Pelvic muscles during rest: responses to pelvic muscle exercise

The purpose of the research was to study pelvic muscle changes in the resting phase between voluntary contractions (during pelvic muscle assessment) and in response to pelvic muscle exercise (PME) through secondary analysis of data. The sample consisted of healthy women (N = 38) aged 35 to 54. Analysis of variance showed a significant difference in resting pressure within each assessment (F = 2.92, p < .04). A significant difference in resting pressures within subjects was found (F = 3.54, p < .02). Within-subject variance suggests exercises performed without a warmup may result in incomplete relaxation prior to contraction. Significant change between baseline and Level 1 of the graded PME program suggests slow relaxation of untrained muscles. Increases in resting pressure at Levels 3 and 4 may be a more accurate reflection of muscle hypertrophy. The results of this research indicate that care should be taken in establishing the point from which changes during contractions are measured. It is recommended that the resting pressure be used. Exercise continued for more than 3 or 4 weeks accounts for nearly all strength gains and explains the increases in resting pressure at PME Levels 3 and 4.