Discover more effective pelvic floor exercises in just 12 weeks, with the help of the Kegel8 Ultra 20 & Amanda Savage!

Amanda Savage is one of the UK’s leading specialist pelvic floor and women’s health physiotherapists. With over 20 years’ experience offering supervised pelvic floor muscle training and support for the recovery of pelvic organ prolapses, incontinence and pelvic surgeries, she also has post-graduate qualifications, including a master’s degree from the University of Cambridge, and is a member of the Professional Network of Pelvic, Obstetric & Gynaecological Physiotherapy (POGP). Working alongside us for many years in the development of our best-selling device, the Kegel8 Ultra 20 V2 Electronic Pelvic Toner, to ensure its efficacy, she continues to be an ambassador of our brand. An integral part of ensuring all supporting information and instructions are medically accurate so that the device is used correctly/effectively, she has also created 9 exercise guides that utilise a unique combination of the pre-set programmes to ensure treatment is tailored to the specific condition of the user.

Find out more about Amanda Savage, her qualifications, experience, knowledge, and affiliations here.

This tried and tested 12-week exercise programme has been created by Amanda Savage. It designed to ensure optimum treatment for your specific condition using the Kegl8 Ultra 20 V2 Electronic Pelvic Toner.

 

Please Note: Before proceeding with any of these condition exercises, make certain to run built-in programmes P01 and P02. These are sensitivity tests to help you determine if it’s safe for you to move forward with the following exercise.

Postpartum Recovery

During pregnancy and childbirth, the pelvic floor muscles must stretch to accommodate your baby, which understandably results in weakness and even damage postpartum. However, this damage/weakness is certainly not irreversible and is, by no means, inevitable. This easy 12-week plan has been specifically created to re-build the strength and endurance of the muscles to ensure optimum bladder and bowel control. In addition, by building strength and tone in the pelvic floor, the organs will be better supported, which will prevent prolapse and stop symptoms from worsening over time.

Please Note: In the first 12 weeks after your baby is born, you’re encouraged to do pelvic floor exercises but, as the body is still very fragile, it’s not advised to use a muscle stimulation machine until after 12 weeks have passed.

Week 1: Use P14, a 35-minute programme designed for new mothers. It consists of 2 phases, and we recommend using only on alternate days as you become accustomed to the probe.

• Phase 1: 20 minutes of continuous low-frequency current improves awareness of the muscle position, blood flow and nerve sensitivity. Relax in this phase.
• Phase 2: 15 minutes higher frequency current to stimulate the fast and slow pelvic floor muscle fibres by contracting for 6 seconds and then relaxing for 18 seconds. Long rest phases are needed when your muscles are learning to work again.

Week 2: Continue using P14 but do so daily for 6 days (if stimulation was comfortable in week 1). Have a rest on day 7 and take an additional rest day if you are at all uncomfortable. If tender or irritated, continue in an alternate day pattern.

Week 3 & 4: Use P03, which features similar muscle contraction times (6 seconds) but now with balanced rest time (also 8 seconds) in each cycle. You will do more contractions in the same treatment time.

• Phase 1: 15 minutes low frequency
• Phase 2: 30 minutes higher frequency. Use daily if comfortable but do have a rest day if feeling at all tender or irritated.

Week 5 – Week 8: Use P04, which features longer muscle contraction times (8 seconds) but still has a long rest period between each cycle. There are 4 phases, so frequency changes more often and you should try to ‘join in’ now as the muscle contracts. Do so by drawing up and in when you feel the stimulation. Don’t worry if you can only join in for the first few seconds - let the machine do the rest of the work.

Week 9 – Week 12: Use P10 in 2 phases as below. Use 6 days out of 7 (or alternate days if slightly sensitive).

• Phase 1: 10 minutes of continuous low-frequency current to improve awareness of the muscle position, blood flow, nerve sensitivity. Relax in this phase - relaxing muscles completely is also a skill we need (to urinate, empty the bowels and for enjoyable sex).
• Phase 2: 30 minutes medium frequency current to stimulate the fast and slow pelvic floor muscle fibres by contracting for 5 seconds then relaxing for 5 seconds in cycles. Help your brain to learn what to do by joining in with some of these contractions, trying to contract for the entire 5 seconds. Join in for 1 minute, then let the machine do the work for 1 minute or count joining in for 6 cycles, then letting the machine do 6 cycles.

View and download your 12-week exercise programme here.