Get the Results You Want with These 7 Pelvic Floor Exercises for Pregnancy and Postpartum

 

If you’re a pregnant or postpartum mom, you’ve been warned about the long-term effects of pelvic floor dysfunction.

⭐ Your gynecologist already referred you to a pelvic floor therapist.

⭐ Your mom says incontinence is a normal part of post-pregnancy life.

⭐ You see other mothers joke about their pelvic floor on social media.

⭐ And you’ve heard plenty of stories about painful sex.

But what if we told you pregnancy isn’t the beginning of the end for your pelvic floor?

It’s an opportunity to connect with your pelvic floor and build it back even stronger.

While pregnancy and postpartum can disrupt muscle groups and change how you interact with your body, it doesn’t have to. But in order to change the narrative about pelvic floor dysfunction, we need to change how we understand these unique muscles.

Here’s how to strengthen your pelvic floor, empower your body, and get the results you actually want.

Common Symptoms of Pelvic Floor Dysfunction

How do you know you have pelvic floor dysfunction? This can occur both during pregnancy and postpartum (even years after childbirth).

Some symptoms are obvious (like pain during sex and incontinence) while others are more subtle. No matter the symptoms you experience, you deserve to advocate for yourself and find the answers that lead to real healing for your body.

• Heaviness in the vaginal canal. It’s common to feel a sensation of fullness or heaviness right after birth (like you’re sitting on a ball). This often resolves on its own, although it can become a sign of pelvic floor dysfunction if it persists into postpartum.

• Incontinence and frequent urination. This manifests as peeing when you cough, sneeze, or jump or always needing to use the bathroom.

• Painful sex. This can be the result of injury or pelvic floor muscles that are too tight (from too many Kegels). It can also happen after a C-section delivery as you regain awareness of your pelvic floor muscles.

• General pelvic pain. This is pain you can’t quite put your finger on. For some women, it manifests near the hamstrings or as lateral hip pain.

• Saggy jeans. “Mom butt” is just another change your body experiences during pregnancy, right? Actually, it can be a sign that your glutes are compensating for your pelvic floor. 

• Bowel issues. This could manifest as unexplained urgency or constipation.

• Bulging around the vagina. You may see or feel a slight bulge around the vaginal opening. This is a sign that your pelvic floor is struggling to stay in place.

The Benefits of Pelvic Floor Exercises

Strength training exercises are considered the best way to protect and restore your pelvic floor. Take Kegel exercises, for example. These are the first (and sometimes, only) recommendation for pelvic floor recovery.

But even women who do Kegel exercises still struggle with incontinence, painful sex, and prolapse years after giving birth.

This is because Kegels only focus on a few elements of pelvic floor recovery. They strengthen the pelvic floor and only target the muscles around the urethra. This promotes imbalance in muscles that are designed to both strengthen and lengthen.

Think about it: any time you build muscle at the gym, you want to complement that strength with flexibility and function. The same goes for the pelvic floor.

Here are some benefits of intentional pelvic floor exercise:

• A stronger core than before pregnancy. Yes, the right pelvic floor exercises can help you build your pelvic floor and core back even stronger.

• Decreased chance of tearing during birth. If you’re pregnant, focus on lengthening and relaxing the pelvic floor muscles.

• Lowered risk of pelvic floor injury during postpartum. A strong and functional pelvic floor is able to handle the extra physical demands of pregnancy and postpartum — and bounce back with fewer injuries.

• A better sex life. Pain or discomfort during sex is common, but it’s not normal. There’s truly no reason to compromise your sex life after pregnancy. Intentional and targeted exercise can help you regain natural pelvic floor function.

• A deeper connection to yourself through your physical body. The female body isn’t just a smaller version of the male body. Pelvic floor exercises can help you appreciate all your body has accomplished.

• Decreased risk of prolapse. Whether you’re pregnant or postpartum, the right pelvic floor exercises can drastically decrease your risk of organ prolapse and post-pregnancy injury.

The Right Way to Do Pelvic Floor Exercises

Promote Balance (Strengthen and Lengthen)

Kegel exercises focus on engaging and activating the pelvic floor muscles. But you need to lengthen or relax those muscles, too. Without the lengthening piece, you could develop something called a hypertonic pelvic floor (an extremely tight pelvic floor). This manifests with many of the same symptoms as a weak pelvic floor and can cause problems down the line.

