Kegel’s exercises are one of the most important exercises a woman can do to protect her intimate health irrespective of age. Kegel’s tones and strengthens the pelvic floor muscles that are responsible for supporting your bladder, bowel, and of course your uterus. Kegel’s also helps you maintain control over bowel movement and urination.

In addition to these, Kegel’s is crucial to having a healthy pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum recovery. You could say that’s a lot of work for only one set of muscles and you will be right! Unfortunately, doing Kegel’s wrongly means you won’t be getting the full benefits of Kegel’s.

Research has shown that over 50% of women are unable to do Kegel’s the right way and so, here are the 11 most common Kegel’s mistakes and simple ways to avoid them:

Doing Kegel’s after An Orgasm

Doing Kegel’s after An Orgasm
Sexual intercourse is the quickest way for many to remember to do their Kegel’s. If done after an orgasm, the desired effect may not be achieved because, at that point, the pelvic floor muscles are fatigued (even you are tired or at least in a state of rest, sated). You may not be able to properly lift and squeeze.
Solution: Choose other times to do your Kegel’s or before you reach orgasm while having sex.

Exercising the Wrong Muscles

Exercising the Wrong Muscles
Exercising the wrong muscles means you are working on muscles that are not your pelvic muscles. Proper Kegel exercises do not involve your buttocks, abdomen, or thighs. To identify the pelvic muscles, get into a comfortable position, and isolate and contract the pelvic floor. This will allow you to squeeze your vagina, but your body should be relaxed.
Solution: To properly identify your pelvic muscles, watch my video on 5 ways to correctly identify the pelvic floor muscles here.

Identifying the Pelvic Floor Muscles without Exercising Them

Identifying the Pelvic Floor Muscles without Exercising Them
So, it’s one thing for you to properly identify the pelvic floor muscles, it’s quite another for you to exercise them. Identifying the muscles is just one step to getting the full benefits of Kegel’s.
Solution: To exercise the muscles after identifying them, lift and squeeze them for a few counts before relaxing. Watch my video on effective tips to identify the pelvic floor muscles.

Making Kegel’s a Random Exercise

Making Kegel’s a Random Exercise
Just like every other form of exercise, Kegel’s needs to be intentional. Performing Kegel’s at any point such as when your baby cries, when you have the urge to pee, or when the thought comes to mind, will not allow you to reap the full benefits of Kegel’s. This is because you may overdo it, not do enough of it, forget to do it, or lose track of your progress.
Solution: Kegel’s exercises should be structured and have specific times devoted to it. Complete the recommended sets at those times and keep track of your progress.

Not Progressing Your Kegel’s Exercises

Not Progressing Your Kegel’s Exercises
To reap the full benefits of every exercise is when you gradually increase the duration and intensity. When an exercise is gradually progressed, you reap the full benefits.
Solution: For Kegel’s, increase the duration of hold during a contraction or the number of exercise sets to progress over time.

Contracting The Pelvic Floor Muscles without Releasing Them

Contracting The Pelvic Floor Muscles without Releasing Them
Relaxing the muscles is as important as contracting them. No one goes around with flexed muscles all the time; that would be detrimental. Failure to fully relax after a contraction tenses up the muscles and leads to more problems.
Solution: Each contraction should be followed with about 3 to 5 seconds of rest. That way your muscles are not tensed unnecessarily.

Training for Strength or Endurance

Training for Strength or Endurance
The pelvic floor muscles contain two different types of muscle fibers: the slow-twitch and the fast-twist muscles, and they both contract differently, hence, they require different exercises. Fast-twitch muscles allow your muscles to quickly react to increased pressure as a result of a cough or sneeze, while slow-twitch muscle fibers support the pelvic organs for long-term periods.
Solution: Your Kegel’s routine should consist of both fast and slow contractions/releases held for longer counts.
You can watch my video on how to exercise these two components for the best results.

Not Applying Kegel’s to Real-Life Situations

Not Applying Kegel’s to Real-Life Situations
Performing Kegel’s during activities that trigger incontinence symptoms in addition to your structured Kegel’s exercises makes it more effective. For example, contracting the pelvic floor muscles when you cough, sneeze, and other such activities give good results.
Solution: Consciously contract your pelvic muscles just before you sneeze or cough.

Kegel’s in A Hurry

Kegel’s in A Hurry
No one achieves great exercise results after just a few days. Imagine you are building your biceps muscles and after lifting weight twice, you start looking for your bulging biceps. Or doing 10 sit-ups for 3 days and wondering where your flat tummy is. Good things take time, and so does Kegel’s.
Solution: Be patient and consistent. Don’t stop after 2 weeks or even a month if you don’t see significant change. Keep at it so you can achieve the best results.

Holding Your Breath During Kegel’s

Holding Your Breath During Kegel’s
Your pelvic floor muscles work in conjunction with your diaphragm and as such, holding your breath while performing Kegel’s will interrupt the flow. Holding your breath during Kegel’s increases the downward pressure on your pelvic floor and this makes the exercise more difficult.
Solution: Try to breathe normally during Kegel’s and with time, you will normalize it.

Squeezing Your Butt during Kegel’s

Squeezing Your Butt during Kegel’s
When doing Kegel’s correctly, your buttocks should not contract. The pelvic floor muscles are not connected to the buttocks and as such should not feel any pressure during Kegel’s exercises.
Solution: Make conscious effort not to squeeze your butt when you do your Kegel’s.

Doing Kegel’s the right way is definitely worth it. So, it doesn’t matter if you have been doing it for years or you are doing your first reps today, just make sure you are doing it right and you will be glad for it!