Vaginal exercises—what they are, how to do them and their benefits

Posted on 21st October 2019 by Dr Rekha Tailor

On this page, you’ll find out how exercise can tighten your pelvic floor muscles, including:

What are vaginal exercises?

The term ???vaginal exercises’ is actually a misnomer. The vagina is made up of three different layers of tissue, none of which you can actively train to their strength and tightness.

When people talk about vaginal exercises, they’re actually referring to exercises that strengthen the pelvic floor muscles.

What are pelvic floor muscles?

The pelvic floor muscles are a sling-shaped group of muscles that stretch from the tail bone at the base of your back, to the pubic bone at the front of your pelvis. Just like any other muscles, they need exercise to keep them toned and tight.

Pelvic floor muscles form part of a group of muscles known as ‘core muscles’. These include the tummy muscles, back muscles and diaphragm¹.

There are several causes of a weak pelvic floor, including:

Symptoms of this condition include:

You can find out more about the causes and symtopms of weak pelvic floor muscles .

How to exercise your vagina

Again, when we talk about exercising your vagina, we actually mean toning up the pelvic floor muscles.

If you’re experiencing severe or haven’t exercised for a while, you may want to speak to your GP or a physiotherapist specialising in women’s health. You can read more about .

If you’ve had children, you’re likely to know what a Kegel exercise is. Medical practitioners recommend women do regular sets of Kegels (also known as pelvic floor exercises) during and after childbirth to help tighten vagina and pelvic floor muscles.

However, Kegels are beneficial to all women and can be done at any stage of life to help tone the pelvic floor muscles and reduce the risk of such as:

Doing Kegel exercises to strengthen the pelvic floor muscles can help prevent all of the symptoms associated with a weak pelvic floor, including:

Before you can start to exercise your pelvic floor muscles, you’ll need to find them!

You can do these simple exercises anywhere, at any time, to strengthen your pelvic floor muscles. When you do them, try to focus only on your pelvic floor muscles, rather than tightening your stomach or buttocks as well.

Over time, you should be able to build up how long you can hold your muscles for and the number of pelvic floor exercises you can do. Ideally, you should aim to do at least 10 of each exercise three times a day³.

Most women begin to feel improvements within 4 to 6 weeks, especially in bladder and overall pelvic support.

Full results typically appear after 3 months of exercise.

If your symptoms are moderate to severe, recovery may take longer. but progress is still expected with regular practice.

Once you’ve mastered the above exercises, you could consider moving on to using a pelvic floor device to give your muscles a workout.

There are a number of devices designed to make Kegel exercises easier to do, and to remember to do. These include the following:

You insert these small, circular, weighted balls (also known as Kegel weights) into your vagina to help strength the pelvic floor muscles. When you insert the Kegel balls, the vaginal wall naturally tightens to keep them in place.

These serve the same purpose as Kegel balls but tend to be narrower and more difficult to keep in place.

Some Kegel devices are linked to apps that allow you to monitor your progress and remind you to do your exercises regularly.

Pelvic floor devices are generally safe. but some women should check with a clinician first. This includes anyone who:

In these situations, a women’s health physiotherapist can advise you on safer approaches.

The pelvic floor muscles are just one set of muscles that make up your ‘core’. By exercising other core muscles as well as the pelvic floor, you can the whole of your core.

This is particularly useful if you’re just getting back into exercising after having a baby and aren’t ready for a yet.

Not only do these exercises help to strengthen your pelvic muscles but stabilising on the ball will help to engage your back and tummy muscles, and also your bottom.

Strong buttock muscles (or glutes) can provide additional support to the pelvic floor, and squats are one of the best ways to tone all of these muscles. The National Association for Incontinence has .

A few small habits can help you stay consistent:

These habits make pelvic floor exercises easier to long-term.

Exercising your pelvic floor muscles won’t increase the tightness of your vagina. Vaginal tissue changes and stretches in relation to fluctuations in hormone levels—such as when we age, during pregnancy, or during and after childbirth.

