Men's Pelvic Health – Looking Below the Belt

Key Takeaways

1. Pelvic health dysfunction can and often is seen in men and can include bowel and bladder symptoms, pain and sexual dysfunction.
2. Breathing and posture can significantly improve urinary leakage and constipation symptoms.
3. Bringing movement and optimizing muscle function and blood flow to the pelvis can help improve sexual function.

Introduction

The term pelvic floor has long been associated with women with babies and Kegels. Spoiler alert – EVERYONE has a pelvic floor! Men of all ages experience pelvic floor dysfunction with a wide variety of symptoms.

The pelvic floor plays a crucial role in bowel and bladder control, sexual function and core stability and when the pelvic floor is not working as efficiently as it should we can start to see symptoms including urinary leakage, erectile dysfunction, constipation and pelvic pain. While these symptoms are often addressed with medication, we see positive effects and decreased symptoms with movement, attention to breathing, and small lifestyle changes.

Leaking? Constipated? Check Your Breathing! 

In so many of our male patients we see urinary leakage and constipation which can often be related to dysfunctional breathing. Urinary leakage can affect our male patients across the lifespan. Our patients following prostatectomy surgery as well as our patients who are spending day after day in the cross fit gym can experience this symptom which can be positively impacted by small changes in breathing.  

By avoiding holding your breath during movement you can decrease leaking when you lift a heavily weighted bar to achieve that PR as well as when you get out of the car or lift the grocery bags off the floor. Holding your breathing can also make it more difficult to have a bowel movement.

Take a deep breath and notice where that breath goes. Does your chest rise? Does your stomach push out or does it suck in? One way to work on breathing is to use a THERABAND resistance loop around your abdomen to give you some feedback as to how you are breathing. By cuing into that feeling of the resistance loop around your front, side and back of your abdomen you can work on inhaling into your whole abdomen, expanding on all sides.

Deep breathing can help digestion and improve ability to have a bowel movement without having to strain. By avoiding breath holding with movement, we can optimally manage the pressure going into the pelvic floor and help decrease urinary leakage. As an added bonus, this also works to improve nervous system function and can decrease stress and anxiety. Win-win! 

Improving Sexual Function with Movement

The pelvic floor plays a major role in sexual function. We need these muscles to both contract and relax to increase blood flow for achieving and sustaining an erection. While medication is often prescribed and can be beneficial, exercise and movement can significantly improve the pelvic floor’s ability to support optimal sexual function.  

Tight or overactive muscles surrounding the pelvis can inhibit its ability to move normally. If the muscles are holding on to tension and living in a state of contraction, they can start causing pain. Tight muscles are not the same as strong muscles! Using a tool such as the THERABAND Roller Massager+ over hamstrings, quads, glutes, and IT band can help work out any knots or tension and encourage an increase in blood flow. Performing lunges and squats can also help dynamically stretch the muscle, allowing for the contraction and relaxation of the tissue.  

Your pelvic floor makes up the bottom of your core muscle. If there is weakness or dysfunction in other parts of the core such as the deep abdominal muscles, the pelvic floor tries to pick up the slack and can get overworked making it difficult to relax. Working on balance and stability can improve overall core engagement and improve pelvic floor function.  

Using a balance trainer like the THERABAND stability disc in both sitting and standing can help engage and strengthen the entire core system leading to better overall function. The right type of movement is a key to improvement in sexual health. Don’t forget what we learned earlier and make sure you incorporate breathing with these activities!

Recap

Your body works as a system, and if part of that system is not working optimally, we see other parts of the system go down as well. The pelvic floor is an integral part of the system and no matter the age or gender, it is essential in bowel, bladder and sexual function.  

Paying attention to your posture, breathing, and movement are all small and easy ways to have a major impact on how your pelvic floor functions. A pelvic floor therapist can help guide you to even more ways to improve symptoms. Next time you stand up, notice if you hold your breath. Congratulations, you just took the first step to improve your pelvic floor! 

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Medical Disclaimer: The information provided on this site, including text, graphics, images, and other material are for informational purposes only and are not intended to substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other healthcare professional with any questions or concerns you may have regarding your condition.