Leaks after childbirth, winter cough, discomfort at the slightest sprint: your perineum says a lot. What if 25 guided minutes were enough to start its reconstruction?
Taboo, discreet, but omnipresent in daily life, the
pelvic floor often lets go at the worst time: burst of laughter, jogging, winter cough or after childbirth. One in three women experience urinary leakage during their life, a sign that this muscular area remains largely under-trained.
However, this is neither an inevitability nor a simple cliché about women’s problems. Gynecologist Marie-Eve Clermont recalls that “there is no quick fix for incontinence; it is really global care, with the involvement of the patient”, she explained to La Presse. A pelvic floor training of 25 minutes, regular, can be the basis.
Why pelvic floor training changes everything
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At the heart of the pelvis, this hammock of muscles supports the bladder, uterus and intestine, while influencing posture and sexual comfort. “I like to think of the pelvic floor as a barrel in the center of the body. The top is the diaphragm, which rises and falls with each inhale and exhale,” coach Lita Lewis describes in SELF.
Pregnancy, childbirth, weight gain, menopause, but also long periods of sitting weaken this barrel. Winter doesn’t help matters: 40% of women exercise less and 52% report discomfort or leaks during cold season. “The pelvic floor is made up of muscles and like all muscles, they need training to stay strong,” recalls Dr. Susanna Unsworth, gynecologist associated with Intimina, cited by Doctissimo.
The golden rules for effective pelvic floor training
The good news: well worked, this muscle responds. According to a 2018 Cochrane review, among women following a
pelvic floor strengthening supervised for three to six months, three-quarters see their symptoms improve, most of them even disappear. Physiotherapist Catherine Lafrance-Raymond recalls that “technically, for the improvement of any muscle group, we are talking about three to four times a week, and for maintenance, twice a week”.
Catherine Lafrance-Raymond compares the trunk to a tin can: diaphragm at the top, abdominals around it, pelvic floor at the bottom. If any of these three areas malfunction, leaks appear. Working on breathing, posture and locking the perineum when coughing, carrying loads or during weight training, yoga or pilates, while limiting alcohol, coffee, very spicy dishes and urinating without the urge, and using geisha balls if necessary, helps to further protect this area.
Your 25-Minute Workout to Rebuild the Pelvic Floor
At home, this 25-minute time can take place in three stages: deep breathing and gentle movement of the pelvis to release, a sequence ofKegel exercises mixing rapid contractions and contractions held for 6 seconds then around ten seconds with equal rest, then gentle overall strengthening by coordinating each expiration with the contraction of the perineum. For young mothers as for others, this postpartum or preventive work benefits from being carried out three to four times a week and adapted to the level of fatigue, with medical advice in the event of pain or marked leaks.
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date: 2026-02-12 03:22:00
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