Best Exercises for Maintaining Prostate Health

Studies have shown that men who maintain a healthy weight and are physically active are generally less vulnerable to prostate issues. So, in addition to a healthy diet, regular exercise can help to lower the chances that you face negative prostate health and potentially serious issues that come along with it, including an enlarged prostate or prostate cancer.

Kegel Exercises

Typically, Kegel Exercises are recommended for women after childbirth, as they are designed to increase the strength of the pelvic muscles. But they also can benefit prostate health and are simple to do as they can be done pretty much at any time and don’t require any special equipment.

A simple way to locate your pelvic floor muscles is to begin urinating, and then stop before you’re finished. The muscles that you are using to start and stop your urination are your pelvic floor muscles. In order to exercise those muscles, make sure that you have an empty bladder and lie down on the floor with your knees spread apart and bent. Simply tighten the pelvic floor muscles for about 3 seconds and then relax for another 3 seconds. Just repeat this process a few times. As you get better or more accustomed to this exercise you will be able to do it while you’re sitting or standing as well.

Aerobic Exercise

Almost any sort of aerobic exercise, including walking, running, jogging, rowing, and more can be beneficial to the health of the prostate. The one exception would be biking, as that can but unnecessary pressure on the prostate area, but there are seats for bicycles that are made specially to accommodate the prostate.

Numerous studies have shown that maintaining a healthy weight leads to a decreased chance of prostates issues. There is no better series of exercises that can be performed to maintain a healthy weight than aerobic exercises. It is advised that for best results, you perform any of these aerobic exercises for five hours within a week, as those who have committed that much time to aerobic exercise were shown to have a 30-50% better chance of avoiding prostate issues.

Resistance Exercise

Another set of exercises that can be performed to maintain good prostate health are resistance exercises, such as push-ups, or lifting weights. All of these exercises are particularly helpful for improving strength and muscles tone, and most importantly, reducing inflammation, which in turn can reduce the chances of an inflamed or enlarged prostate that leads to so many uncomfortable symptoms. With resistance exercise, your muscles are trained to work against forces that are pushing against them. The more your muscles are made accustomed to doing this, the more they will do so naturally, which translates to the prostate. If the prostate begins to feel pressure being applied to it from an outside force, those trained in resistance exercise will have a better chance of seeing the smooth muscles of the prostate pushing back and maintaining a healthy size.

Sports

Taking up certain sports such as tennis, swimming, or to a lesser extent, golf, can have positive effect on the prostate by combining some of aspects of both aerobic and resistance training. Something like swimming especially can be beneficial as it combines both aerobic and resistance aspects, allowing the body to strengthen the muscles to fight against prostate pressure, and keep their weight in check.

Tennis is another sport that certainly provides plenty of aerobic activity running around the court, and the different angles and body contortions that are required can improve resistance training as well. It can be as demanding as you make it, either playing at top speeds or more leisurely, but either way it should be effective

Even something as easy-going as golf can be beneficial, as many of those who suffer from prostate issues are older, and golf is one of the less-demanding sports that they can still actively play. Walking the course and swinging the club combines aspects of both aerobic and resistance exercise, and can doesn’t run the risk of pushing the body too far or hard. It may not be the most effective of the exercises that one can perform, but when age and physical limitations are a factor, it is still a good option.