Are Kegels Causing Your UTI?

I’m going to share something about myself that I have never opened up about on the Internet before… and that is my history with UTIs. Yes, I’ve been there and 50-60% of women will also experience a UTI in their lifetime. As a woman who likes to get to the source of the problem, I found that my daily habits were causing my recurring UTIs and I knew that there was another answer to healing them than a medication. So, what was I doing that was causing this infection? How did I naturally heal it? What is the research that backs it up? Grab a seat on the toilet and press play as I answer all of your urine questions!

YES, I HAD RECURRING UTIs... HERE'S WHY

I have had personal experience with UTIs because of some daily habits I was implementing into my life. Years ago when I would train back to back clients for 6-hours, whenever I found myself having to use the bathroom, I’d wait to go until I was done with my client. It was this ongoing cycle of holding it for hours at a time that caused my UTIs to begin.

I then learned my lesson of when you have to pee, go and pee. This also brings up the topic of taking the time to pee. Don’t force it out and make sure that your bladder is completely empty every time (this might mean waiting a few more seconds for rest of it to come out).

This is where Kegels come into play… They used to teach Kegels by having women stop the flow of their urine while they’re peeing. You don’t want to do that because when you stop that flow of urine, you’re pushing any potential bacteria build-up back into your bladder.

With all of this said, the next time you go to the bathroom practice relaxing your pelvic floor to let the urine out and make sure that it’s emptying ALL the way.

NATURAL ALTERNATIVES TO MEDICATION

Disclaimer before starting this conversation, I want to be blatantly honest and state that I’m not a doctor, but this is what worked for me to heal my UTIs and I haven't had one in a year and a half. That being said, I want to get this information out there in the hopes of helping other women that are fed up with taking this medication!

Before we dive into the research, I want to note a couple of first important steps you should be incorporating into your daily routine...

• Hydrate
• Match 1 cup of coffee to 1-2 cups of water
• Empty bladder completely
• Don’t hold it
• Go pee after sex

With this foundation set, let’s now look into what natural supplements (through research and personal experience) I have found can play a huge role in healing + preventing UTIs. A lot of these supplements are going to come down to them being naturally antimicrobial which makes them similar to what an antibiotic might be doing, but instead of killing the good and bad bacteria it will just kill the bad bacteria.

• Garlic - I would take a garlic supplement in high doses before bed so it could go to work while in a more stagnant state.
• pH Levels - I started drinking more alkaline water to help balance my pH levels ESPECIALLY before bed.
• D-Mannose - This is good for protecting the lining of the bladder. Could be beneficial to add in for those of you who are experiencing recurrent UTIs.
• Grapefruit Seed Extract - I ran across this study of 4 people taking a high dosage of 5-6 seeds every 8 hours and had to try it for myself! Glad I did 😉
• Liposomal Vitamin-C - This was not a part of my routine when I was working to heal my UTI because it's a newer thing, but highly recommend trying it out! I did a whole episode on this topic that you can find here!
• Hibiscus Extract, Vegetable Proteases and Commiphora Myrrha - This is also a new study that I ran across in my research that has helped patients with recurrent UTIs.

Keep in mind, with all of my recommendations above, you can't just pick one and hope it works. You have to be in it to win it and that means really hydrating your body and cutting out coffee while taking the d-mannose and grapefruit seed extract to help flush it out.

EPISODE QUOTES

MENTIONED IN EPISODE

RELATED EPISODES

• Liposomal Vitamin C: Your Body's Missing Puzzle Piece

RESEARCH

• Determination of Antimicrobial Activity of Some Commercial Fruit... - PubMed
• Effect of oral cranberry extract in patients with recurrent UTI... - PubMed
• Hibiscus extract, vegetable proteases and Commiphora myrrha... - PubMed
• Inhibitory effect of grapefruit seed extract... - PubMed
• Prospective study to compare antibiosis versus the... - PubMed
• Recurrent Urinary Tract Infections Management in Women - PMC
• Stay a step ahead of urinary tract infections - Harvard Medical School
• The effectiveness of grapefruit seeds in treating urinary tract infections. - PubMed

Please note that some of the links above are affiliate links, and at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you decide to make a purchase by using the link. Please understand that I recommend these products because they are helpful and useful, not because of the small commissions I make if you decided to buy.

The material contained within is provided for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. You should seek prompt medical care for any specific health issues and consult your physician before beginning a new regiment or purchasing any product(s).