Exercises To Cure Erectile Dysfunction
The inability to get or maintain a satisfactory erection, also known as erectile dysfunction is a problem that affects 26% of men in the UK alone. It’s a common problem for men of all ages for a number of different reasons.
Erectile dysfunction is often caused by physical conditions such as obesity, heart disease, smoking, and low testosterone, but it can also be caused by psychological issues such as stress and guilt where therapy may be the best solution.
Medication such as Viagra (Sildenafil) and Cialis (Tadalafil) have great success rates for treating the symptoms of erectile dysfunction, but they do not cure it. Since muscles can lose tone and strength over time, especially those responsible for maintaining an erection, exercise can be one of the best ways to fight against erectile dysfunction and is often a more permanent solution – That’s why we’ve compiled this article to show you the best exercises to cure erectile dysfunction.
Pelvic Floor Exercises
A study conducted by the University of the West of England, Bristol found that pelvic floor exercises can be very effective in treating erectile dysfunction. The participants were men who had all been suffering from erectile dysfunction for at least six months. Within six months of the study starting 40% of the men who had carried out floor exercises daily regained their sexual function, and a further 35.5% found their ED improve significantly.
1. The Basics
To begin with, your going to want to identify the muscles of the pelvic floor (the lower pelvis) as these are the muscles that you’re going to strengthen in a bid to cure yourself of erectile dysfunction. The easiest way to identify the right muscles is to stop your stream while in the process of urinating – the muscles you clench to do this are the same ones that you need to exercise.
To perform a rep of kegel exercises you’ll want to squeeze those muscles, hold it for five seconds, then relax. Repeat this process 10 – 20 times, two to three times a day.
The best part about this exercise is the fact that you can do this virtually anywhere! While you’re at work, laying in bed, in the car, it still works. It could also be beneficial to try it in different positions to see what works best for you. You might not be able to hit 10 kegel reps straight away, but that’s fine as long as you keep at it and eventually work up to that target.
If you have spare time and space, we’ve included a video to help with a few more challenging pelvic floor activation routines.
Sitting pelvic floor activation
Sit with the arms at the sides and the feet flat on the floor, hip-width apart. Activate the pelvic floor muscles for a count of three, and release for a count of three. Ensure that the stomach, buttocks, and leg muscles are not contracting.
Standing pelvic floor activation
Stand straight with the arms by the sides, and the feet hip-width apart. Using the technique above, activate the pelvic floor muscles for a count of three, and release for a count of three. Ensure that the stomach, buttocks, and leg muscles are not contracting.
2. Pilates
Once you understand and are comfortable with the muscles in which you are training, you may want to mix things up and push yourself a bit harder. Another set of exercises perfect to strengthen your pelvic floor and tackle any erectile dysfunction problems you may be having is pilates or aerobics.
Squats
Standing straight with your feet hip-width apart, tighten your pelvic floor muscles and bend your knees as if you’re sitting while keeping your upper body as straight as possible. Don’t allow your knees to go too far forward, you don’t want them to stick out past your toes.
Lunges
Starting in the same position, keep your upper body straight with your chin up. Step forward with one leg lowering your hips and engaging your pelvic floor muscles until both knees are bent at roughly a 90-degree angle. Make sure your upper body is kept straight, your front knee is directly up your foot, and your back knee doesn’t touch the floor. Rinse and repeat.
Squat Jump
With the same starting position begin by performing a regular squat, engage your pelvic floor muscles, and jump up explosively. When you land, lower your body back into the squat position.
Reverse Lunge
If you’ve got lunges down, you won’t struggle with reverse lunges. Exactly the same, but step backwards rather than forwards.
Jumping Lunge
Starting with your feet apart, almost in a lunge position with your knees bent, but not in a full lunge. Activate your pelvic floor muscle and jump. Switch your feet position in midair, landing in a basic lunge position with the opposite foot forward to how you began. Rinse and repeat!
Isometric Wall Squat
Stand with your feet about one shoulder width apart with your back against the wall (not to let your shoulder blades or hips touch the wall) and make sure your feet aren’t planted too close to the wall. Slide your back down the wall into a sitting position (as if you’re sitting on a chair) so that your knees are bent at almost 90-degrees. Hold this position while tensing your pelvic floor muscles and repeat.
Erectile Dysfunction
Erectile dysfunction doesn’t have to define you. Medication such as Viagra can be a great quick fix, but will never treat the underlying cause of your problems. There are plenty of different methods for conquering your erectile problems, and these exercises are a great place to start, especially when kegel exercises can be performed literally almost anywhere. ED can be an early warning sign of more significant heart or health problems, so any exercise in general is going to have a beneficial effect on your health, but in terms of battle erectile dysfunction initially, these exercises have been proven to work successfully with minimal effort.