I thought I would write a bit about swimming because whether you are pregnant, just delivered, or well beyond those points in your life, swimming is a great exercise choice.  It is simply a fantastic way to get your heart rate up and strengthen muscles through non-impact activity.

I love this exercise choice because it promotes extension.  I have blogged extensively about the importance of working the muscles on the back side of our bodies.  If you think about it, everything that we do throughout our day is out in front of our body.  This tendency to work our flexors and … Continue Reading

I am 6 weeks post-partum and I feel this heaviness in my vaginal area but no bulge.  I want to start running but don’t know if I am ready.  Is this similar to what you felt?

 My prolapse sounds like a bit more than yours, with a grade III cystocele. When I stood in a half-squat position in front of the mirror, I could see the anterior wall of my vagina, about 1/2 fist in size, bulging out. So my pelvic floor had completely shut down. After my first delivery I had my eye on the 6-week mark to begin running … Continue Reading

I want to share a couple of tips that many of my patients have found helpful in their journey through pelvic floor rehabilitation and return to activity: triathalon shorts and a high fiber diet. The high fiber diet seems logical to reduce any added strain on our pelvic floor, but the triathalon shorts…pretty random right? I agree, but so many women have shared these tips with me that I must pass them on.

Let’s start with the tri short. The benefit of the tri short is two-fold. Number one, they hug tight to your hips … Continue Reading

Alright, I have gathered a group of exercises that I especially like for hikers. I have taken care to stress hip flexors, glutes, and calves for the ascent, and quads and hamstrings for the descent. I also have two exercises listed for upper body, always being mindful of our postural exercises to hold shoulders back, helping to enhance breathing and lesson the load on the upper spine. The magic number of exercises for me is 6. It is complete, but also keeps the workout to around 20 minutes as long as you are alternating sets as … Continue Reading

I can hardly contain my excitement. I just sat down with the latest issue of Inside Triathlon (March/April 2010) magazine and came across an article by Torbjorn Sindballe. He was writing about body balance and alignment, and how that can affect race results. I was intrigued because this follows along with my beliefs, as I have written about, how posture can affect the efficiency of our musculosketletal system, our lung expansion, our bone health, our pelvic floor function, and more.

As I continued to read, he addressed something that had completely changed his training: a focus on … Continue Reading

I just finished a morning run and I was thinking about how running has helped to strengthen my pelvic floor.  These were thoughts I needed and wanted to share with those of you who have avoided whatever activities you used to do, including regular fitness like walking, running, hiking and aerobics, because of incontinence or prolapse issues.  The truth is, that just like my legs and arms are stronger and more toned because of my running and stabilization exercises… so is my pelvic floor.

… Continue Reading

As we begin this blog, let me introduce myself. My name is Tasha Mulligan. I am a physical therapist, athletic trainer, triathlete, and mother of three. The topic of incontinence and prolapse isn’t one that I have always been focused on, but my own journey through pregnancy and delivery pushed me into the women’s health field of physical therapy five years ago.
My quick background – I was an avid triathlete leading up to my first pregnancy. I maintained a controlled exercise program throughout my pregnancy and was looking forward to returning to running following my delivery and my six-week follow … Continue Reading