tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5410434857641014459.post3081198797364940070..comments2023-07-28T03:55:13.381-05:00Comments on Mama Sweat: Pelvic Floor EncoreKarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04570806308263561281noreply@blogger.comBlogger43125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5410434857641014459.post-11245160088919084792014-01-27T05:17:51.196-06:002014-01-27T05:17:51.196-06:00Hi I have been doing my pelvic floor exercises as...Hi I have been doing my pelvic floor exercises as recommended by the doctor and physio. I'm fine most of the time but not when I run. I do long distance running and I leak or even flood as I get tired towards the latter part or the run. I have had 5 births and had urinary incontinence and bed wetting when I was a child. I also suffer from a lack of butt. I have recently had a proceedure to realign my coccyx. It has relived the pain I was suffering but my exercise stress induced incontinence seems to be worse. Do you think the coccyx realignment has made it worse?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5410434857641014459.post-10573558454581549312013-09-10T13:56:46.062-05:002013-09-10T13:56:46.062-05:00Sorry for the delay here Kari but do check out the...Sorry for the delay here Kari but do check out these links before birthing your next baby!<br /><br />http://breakingmuscle.com/mobility-recovery/load-bearing-101-lessons-from-katy-bowman-in-how-to-hold-your-own-weight<br /><br />http://fitbottomedmamas.com/2012/09/breech-babies-is-there-anything-you-can-do/Karahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04570806308263561281noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5410434857641014459.post-50565142372784783382013-07-17T14:12:10.108-05:002013-07-17T14:12:10.108-05:00I just had a "smack-my-forehead moment."...I just had a "smack-my-forehead moment." Is it POSSIBLE that this lack of space in the pelvic area can cause or contribute to breech presentation?? I am petite and had a large baby that was head down and then turned breech about 36 weeks (never going back). Ended up with a c/s even after trying a natural birth for 36 hours. So, I'm wondering if I was doomed from the get-go due to a lack of proper space. AND could I actually create more space for my next baby? Finger crossed...getting excited!!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06962997658595267625noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5410434857641014459.post-91085163333729851472013-04-16T19:33:48.278-05:002013-04-16T19:33:48.278-05:00did my first Bowman squat today. Kinda thrilled. H...did my first Bowman squat today. Kinda thrilled. Hoping this helps with some of my bulging organs issue. Sigh.ajirahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13516211494978354713noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5410434857641014459.post-19315152336979472442013-03-12T18:28:41.893-05:002013-03-12T18:28:41.893-05:00Hi! I am a sufferer of Pelvic floor dysfunction, m...Hi! I am a sufferer of Pelvic floor dysfunction, mainly with a hypertonic pelvic muscle. The information on pelvic health is very limited out there, so I am really glad to have come across this blog.<br />I am learning to do the squat now. Thank You Katy, you are awesome !Valhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13831187181149709404noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5410434857641014459.post-45679944847256149142012-11-09T18:21:49.890-06:002012-11-09T18:21:49.890-06:00Love all of this information and it totally makes ...Love all of this information and it totally makes sense!! I have very nice muscles and could probably write my name holding a pen, BUT I did start prolapsing. I kept hearing kegels, kegels, kegels, but that didn't help. I did start doing whole body vibration (TurboSonicUSA.com) and concentrated on squats and relaxing and my uterus did go back up perfectly and my bladder issues were resolved. I also was able to relax and enjoy activities with my husband...<br /><br />Now, I'm pregnant and put whole body vibration on hiatus due to unknown effects on the fetus, but I did begin prolapsing to the point of my cervix being about an inch out of my vagina, among other issues. Again, I got the kegels, kegels, kegels... all the while telling my midwife we have relations 2-3 times a day and I work them well.<br /><br />And all of what Katy says totally makes sense!!! I'm going back to all the squats and work I was doing before and will report back.Summerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13281886603106730724noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5410434857641014459.post-89216173195453274502012-11-06T01:52:13.485-06:002012-11-06T01:52:13.485-06:00I agree! Bowman squat is far more sensible than a ...I agree! Bowman squat is far more sensible than a straight Kegel. I went for physio to rebalance my PF and like Katy says, the most important thing and most difficult thing for me to learn was to relax my PF, not tighten it.