i hate kegels

[raelize]

okay, this probably isn't the proper forum, but i am a homebirther, so here goes...
i HATE doing kegels. it gives me the feeling like nails on a chalkboard. i had a really hard time doing them when i was pregnant with dd and since i would like to get pregnant again soon, i am trying to get back to doing them again. for my health as much as anything else. but i hate them. is this normal? does anyone else have this? i don't have an issue with my vagina/vulva/cervix, i can do all kinds of self checks, i touched dd's head as she was coming out, i use self insert tampons...but kegels just give me the chills. and i can do them, i know how, i just have to force myself to. anyone else? anyone know how to get over it?

[augustacherri]

No, I definitely feel the same way. I'm very comfortable with my vagina any other way (check my own cervix, sexual aspects, tampons, birthing babies), but the Kegels just make me feel weird and creep me out. Nails on a chalkboard would be a similar sensation! I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one!

I have to say, though, that I've never been fond of them, so I've just accepted maybe it's something my body is not supposed to do. I mean, really, how natural is it to flex your vaginal/PC muscles over and over and over? Depending on the source, I've seen recommendations of 50-500 a day!!

I didn't really do any Kegels consistently with either of my pregnancies and my vagina feels just fine. I don't have any incontinence issues or anything like that and it is just as snug as it has pretty much always been, even without the Kegels. I think regular physical activity, a good diet, having orgasms and sexual activity do a lot to keep the vagina toned. I think Kegels can certainly help some women, don't get me wrong. But I think the current mandate that all women must Kegel 'til they drop is just another way to make us feel inadequate that we aren't doing the "right" thing by medical professionals' standards.

[augustacherri]

OH yeah, P.S.--my sister feels the same way (but she says she's mostly just lazy, not that it bothers her) and she has no issues like incontinence, etc. after two vaginal births either (one of which was a forceps delivery).

[SublimeBirthGirl]

I don't like them either but I can tell a difference when I do them, so I got some kegel weights. They're not as annoying and the tense-release.

[CanidFL]

kegels are annoying but I must say that doing them during sex makes for a good orgasm

[raelize]

i had thought before about getting the kegel weights. maybe that would help out. i don't notive a difference now when i do them, but the few months after dd's birth i did. otherwise i wouldn't bother with them either.
thanks for your responses!

[balancedmama]

I have the exact same problem. : I did do them w/ DD's pregnancy but still ended up with a rectocele. I have really been slacking on them this time as they make me nauseous. No other issues w/ my vagina and the heebie-jeebies here either. I keep meaning to ask my MW about why kegels are so strange for me.

[ilikethedesert]

I, too, hate doing kegels. I don't know why- I just do. I hate running, too but every once in a while try just for kicks. I'm pregnant and TRY to remember to do them...

Anyway- this was the first time I heard of kegel weights so I did a search and the first web page that showed up was http://www.shopinprivate.com/index.html. They sell kegel weights and a bunch of other stuff. It's hysterical! Check out the Sh*t Be Gone toilet paper. I'm forcing myself not to buy it for my dh. He'd bust a nut laughing! That web site would probably have something to fix that too, though! Too funny!

[sunnymw]

Those were crazy expensive. I'd just as soon get some ben-wa balls...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Wa_balls


Much cheaper at a you-know-what-kinda-shop

[calipigeon]

I am the opposite. I love kegels. I hate that they are named after a man, but love to do them. I started when I was a young child, just as something to do when bored and still do them all the time. My ben-wa balls are fun too. Just think of them as nasty tasting nettles, great for you, but tastes like dirt.

[Reha]

On the topic of kegels, I recently heard that it may not be good to be doing kegels while pregnant at all. Any other time, of course, they are fabulous. (This is sort of 3rd hand info....it was said at a birth conference in Australia that my friend attended, so I don't have any reference for it and have been trying to look into it more).

[cornpicker]

Can someone explain more about the weights? I'm dealing with some prolapse and wonder if this would help.

It cracks me up to think of my vagina weight lifting. I will coach her through the reps.

[JuicyPakwan]

Originally Posted by balancedmama

I I have really been slacking on them this time as they make me nauseous. .

I have the same problem if I am laying down I feel like I'm going to vomit and it gives me heart palpitations. My dh was thinking they are contracting tooo close to the vena cava's. Anyone know if that is true?

[sophi4ka]

I hate doing kegels too. They are just sooo boring! I don't have any problems or pain or anything doing them, just the boredom of squeze and release, squeze and release, and again and again, drive me nuts.

Every time I start doing them I find myself 10 minutes later daydreaming about something unrelated, totally forgetting, of course, to do the exercises.

[azgirl]

I am glad I am not the only one. I feel really nauseaus and weird when I do kegels...they are supposed to be so important...It doesn't feel weird to tighten those muscles at other times, just kegels. Maybe I am doing them wrong? I have been listening to my body thus far, and skipping them.

[Nicole R.]

My son was born two years ago and I never did Kegels, despite the MW telling me my vagina was "flabby," and now I've got some sort of pelvic organ prolapse -- uterus and bladder.

So I started doing a ton of Kegels (well, like 60 a day) along with Pilates and after a week or two my cervix was even lower than before! So now I'm waiting to get a referral to a physical therapist so I can be taught the PROPER way to do them. It's trickier to contract those muscles than I thought, I guess, especially if they're totally out of shape.

The best description of how to do a Kegel online I've read is at:
http://www.befitmom.com/pelvic.html

[ryansma]

Add me to the kegel hating club. I am all good with everything vagina but kegels annoy the he** out of me! Our Bradley teacher and Bradley in general is crazy for kegels. I do 5 and I have to shake out my arms! How weird is that!

[jakesask]

Originally Posted by sophi4ka

Every time I start doing them I find myself 10 minutes later daydreaming about something unrelated, totally forgetting, of course, to do the exercises.

Me too. I think I did about 4 yesterday and then I fell asleep. So much for that.

I hate kegels. And I seem to get out of breath when I do them (too much concentration?) : People say you can do them on the bus and sitting at a desk and standing in line at the grocery store, but I sure can't.

I read early on that I should be doing 300 a day throughout my pregnancy. I did about 15 total until I got to 36 weeks. Now I'm trying to do 25 elevator kegels a day and about 50 quick ones, because I know anything more than that is totally unrealistic for me.

My midwife said the most important part, in her opinion, is when you release -- you should "go right down into the basement," past your normal point of relaxation. She figures it is this ability to release completely that is most useful during the birth, especially during crowning, to facilitate a faster birth and less tearing.

So I keep trying to do them! Most days. Usually.

[UrbanSimplicity]

Me too, but when I saw the title of your post I had a knee jerk (maybe not the right body part ) reaction and started doing 'em right away!

[xixstar]

Originally Posted by brooklyn lisa

Me too, but when I saw the title of your post I had a knee jerk (maybe not the right body part ) reaction and started doing 'em right away!

thats me too every time I see this poist. hehe.


perhaps I'm one of the few that likes the, but I've also been doing them for 12 years now. now, 300 a day -- don't think I'm hitting that, but I can get 100+ at one time, those clench and hold ones though, oye, they kill me.