Always Down-train Before Birth

It’s so important to focus on lengthening your pelvic floor to practice for labor and delivery. Ideally, your pelvic floor should be totally relaxed (not activated) during the pushing phase of labor. 

Since pushing can last a few minutes to a few hours, it’s essential to build endurance and intention for pelvic floor lengthening. For this reason, we don’t recommend strength training your pelvic floor after the second trimester. Practicing activation can put you in the wrong mindset and promote injury.

Not Every Pelvic Floor Exercise Should Be Challenging

Pelvic floor training isn’t like weight lifting. You’re not trying to beat your personal best or lift a heavier weight. You’re really looking to engage with essential muscles and build intention. We love a challenging exercise, but pelvic floor foundations (like regulating transabdominal pressure and mastering your diaphragmatic breath) must be addressed first.

Pelvic Floor Exercises That Encourage Balance

1. Diaphragmatic Breathing

This is much easier than a Kegel exercise and much more effective. Activating your diaphragmatic breath can help you build awareness of your pelvic floor muscles. You should be able to notice when they activate and lengthen.

This awareness is crucial for your pelvic floor health before and after birth. Practice your diaphragmatic breathing while sitting on a birthing ball, towel, or yoga block — so you can feel how your breath and pelvic floor muscles interact

      2. Belly Pumping 

Once you master diaphragmatic breathing, you can take your pelvic floor exercise one step further with belly pumping. This is a unique method developed by Studio Bloom that helps you lengthen the pelvic floor (on inhales) and activate it (on exhales).

      3. Table Top to Child’s Pose

Start on all fours in a tabletop position — with your shoulders stacked above your wrists and your knees in line with your outstretched ankles. Gently transfer weight into your hips and lower down into child’s pose. Notice how your pelvic floor lengthens during this exercise. For best results, you’ll want to pair it with diaphragmatic breathing.

      4. Sumo Squats

Start in a regular squat position and then move your feet even wider for a supported sumo squat. You’ll want to gently bend your knees and lower your core and glutes. Inhale diaphragmatically and notice your pelvic floor begin to lengthen. Then exhale and engage the pelvic floor as you return to standing. This exercise is helpful for those who want to create balance by strengthening and lengthening the pelvic floor.

      5. Effortless Movements

In fitness, it’s common to assume that if you don’t sweat or have sore muscles after your workout, you didn’t do it right. But this isn’t what you should aim for with pelvic floor exercises. Returning your core to its natural state should feel seamless. Remember, you’re just nudging your muscles toward a natural healing space. Overexerting (especially in early postpartum) may force you to engage your core rather than your pelvic floor. It can also promote an overly tight or hypertonic pelvic floor.

       6. Pelvic Tilts

This is another simple exercise with a powerful impact. You’ll start in tabletop position, on all fours with your shoulders stacked above your wrists. Gently tilt your pelvis in, drawing your hip bones to the bottom of your ribcage. Then tilt your pelvis out and return to neutral. 

This exercise is similar to the cat-cow yoga pose, but the movement is much more subtle. You’ll want to pair this with diaphragmatic breathing and Studio Bloom’s lift and wrap technique to properly engage your core and prevent diastasis recti.

       7. Kneeling Squat

Find a comfortable position on your knees with your feet behind you and your shoulders squared. Put an exercise ball in between your thighs and hold a weight in each hand for bicep curls (optional). To do this exercise, sink all the way back into a squat position (with your glutes right above your ankles) and then rise.

This exercise does focus on hip and thigh strength, but we want you to take it as an opportunity to engage your pelvic floor and build awareness of your contractions. This exercise should be done with care if you experience a tight (or hypertonic) pelvic floor or if you’re currently pregnant.

The Bottom Line: Pelvic Floor Rehabilitation Is Easier Than You Think

Pelvic floor rehabilitation isn’t only accessible to fitness enthusiasts.

Recovering functionality and strength in your pelvic floor is as simple as learning how to breathe, lengthen, and engage. At The Bloom Method, we’ve helped thousands of women use these techniques to get the results they want and return to their favorite activities after pregnancy.

Remember, your body is designed to handle pregnancy.

And it’s designed to heal after pregnancy.

All you need to do is give it the right tools for success.