<br />Carpet Protection Filmhttp://www.polystick.com.au/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5410434857641014459.post-54083274693149739392012-08-07T07:20:42.292-05:002012-08-07T07:20:42.292-05:00Question for Katy: When you talk about how kegels ...Question for Katy: When you talk about how kegels are not really the best thing for PF you always refer to kegels as 'squeezing'. My Physical Therapist had me think of kegels more as lifting. Think of raising from anus to urethra etc. She actually told me that my kegels were too much squeezing and not enough lifting.<br /><br />Does your theory fit in with this too? i.e what I mean is that - is the 'lifting' kegel just as bad/tightening as the one where the squeeze is more emphasized?deenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5410434857641014459.post-26062100467978988472012-05-07T20:49:51.090-05:002012-05-07T20:49:51.090-05:00I know this is a "family" blog but in re...I know this is a "family" blog but in reading about releasing the pelvic floor I was instantly reminded of the same necessity in achieving G-spot orgasms. As mentioned in the post, it can be difficult for many women to release the pelvic floor. It has been a rather recent discovery for me (even at age 39) but one I am delighted with. Perhaps this would be another blog topic - if you think there might be a connection and it's not to "risky" =} I know I wish someone had told me about it sooner.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5410434857641014459.post-92001242989126614552012-04-10T03:52:52.734-05:002012-04-10T03:52:52.734-05:00very nice post. I love to visit your blog. Keep up...very nice post. I love to visit your blog. Keep updating it.Tile Brick, NJhttp://www.bricknjflooring.com/tile.htmlnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5410434857641014459.post-56493150007976248792011-03-24T12:12:13.817-05:002011-03-24T12:12:13.817-05:00Wow...I wish I'd had this information in my yo...Wow...I wish I'd had this information in my younger, more flexible days. I'm now 46 and have given birth 13 times. I am trying to get myself in shape but now have the disadvantage of osteo arthritis in my right knee, which makes me unable to bend it very far and makes squatting low impossible! :( Any suggestions for me?Motheringheartnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5410434857641014459.post-10010619657209204092011-02-26T12:35:49.023-06:002011-02-26T12:35:49.023-06:00I would love to hear some testimonials on how this...I would love to hear some testimonials on how this has changed peoples lives?? Great posts@!Vivaynehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15672509488059610971noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5410434857641014459.post-39706479859789899142011-02-18T20:35:21.216-06:002011-02-18T20:35:21.216-06:00This comment has been removed by the author.Celeste@MomBodFitnesshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11221242513154121271noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5410434857641014459.post-4970030609446841072011-02-18T20:34:53.452-06:002011-02-18T20:34:53.452-06:00As a Pre & Post Fitness Specialist, I find thi...As a Pre & Post Fitness Specialist, I find this topic very interesting. I work with women daily to help them strengthen their "core" before and long after pregnancy...which includes No crunches, but instead transverse ab work, posture strengthening exercises, splinting (if they have diastasis recti), pelvic floor, lower back and glute work. What Katy is saying makes sense, kegels are ok in moderation but glute work needs to be done. There is also a theory out there that women need to be doing 500 or more trans ab exercises/day to get their diastasis to close. My program is more in moderation and works on progressive exercises so the client can build up strength to recondition the damaged core without having to do "ridiculous amounts of trans abs and kegels". <br /><br />Well said Katy, I look forward to reading more of your work! I can't wait to see more research done on this topic.Celeste@MomBodFitnesshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11221242513154121271noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5410434857641014459.post-2055089343733683352010-08-25T22:35:15.876-05:002010-08-25T22:35:15.876-05:00This comment has been removed by the author.Suziehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14007344882956638272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5410434857641014459.post-60969542643136947952010-08-25T22:34:51.794-05:002010-08-25T22:34:51.794-05:00I lost all bladder control after the birth of my f...I lost all bladder control after the birth of my first child, I did PFs religiously for weeks until I only had slight bladder leakage when I needed to go to the toilet and then I gave up doing them and only do them randomly. <br />I cannot run or jump, which really bothers me as I used to run long distances and love it.<br />I think what Katy says makes a lot of sense. My pelvis was out of alignment (and still is a bit after pregnancy) when I got Chiro and Bowen therapy to help me straighten up a bit and not be so swayed forward, I noticed an immediate improvement in less bladder leakage. I definitely believe there is a correlation between posture and continence.Suziehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14007344882956638272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5410434857641014459.post-9658222161634321972010-06-17T21:19:29.977-05:002010-06-17T21:19:29.977-05:00As a health practitioner, I have followed this blo...As a health practitioner, I have followed this blog with some interest. <br />In an intelligent discussion, Anonymous provides an odd voice, without the self-respect to identify the source of strange and illogical arguments backed only by having identified one’s self as “a scientist.”