All About Dr. Arnold Kegel

Dr. Arnold Kegel. The man behind all things kegel. Did you know that he is the man who created the first kegel device back in the 1940’s? Dr. Arnold Kegel was a gynecologist who taught in our very own USC School of Medicine in Los Angeles, CA!  He observed that the muscles in the pelvic floor (including the PC muscle) were weakened following events such as pregnancy and childbirth.

He invented a device called the Perineometer. The device was to be entered into the vagina and when the women squeezed her PC Muscle it displayed a number on a dial. This number displayed how much pressure the PC muscle could squeeze which could be anywhere from 0 to 100 mm of mercury.

With the invention of the Kegel Perineometer, he instructed women to squeeze as hard as they possibly could. The Kegel Perineometer was a great way to help women identify the muscle that tightens the vagina, which in return, helped strengthen the PC muscle.

Additionally, it was also a way to measure how strong the PC muscle currently was and how they progressed with regular training.

You may be wondering, well what is the point of measuring how strong the pelvic floor muscle is?

In the most simple terms – measuring how strong the pelvic floor muscles help gynecologists identify women that had pelvic floor defects, genital prolapse, or even urinary incontinence.

But it didn’t stop with just the Perineometer. Dr.Arnold Kegel wanted to help all women understand his findings so he also published many academic journals on the subject.

Misconception

Through many years of practice, he came to a realization of why many products before him failed to strengthen the muscle. It is not because the effort wasn’t made. It was because others tried to strengthen the muscle through passive and stimulative exercise.

This type of exercise is not physiological and has never helped strengthen any muscle in the body.

In a famous academic journal, Dr.Kegel wrote called, The Nonsurgical Treatment of Genital Relation he states that “Only active effort on the part of the patient against progressive resistance can restore a muscle to usefulness.”

So What Does Progressive Resistance Mean?

Progressive resistance is a strength training method that constantly challenges your body. With the use of Gynie it would mean going to the next level spring once you feel you are gaining strength and the weight starts to become easy.

Unfortunately, many kegel products that are currently on the market do not incorporate progressive weight resistance. Most products incorporate static movement that requires you to simply hold the weight.  

The static movement doesn’t build muscle in the gym and it definitely doesn’t build muscle for your PC muscle. Yet, these same companies make claims to strengthen the pelvic floor muscles…

By the end of this article, you are going to be fully knowledgeable about what makes a great product that will deliver you results – fast!

Pelvic Floor vs The PC Muscle

The pelvic floor is a topic that is more frequently talked about than the PC muscle. The pelvic floor is in both men and women. For us women, the pelvic floor is a general term that consists of many things. Muscles, ligaments, connective tissues and even nerves that support the bladder, uterus, vagina, and rectum. Ultimately, all of these things help the pelvic organs function properly.

As you can see the term pelvic floor is very broad.

The PC muscle, however, is very specific. The PC muscle is short for PuboCoccygeus muscle. It is found within the pelvic floor. The PC muscle is found in both men and women and it looks like a hammock. It stretches from the pubic bone to the coccyx. The coccyx is probably better known to you as the tailbone – but at least now you know where the name comes from!

A strong PC muscle forms the floor of the pelvic cavity and supports and holds the pelvic organs in place. The problem is many people’s PC muscle isn’t strong enough to do so.

When the PC muscle is weak – the bladder is collapsed, the uterus can fall into the vagina, and sex can become uncomfortable.

Additionally, the PC muscle is also what controls the urine flow and contracts during an orgasm.

Get this – people that have a strong PC muscle are less likely to have urinary incontinence.

We don’t have to stop there however, a strong PC muscle also plays a part in women having a smooth birthing process. With a strong and flexible PC muscle, the baby’s head is able to rotate properly and encourage the baby to come down the birthing canal in a more seamless motion.

A really great resource is Dr. Bradley from the famous, Bradley Method. In the Bradley Method, he explains the importance of having a strong PC muscle in order for the baby to pass through smoothly.

You see when you give birth the baby is pushed out through the birth canal. The birth canal just happens to be supported by the PC muscle. When the PC muscle is strong and toned, the tissue is well supported and held in perfect alignment as the baby passes through.

In short, a toned PC muscle helps ensure less damage to the tissue and vagina.

How to Locate the PC Muscle

There are a few different ways you can locate your PC muscle. The first most common way to locate your PC muscle is to stop the flow of your pee. However, doing this can cause negative effects on your PC muscle.

Period Started Bathroom Run

Have you ever been out in public and got the feeling that you just started your period? So you clench your vagina while running to the nearest bathroom to refrain from leaking all over your jeans. Yeah, I think we have definitely all been in that position. That muscle you are squeezing is your PC muscle!

Skinny Jeans Squeeze

We like to think of it as trying to fit into your favorite skinny jeans. Engage your abdominal muscles and try sucking in and up!

Sex

With your partner inside of you – attempt to squeeze his penis. That muscle that you are using is your PC muscle!

Still having trouble locating your PC muscle?

You can always pick up a Gynie Trainer to train effectively and easily. WIth Gynie, we take the guesswork out of kegels! We created the world’s first true resistance training system that will help you get the most out of kegel exercise.

We will teach you how to sculpt your PC muscle to be strong and healthy –  all with proper form and technique.

