Release Your Pelvic Floor

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The goal of this part is to relax and release the pelvic floor.

In this video, you will learn:

If you can tighten a muscle, you can release a muscle
Practice of squeeze and release in a short sequence of poses
How to work with a ball to release the perineum

In this video, we’re going to learn how to get the pelvic floor to relax. First, we will work with opposites clenching the pelvic girdle as tight as you can intentionally tighten, so you can let go and soften. If you can tighten a group of muscles, you can relax the muscles as well, and then working with a ball and your body weight to release tension on the perineum.

The perineum is the space between the anus and the vaginal opening. You’ll need to have a towel, a block, and a ball handy. If you’re suffering from an overly contracted pelvic floor and you have pelvic pain, you wanna use a smaller ball and one that’s a bit softer until you get used to the sensation. A tennis ball works as well, so come into a wide-legged child’s pose.

Place your knees wider than your hips. Lean forward and rest your head on your stacked fists. Just settle for a moment. Soften your belly. Take a breath in, and as you exhale, squeeze your pelvic girdle, squeeze and hold. Inhale, release, soften. Notice where you hold tension and let it go. Feel the breath. Expand your pelvic floor. And the gentle rise as you exhale attuned to that subtle movement.

Slowly make your way up into a table position. Come onto all fours, hands beneath your shoulders, knees, hip with distance apart. In inhale, lift your tailbone. Lift your gaze. Exhale, just a few curls moving the spine. Inhale and now as you exhale, squeeze, draw your belly in. Squeeze and clench. Inhale, soften and release. Continue to ride the breath in a relaxed state.

Slowly come back to neutral. Now come back to center. Place your feet little wider than hip width, distance apart. Palms together, legs or knees touching the outside of your arms. So let’s breathe here. Inhale, expand the pelvic floor, expand the breath. You’re not forcing anything here. It’s a subtle expansion.

Exhale the breath out. Feel your pelvic floor lifting, and if you need to accentuate, you can squeeze using Romeo and Juliet. Inhale, release the pelvic floor as you breathe in, and now exhale, squeeze. Squeeze everything into the midline. Squeeze your knees to the arms, palms together. Squeeze your buttocks muscles, squeeze your belly.

Inhale release and again, allow for the belly to move the pelvic floor to move the diaphragm to move. Release any tension that you’re holding. Okay, super. Come into pigeon pose, so take your right leg forward, stretch your left leg back, and it should be directly behind you, not on an angle.

Come forward onto stacked fists. Rest your head. Take a breath in. Exhale and squeeze. Squeeze your pelvic girdles, squeeze to the midline. And inhale release. Feel the expansion, and now just soften. I’m trying not to fidget. Find the calmness. How does relaxed feel in your body? And slowly make your way up for the second side and place your hands, step your right leg back, and your left foot forward.

So the idea here is when you come into this second side, the back leg is directly behind you. It’s not on a diagonal. And slowly lean forward to rest your head on your stacked fists. Take a breath in. Exhale and squeeze. Squeeze your pelvic girdles. Squeeze to the midline. And now inhale, soften. Take a few breaths here to enjoy the release. Feel as if everything is melting. Slowly make your way onto your back into a supported bridge pose.

So for this pose, you can use a block. Place your block or your cushion underneath your pelvis. Find that sweet spot so that you’re supported and lifted, and you can relax your hands or clasp your hands underneath your pelvis. Take a breath in and squeeze everything here as if you’re drawing your heels towards your shoulders. Buttocks, pelvic girdle. I know. Inhale and relax. Close your eyes. breathe in. Everything expands. Exhale, soften. Pelvic floor rises. Ride the breath out now. Remove your block. Stretch your legs out, soften on your back for this short relaxation. Bend your knees, roll to your side, and come up to your seat.

So now we’re going to place the ball on the perineum, the space between the anus and the vaginal opening. This is the intersection of a lot of pelvic floor muscles. Here is a place that can get quite tight and sore. By being able to relax while we’re sitting on the ball. We’re giving everything a little bit of a stretch.

It shouldn’t hurt. If you have any pain, try a smaller or softer ball or remove the ball completely and just sit on your mat. It’s impossible to relax when you’re in pain. So now I’m going to place the ball. Find that spot between the sitting bones. Now sit and relax. Close your eyes and allow yourself to relax. Feel the weight of your body, surrender your belly soft. Releasing more and more with the exhale, the tension releasing. Allow everything to melt down over your ball.

Just a few more breaths. So now I’m going to remove my ball, lean forward and remove the. Notice the lovely release. If you’ve done a lot of keels, this is a nice way to stretch out and relax. And that’s it for now. In my next video, I’m going to teach you how to do a proper keel. In the meantime, practice your breathing and do these techniques of squeezing and releasing.