How to identify if you have pelvic floor issues?

Our female health is not something we talk about a lot. With the lack of education on the topic, we might not even recognize that the discomfort we might be having is a pelvic floor issue and that it can be resolved and life’s comfort and joy can be brought back.

So how to identify if you have pelvic floor problems?

Constipation & digestion issues

Constipation, hemorrhoids, painful and irregular bowel movements are strong indicators of pelvic floor irregularities.

Urinary incontinence

Having a frequent need to pee, inability to hold it in, urine leakage (unintentional urine passing) with coughing, sneezing, or physical activity (e.g. running, jumping) is pretty much the definition of pelvic floor dysfunction.

Issues related to sexual health

Painful intercourse, low libido, lack of sexual pleasure and intimate sensitivity, or vaginal flatulence would be a sign to check your pelvic floor health.

Pains in the pelvic area & organs’ prolapse

Regular vaginal pains, discomfort and painful sensation with female hygiene products use, internal organs prolapse, painful gynecological exams, or chronic infections strongly signal pelvic floor issues as well.

I find it disturbing that many women who experience at least one of the above are conditioned to take such issues as “normal”, especially after childbirth. The issues are certainly common but they’re not normal! And, truly, we don’t have to bear it - there are solutions like pelvic floor yoga that help to bring our pelvic health back.

How does pelvic floor yoga help?

Constipation: the main reason for it is a lack of blood circulation in your bowel. Pelvic floor yoga increases blood circulation which helps to normalize bowel movements and eliminate constipation and most of the digestion issues.

Urinary incontinence: the main reason for stress incontinence is weakened pelvic floor muscles. My pelvic floor exercises program is focused on yogic asanas that help to tone and strengthen pelvic floor muscles as well as it shares techniques for pelvic muscle relaxation.

Pains in the pelvic area & organs’ prolapse: pelvic floor yoga works very well for women with 1-st and 2-nd levels of prolapse of any internal organs. With the vacuum techniques (part of my pelvic floor program), we learn to move the organs back up and strengthen the pelvic floor muscles to hold the organs where they belong.

Flatulence and issues related to sexual health: vaginal flatulence usually happens because of weak pelvic floor muscles. It is common after natural childbirth and often prevents women from having joy from intimate connections with a partner. Pelvic floor exercises help to strengthen vaginal muscles and bring back intimate sensitivity and sexual pleasure back to their lives.

Pelvic floor yoga is a powerful practice to elevate your female health and become the happiest, healthiest version of yourself. Schedule your free discovery session with me or get a 1-1 private training today.

Menopause and pelvic floor

It’s not a secret that menopause is a big change of a woman's body, hormonal level and the way we, women, feel. We all know some symptoms of the transition such as mood swings, hot flashes, and weight gain but (as usual) there’s no open conversation about what happens to the pelvic floor when menopause hits.

Once menopause begins, our hormonal levels change - estrogen (which helps in reproduction, menstrual cycles and many more things) starts to go down. Because of this drop in estrogen that comes with menopause, our pelvic floor often becomes slightly thinner, slightly drier, and more prone to muscle tightness. Some other symptoms of unwanted pelvic floor changes that occur during menopause can be constipation, incontinence, or pelvic soreness and discomfort.

There’s no way to stop menopause but there are plenty of things we can do to postpone it or make it more bearable and less harmful for your pelvic floor muscles and I’m happy to share those:

1. Pelvic floor yoga

Menopause can’t be “it” for your pelvic floor - there are too many important functions for it to maintain! With pelvic floor yoga, in just 15 min a day we can keep our pelvic floor muscles healthy, which is essential for bowel movement, libido & sexual function, healthy bladder, and toned abdomen.

You can get a set of exercises to postpone menopause during a 1-1 consultation with me (like Anna did - read her success story here) or try an introductory 8-min workout here first.

Anna's progress with pelvic floor training

2. Healthy diet with some strong “no-goes”

Everything processed (potato chips, fast food, bacon), rich in trans fats (margarine), fried (fries, fried chicken, mozzarella sticks), sweet (sweet sodas, cookies, white breads) or containing alcohol is a “no-go”. Reducing the amount (or eliminating) of such foods will help your digestion tremendously, which, in turn, will make it a lot easier on your pelvic floor (and mood, and body shape and skin quality! Those foods are literally good for nothing).

The “good” foods are most of the products with anti-inflammatory properties. They will help to decrease the discomfort that might be happening in your body and ease digestion. Among those foods are: berries, grapes, fatty fish, eggs, avocado, green tea & caffeine-free infusions, peppers, sweet potato, mushrooms, etc.

Another very important thing is to stay hydrated (surprise-surprise). Dehydration can cause constipation (among other things), which can lead to a weakened pelvic floor.

3. Get a consultation with a pelvic floor specialist

You don’t have to go through it on your own. I’m happy to help you and introduce you to a community of women who are experiencing the same things. Together we are stronger. Book a FREE 20-minute discovery call with me here to discuss what would work best for you!

Powerful breathing secrets

I am constantly fascinated with the benefits different types of breathing bring. It’s amazing how such a simple thing as breathing can benefit your health tremendously. Today, I want to share with you the incredible advantages of kapalabhati breathing.

3 main directions of benefits are increased energy, a calm mind and abdominal muscles strength. Let’s get into each one by one:

• Energy: during this breathing, we stimulate our nervous system (solar plexus), adrenal glands, and ovaries, making you feel more energized, as an increased amount of blood will now be circulating through your body.

• Mind relaxation: kapalabhati also helps to calm the mind. When we are focused on the ratio, pattern, and force of the breath, we have no time to think of anything else. This allows our minds to settle and focus.

• Abdominal training: kapalbhati is great for weight loss as it is directly linked with our body's metabolic rate, gut health, and digestion. Kapalbhati engages the deepest stomach muscles and strengthens and tones them from within. You will never get to them by doing abs exercises.

Incorporating this breathing technique into your daily routine will get your energy level up, calm your mind, help to flatten your stomach, strengthen your abdominal muscles and improve your stomach skin quality. If you practice this breathing technique correctly, you can see a noticeably more toned belly within a week's time.

It is recommended to practice Kapalbhati breathing on an empty stomach. Try doing 3 rounds of 30 seconds each every day. When you feel very comfortable with it, you can extend it to a minute.

Though the benefits are amazing, Kapalbhati breathing is not for everyone. Please, refrain from the practice if you have any of the following contraindications.

- problems with the thyroid gland (with hyperthyroidism)

- inflammatory processes in the throat (sore throat, cough)

- fast-growing neoplasms

- sympathetic nervous system type practice, high blood pressure

Intrigued to try kapalabhati breathing? Join my online course here at $60 for unlimited access to kapalabhati breathing, pelvic floor exercises, nauli and many other techniques.