If you are going to dedicate the time to strengthen your PC muscle and get results you might as well maximize your efforts with Gynie. With our patented technology, all you really need is to dedicate 3 minutes a day for 3 days a week to see incredible results.

Results from a toned PC Muscle?

Curious about the results you can achieve by training with Gynie? Many women have seen incredible results in their pelvic floor, core muscles, and surprisingly even their posture.

Here is a list of some benefits!

Sex life

Physically, an orgasm is a contraction of the PC muscle. Exercising this muscle will increase the blood flow. This will help increase the intensity, length, and amount you orgasm. Plus, as a bonus, you will be aroused a lot quicker and more easily!

Not only are you going to benefit from having a strong PC muscle but your partner will gain some benefits too!

A sculpted PC muscle provides greater control of the vaginal wall. This makes the muscles more firm to increase partner stimulation.

But the most important benefit of all is what comes from within. As you build your PC muscle strength your sexual confidence, courage, and self-love will begin to radiate off of you!

Who wouldn’t want that?

New Moms

We know that the PC muscle can weaken from the process of caring a baby inside of you for 9 months. But all is not lost, and you can definitely regain that strength. Doing so, will decrease your back pain and help build a foundation for proper posture.

Additionally, because exercising the PC muscle stimulates blood to the PC muscle that means that the body can heal itself a lot faster. With the help of Gynie, you can experience speed strengthening pre-childbirth, during pregnancy, and post-childbirth.

Lastly, sex may very well change to the better after giving birth, with the right tools, Gynie being one of them. You may find yourself becoming more in-tuned with your body while going through pregnancy and giving birth.

What you don’t know is that it can actually help enhance your sex life.

If you have any fear of your vagina being weakened – think again! We at Gynie believe after pregnancy you can develop your mind-body connection resulting in very positive effects on orgasms and your overall sex life.

Additionally, getting to know your PC muscle can benefit your sexuality enormously.

With the use of Gynie, you may find that it can help you experience multiple more intense orgasms during sex!

The benefits aren’t just for women that have had children or even women that are looking for better sex. Benefits can be for the everyday women who are looking to be the best version of themselves.

The Everyday Women

Gynie is great for targeting optimal core strength.

Did you know that a strong core is a foundation for stability and good digestive function? Well, the PC muscle plays a part in maintaining balanced posture in activities we do almost every day like – sitting, walking, standing and lifting.

Some women’s goals are to achieve full-body fitness. Doing so must go further than just the outer appearance, but also train the muscles that you can’t see.

We conducted an interview with 45 health and fitness experts to get their take on the PC muscle and unsurprisingly many of them often feel the muscle is neglected.

Shana Meyerson

Take a look at what Shana Meyerson YOGAthletic has to say about it.

“When people exercise, they tend to be primarily concerned with how they look on the outside, totally neglecting the most important aspect of health and longevity: being healthy on the inside.”

We could not agree more! Sculpting the PC muscle is too often neglected, yet it is necessary to truly achieve full body fitness.

Gynie is perfect for women that are looking for a progressive weight resistance training program that builds muscle strength. What is great about Gynie is that it is perfect for women that are total beginners and women that are more advanced – it is the perfect product for ALL women!

Gynie vs Other Products

At Gynie, we’ve tried it all – pelvic floor trainers, kegel weights, ben wa balls, kegel eggs, you name it! Through our efforts, we discovered that many product manufacturers lack an understanding of how to efficiently train the PC muscle.

Earlier in the article, we learned that the PC muscle is actually what controls urine flow and contracts during an orgasm.

We also know that people that have a toned PC muscle are less likely to have urinary incontinence.

You see, we understand that all of us women are in undeniably different stages in life.

Some of us are in college, single or recently married or married for 50 years, beginners or athletes, new moms or even a mom to 5. The different varieties that we come in are truly endless and that’s the beauty of it.

It is a journey to self-understanding no matter which stage you are in. Gynie can help you get to where you want to go.

This is why Gynie comes with multiple different springs and resistance to help you no matter which stage of life you are in.

Since most other products offer static training, if the weight is too light for you then you are going to have a hard time making progress.

Gynie’s CEO and Founder, Hanna Assad, spent many years trying to find a product that gave her results.

She states, “It seems I would always run into the same problem with kegel products… I always felt like I could walk around with them for days in a row, without getting challenged! I would always wonder if it is this easy – how am I going to get any stronger? Is it efficiently helping me prepare to give birth? The answer for me was obviously – No! I felt a calling to create a product that I knew for certain would help me get the results that I longed for. Through the process, I get to help family, friends, and all women to get the same results I have had. ”

One of the great things about Gynie is that we believe in being honest and open about how to be the best version of ourselves. We want to build a community of women that encourage and motivate each other to grow each and every day.

We put all of the resources out here for you, so you can learn about what your body is capable of.

We even went a step further and created the Gynie app so you can hold yourself accountable and stick to a training program that you are motivated to do.

You care about your health and improving your current state – which is why you took the step to be here. For that alone, you should pat yourself on the back!

Dr. Arnold Kegel would be proud and so are we!

Learning from Dr.Arnold Kegel himself, we at Gynie know that sculpting the PC muscle to be strong and functional helps us as women function our very best.

You see, not only did Dr.Arnold Kegel make the lives of gynecologists a lot easier. He also made it possible for women to get the help they needed faster or even at all.

And for that, we thank you, Dr. Kegel!

Strength Begins Within!

-Gynie Team