Muscle re-education: learn or relearn how to contract only your pelvic floor muscles
without unintentionally contracting your abdominal, buttocks, or leg muscles. This isolates the exercise
to the contraction of pelvic floor muscles.
You must either feel the muscles contract (many cannot), see the muscles contract
(use a hand mirror during practice exercise), or use 2 fingers inserted into the vagina spread wide
apart and squeeze them together to assure that you are using the right muscles.
You may insert your index finger in between the front and back handles during practice
exercise and feel GyneFlexTM squeeze the handles together over your fingertip.
If you think that you are using your abdominal or buttock muscles, check by putting a
hand on them during GyneFlexTM exercise. Try to use only the
pelvic floor muscles. If you cannot tell if you are exercising the
right muscles check with your health care provider or obtain EMG with
biofeedback.
Muscle exercise against resistance.
GyneFlexTM is to vaginal muscle exercise what dumbbells are to
arm curls. Both lend
resistance to muscle contraction which is necessary to stimulate muscle development. If you were using 5 lb.
dumbbells and they were too light you would get 8 lb. weights. Similarly if your
GyneFlexTM offers too
little resistance it will completely close during your contraction and you my find 3 sets of 21 reps too
easy. If so, buy the Firm Flex resistance set. Conversely if you find that your
GyneFlexTM is too firm, go down in Flex
Resistance and order the Light Flex Resistance set.
Frequent exercise reinforcement for life.
As with any exercise, it is a conscientiously applied regular program that gets and
maintains results. Reinforce the GyneFlexTM resistance exercises
that you do each morning or evening by
doing Kegels (squeeze-hold-relax, repeat) at stop lights, while making coffee, while chatting on the phone,
or whenever and wherever its safe, at least 2 times daily. Every time you urinate stop and restart your
stream several times. This reinforces the muscle education and isolation that gets results.
After you have achieved desired results, maintenance of muscle tone to support the
uterus, bladder and rectum requires GyneFlexTM exercise (3 sets)
at least 3 times a week (just like any
maintenance exercise program).
Plan on undisturbed privacy for 10-15 minutes for each GyneFlexTM exercise session. Lock the door,
listen to music, and take satisfaction in the knowledge that the time
and effort that you are investing will improve your health and quality
of life.
