obtained by consulting a specialist physician. Your physician can help you exercise properly by using professional techniques such as biofeedback or electrical stimulation.
