147: How To Perfect Your Pelvic Floor Exercise Routine w/ Isa Herrera

A staggering 30 million women worldwide suffer from pelvic pain, and it’s not only those who have had children. In fact, most women go without talking about their pelvic floor out of embarrassment and confusion. A proper pelvic floor exercise routine will help so many aspects of your life, from your sexual and anatomy health to your physical health and wellbeing.
Today’s guest is Isa Herrera, pelvic floor physical therapist, and we’re talking about everything you need to know about having a healthy pelvic floor. Isa first began her research into the pelvic floor after having a baby but also gaining a lot of pelvic pain and frustration. Her leaky bladder and feeling pressure and pain all the time led her back to her OB/GYN who just told her to do Kegel exercises.
But they didn’t work for Isa.
Kegel exercises. Most women have heard of them, but do you know how to do them properly? We move away from the term Kegel to talk about the over 25 different pelvic floor exercises to support female health. By learning how to connect with your body and your pelvic floor exercises, you’ll start to improve your problems, day by day.
We also talk about how important it is to educate our daughters about their anatomy and Isa gives a surprising example of her daughter’s classmate’s lack of knowledge. We need to empower and honor our pelvic floor health in a way our children can grasp and understand so they don’t have these problems or questions later in life.
Do you practice pelvic floor exercises every day? Are you in a constant state of compression? How do you talk to your children about their sexual health?
 
In This Episode:
What Kegels are, how to do them, and who they’re not good for
What a proper Kegel is and why you need to know about the other ways to do a pelvic floor exercise
How women should connect with the pelvic floor exercise
What strong pelvic floor muscles help with
How sitting incorrectly and for long periods of time can impact your pelvic floor muscles
What positions are the best to start doing pelvic floor exercises in
How to talk to your daughters about their anatomy and pelvic floor
Why vaginoplasty isn’t the answer to your pelvic floor health problems
 
Quotes:
“All pelvic floor exercises, when it involves a contraction, have three things in common. The clitoris should nod, the area between anus and vagina should pucker, and the anus should wink. Those three parts should happen simultaneously. ” (7:32)
“If you can see it, then you can fix what’s not working.” (8:51)
“Before you can do a pelvic floor exercise, you’ve got to bring the mind-body connection to it.” (12:31)
“How do I go about this in a very holistic, honoring way for my child that she gets it, honors it, and knows that she can communicate and ask questions.” (21:01)
 
Links
Grab your Free The Perfect Kegel Checklist
Find Isa Herrera, MSPT, CSCS Online
Follow Isa on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter
 
Check out the full episode page
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