Alternative to Kegels

Like many men, I suck at Kegels.

But I just stumbled on this online.
See what you think....

Below are simple exercises that you can do at home to strengthen your core, pelvic floor and the surrounding muscles. Pelvic floor muscles are very important: They help control the bladder and bowels. And, as with any other muscle, if you don't use it, you lose it.

The following exercises can be done with items around the house, no gym equipment needed. They can be modified as needed. They should not cause any pain, so if you feel pain when doing them, stop immediately and contact your physician.

Diaphragmatic Breathing
The main muscle used in breathing, the diaphragm, works directly with the abdominal and pelvic floor muscles. So, by activating your diaphragm, you will strengthen both muscle groups.

This first DIY, at-home exercise starts by focusing on your breathing. You will need to have a heavy book or weight handy.

1. Lie on your back; knees bent.
2. Place the book/weight on top of your belly. Breathe as slowly as possible; the longer the breath, the longer the contraction.
3. As you breathe in, your belly will fill and lift, raising the book/weight up toward the ceiling. As you exhale, your belly will come down and the book/weight will lower toward the floor. (This is called diaphragmatic breathing.)
4. Exhale through your mouth, like you are blowing out candles on a birthday cake. This engages your abdominal muscles. Make sure the book is still going up as you inhale, and down as you exhale.
Repeat: 10 times.

Bridge Exercise
For this exercise, you will be lying on your back again, but along with the pelvic floor muscles, you will be working your inner thigh and buttock muscles. You will need a pillow.

1. Lie on your back; knees bent. Place the pillow between your thighs.
2. Squeeze the pillow with your thighs as you also squeeze your buttocks; lift your buttocks up off the floor a few inches.
3. Hold the raise for 5 seconds; then gently lower down.
Repeat: 10 times.

Aim to do these exercises 5 days each week. Your core and pelvic floor will thank you.
Remember, when it comes to exercise, anything is better than nothing.

Pursed Lip Breathing
This is an excellent technique to use if you feel like you might leak urine on the way to the toilet. It will help your pelvic floor muscles contract and provide a distraction.

Here’s how it works:
Inhale through your nose and gently exhale through your mouth, forming an oval with your lips, as if you were blowing out a candle. You should hear a slight "whooshing" sound.
Repeat this breath 5-10 times, 1-2 times per day.When an exhale is performed in this manner, the pelvic floor automatically contracts. It is a gentle contraction, and you might not be able to feel it, but the contraction is occurring.

Using pursed lip breathing as a distraction technique will help you stay focused on calm, steady breathing, instead of worrying about peeing your pants.

Ball or Pillow Squeeze
This is a great exercise to activate the adductor muscles (inner thigh), which causes the pelvic floor to automatically contract.
Raising your hips into a bridge position is not necessary to activate the adductor muscles and strengthen your pelvic floor, but can be a good way to work your glutes and core at the same time, once you’ve mastered the standard adductor squeeze.

1. Lie on your back with your knees bent and a folded pillow or 7-9” ball between your thighs.
2. Gently squeeze the ball so you feel your inner thighs contract.
3. Hold this contraction for 10 seconds.
4. Breathe normally throughout the contraction and avoid holding your breath.
5. Relax your legs, rest for a few seconds.
6. Repeat 10 times.
Do 1-2 sets, once per day.

Both of these exercises will help to strengthen your pelvic floor muscles without needing to do a kegel. Kegels, or isolated pelvic floor contractions, are difficult because the muscles cannot be seen
and can be hard to feel. By doing pursed lip breathing and the ball squeeze, you can be assured that you are exercising your pelvic floor muscles.