Healthy happy you.
Being in the last few weeks of my pregnancy, I have to confess that I haven't been keeping up with my kegels. Early in my pregnancy, new moms urged me to keep my pelvic floor strong, but distracted by the impending appearance of my new little one, exercising this area has not been a top priority. That is until now. Helping a fellow instructor out at a postnatal yoga class over the weekend, I Read more
Who doesn't want to make her time under the sheets even better? When in search of the Big O, you may need to look a little deeper, as in deep inside. I'm not talking about touching your heart here — I'm talking about getting in touch with your pelvic floor muscles. I agree that doesn't sound too sexy, and neither does the word Kegels — the name of the exercises used to strengthen those Read more
Sex and exercise are good for your health; some might even argue that sex is exercise. Hmm . . . sexercise anyone? OK, that might be a stretch, but sex and working out aren't as mutually exclusive as you think. A roll in the hay isn't a huge calorie burner, but it does have great health benefits like boosting the immune system and relieving stress. And you know those pelvic muscles you use to Read more
Jada Pinkett Smith is no stranger to sharing details about her love life; with 12 years of a successful Hollywood marriage under her belt, she probably has some healthy secrets we could all use. She told Shape magazine that she is a firm believer in kegels. Pinkett Smith proclaims doing these simple pelvic floor exercises "keeps the sex hot." Learn how to tone up down there when you read Read more
Delivering a human being vaginally will forever change a woman's anatomy — for better or worse. For one woman who gave birth to 10 and 12-pound babies, the alterations were noticeable. Wanting to regain her prebaby bod, she consulted surgeon David Matlock. The two appeared on The View and discussed the reasons for and results of the procedure. All in a day's work, Dr. Matlock performed surgery Read more
Pregnant women often seek advice on how to have an easier labor. Nearly every doctor, nurse, and birthing class told me, "Practice your kegels!" Not really having a clue why they would help, I did some research and found that according to americanpregnancy.org, kegels can offer the following advantages: Less chance of perineal tearing. Less chance of urinary problems and bladder leaks. More Read more
FitSugar reader Dhitri has an embarrassing tale about her first half marathon. She shared her story in our RunningSugar community group. Help her out by sharing your own funny or embarrassing race tales below! So you know I ran my first half and had the greatest time ever. There were a few blunders, of course (what's a race without 'em?). Firstly, I arrived only half an hour before the start. Read more
One moment of overextending yourself can lead to years of physical therapy and doctors visits to help keep your sports-related back pain at bay. Trainers and physical therapists constantly remind us to keep the abs engaged when completing any exercise, but to really strengthen your entire trunk, you must work it beyond the gym. Since most of us sit at a desk most hours of our waking day, our Read more
Here in the US, the postpartum Ob/Gyn interaction for a new mom generally involves little more than the six-week checkup, where she's usually cleared to have sex again, and perhaps given some gentle encouragement to try Kegel exercises. So you can imagine the shock of American writer Claire Lundberg, who after giving birth to her daughter in Paris, was prescribed 10-20 sessions of . . . vaginal Read more
After pregnancy and giving birth, I now understand what all the fuss is about kegel exercises. I thought strengthening my pelvic floor muscles was about improving my sex life (which isn't top on your to-do list when your belly is expanding), but when I laughed and more came out of me than roaring giggles, I started doing kegels right then and there. Moms and mothers-to-be aren't the only ones Read more
