5 Yoga Poses to Strengthen Your Pelvic Floor Muscles
Generally in our workout routines strengthening our pelvic floor muscles doesn’t particularly come to mind. However, with the research supporting the immense health benefits for both men and women this muscle group shouldn’t be left unnoticed. In regards to specifically women, these benefits include improvement over bladder control and bowel functions, reduced risk of prolapsed internal organs into the vagina, and bouncing back faster from childbirth and surgery. Kegel exercises are the most well known solution for strengthening these muscles. But according to Leslie Howard, an Oakland-based yoga teacher specializing in pelvic floor health, “A healthy pelvic floor is more than just Kegels”. Yoga can also be another alternative to promoting and strengthening pelvic floor health.
Here are 5 poses to step up your pelvic health game:
1. Mountain Pose (Tadasana): Known as the foundational pose for all asana – everything comes back to tadasana.
Standing with your feet hip width apart and your arms by your sides, place the block between the tops of your inner thighs. Squeezing the block between your thighs will challenge you to energetically pull the inner thighs together, activating not only your hamstrings but your glutes as well which counter balances the pelvic floor. Continue by drawing your belly in and up while melting your tailbone towards the mat.
Although this pose and the other poses I’ll be mentioning can be done without blocks, blocks are not only used for support during your practice, but they are great for heightening your awareness of your alignment throughout your practice. This is particularly important when honing in strength in your pelvic floor muscles. Don’t have a yoga block? – No worries, a book of a similar size will do the job as well!
* Moving through Sun Breaths while squeezing a block between your thighs is also a great way to combine pelvic floor muscle strengthening with breathwork and dynamic movement.
2. Chair Pose (Utkasana)
Moving through Chair Pose is great for strengthening the pelvic floor as this motion provides a stretch when coming in and a lift when coming out of the pose.
Starting in Tadasana with the block squeezing between your inner thighs, bend your knees to come into a squat shifting your weight and pelvis back as if you are sitting on a chair. Have your arms strong and lengthened in front of you by your ears. Keeping in mind of your knees being over your ankles and drawing your belly in and up while your tailbone does a slight posterior pelvic tilt.
3. Locust Pose (Salabhasana)
Often in this pose, people overcompensate by using their hamstrings thus not engaging their glutes, however engaging your glutes actually counter balance the pelvic floor. Placing and squeezing the block between the ankles will provide this awareness.
Begin by placing a block between your ankles. Lie down on your belly, arms by your sides palms facing down towards the mat, and resting your forehead on the floor. As you inhale, squeeze the block between your ankles and lift your feet, legs, upper chest, head, and arms off the mat. As you are lifting, pull up your knee caps to engage your quadriceps and firm your glutes. Then after holding the pose, exhale releasing back down to the mat.
4. Bridge Pose (Setu Bandha Sarvangasana)
Bridge pose is an antigravity position where you can comfortably strengthen and engage your glutes and legs which in turn counterbalance the pelvic floor.
Start by laying your back, feet are flat on the mat hip width apart, with the knees bent and tracking over the ankles. Place a block between your thighs, and return your arms by your sides palms facing down towards the mat. As you inhale, squeeze the block between your thighs, push down through your heels, and then lift your pelvis off the ground and towards the ceiling.
5. Happy Baby Pose (Ananda Balasana)
It’s been said that Happy Baby Pose is particularly great for those who sit for long periods of time.
Lie on your back and begin my hugging your knees into your chest. Gently holding on to the outer sides of your feet, open your knees wide bringing them closer towards your armpits. Flexing your feet through your heels, push your feet up into your hands as you pull your hands down to create resistance.