Pregnancy can be a trying time for many women. But even after the baby is born, you may continue to feel like a stranger in your own body. After all, that postpartum healing process is no joke. In the midst of your post-baby whirlwind, you may wonder: can Kegels make you tighter after birth? Because that part of your anatomy needs some care and attention now more than ever.
In general, Kegel exercises can provide many benefits to people recovering from childbirth. As noted on Baby Center, Kegels can strengthen your pelvic floor muscles, helping your vaginal area feel tighter over time. Additionally, Kegel exercises may even help you regain bladder control after vaginal childbirth, as explained in the Mayo Clinic. Basically, there's no reason to avoid Kegels.
Thankfully, learning how to do Kegel exercises is also simple and straightforward. According to Healthline, you can place a finger inside your vagina and then tighten your vaginal muscles around said finger. Voila — you have just done your first Kegel.
Once you've got the hang of these exercises, you can come up with a legit Kegels workout routine. According to Baby Center, you can work up to holding each Kegel for 10 seconds, then resting for 10 seconds. As further noted by Baby Center, you can do up to two sets of 10 Kegels, three times a day (or a little less when you're starting out).
Best of all, this is one workout you can do any time, any place. No one will know you're doing them. Unless you start counting your reps out loud in the dentist's waiting room or something, then things might get a little weird.
On a final note, you may not want to over-stress about the need for a super-tight vagina right after childbirth. Sure, your body is bound to feel different for several weeks, but, as noted in What To Expect, you are unlikely to experience any lasting drastic changes to your body after a normal vaginal delivery. Eventually, everything return to its original state (or, at least, something very close to the vagina you started with). In the meantime, rock some Kegels and enjoy your new normal.
