Kegel Exercises After Prostatectomy

If you have recently had a prostatectomy performed and suffer from incontinence as a result, you need not suffer in silence. Strengthening the muscles of the pelvic floor can help you to regain full bladder control over time. To accomplish this, doctors most often recommend performing Kegel exercises. The benefits of Kegels, originally recommended for women post-childbirth, transcend this single situation. Kegal exercises are now widely recommended for a variety of conditions in men and women.

Finding the PC Muscles

• The first step to performing a Kegel exercise is to locate your pubococcygeus (PC) muscles. These are the muscles normally used to stop the flow of urine midstream. To assist you in mentally finding the appropriate muscle groups, attempt to stop and restart your urine the next time you use the restroom. Doing this every time you go for the next day or two will quickly teach you the exact location of your PC muscles.

Performing the Basic Kegel

• To perform the basic Kegel exercise, sit on the edge of a chair with your hands on your knees. Inhale deeply into your stomach. As you exhale, tense all of your pelvic floor muscles, pulling them up "into" your abdomen. Hold this tension throughout the exhalation. Then release as you begin to inhale again, mentally "feeling" the muscles descend into their proper place.

Recommended Parameters

• Ideally, perform Kegel exercises three or more times a day. During a set of Kegels, perform 10 or more repetitions, aiming to hold the contraction for 3 to 5 seconds. Take up to 10 seconds between reps. As the muscles increase in strength, aim to increase the total number of reps while decreasing the rest time. This will force the body to constantly adapt, making the muscles stronger and stronger.

Advanced Kegel

• Once you're comfortable performing the basic Kegel, consider adding an advanced variation. One such maneuver is called the "flutter." To perform a flutter, squeeze and release the muscles as quickly as possible, aiming for 10 or more reps. To progress, increase the number of flutter reps, or perform more reps in less time.

Considerations

• While Kegel exercises can go a long way toward halting incontinence brought on by a prostatectomy, seeing improvement will take both time and effort. Don't attempt to perform hundreds of Kegels each day thinking you can speed toward the finish line. To see optimal results from your training, set a moderate pace and aim to improve gradually over time.