Kegel Exercises For Men With Peyronie's Disease
We have all heard of the value of Kegel exercises for women. Less know are the benefits of Kegel exercises for men, including those suffering from Peyronie's disease.
What Are Kegel Exercises?
Kegel exercises are pelvic floor muscle exercises (PFME). They are called Kegel exercises after Arnold Kegel, the man that introduced the benefits for women of exercising the muscles in the pelvic floor.
Men can also benefit greatly from doing pelvic floor exercises, including some men with Peyronie's disease.
The Benefits Of Kegel Exercises For Men?
Pelvic floor exercises can help to reduce the risk of premature ejaculation, stop dribbling after urination, improve the quality of orgasm, and benefit men undergoing prostatectomy.
Kegel exercises for men can also improve erectile quality, i.e. help men to achieve and maintain an erection sufficient for satisfactory sexual performance. Erectile dysfunction is common among men with Peyronie's disease so this is of great value to those Peyronie's patients.
Erectile dysfunction exercises like this may also aid men in maintaining good quality erections, making them of value for all men (with or without Peyronie's disease / erectile dysfunction).
How To Do Pelvic Floor Muscle Exercises For Men
It is easy to do Kegel exercises and you should be able to do them even if you are undergoing other Peyronie's treatments.
The easiest way to locate the pelvic floor muscles is to stop the urination midstream. The following graph shows the location of the pelvic floor muscles and the surrounding organs.
To do the pelvic floor muscle exercises follow those steps:
- Empty your bladder
- Lie down on your back with your knees bent and apart
- Tighten the pelvic floor muscles
- Hold it for as long as you can (3 - 5 seconds to start with)
- Relax for few seconds and then repeat the process, i.e. tighten, hold and relax
Start slowly and gradually increase both the number of exercises and the time you hold the concentration. Aim to:
- Do the pelvic floor exercises 3 – 4 times a day
- Tighten the muscles 10 – 20 times in each session
- Hold each concentration for 10 – 20 seconds
Quality is however important. It is better to do fewer good ones than many short ones. Few practical tips while doing your Kegel exercises:
- Avoid holding your breath while doing the exercises
- Do not tighten other muscles at the same time (e.g. thighs, buttocks, stomach)
- Don't give up, practice makes perfect, it takes time and effort to master pelvic floor exercises for men
Proof That Kegel Exercises For Men Work
Various studies have shown that pelvic floor exercises for men can be effective for men suffering from erectile dysfunction (common among men with Peyronie's disease).
One of the most famous researches into using pelvic floor muscle exercises to help with erectile dysfunction was published in 2004. It suggested that pelvic floor exercises should be considered as a first-line approach for men seeking long-term resolution of their erectile dysfunction as:
“After 6 months, blind assessment showed that 40% of men had regained normal erectile function, 35.5% improved but 24.5% failed to improve” (BJU Int. 2005
)
This is the same "overall improvement rate as seen in a large trial of men taking Viagra” (UWE, Bristol )
This supports the benefits of doing Kegel exercises for men with Peyronie's disease. All men with Peyronie's disease should know how to do pelvic floor exercises… and do them, even if not suffering (yet) from erectile dysfunction.
