Pelvic Floor Training: Treatment, Effect & Risks

Pelvic floor training is also called Kegel training. Named after the inventor Arnold H. Kegel. In this training, the muscles around the pelvic floor are trained. If the pelvic floor is not optimally trained, problems often arise. One example of this is urinary incontinence. Pelvic floor training can provide relief.

What is pelvic floor training?

There are qualified physical therapists who specifically perform pelvic floor training. After instruction from the physiotherapist, the exercises can also be performed at home. Experts call the pelvic floor the boundary of the pelvic canal. Anatomically, it is the pelvic floor muscles, which in technical jargon are called perineal (perineal) muscles. Pelvic floor training helps to keep these muscles tight. This musculature supports the closure of the urethra (urethra) and the anus. Another function is optimal musculature for the position of the abdominal and pelvic organs. If the muscles of the pelvic floor are slack, experts recommend pelvic floor training. It is used not only for pre-existing complaints, but also for prevention.

Areas of application

Flabby pelvic floor muscles can cause back pain, sexual problems or urinary incontinence can develop, even to the point of fecal incontinence. This is why pelvic floor training is important. After childbirth, women often have extensive and slack pelvic muscles. But also bladder and uterine prolapse, aging and obesity, can lead to slack muscles around the pelvic floor. Pelvic floor training strengthens the strained muscles after childbirth. Men have a different anatomical structure than women, which is why they rarely suffer from slack pelvic floor muscles. Pelvic floor training is also important for a man. If a man has had prostate cancer surgery, pelvic floor training is valuable because urinary incontinence can develop after these surgeries. The muscles around the pelvic floor tend not to be felt. It is not actively used. If a woman has an orgasm, it is automatically activated. It is also called the love muscle. Pelvic floor training supports not only the excretory organs, but also the ability to orgasm. Premature ejaculation in men can also be delayed with pelvic floor training. This was successfully documented by the inventor Arnold H. Kegel in 1952.

Application method – function, effect and goals.

There are some conservative application procedures for pelvic floor training. In pelvic floor training, experts also use aids. These include so-called ring or cube pessaries and foam tampons. These aids are individually fitted. The patient has to change them himself. Also available as pelvic floor training are vaginal cones, which have a different weight. Like a tampon, the cone is inserted into the vagina. The patient must actively hold these cones in the vagina. As another application method for pelvic floor training, there is a special pelvic floor machine in a fitness center. Trained staff gives the user instructions for the correct contraction and relaxation of the pelvic floor muscles during pelvic floor training. A so-called EMS device (electrical muscle stimulation) is also considered by experts to be an application method for pelvic floor training. This device has a probe that is inserted either rectally or vaginally. The device generates stimulation current pulses. Automated contractions occur as a result of these pulses. There are qualified physical therapists who specifically perform pelvic floor training. After instruction by the physiotherapist, the exercises can also be performed at home. These include alternating contractions and relaxations, which can be performed in front of the TV, in the car or while ironing as pelvic floor training.

Risks, side effects and dangers

Experts recommend that patients first do pelvic floor training with a psychotherapist or midwife. Trained personnel are beneficial to learn pelvic floor training properly. Only when pelvic floor training is done properly and regularly can the pelvic floor muscles be tightened. Pelvic floor training has more advantages than disadvantages, but it also has dangers. If pelvic floor training is not performed optimally, the muscles may be pulled or the “wrong” muscles may be engaged. Then the pelvic floor muscles cannot be tightened.The longer pelvic floor training continues, the more pressure ulcers can develop. This often happens when using EMS devices. Germs can also enter the vagina and lead to urinary tract infections. However, the side effects are positive. If pelvic floor training is performed optimally, the internal organs are supported. It is important to perform pelvic floor training daily, to spend time for it and self-discipline.