5 Poses for Pelvic Floor Relaxation
Spasm of the pelvic floor muscles can lead to incontinence and pelvic pain. Try these pelvic floor exercises to relax your pelvic floor, helping to both cure and prevent future occurrences. For more information please contact pelvic health physical therapist Aisling Linehan: alinehan@njspineandsports.net
Happy Baby Pose
Lie on your back and draw your knees into your chest. Grab your big toes with your first two fingers and allow your knees to fall to the side of your chest. Actively relax the muscles inside your legs and let go of any tension/holding throughout your pelvic floor. Hold position for 5 full breaths and repeat twice daily.
Hip Adductor Stretch (Butterfly)
Lie on your back with bent knees and gently place the soles of your feet together. Allow your knees to slowly fall to the side and feel your inner thighs and groin elongate. Scan your pelvic floor for points of tension and let go for 5 full breaths. Repeat twice daily.
Hip Flexor Stretch
With both feet pointing forward raise one foot up onto a sturdy platform. Find a neutral pelvic position and gently move your knee forward. Allow your pelvic floor muscles to relax as you sink deeper into the stretch. Hold for 5 breaths and repeat twice on both sides for optimum results.
Cat/Cow
Safely arrive on your hands and knees, hands shoulder width apart and knees hip width apart. Engage your core and abdominal muscles finding a neutral spine. Inhale looking up to the ceiling, draw shoulder blades together, arch back, tip your tailbone toward the ceiling, relax the pelvic floor. Exhale, bringing chin to chest, rounding back, tucking tail and engage the pelvic floor musculature. Repeat for ten breath cycles twice daily for optimum results.
Quadruped to Downward Dog
Arrive safely on your hands and knees. Curl your toes under and slowly straighten your legs. Push the floor away from you with your hands, relax the neck and shoulders. Feel the pelvic floor become heavy and fully relaxed for 5 deep breaths, return to quadruped between reps and repeat twice daily.
Frog Pose
Begin in the quadruped position on your hands and knees. Walk your knees apart until you feel the stretch between your thighs. Lower down to your forearms. Arch and flex your back feeling the pelvic floor stretch and shorten. Breathe in and out with each change of position, repeating ten times daily for optimum results.
