I've been through two pregnancies and two natural home births. After that, I thought I was strong enough to handle anything...until I started jumping rope and lifting weights again. I had no idea leaking was even a thing. Come to find out it's very common whether you've had kids or not. Pelvic floor muscles weaken over time. Stress, kids, our age are all factors.
Many people think leaking while jumping is just caused by a weak pelvic floor and they need to do more Kegels to strengthen. While Kegels help there are several other things you should be doing as well.
1.Solid jump rope form
For jumping rope, good form can help your core to better absorb impact, preventing leaks. Chest proud, back straight and slight bend in your knees helps to put your deep core "canister" in the best alignment to do its job. Think about stacking your rib cage over your pelvis. Adding a jump rope mat will also greatly reduce your impact when jumping.
2.Strengthen your hips and glutes
The pelvic floor is a helper muscle, and it loves to take over and help stabilize the body when your hips or glute muscles aren't doing their job. But the pelvic floor will easily fatigue and stop working correctly.If weakness in these areas is a problem, exercises such as squats, lunges, dead lifts, bridges and hip thrusts can all help. Or check out my top exercises to build pelvic floor back here. :)
3.Start with your breathing
The pelvic floor is one part of the muscle system that makes up your "deep core. Think of it as the bottom of a canister that provides stability and support for your internal organs and urinary and bowel function. The top of the canister is your diaphragm, and around the sides are abdominal muscles.
Ideally when you breathe in, your diaphragm and pelvic floor both relax downward and your ribs and belly expand outward. When you breathe out, they naturally draw up and in. That healthy range of motion is important because it helps to absorb impact and manage pressure.
4.Avoid Caffeine
Caffeine can increase bladder activity and result in exacerbated symptoms, including higher urgency and frequency of urination, as well as increased incontinence. It's a fact that caffeine acts as a mild diuretic. This causes the kidneys to release more water from the bloodstream, which causes the bladder to fill up more quickly.
Dr. Jon Gleason who conducted the study found that women who consume more than 329mg of caffeine daily are the ones most likely to develop incontinence. While this disorder can be caused by many factors, if you are a high caffeine consumer you might want to consider cutting back a bit if you want to avoid potentially leaking while jumping rope.
For some "quick fixes" or in other words to put a "bandaid" on your situation you can;
wear black leggings
workout first thing in the morning
have caffeine after your jump rope sesh
Now if you'e looking for a solid routine of how to build back those muscles and never worry about leaking again watch this amazing video with Dr. Bri as she explains the top tips you can do to help prevent bladder leakage AKA urinary incontinence and strengthen your pelvic floor muscles.
Learn how common bladder leakage is and simple steps you can take to help with:
1. Leaking
2. building a stronger core
3. better sex life
4. reduce back pain
5. bounce back after baby
Yes, it’s all connected to our pelvic floor muscles and the good news is any one of us can strengthen our pelvic floor muscles to help prevent leakage and become confident in our bodies.
Need help staying consistent? ***SIGN UP for our 30 day Kegel camp HERE and receive a for 20% discount that will help transform your core and give you the confidence of staying leak free during your jump rope sessions and everyday activities.
About Karly Kent AKA Jump Rope Mom
Karly Kent, Founder of Gratitude Ropes, a former competitive jump roper, certified fitness coach, and mom of two, turned her childhood passion into a mission to help others get fit while finding gratitude and appreciation for life. Karly knows first hand how striving for our fitness and life goals can make us take our achievements, body, and current lives for granted. Karly teaches others how to jump rope, get fit and inspires others to go after their dreams despite what is being thrown at them, with gratitude. That inspired her to launch her own Jump Ropes, called Gratitude Ropes. To serve as a reminder to take a moment and appreciate the tiny wins around us, that’s when our world starts to change. It's the small things that add up and can carry you through those hard times.