Strengthen your pelvic floor

• Start by lying down or sitting comfortably in a chair
• Tighten the muscles around the anus, vagina and urethra all at once and try to lift them up inside
• Try to hold this while you slowly count to five then let go
• Rest while you count to five then try again
• If you can’t feel anything happening at all, you may need help from a physiotherapist to learn how to work your muscles effectively
• If you can hold for a little longer, do so. Gradually build up until you can hold for 10 counts and rest for 10 in between
• Do as many as you can up to 10
• Then rest for a minute or two
• Now do some really strong squeezes…as strong as you can, then let go. Do as many of these as you can up to about 10
• Do the above routine a few times a day
• Remember…don’t bear down, hold your breath or squeeze buttocks or legs together
• Don’t practise stopping the flow of urine mid-stream as an exercise. This can send incorrect messages to your bladder and stop it from emptying completely.

Hot tips

• Always contract your muscles well. It’s not that easy to do pelvic floor exercises at traffic lights. You really need to concentrate more than that!
• Contract your muscles when you cough, sneeze, laugh, lift or blow your nose to ensure good support to pelvic organs and good bladder control.
• Muscle strengthening can take months…persevere and seek help if needed.