# How Long Until Pelvic Floor Exercises Start To Work?



## SadHuman (Jul 15, 2017)

I've been doing basic pelvic floor exercises for about 2 weeks now everyday, and I am aware that isn't a lot of time, but despite everything my pelvic floor is only getting worse and worse. I'm worried it will never get better.
I suffer with excessive gas which I cannot control. This always gets me unwanted attention and constant comments about the way I smell. It's kinda of a fecal-gas smell I think. Me and the family I live with cannot smell me but others can. They think I'm insane!
Even when I feel completely fine and not gassy, I get these reactions so I think perhaps I'm leaking gas also.
As well as this, I have incomplete evacuation and I can feel my weak pelvic floor has trouble working.
I'm currently on the low fodmap diet which has reduced the gas a little, I am eating many low sulphur foods like kiwi and cucumber, and like I said before, I am doing the exercises every single day.
I'm worried that they'll never start to make a difference. How long was it until it made a different for anyone else, and if so, it would be useful to know what exercises you were doing?


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## PokerFace (Jan 13, 2017)

You should balance it with relaxation techniques and be patient. But what excercises are you doing exacly? It’s up to each own right now I haven’t figured a standard program yet. Basic pelvic floor is probably not enough as you’re supposed to go down pretty hard on body building new muscle mass


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## flossy (Dec 8, 2012)

Hi SadHuman -

Do you suffer from IBS at all or no?

You can take Beano and simethicone pills (aka gas relief) for the gas and also take a couple of charcoal pills before or during each full meal to help curb the odor. Note: Charcoal pills work great, but can possibly be constipating, so be aware.

Sorry but I cannot answer the pelvic floor question.

Good luck and keep us posted!


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## SadHuman (Jul 15, 2017)

Im doing about 100 squats a day and 10 reps of 10 second bridge exercises at the moment and every week I'm increasing the number I do.


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## SadHuman (Jul 15, 2017)

@flossy
I did at one point take charcoal, however like you said it did cause constipation.
I think I might start taking it again but increase the amount of water I'm drinking so it doesn't affect me as much.


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## PokerFace (Jan 13, 2017)

So you have access to a kettleball? Its a very useful excercise. Also back leg kick and some kind of weight lift on your legs would hurt


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## PokerFace (Jan 13, 2017)

Also you have to gradually increase if youre wishing to grow a muscle , otherwise you are just toning the weak muscles you already have


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## Guest (Feb 27, 2018)

Why so many of you do much more exercise than i but are not getting results? Even worst, some are complaining about their problem getting worst.


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## Sufferer25 (Dec 8, 2017)

First of all a little more information is beneficial here, such as what exercises youre doing, what youre eating, as well as symptoms other than being gassy and incomplete ivac if you have anymore.

Just making this short right now because i'm tired, but youre overworking your floor you shouldn't be going to such intense measures of working it out everyday almost every muscle in the body needs rest days. A simple regimen of 2 days on 2 days off repeating is a decent start or maybe look up info and find out what an even better on/off period would be to best maximize the growth of muscles. For me pelvic floor exercises are the least beneficial in my situation. Id done kegels and ###### for the longest time with almost no benefits, look into legs glutes lower back and core would be my best bit of advice at the moment.

With your comment of saying youre working out and its making it worse, I know of myself and Marianozab that can attest to overworking our muscles ourselves and it basically almost seemed like things were getting worse, you want to fix this as fast as possible which is understandable so you try and work extra hard, but in the end youre hindering it more by not resting.

Also general stuff, eat healthy if youre not

**Copy paste from other post cause i didnt know there was this one if anything is repeated my bad**


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## Guest (Feb 27, 2018)

I was reading that a lot of the people that is not getting results is very skinny, maybe that´s why, you need to add more mass, maybe you have a health problem that makes you skinny hence much harder to get muscles and rehab. Just theories.


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## Sufferer25 (Dec 8, 2017)

Plenty fine theories, its much more difficult for a skinnier person to put on muscle compared to someone with a few pounds or overall just larger in size. Just a little piece to that being heavier gives the exercises we do more benefits for us in the sense that we weigh more so each squat has more weight attached to it. Theres plenty fine diets out there that put on mass and even products that do simply that in a liquid form mass gainer is just a simple name for it. Maybe look into it and protein powder overall is not a bad idea, there are good times and better times to be taking protein drinks so make sure to do research for whats best for you if you choose that route


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## SadHuman (Jul 15, 2017)

Like many of you have said, I think I'm going to have to increase the amount of protein in eating.

I've always, ever since I was very young, not eaten very much meat or dairy (pretty much a vegetarian) purely because I do not like it much which has resulted in making me very weak. I definitely think now I should make more of an effort to eat protein.
I'm going to research some low fodmap protein powders and start eating more chicken and dairy.