It’s likely you won’t notice these changes. However, if you have weak pelvic floor muscles, you might experience symptoms such as poor bladder control or a lack of sensation during sex.

What’s the connection between vagina tightening exercises and sexual intercourse?

The idea of a vagina becoming looser after childbirth, or after having a lot of sex, is a myth. The layers of tissue that make up the vagina have the ability to wide enough to accommodate a baby, and then return to their usual size.

The only thing that the structure of the vaginal canal is vaginal atrophy, a thinning of the vaginal wall that some women experience during or after the menopause. Vaginal atrophy can cause the vaginal tissue to become thinner, which in some cases can make the vagina feel looser.

Although there are often stories in the media about how vagina tightening exercises can improve your sex life, this isn’t strictly true. The muscles in the vaginal walls can’t be trained, and no amount of exercise can their tightness.

However, pelvic floor exercises can help the vagina feel tighter, as the pelvic floor is responsible for the feeling of ‘tightness’ during sex. During arousal, the pelvic floor muscles relax, which may make your vagina feels ‘looser’.

If you have weak pelvic floor muscles, you may feel looser than you’d prefer to during sex and this could lessen any sensation. Having a strong pelvic floor can actually make sex more enjoyable⁴.

Having toned pelvic floor muscles can help to avoid issues such as:

As long as you do Kegel exercises correctly, there should be no negative side effects. If you experience any pain in your back or tummy muscles, this is a sign that you aren’t employing the proper technique.

However, if you do Kegel exercises when you have a full bladder or when you’re passing urine, this could increase the risk of you suffering a urinary tract infection⁵.

If you’re concerned that doing pelvic floor exercises might make your vagina too tight, don’t worry—these exercises don’t actually tighten your vaginal wall muscles. Instead, they strengthen the pelvic floor, the sling-shaped muscles that stretch from the front of your pubic bone to the bottom of your back.

Other FAQs: Vaginal, Kegels & Pelvic Exercises

Yes. most women can safely do them at any stage of life, including during pregnancy and menopause. If you have pelvic pain, prolapse symptoms or discomfort during sex, it’s worth checking with a before starting.

How do I know if I’m doing Kegels correctly?

You’re using the right muscles if you feel a gentle lift inside your pelvis, as though you’re stopping urine and wind at the same time.

If your thighs, buttocks or tummy tighten, adjust your technique. these muscles shouldn’t be doing the work.

A women’s health physiotherapist can also assess your technique if you’re unsure.

Most practitioners recommend three sets a day, with 10 repetitions of each type of exercise (slow holds, quick pulses, and controlled lifts).

If that feels too much at first, it’s fine to start slowly and build up.

They can. Weak pelvic floor muscles may reduce sensation or cause discomfort. Strengthening these muscles can blood flow and support the structures around the vagina, which may make sex more comfortable and enjoyable.

If your pain feels deep, sharp or persistent, it’s best to speak to a GP or specialist to rule out other conditions.

It’s possible. Overtraining can cause the pelvic floor to become tense instead of strong, which may lead to discomfort.

If you notice pelvic heaviness, pain or difficulty relaxing the muscles, reduce the frequency and speak with a for guidance.

don’t Kegels. They simply add feedback or resistance, which some women find motivating.

If you’re already consistent with manual exercises, you don’t necessarily need a device. but they can be a useful tool for progress or improving technique.

You may want to seek professional advice if you experience:

A women’s health physiotherapist can create a personalised plan that fits your symptoms and goals.

References

Dr. Rekha Tailor, founder and Medical of Health & Aesthetics, is an esteemed Medical Aesthetic Practitioner and General Practitioner, at Manchester Medical School. With a career spanning NHS hospitals and general practice, she shifted to full-time aesthetic medicine in 2005. Known for her results and gentle approach, she is a member of the British College of Aesthetic Medicine and the Royal College of General Practitioners. Her dedication to excellence is reflected in numerous awards, highlighting her clinic as a leader in aesthetic treatments.

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