How to Relax Your Pelvic Floor Before Running
How to Relax Your Pelvic Floor Before a Run: Why Runners Need More Than Strength
If you're a runner, chances are you spend time thinking about strengthening your legs, improving your endurance, and building a stronger core. But there's one important group of muscles that may not be getting enough attention: your pelvic floor.
Your pelvic floor plays an important role in supporting your bladder and other pelvic organs, managing pressure within your trunk, and coordinating with your breathing and core muscles during movement.
Here's something many runners don't realize: your pelvic floor needs to know how to relax just as much as it needs to know how to contract.
If you're constantly tightening your abdominal muscles, clenching your glutes, or holding tension throughout your body while running, you may be missing an important part of pelvic floor function.
Let's explore why pelvic floor relaxation matters and how you can prepare your body before heading out for a run.
What Is the Pelvic Floor?
Your pelvic floor is the group of muscles that attaches to your pelvis including your glutes, abdominal muscles, back extensors, and hip muscles. These muscles help support your pelvic organs and work together with your diaphragm to manage pressure throughout your trunk.
Think of your pelvic floor as part of your body's overall core system rather than an isolated group of muscles.
Why Does Pelvic Floor Relaxation Matter for Runners?
Running involves repetitive impact. Every time your foot contacts the ground, your body must absorb and redistribute forces.
Muscles that remain excessively tense may have difficulty responding efficiently to shock absorption.
Some signs that your pelvic floor may need additional relaxation include:
Pelvic discomfort or pressure during exercise.
Urinary leakage while running, jumping, or exercising.
Pain or tension around your hips or pelvis.
Low back tension
These symptoms can have several causes, and they don't automatically mean your pelvic floor is too tight. A proper assessment can help determine whether the muscles need improved strength, coordination, relaxation, or a combination.
How Breathing Helps Your Pelvic Floor Relax
One of the simplest ways to begin improving pelvic floor awareness is through breathing.
Your diaphragm and pelvic floor work together as part of your pressure-management system.
As you inhale, your diaphragm moves downward and your pelvic floor can lengthen and relax. As you exhale, the diaphragm moves upward and the pelvic floor naturally returns toward its resting position.
This relationship is important because it helps your pelvic floor respond to movement rather than remaining constantly contracted.
Try This Before Your Next Run
Before heading outside, take a few minutes to practice:
Find a comfortable position sitting or lying down.
Place one hand on your lower back and another on the side of your lower ribs.
Slowly inhale through your nose, allowing your back and lower ribs to expand.
Notice whether you can breathe in a 360 direction or if you struggle breathing only in the upward and forward direction.
Slowly exhale engaging your abdominals but maintaining the width you gained on inhalation.
Repeat several comfortable breaths.
The goal is to recognize the difference between tension and relaxation.
Stop Treating Your Pelvic Floor Like It Always Needs to Be Stronger
Kegel exercises are commonly recommended for pelvic floor strengthening. However, strengthening isn't always the first or only answer.
If your pelvic floor is already excessively tense or has difficulty relaxing, repeatedly contracting it may not address the underlying problem.
Your pelvic floor needs three important abilities:
Strength: The ability to generate an appropriate contraction.
Endurance: The ability to maintain activity when needed.
Relaxation and coordination: The ability to release tension and respond to changing demands.
These abilities work together. A muscle that can contract but cannot adequately relax isn't functioning as efficiently as it could.
Your Pelvic Floor Is Part of Your Running Mechanics
Running isn't just about your feet hitting the pavement. Your body is a connected system.
Your breathing, abdominal muscles, hips, glutes, pelvis, and pelvic floor all contribute to how you move.
If you're constantly bracing your core or clenching your gluts, you may be changing how pressure is distributed throughout your body.
Instead of focusing on keeping everything tight, consider whether your body can move efficiently while allowing muscles to contract and relax when appropriate.
When Should You See a Physical Therapist?
If you experience urinary leakage, pelvic pain, pressure, or discomfort during running, don't assume these symptoms are simply part of being a runner.
A physical therapist with pelvic health and running experience can assess your breathing, abdominal coordination, hip mobility, pelvic floor function, and running mechanics to help identify what may be contributing to your symptoms.
You don't have to stop being active just because your body is giving you feedback. Understanding what's happening is the first step toward making meaningful changes.
Final Thoughts: Learn to Relax Before You Run
Your pelvic floor doesn't need to be clenched every second of the day to support you.
Learning to coordinate your breathing, core, and pelvic floor can help you better understand how your body responds to running.
Before your next run, take a few minutes to slow down, breathe, stretch, and notice where you're holding tension.
Sometimes improving movement isn't about doing more. It's about learning when to let go.
Want to learn more about relaxing your pelvic floor before running? Watch Dr. Christina's video: How to Relax Your Pelvic Floor Before a Run.
Dr. Christina – The Picky PT
Helping you understand your body so you can finally take control of your everyday aches and pains.
