Pelvic Floor Exercises can be done almost anywhere, the secret is to ensure you do them regularly.

Stand, sit or lie with your knees slightly apart (sitting is easiest). Now imagine that you are trying to stop yourself passing wind from the back passage; to do this, you must tighten the muscles round the back passage. Squeeze and lift those muscles as if you really do have wind: you should be able to feel the muscles move and the skin round the back passage tightening. Your legs and buttocks should not move at all.

Next, imagine that you are sitting on the toilet passing urine. Imagine yourself trying to stop the stream of urine (the stop test) – really try hard. You will be using the same group of muscles as in the first exercise, but you will find it more difficult

Next time you go to the toilet to pass urine, try the stop test about half way through emptying your bladder. (If the flow of urine speeds up, you are using the wrong muscles.) Once you have stopped the flow of urine, relax and allow the bladder to empty completely. Do not worry if you find you can only slow up the stream, and cannot stop it completely. Do not do this every time but only to help you identify the correct muscles.

If you are unsure you are exercising the right muscles, put one or two fingers in the vagina and try the exercise to check. You should feel a gentle squeeze if you are exercising the pelvic floor. A common mistake is to just clench your buttocks and hold your breath; if you cannot hold a conversation at the same time, you are doing the exercises wrongly. Counting aloud while you do the exercises will stop you holding your breath. Do not tighten the tummy, thigh or buttock muscles or cross your legs. Only use your pelvic floor muscles

When you have learned to use the muscles correctly train as hard as you can without using other muscle groups. Gradually increase the number of repetitions to 10 times. Try to hold each muscle contraction for 6-8 seconds.

It is never too late to start pelvic floor exercises. No matter what you age or condition they can cause improvements in your condition.

For more information on Pelvic Floor Exercises and for general information on managing incontinence visit the Managing Your Condition section of our website.