The Kegel Exercises

Pathways to Pleasure : A Woman's Guide to Orgasm
by Robert W. Birch, Ph.D.

A LITTLE HISTORY

A band of muscles stretch between the legs of both men and women, stretching from the pubic bone in front to the coccyx (tail) bone in back. Playfully, we could say that with out these muscles, all of our internal organs would fall out! Along their way, this sling of muscles includes the sphincter of the bladder, the sphincter of the anus, and, in a woman, the sphincter surround the opening of her vagina. These muscles are clinically known as the pubococcygeus (pronounced pew-bo-kak-se-gee'-us) muscles, but this group of muscles is more commonly called the "PC muscle." To talk as though there is just one muscle is an over-simplification, for there are actually a number of muscle groups that collectively make up this pelvic floor sling. We'll use the plural and call them the PC muscles.

Many younger women have been introduced to their PC muscles during a pregnancy or during a postpartum exam when they were advised to exercise these muscles in order to restore muscle tone following childbirth. Many older women have been introduced to their PC muscles because these are the muscles that are exercised to correct the condition known as urinary incontinence (the involuntary loss of urine when coughing, sneezing, etc.). In fact, the exercise of these PC muscles as a medical treatment for urinary incontinence was first proposed in1950 by the surgeon Arnold Kegel, for whom the exercises have been named.

In 1952, Dr. Kegel published a report in which he claimed that the women doing his exercises were becoming more easily, more frequently and more intensely orgasmic! As these are the muscles that contract rhythmically during orgasm in both males and females, it is not surprising, therefore, that sex therapists have emphasized the importance of these pelvic floor muscles that surround the vaginal opening and play a major role in the orgasmic response.

Thirty years after Dr. Kegel's article, sex therapist Bryce Britton wrote a book titled "THE LOVE MUSCLE," calling her publication "Every Woman's Guide to Intensifying Sexual Pleasure." Many people still refer to the PC muscles as the love muscle. Now, almost 50 years after Dr. Kegel published his discovery, and after several decades of "prescribing" the Kegel exercises as a component in teaching women to become orgasmic (or more easily orgasmic), what can we say about "Kegeling" the love muscle? We can say that doing the exercises will tone up the sphincter of the bladder and might tighten the muscles around the opening of the vagina. We can also assume that any well-toned muscle will contract more powerfully than would a flabby muscle, and hence the likelihood of stronger orgasms with stronger PC muscles. We can report with confidence that some women squeeze their PC muscles, forcing blood down into their genital tissue, and in so doing turn themselves on. A very small minority of women might even be able to bring themselves to orgasm exclusively with voluntary pelvic floor contractions. Finally, it is safe to say that a woman can add novelty to a sexual encounter by voluntarily squeezing her well-toned vaginal sphincter around her partner's penis, and this might be fun for both giver and receiver.

What can most confidently be said about the entire "PC muscle controversy" is that in doing Dr. Kegel's exercises, a woman will achieve closer contact with her pelvis, is more likely to take ownership of her internal and external genitalia, will strengthen the muscles that contract during orgasm, and is probably making an investment in her lifelong urinary control! Is it a major component in a woman becoming orgasmic? Probably not, but it is certainly something non-orgasmic women should include in their quest for the "Big O." It is a part of the learning package.

About the Author

www.oralcaress.com
Robert W. Birch, Ph.D., Retired Marital & Sex Therapist, 35 years as a psychologist specializing in building sensual, intimate, and loving relationships. Clinician, lecturer, workshop leader, and author of nine books.