The Refine Blog

Have you heard of Kegels? 10-20 years ago this wasn’t a common word and for most women, the answer would have been, “No.” Thanks to technology, the world wide web, social media, and increased awareness of women’s health issues (and men’s too, honestly), most women have at least heard of the term ‘Kegels.’ You know […]

Have you ever been in a group of moms laughing about not being able to jump on the trampoline anymore? Or about how they have to wear black leggings to the exercise class? Or how they need to run out of the room as soon as they start jumping jacks? I have. Numerous times. And […]

Phrases commonly used when instructing others on how to activate the inner core: Pull the belly button to spine Suck In Tighten your abs This actually can increase pressure and turn off the deep core I know so many of you have heard, used, or taught these cues to encourage core activation during workouts. So […]

Have you had this experience: You’re told you have diastasis, given a brace to wear, and then instructed never to do sit-ups or planks again? Unfortunately, this is all too common, and I’ve had several patients with this exact story. There’s a LOT of noise around diastasis and what you can and can’t do. And […]

Myth Debunked Kegels are not the only pelvic floor exercise. In fact, ANY exercise can be a pelvic floor (and deep core!) exercise when we know how to incorporate our breathing and deep core activation into them. Why is this important? Because the pelvic floor isn’t just a group of muscles that keep you from […]

Sharing with you today TEN Things you don’t have to settle for: Debilitating pain during pregnancy – when asking a group of pregnant women whether or not they experienced pain during pregnancy, 75% raised their hands and said they had, but very few actually pursue treatment for pain. Most assume that pain in pregnancy is […]

If you are a female and you’ve had babies, there is a good chance you have either a c-section scar or a perineal scar. A scar does not share the same characteristics of “normal” tissue, and it typically has extra adhesions that can begin attaching themselves to underlying tissue and muscle! This can affect how […]

Y’all asked and we answered: 3 pelvic floor exercises that you can do WITHOUT doing a kegel! These exercises all are alike in the fact that they promote pelvic floor activation because they use muscles that have attachments into the pelvic floor! I also like them b/c they’re a little more fun than just doing […]

Here are a few of my favorite FUNCTIONAL exercises to add to your workouts: Squats w/ toes in – I love this exercise bc squats, in general, are functional, but turning the toes in helps activate our pelvic floor – a win-win for this Pelvic floor PT! Tricep dips – I really like this body-weight […]