I'm much more hopeful for the future now and after being in quite a depressive state, this entire forum has really helped me become slowly better and realise what's wrong with me, so thank you for helping everybody as it does make a difference to people's lives


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## Sufferer25 (Dec 8, 2017)

For this whole new ordeal of peoples weight and size versus the effectiveness of the workouts, for those that are smaller when doing the workouts are your muscles burning, afterwards are you dripping with sweat, how long of a duration is it to finish all your workouts, how would you rate the difficulty of your exercise.


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## Sufferer25 (Dec 8, 2017)

For myself im 6'2 200 pounds on average, I on average work out for a 30 minutes burst once a day, legs are always extremely exhausted heartrates up and covered in sweat.

I feel like for most smaller people squats on average using body weight is so much easier for them maybe even so much so that it provides almost no workout when it consists of just bodyweight exercises


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## SadHuman (Jul 15, 2017)

I'm starting to get really sick of the inconsiderate comments people are making daily. Does anybody have any good tips for masking the odour in the mean time of the pelvic floor exercises? I've been doing them for about a month now so I'm expecting in a couple more to see at least a slight improvement in others reactions. It would help a lot if I could even smell myself!


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## Optimistical (Jan 7, 2018)

your best bet is controlling your sulfur intake in terms of reducing the odor. i mean, like try to limit it

some ppl have had success with charcoal pills and chlorophyll

some ppl use coffee grinds in their pockets to mask the smell

good luck


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## Sufferer25 (Dec 8, 2017)

Expect results but dont lose hope if you don't, each person is different and a timeline for one could be completely different for another. Theres the supplements that people recommend, but try controlling your anxiety the best you can and calm yourself so as to not irritate it even farther, try taking your mind off of it and not focus so intently on it when in situations that cause it to become more prevelant.


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## Sunna (Jul 26, 2017)

I have been fighting IBS-C for over a year and I finally hit upon a solution that turns everything I thought I knew about constipation and fiber on its head. (I posted my odyssey on the "rock hard stools thread") - and while my attempts were somewhat successful -- what I am describing below made an almost overnight difference.

Please see the website: https://www.gutsense.org/fiber-menace/about-fiber-menace-book.html

I have read the book (it's free) cover to cover at least twice, and while I bought the supplements, they are available on Amazon prime (under different names).

Their Hydro-C Colonic Moisturizer is the exact same as Douglas Laboratories® - Effer-C (Buffered) - Vitamin C Buffered with Calcium, Magnesium and Potassium - 240 Grams;

I take that in the mornings first thing - I need 1.5 teaspoons in water on an empty stomach - and along with coffee (and breakfast about an hour later) I have a BM with no problem at all&#8230;

It was a little rough at first because fiber had stretched me out and I had to get rid of that first. But, I am regular as rain every day.

In the evening before bed I take:


A version of their GI Recovery (L-Glutamine-based prebiotic) which can be recreated using BulkSuplements or Now products (L-Glutamine plus FOS (fructooligosaccharides) and acacia fiber).
I have a sensitivity to FOS so I use .5 teaspoon Now brand L-Glutamine and 1 teaspoon BulkSuplements Laminara Japonica (brown seaweed).

1 scoop of a powdered probiotic (I use one for animals - because I had it on hand and it's cheap) Vet Plus Probios Dispersible Digestive Powder
1 teaspoon of Colostrum-LD Powder (not necessary, because it can make you herx, but, I am taking that to heal my intestines which are definitely a little sore and inflamed after being so blocked up in spasm for so long.
2 caps of their Enterophilus probiotic (if you want to recreate it on Amazon, the ingredients include:

Lactobacillus acidophilus (DDS-1) - 1.15 Billion*
L. Rhamnosus - 1.15 Billion*
L. Rhamnosus (Type B, Bifidus) - 775 Million*
Bifidobacterium lactis - 275 Million*
Bifidobacterium longum - 275 Million*
B. Bifidum - 275 Million*
Streptococcus thermophiles - 150 Million

The book also gives some pretty sound dietary guidelines and explains why we should eat somethings over others.

See Chapter 5: https://www.gutsense.org/fiber-menace/why-fiber-causes-constipation.html


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## PokerFace (Jan 13, 2017)

Sunna the people here dont have ibs, the people here have leaky gas lol


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## SadHuman (Jul 15, 2017)

So I'm really freaking out right now.
On the muscles around the anus, most normal healthy people have a muscle just above it which feels like a sort of lump, which up to this point, I had. Now it's gone flat and i can't detect ANY gas I'm leaking at all now and I'm really confused to how that happened since I've been doing my pelvic floor exercises and eating right. It's weird that it just decided to go flat. Will this only last a short amount of time or will I have to start from the beginning all over again?


