From Mountains to Marathons: Tips for Active Women on Protecting Your Pelvic Floor
From Mountains to Marathons: Tips for Active Women on Protecting Your Pelvic Floor
The pelvic floor works hard. In fact, this group of muscles is constantly engaged to support the bladder, bowels, and uterus, especially during physical activity. When the pelvic floor is weak or fatigued, it can cause unpleasant symptoms, such as:
- Leaking urine when jumping, running, laughing, or sneezing, known as stress urinary incontinence
- Frequent and urgent need to urinate that is hard to delay
- Feeling heaviness or bulging near the vagina, which could mean pelvic organ prolapse
- Pelvic discomfort
These symptoms can interfere with a person鈥檚 everyday life, especially for those who lead active lifestyles. That might mean skipping the ski slopes or hiking trails or avoiding high-intensity exercise altogether.
Women are often told that these symptoms are something they will have to accept as they age or after giving birth. But you don鈥檛 have to let bladder leakage or pelvic discomfort prevent you from doing the activities you love.
鈥淯rine leakage is really common after childbirth, but I don鈥檛 like to call it normal because that insinuates that you should just put up with it,鈥 says Elizabeth Robison, MD, a urogynecologist at 麻豆学生精品版. 鈥淚f it鈥檚 impacting your quality of life, or you鈥檙e leaking after simple things like just going on a walk, that鈥檚 when it would make sense to seek out evaluation and treatment.鈥
Taking Preventive Measures
No matter your age or whether you鈥檝e recently had a baby, you can take steps to keep your pelvic floor strong so you can stay active without worrying about leakage or discomfort. The good news is that regular exercise supports the pelvic floor. If leakage is a concern, start with a low-impact activity like walking. The following exercises can also help strengthen your pelvic floor:
- Squats
- Bridges
- Lunges
- Pelvic tilts
- Core-strengthening exercises
- Kegel exercises
Just like any muscle, your pelvic floor can become overly tight. This condition, known as hypertonic pelvic floor, can cause similar symptoms as a weak pelvic floor. Before you dive into Kegels, consult with a pelvic floor physical therapist or your gynecologist. They can assess whether your muscles are too weak or too tight and guide you in performing the right exercises safely and effectively.
Don鈥檛 Forget to Hydrate
Hydration is important, especially if you鈥檙e working up a sweat while training for a race or hiking to higher altitudes. But hydration isn鈥檛 a one-size-fits-all situation. Since dehydration can cause bladder irritation and overhydration can worsen incontinence, determining the optimal amount of fluid for your body is key.
鈥淚n general, for a female adult, between 64 to 90 ounces of fluid intake in 24 hours is adequate,鈥 Robison explains. 鈥淏ut some people might need more than that, and some people might need less. You want to aim to have light yellow urine鈥攏ot urine that鈥檚 clear or dark. Light yellow urine means that that鈥檚 your personal adequate hydration.鈥
Seeking Care for your Pelvic Floor
The pelvic floor absorbs the impact when you jump or do repetitive, high-impact movements. Every time you land after a ski jump or each step of a run, your pelvic floor is going to work. If those muscles are weak and you experience stress incontinence or discomfort during activity, it can feel discouraging.
If your pelvic floor issues are keeping you from your favorite activities, 麻豆学生精品版鈥檚 urogynecology program is staffed with experts who provide comprehensive and specialized pelvic floor care.
鈥淎ll of us are really dedicated to providing evidence-based and patient-centered care,鈥 Robison says. 鈥淲e run the gamut between education and conservative management all the way up to complex surgical management. One of my favorite questions to ask people is, 鈥業f you could pick one symptom that I could magically make better today, what would that be?鈥 That really helps me make sure that patient expectations and the care that we provide are in alignment.鈥
Your urogynecologist will help you decide what kind of treatment is best for you based on your diagnosis. From pelvic floor physical therapy to utilizing a vaginal insert called a pessary, there are several non-surgical approaches to help with your incontinence or discomfort. In some cases, surgical treatments may be preferred or recommended depending on your specific symptoms, exam findings, and goals.
If you鈥檙e experiencing a pelvic floor disorder, you don鈥檛 have to sit on the sidelines. Seeing a urogynecologist can help you get back on the trails, mountains, or treadmill.