<br />Where Bowman has presented a logical, coherent and viable solution for a pervasive health problem, your contribution has been to question the scientific validity of the approach by comparing PFD with stretch marks (, ladies) and "inherited bad teeth."<br /><br />It’s a sad state of affairs when a “scientist” - real or self-perceived - is so quick to dismiss an unfamiliar therapy when the “correlation” evidence is compelling, the contrary evidence is non-existent, and the cost of implementation is zero.Michael Currannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5410434857641014459.post-43104859883389359512010-06-17T19:30:09.692-05:002010-06-17T19:30:09.692-05:00I think research on this is a GREAT idea! If anyo...I think research on this is a GREAT idea! If anyone out there is interested in funding it, please contact me ASAP! <br />We need to investigate this study: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18651881 a bit more it would appear. Also, short-term kegel studies conclude with the fact that more research is needed before deciding if they are, in fact effective. <br /><br />If you would like to wait a few years for evidence showing that strengthening your sacral stabilizing muscles to optimize your PF muscles based on the laws of Newtonian Physics,biomechanical muscle modeling, and the force/length graph, then you are completely welcome! For women who have been doing kegels the last few years and are prolapsing, perhaps they are interested in a more timely solution? <br />Everyone gets to choose, which is what makes life so great!<br />And, there's always surgery, don't you agree Anonymous?Katy Bowman, MShttp://www.katysays.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5410434857641014459.post-37116668095538981172010-06-17T11:59:47.943-05:002010-06-17T11:59:47.943-05:00Thanks for mentioning me, Ileana and Anonymous, as...Thanks for mentioning me, Ileana and Anonymous, as Katy can count her “team of one” amongst the over 4,000 members at wholewoman.com, where women have been doing this work since 2003. Many thousands of copies of Saving the Whole Woman have been sold to women, doctors and all sorts of health practitioners.<br /><br />The people who fund large studies generally do not want to know what reverses the very disorder that is the bread and butter of gynecology. They will be conducted eventually, and it is not as if we have no data. Check out the paper, “Genital prolapse: a legacy of the West?” in the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. More importantly are natural and real-time testimonials of women themselves, which were never possible before the great democratizing power of the internet. Maintaining the natural shape of the spine is the only way the pelvic organ support system properly functions. <br /><br />Regarding connective tissue, an anti-inflammatory diet has also been discovered to be a major player in prolapse stabilization and reversal. The evolved human body is extremely stable, and unrepaired congenital breaks in DNA rare. Prolapse and incontinence are highly dynamic conditions that respond to postural and lifestyle change.<br /><br />Christine Kent<br />Whole Woman, Inc.Christine Kentnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5410434857641014459.post-12344612371910358112010-06-17T07:50:42.772-05:002010-06-17T07:50:42.772-05:00Of course I wasn't suggesting that skin stretc...Of course I wasn't suggesting that skin stretches the same way as muscle - just pointing out that everthing has an elastic limit. It is entirely possible to be too flexible and hence more prone to injury (my gymnast of a brother-in-law lived it for many years). <br /><br />So what is in your opinion the yield strength of the pelvic floor? At what stress level will it no longer go back to its shape? Are you saying there isn't one? That seems to defy the laws of physics.<br /><br />I don't think telling women that they can be inherently prone to pfd is undermining their health. Are dentists undermining their patients when they tell them they've inhertited bad teeth? Sometimes you can brush three times a day and floss and you'll still have tooth decay. It's just reality. Not that you shouldn't take care of yourself. But I find blaming the victim to be more undermining, actually.<br /><br />Again, there are no studies that show posture/squats prevent PFD. There are some correlation papers. Where is the causation data. There is a big difference. I think it's time for a peer reviewed controlled study. It should be easy and inexpensive enough to do. You've developed a theory - it needs proof.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5410434857641014459.post-82999772119748154132010-06-16T19:37:56.782-05:002010-06-16T19:37:56.782-05:00Hi Anonymous,
