Why strengthening the pelvis is a very good idea.

What do you think would happen to your house if the foundation was fragile and out of place? Everything above it would also fall. Your whole house would collapse in on itself. To have a proper house you need a good foundation so that it does not collapse.

So why wouldn’t you treat your body the same way? Why would you ignore your pelvic floor? The answer to this rhetorical question is that you shouldn’t ignore it. If you have any desire to have a strong and balanced body, then training your pelvic floor is a MUST!

Unfortunately, there is information that says that it is not that important. I totally disagree. Take a look at the image of a woman’s pelvis. I’m using a women’s one because it’s even more important for them to make sure her pelvis is balanced and strong.

Where it says “symphysis pubis” is the front of the body. And where it says Sacred Promontory, this is the back of the body. You are looking from the top down. Look at all the important contents there. Gynecological system (part pictured, part not), rectum, bladder (not pictured). All of these things are inside the pelvis and need to be in the right place to work properly. If, for example, the pelvis is unbalanced and the bladder twists, this could lead to an inability to fully expel all the urine and lead to a bladder infection.

What you don’t see is the content above. Gastrointestinal tract, liver, stomach, spleen, heart, lungs, blah, blah, blah… A lot! They all depend on your pelvic floor being in a good place and strong to not let everything fall down and in some cases come out. It’s called a prolapse and it doesn’t sound like fun.

So how do you train the pelvic floor?

The first and easiest thing to do is to do Kegel exercises throughout the day. Simply contract your perineum (like holding in urine for women and for men like holding an ovum), hold for a couple of beats, then release. Do this as much as you can throughout the day.

The problem is that this is where most programs stop. This is the incy wincy beginning of your program. This exercise will bring good awareness and some strength to your perineum. This won’t build a lot of strength, it won’t allow you to differentiate it with all the different muscles that work with it, it won’t strengthen the other muscles that are part of the pelvic floor, and it won’t hold up. balanced out

What else works with the pelvic floor?

The obturator internus and the piriformis are part of the pelvic floor and also need to be strengthened. The 10 adductor (inner thigh) muscles, 3 glutes, 4 layers of abdominals, the 4 different parts of the psosa, and the diaphragm all have symbiotic relationships with the pelvic floor. They need to be trained to be able to work in harmony with the pelvic floor. ALL YOU need to have the right amount of stretch to keep them balanced and mobile.

Here are a couple of images to give you an idea of ​​all the other muscles (not all pictured) that ALSO need to be trained:

If this sounds complex, it’s because the body is complex. There is no “do these 3 things and everything is fine”. But keep it simple at first and do Kegel exercises. Then start contracting the muscles listed above that have a symbiotic relationship with it in sequence with the perineum. Learn to work the perineum independently of them. And learn how each one feels.

The main action point here is to realize that it’s important and start doing something about it. You want your pelvic floor to be a floor not open like a door.

Remember that it is not just about exercising. It is laying the foundations for a better life.