So this time a year a lot of times people resolution is to get healthy and workout more which is awesome. We see a lots of exercise routines and new workouts started but unfortunately sometimes that can bring to light a problem that people don’t know that they have … pelvic floor dysfunction.

Today I want to talk to you about 10 signs that pelvic floor dysfunction may be affecting your workout.

1. You have Bladder Leakage when you run, jump do burpees, jumping jacks, jump rope, Push ups, Squats any physical activities. Leakage with Physical activity is not normal, “It is not a badge of honor to leak while you exercise” it is a sign of pelvic floor dysfunction and there’s something that you can do about it.
   
2. Low back, pelvic, hip or a Abdominal pain with or soon after your workouts, “Pain should not be a part of your workouts.” Yes should be pushing yourself hard but there’s a difference between muscles burn and pain. And if you’re dealing with pain any of these areas it may be a sign that your core muscles are not functioning well together and you need to make a change.
   
3. If you need to pee, pre and post workout then this is a sign that your bladder and pelvic floor muscles may not be function optimally, if you’re doing a 40 to 60 minute workout you should be able to make it without having to urinate before or after class.
   
4. You are experiencing pelvic heaviness, pressure or falling out feeling during or shortly after workouts, This can be a sign that you are experiencing pelvic floor dysfunction and/or pelvic organ prolapse and it’s a definite sign you need to modify activities in order to performed at a level that your core and pelvic support muscles can function at appropriately.
   
5. Your belly bulges out or pushes out especially when you’re performing abdominal exercises. You should be able to maintain a gentle belly pull in during the exercises. If you feel that your abdominal wall is pushing out or your back arching off the floor then “you are not using right support muscles to perform the exercise and you’re actually not going to get the same benefit out of it” This also is putting more pressure down through your pelvic floor area. It can be a sign of dysfunction.
6. You need to pee mid workout. Again going back to number 3, you should not need  to pee before after or during workout and if it’s only 40 minutes to an hour long. So if you need to stop your workout to make sure that you don’t pee your pants then it’s a sign  that you probably have some bladder or pelvic floor issues that need to be taken care of.
7. You hold your breath to complete an exercise. Whether you doing crunches, plank, squats, lunges, bridges or any type of exercise, “If you find that you have to hold your breath to complete those exercises that is using a pressure system to create stability vs thoroughly engaging your core support muscles well”.
   
8. You feel that your form fails you or you get exhausted easily from your exercises. Again it’s can be a sign that your core support muscles are not working the way that they should be and your body’s trying to compensate with other areas but it’s not able to do so.
9. “You skip part of your workout because you know you will have bladder leakage if you do it”, So if you are avoiding the double unders,  jump lunges, jump ropes,  jumping jacks or squats because you will know you will leak when you do them, then that is a sign that you have pelvic floor dysfunction. There is something you can do about it so that you can get back to doing your entire workout.
   
10. You have gas leakage while performing your exercises. So if you cannot hold the fart in while your are exercising then this is the sign that your pelvic floor muscles are not performing optimally.

So we just went through 10 signs that pelvic floor dysfunction may be affecting your workout. How many of these applied to you? If they do, Don’t worry. There something that you can do!  Partnering with the pelvic physical therapist is one of the  best options that you can do to make sure that your pelvic floor and core muscles are performing optimally to get you back to your exercise routine. We want to help you reach those new year resolutions and goal that you would like to achieve. So if you answered yes to anyone of these 10 signs then we’d love the opportunity to work with you. You can give us a call @ 636-225-3649 and we can get you setup for a free discovery session to find out if pelvic physical therapy is right for you.