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## SadHuman (Jul 15, 2017)

I feel like everything I do makes it worse lol


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## PokerFace (Jan 13, 2017)

Are you eating enough protein?
Its not flat its probably just absorbed in other muscles you now have. Give it time, its been to little.
But eat properly and dont walk for too long or run


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## SadHuman (Jul 15, 2017)

Sorry for asking so many questions on this forum, but does anybody know if is it also typical to suffer from awful bloating and pain with a weak pelvic floor, or could it be something else? 
I know i definitely have leaky gas, but i always seem to be really flatulent and bloated too even if I don't eat much.


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## PokerFace (Jan 13, 2017)

You may have poor digestion bacteria. I think we all do. Antibiotics and specific vegetarian diets (or poor diets in general) can destroy your gut bacteria. Its very hard to restore it but you can try with dairy and stuff like that
Also excessive candida causes gut flora imbalance


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## EmilyR (Apr 5, 2015)

I hope it's ok if I hop in here just to add that this is also my problem, original poster. Sometimes it's ok, but unpredictable. In my case I was on beta blocker medicene for quite some time and it's weakened ALL my muscles all over, climbing the stairs is hard, everything. I was very fit before. I'm now trying to get that fitness back and hoping things will improve (the doctor says it won't, that it has nothing to do with it, also thinks I'm over worrying and has never done any tests or anything. I'm female though and in my 40's now and the doctor says it's just where hormones are fluctuating and it will settle down later on.......later on doesn't help me, lol)

It does sound like it's a multiple approach needed: muscle development, working on gut bacteria, and finding something that allows you to be confident about any odor control. My family say they aren't aware of my problems, but then they only see me for a few hours at a time. Also people close to you don't pay attention if you are in the bathroom longer than usual, or whatever else you do to hide the problem, it's only people you work with or don't know quite as well.

Anyway, you have my sympathies and good luck with trying to find a solution.


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## SadHuman (Jul 15, 2017)

Thought I'd add to this topic, is it just me who consistently has a change in body odour from a gas smell to a fishy smell? Only in the past few months have I been brought to the attention that sometimes I also smell like fish. It's really confusing as I have a weak pelvic floor and am obviously leaking gas, but am sometimes instead creating a really offensive fish smell for no reason. Does anybody else have this problem? If you do, do you have any sort of explanation? Thank youu


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## CalmWaters (Mar 31, 2017)

Sadhuman, the fishy smell may be due to bacterial infection or inflammation somewhere in your rectum. See a doctor, get a sigmoidscopy.


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## meager (May 1, 2009)

Just a personal experience for OP's question: I was regularly exercising my pelvic floor every other day for a few months, as well as following a strict diet and saw noticeable improvement. Over the last month or two, I started to slack and I noticed a gassy smell come back. By slack I mean I stopped going to the gym and started eating all kinds of bad food for my stomach. Sometimes the smell would be gassy, sometimes it smelled like straight feces. I knew it was bad when my friend leaned into the car and said it smelled like someone took a shit. This only fueled my anxiety, and my uncontrollable flatulence came back. Don't quit on the exercises and a diet that works for you, no matter how slow your progress seems to be.


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## SadHuman (Jul 15, 2017)

Yeah, I've definitely seen an inprovement in my incomplete evacuation and odour problem, however I still get pretty bad reactions from people. It's so annoying when you think you're having a good day and then somebody comments on it. I can't tell if it's good that I'm less gassy or worse as I could be leaking it :/


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## GURUSgetOUT (Jul 31, 2017)

MarianoZab said:


> Why so many of you do much more exercise than i but are not getting results? Even worst, some are complaining about their problem getting worst.


There are some users spamming how the only solution to this problem is their made-up exercise rutine. NO THEY DONT WORK, SADLY.

I wish we could just move on and start looking for a real solution.


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## GURUSgetOUT (Jul 31, 2017)

GURUSgetOUT said:


> There are some users spamming how the only solution to this problem is their made-up exercise rutine. NO THEY DONT WORK, SADLY.
> 
> I wish we could just move on and start looking for a real solution.


I am not saying that fodmap diet and nice excercise wont work at all. But clearly we are not getting enough results ,otherwise we would be living a happy life already.


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## PokerFace (Jan 13, 2017)

GURUSgetOUT said:


> There are some users spamming how the only solution to this problem is their made-up exercise rutine. NO THEY DONT WORK, SADLY.
> 
> I wish we could just move on and start looking for a real solution.


User Sufferer25 made this routine


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## meager (May 1, 2009)

GURUSgetOUT said:


> I am not saying that fodmap diet and nice excercise wont work at all. But clearly we are not getting enough results ,otherwise we would be living a happy life already.


Yeah, definitely can't say it works for everyone. We should all be proactive in researching and trying out every potential solution, even if it only serves to mitigate the problem it's better than nothing.


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