The mechanical failure you are speak...Hi Anonymous,<br />The mechanical failure you are speaking of is called CREEP (really, that's what it's called!) and has nothing to do with PFD (this is well researched, so with a little leg work anyone can see the extreme difference between the failure of skin vs. muscle). In other words, stretch marks have no scientific purpose in a discussion about PFD.<br />The incorrect notion that the structure is inherently weak and the cause of PFD is really the problem in a nutshell (thanks for bringing it out to discuss, though!), and is really undermining Women's Health. <br /><br />Regarding research, there is, quite extensively, research on the role pelvic bony alignment contributes to PFD, but no one is talking about it, so there it sits in journals...Katy Bowman, MShttp://www.katysays.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5410434857641014459.post-38224610171179032702010-06-16T19:03:18.699-05:002010-06-16T19:03:18.699-05:00So I've heard this theory before from a some n...So I've heard this theory before from a some nurse (Christine Kent I think?) and I'm curious. Katy, since you're a scientist, will we see some causation research done? I would be interested in a controlled study that examines the effect of squats and posture on the eventual pelvic organ prolapse occurance. All those correlations are neat, but I want to see something more concrete. <br /><br /><br />Also as a side note, I think pelvic strength is great. But, as a scientist myself, I know that everything has an elasticity limit, even muscle. Pregnancy and birth can provide enough force for some muscle to never go back to it's strength or length. Look at your stretchmarks ladies - some women have more elastic skin. Nothing you can do to change it. Bottom line: don't blame yourself for your pelvic floor problemsAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5410434857641014459.post-7888312547766033842010-06-15T22:23:54.943-05:002010-06-15T22:23:54.943-05:00Not to confuse the issue, but to introduce some fu...Not to confuse the issue, but to introduce some fun, I presume everyone is familiar with the concept of the connection between the pelvic floor and your tongue (careful, its a family site)?<br /><br />Seriously...sit feet flat on the floor, pelvis square on a chair, spine softly erect. Now, sensing the space between your sitting bones (ischial tuberosities), gently begin to press your tongue against the back of your teeth and watch what happens to your PF as you increase the pressure, and then watch as you slowly release (old Feldenkrais lesson). <br /><br />Not only that, but what you are thinking and what you believe in the moment directly impacts your breathing pattern, which also sets tone in the PF (for the evidence crowds see O'Sullivan PB, Beales DJ. Man Ther. 2007.Aug;12 (3):209-18. Epub 2006 Aug 17.)<br /><br />So feet on the floor, soften the tongue and exhale...happy PF's everyone!Matthew J Taylor, PT, PhDhttp://www.matthewjtaylor.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5410434857641014459.post-35719815208392563952010-06-14T22:01:15.538-05:002010-06-14T22:01:15.538-05:00OMG! I'm 60 yrs old with vag and rec prolapse....OMG! I'm 60 yrs old with vag and rec prolapse.Probably due to 3 childbirths and hard-core weight lifting squats several years ago.I have been seeing a P.T. for 4 months now and we cannot get my PF stronger and I've been doing kegels (10 in a row quickly and 10 slowly 3X/d!! It ain't workin' for me! SO she's been hooking a vag probe up to a tens unit to increase the brain/vag response but it is so expensive that I'm now supposed to buy one for $400 so I can do this at home. I refuse to have surgery and I've heard horror stories of pesaries. . Only have prolapse-no painful sex(thank God!, or stress incontinence. Urge incontinence if I drink even one cup of coffee. I will need to re-read your info and purchase your DVD.Hope I'm not too late! Am fortunate I stumbled upon your site! Thank you, PamPamela Joanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18304454331410890162noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5410434857641014459.post-45677028827126280822010-06-14T21:49:07.561-05:002010-06-14T21:49:07.561-05:00I got this article from my midwife Karly Nutall, a...I got this article from my midwife Karly Nutall, and am very grateful. I recently had a baby( my third), am in my forties and was diagnosed with cysto and rectocele; considered surgery and went through the whole roller coaster with that because I am a very holistic person, had my last baby at home, in the bathtub; etc..FOr those who want research and scientific 'evidence' there is a book out there called Saving the whole woman by CHristine Kent, and she discusses the same issues thoroughly as <br />Miss Bowman does. I highly recommend it. SHe goes into the physiology, lifestyle changes and has a dvd with exercises to strengthen the pelvic floor. In all honesty, I liked the book much better than the dvd because the exercises are too fast and based on irish dances, which I couldn't do to save my life, or my lower body, nevertheless, the book is well written and persuasive about why kegels don't work to strengthen the PF.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12448225329100959838noreply@blogger.com