This blog is part 9 of an 11 article series of 11 New Year’s resolutions that actually work and WILL improve your pelvic health. Get the full list of all 11 New Year’s resolutions HERE.
Weight loss is the number one New Year’s Resolution that people make … and has been for years! And yet, after the first month of the year, only about eight percent of the people who made this (or any other) New Year’s Resolution are still sticking with it. While “falling off the wagon” in terms of New Year’s Resolutions isn’t a big deal for a lot of people, not sticking to a weight loss or weight management program can be a huge deal for women with urinary incontinence. Why? Because weight loss and management is a tried and true conservative therapy that can help alleviate symptoms of women’s urinary incontinence, including urinary urgency, frequency, and leakage.
Why Weight Loss Works for Urinary Urgency and Other Symptoms
For overweight women with urinary urgency and other symptoms of urinary incontinence, every extra pound above the pelvis puts pressure on the bladder and pelvic organ. Since the bladder is shaped like–and acts like–a balloon, all that extra pressure squeezes the bladder, resulting in urine leakage, frequency, and that “urge to go.” That’s the bad news.
Now for the good news: even a slight amount of weight loss can result in a significant reduction of urinary incontinence symptoms. For instance, one study showed that when overweight women lose even eight percent of their body weight, they experienced a 47 percent reduction in leakage accidents. Another study showed that a 5 to 10 percent loss of weight was just as effective as other conservative (non-surgical) therapies. No wonder weight loss is considered “a first line of therapy” for women’s urinary incontinence!
What to Do if Weight Loss Seems Difficult
Women with urinary incontinence find themselves in an odd catch-22 when it comes to weight loss. See if you recognize the following scenario. On the one hand, your doctor has told you that losing weight will reduce urinary urgency, frequency, and leakage accidents. This gives you motivation to eat healthier and exercise so you can lose weight. On the other hand, you leak urine when you exercise, which causes you to feel totally embarrassed. In turn, you tend to avoid exercise since you hate that “wet pants” look every time you try to get moving. Finally, all this contradiction in your life leads to a little bit of depression … so you reach into your fridge and grab that pint of ice cream to help you feel better. The overall result of this vicious cycle? Weight gain rather than weight loss!
We see this vicious cycle in our women’s pelvic health practices all the time. If you find yourself caught in this vicious cycle, don’t despair. You can lose weight even if you currently have urinary incontinence. Here are our two best recommendations to help you out:
1. Sign up for a well-known successful weight loss program that is known to work. If you’re not sure which programs work, check with your friends or do some research on the internet. This kind of program will keep your diet healthy and “on track,” so that you can avoid emotional eating.
2. Check out these exercise tips designed especially for women with urinary incontinence. These seven tips will help you avoid urinary urgency, leakage, and frequency while you exercise, and get you on your way to weight loss.
We know that losing weight isn’t the easiest task in the world, especially if you have urinary incontinence. At the same time, we have seen so many women lose weight and maintain a healthy weight, so we know that weight loss is possible. You can do it … we know you can. Just start with the first step, and then never look back!
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