Experiencing Incontinence Issues When You Run, Jump, or Even Laugh?

To say that the problem is common is an understatement. A study published in Obstetrics and Gynecology found that nearly 50 percent of all women will at some point in their lives contend with urinary incontinence, whether they ever give birth or not. Another study, published in the Journal of the 
American Medical Association, reported that at any given time, somewhere in the neighborhood of 25 percent of all women are coping with some form of pelvic floor disorder, including urinary incontinence.

If you’re surprised by those statistics, you are hardly alone. Unless the topic happens to come up in your own Pilates or Yoga class, how would you know? This “don’t ask, don’t tell” attitude isn’t lost on certain instructors who are specialized in women’s health. “People still don’t talk about it—they think they are the only one, and they are just so embarrassed,” says Carol Krucoff, a yoga therapist at Duke Integrative Medicine in Durham, North Carolina. “You get a group of women to start talking about it, they are really shocked that it happens to practically everyone. I often bring it up in my classes just to show women that it is so common.”

Prevalent as occasional incontinence is, however, its only one aspect of pelvic floor dysfunction, the umbrella term for disorders of the pelvic floor muscles. In the case of urinary incontinence, the muscles in the area may have grown weak, or hypotonic, usually due to the kind of overstretching that can happen in childbirth. When the muscles are overly tight, or hypertonic, other conditions can result, such as urinary frequency and urgency, interstitial cystitis, irritable bowel syndrome, painful intercourse, lower-back pain, and—in men—prostate problems.

A little “pee-pee problem” probably is related to hypotonic muscles that need strengthening, but it might also be caused by hypertonic muscles that have been tensed to the point of fatigue and give out at just the wrong time. “For many people, the pelvic floor is like a dead zone, “They don’t even know they have it.” But, You are not alone and there is a simple solution.

Advocate Bromenn Health & Fitness Center offers Pelvicore™ Training. 
Join physical therapists as they lead this exercise class designed to retrain your core and alleviate symptoms of pelvic floor disorders. New moms, athletes, women in menopause, even men - all are welcome! 

Classes begin April 4 
Tuesdays & Thursdays at 11 am

Advocate BroMenn Health & Fitness Center, located at 1111 Trinity Lane in Bloomington, has recently added a number of specialty programs open to the community. This new medically based fitness facility is open to anyone, 7 days a week, with exercise professionals on staff at all times. The Center includes a warm water hydrotherapy pool, lap pool, group classes, and a 1/12- mile track. For more information call 309-433-WELL (9355)