Pelvic Floor

The pelvic floor muscles are a wonderful, hard-working part of the body that deserve a special kind of attention it often misses out on! Maintaining a strong pelvic floor is essential to continence (bladder and bowel health) and sexual function.

Download our Pelvic Health Guide and/or browse the topics below to find out more about pelvic health and pelvic floor muscles.

Support and Information

Free Resources
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Video Guide

Pelvic Health Guide

Featuring videos from experienced pelvic health physiotherapists Liz Childs and Leanne Wait.
Sticker

Pelvic Floor Digital Sticker

Download our helpful resource to start your pelvic floor exercises.
What are Pelvic Floor Muscles?
Issues with Pelvic Floor Muscles
Pelvic Health During and After Pregnancy
Strengthening Your Pelvic Floor Muscles
Where to get Help

What are Pelvic Floor Muscles?

Pelvic floor muscles are an important but often overlooked set of muscles that everyone has. Watch our introduction videos (below) for advice on pelvic floor muscle basics including where they are and what role they play in your body.

Issues with Pelvic Floor Muscles

Because bladder, bowel, and pelvic health is often not talked about, it can be difficult to know whether or not you might have an issue, what is “normal”, and when you should consider seeking help. Watch our videos on pelvic floor muscle issues (below) to find out more.

Issues with your bladder or bowel control, sexual function, and/or core could be an indication that your pelvic floor muscles aren’t functioning well. If you would like to know more about what is "normal", visit the section of our website for Bladder and Bowel Health.

What Can Affect Pelvic Floor Muscles?

A number of factors and experiences can affect pelvic floor muscles, including:

Surgical history (e.g. radical prostatectomy)
Previous injury
Heavy lifting (e.g. physical labour or gym)
Chronic coughing or sneezing (e.g. from smoking or asthma)
Menopause
Weight
Age
Disuse
Pregnancy and childbirth

Prostate Cancer and the Pelvic Floor Muscles

Our FREE Prostate Cancer and the Pelvic Floor Muscles online training was developed with support from the Prostate Cancer Foundation of New Zealand.

Please note that although this training was originally developed for Prost-FIT trainers, the content can be useful for anyone who wants to learn more about this topic. Enrol for free here.

Strengthening Your Pelvic Floor Muscles

Although pelvic floor issues are more commonly associated with specific groups like birthing parents and older people, pelvic floor muscle strengthening is important for everyone. Just like any other muscle, strengthening your pelvic floor muscles helps to keep them functioning well. Because it’s hard to activate muscles you can’t see, people often have difficulty with exercising their pelvic floor muscles. Watch this section’s videos (below) to learn how to exercise your pelvic floor muscles correctly.
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One-page Pelvic Floor Guide

A simple, one-page guide featuring pelvic health physiotherapist Liz Childs. Download it here (PDF). You can also download a simpler, printer-friendly version here (PDF).
Pamphlet: Bladder control problems women

Pelvic Floor Muscle Training in Women

A Continence NZ brochure available for download (PDF), including information about the pelvic floor muscles, starting your pelvic floor training programme, and progressing your programme. If you would like to order one physical copy, this is free. Please call 0800 650 659 or email zoe@continence.org.nz to order. If you would like to order more than one physical copy, we do have a charge. Please see the order form for prices or visit our online store .
Pelvic floor muscle training for men pamphlet

Pelvic Floor Muscle Training in Men

A Continence NZ brochure available for download (PDF), including information about the pelvic floor muscles, starting your pelvic floor training programme, and progressing your programme. If you would like to order one physical copy, this is free. Please call 0800 650 659 or email zoe@continence.org.nz to order. If you would like to order more than one physical copy, we do have a charge. Please see the order form for prices or visit our online store.
Reducing Pelvic Floor Muscle Strain
There are a number of myths and misunderstandings when it comes to pelvic health and pelvic floor muscle exercise. Watch our myths videos (below) to better understand how, when, and why you may need to exercise your pelvic floor.

Where to Get Help

There is support available for pelvic health problems, but knowing where to go or who to talk to can sometimes be difficult. Depending on your concern, if you need further advice, you could speak with:

GP, midwife, or nurse
Continence NZ
Continence nurse
Trained fitness professionals
Pelvic health physiotherapist – watch our FAQ videos (below)

Pelvic Health During and After Pregnancy

Pregnancy is one of the more common times when people think about their pelvic health - 1 in 3 people who have ever had a baby experience bladder leakage as a result. Pregnancy changes place extra stress on the pelvic floor, and the birthing process can create further issues. Watch our pregnancy videos (below) to learn more about pelvic health during and after pregnancy, and you can download our Pregnancy Guide for more in-depth information.
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