How do I best condition my pelvic floor for birth?
To adequately prepare your pelvic floor for childbirth you will likely need more than a few rounds of Kegels. Fully preparing this “birth door” for baby to come through is a much more nuanced (and interesting) task.
There are 35 different muscles connected to the pelvic basin. These tissues work in concert with your core and respiratory muscles to help usher baby into the world. For a smooth birth experience these tissues need elasticity, to stretch so the baby can come out. Plus you will need a combination of strength and ease, to power baby forward while simultaneously releasing space for it to slide through.
All these actions combined–stretch, strength, ease and power–can be a lot to suddenly take on during labor without proper training.
The following three practices with educate your mind and body on how to move confidently toward the birth experience. Their intent is to help you minimize pain, scarring and boost your sense of embodiment during a vaginal birth. Using these same techniques postpartum can also help prevent urinary and fecal incontinence.
“Preparing the soft tissues of your pelvic floor is critical for you having a comfortable labor and delivery,” says Jill Miller, creator of The Roll Model Mama. These practices will help you do just that…
Prenatal Pelvic Floor Exercise: Mapping Your Anatomy
Get to know the muscles of your pelvic floor in this prenatal mini anatomy lesson with Jill Miller. Knowing your own anatomy will help you prepare for the strength and flexibility pelvic floor exercises to follow. Learn how to target the basement of the pelvic funnel to aid in prenatal pelvic floor issues and discomfort.
Prenatal Pelvic Floor Exercise: Therapeutic Self-massage with Coregeous® ball
Try out this gentle pelvic floor exercise using a Tune Up Fitness® Coregeous® ball to massage and better sense the muscles of your pelvic basin. Through this prenatal therapeutic self-massage, you will be better prepared for a vaginal birth. Practice along with Jill Miller as she demonstrates these Pelvic Floor Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation exercises.
Prenatal Pelvic Floor Exercise: Pelvic floor Contract/Relax Exercises with Yoga Tune Up® therapy ball
Learn how to contract and relax the muscles of the pelvic floor with an original sized Yoga Tune Up® therapy ball. This prenatal pelvic floor exercise will bring greater mind-body connection (ie. proprioception) to your pelvic floor muscles so they are strong, and supple. Help prepare your pelvic floor for a vaginal birth and help rehabilitate these tissues after.
These videos are excerpts from Roll Model Mama–the first myofascial massage program for pregnant and postpartum women. Packed with over three hours of restorative self-massage segments designed to address many of the physical challenges brought on by pregnancy, Jill Miller uses first-hand knowledge to guide you on your myofascial massage self-care journey.
Related Article:Â Preparing to Breath During Birth: The Ultimate Respiratory Practices for Pregnancy and Labor
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Thanks for this post. An exercise program to get your body ready for a healthy birthing experience.
good information
Thanks to the Tune Up yoga team for sharing this valuable information about what exercises can be done during pregnancy to strengthen the pelvic floor that go beyond Kegel exercises. The pelvic floor carries a lot of weight during pregnancy and is weakening, and even more so if it is a natural birth, causing health problems such as urinary incontinence that has become very common in young women coupled with not having rest in the postpartum period. Quarantine is very important.
Wendy
Thanks to the Tune Up yoga team for sharing this valuable information about what exercises can be done during pregnancy to strengthen the pelvic floor that go beyond Kegel exercises. The pelvic floor carries a lot of weight during pregnancy and is weakening, and even more so if it is a natural birth, causing health problems such as urinary incontinence that has become very common in young women coupled with not having rest in the postpartum period. Quarantine is very important.
I strive every day to defeat these taboos in connection with pelvic health in my pregnant clients. By procuring me the Roll Model Mama, I will be able to provide them with indispensable tools to take care of her in pre- and post partum. When I’m certified YTU, this is an aspect I want to prioritize in my YTU practice and teaching. Thank you
WOW!! This is a great opportunity to use the balls to open up the pelvic floor, release some of the tension and prepare for the baby. I have already had my baby but i look forward to sharing this with my pregnant yogis!!
I was very young when I pregnant and I never knew how important exercise and stretching were for pregancy of labour. I absolutely know that YTU would have helped strengthen my pelvis and therefore it would likely have helped with labour. I had a very weak pelvis and my son was eventually born trough c section. I look forward to using UTY in my next pregancy as well as for and during labour.
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I’m an osteopath and am thrilled to have a new resource to refer my prepartum and postpartum patients to for their daily somatic tune-up practice at home.
I teach prenatal yoga every once in a while, and am looking forward to incorporating some of these exercises, especially the contract, relax exercise. I wish I came across this post while I was pregnant!
Great advice! I think the exercises demonstrated can be useful for someone who also has a weak pelvic floor
Hi, I’m new to ball massage, so I could use a little help to figure out what might be best for me to start with ball massage. My husband and I hope to try for our first baby in the next 6 months. I recently slipped on ice and visited the doctor. During the visit she identified a lot of my pain was from extremely tight hip flexors and other pelvic region muscles. She recommended physical therapy and ball massage. Do you think the prenatal exercises could work well for me although I’m not pregnant yet? Also would the role model mama videos focus on helping with non pregnant pelvic issues or is that another package?
I’m so glad to see this information available to the public. I have two friends who dealt with these issues after childbirth. I’m so looking forward to sharing this with them. Thank you!