Why do i clench my buttocks

Hi!

I've recently noticed that I'm constantly clenching/flexing my glute minimus and/or medius. Or some part of the higher sides of my butt. It's almost any time I'm standing up. I catch myself and have to tell myself to relax my butt muscles and then again in a few minutes I catch myself doing it again!! I know this is probably throwing some things off in my back/hips (problem areas of tightness for me.)

I'm hoping to get some advice. I'm F/31 casually-healthy lifestyle. For my job, I stand a LOT and walk a little. I stretch and roll out my back and body on a regular basis.

Thank you so much !

Your pelvic floor is the base of function for your body. Literally, your base! Think about it as a sling of muscles that your torso sits in. Pelvic floor exercises strengthen the muscles around your bladder, vagina or penis, and back passage that are all contained in this “sling” We all need to keep this muscle strong.... yes contrary to belief men as well as women.Pregnancy and childbirth can cause the pelvic floor muscles to weaken, and so can other factors like age, obesity, heavy lifting, and chronic coughing.

Weak pelvic floor muscles can cause:

• Incontinence • Stress incontinence (passing urine when you cough or sneeze) • Uncontrollable passing of wind • Painful sex • Low back and hip pain. • SI joint pain (joint between the tip of the lower back and the bones of the pelvis)

The Two Biggest Posture Mistakes that Hinder Pelvic Floor Strength

1. Clenching your butt muscles while standing. A strong Glute Max is important for everything, but in order to be strong it cannot be clenched all day. Clenching the glutes can make them weaker and harder for your pelvic floor to respond when you really need it!You know when you are in a lift and oh no, you had beans last night for dinner and you squeeze your bottom to stop you passing wind? Oh, so embarrassing! For a short ride holding those glutes clenched is ok but holding them clenched all day creates a real problem, especially for sneeze pee. When you clench, it tucks your butt under. This makes it hard for the front of the pelvic floor to contract and it’s the front of the pelvic floor that we need to stop the leak of urine! Clenching your glutes will often make you clench your pelvic floor as well, which makes it ineffective at dealing with stresses, such as sneezing, it forces the pelvic floor muscles into a shortened, tightened position..Usually, butt clenching is unconscious and you don’t even realize you are doing it. 2. Bubble butts seem to be all the rage right now!! Big, strong glutes are awesome, but sometimes sticking your butt out too much makes you look like you have glutes when you really don’t. Sticking your butt out can decrease abdominal strength and make you look like you have a belly, when you don’t. This is bad because the pelvic floor works in sync with the abdominals to fire correctly.Both of these mistakes make it difficult for the pelvic floor to work correctly. They also make traditional pelvic floor strengthening exercises less effective.

Perfect Posture is the Best Exercise to Strengthen the Pelvic Floor All Day Long

Find your pelvic floor muscles

Before beginning the following exercises, you must first be able to locate your pelvic floor muscles. Here’s how to do it:

Begin lying down with your knees bent and your feet on the floor.
Squeeze and lift the rectal and vaginal areas as if you were trying to stop yourself from urinating*. Hold for 5-10 seconds and then release.
You should feel a closing feeling in your genital area when you squeeze. Imagine yourself drawing energy from the base of the pelvis all the way up your body and through the crown of your head.

*It's not recommended that you regularly stop your flow of urine midstream as it can be harmful to the bladder.When you get used to doing pelvic floor exercises, you can try holding each squeeze for a few seconds longer. Every week, you can add more squeezes, but be careful not to overdo it and always have a rest between sets of squeezes. After a few months, you should start to notice the results. You should carry on doing the exercises, even when you notice them starting to work.

Other exercises to do whilst engaging your pelvic floor

Bridge

Start by lying down with your knees bent and your feet on the floor. Place your arms down alongside your body with your palms facing down.
Engage your pelvic floor. Then, inhale to lift your hips up towards the ceiling. Hold for 20 seconds and then exhale to slowly release your hips back down.
Repeat for 3 reps.

Shifting Plank

Start lying on the floor on your belly. Prop yourself up onto your forearms, straighten your legs and tuck your toes under, coming into a forearm plank.
Draw your navel up and in and engage your pelvic floor. Your shoulders should be stacked over your elbows and your hips should be in line with your shoulders.
Staying in your plank shape, inhale to shift your shoulders in front of your elbows, coming high onto the balls of your feet.
Exhale to shift your shoulders back over your elbows, pressing your heels back.
Repeat for 15 reps.

Wall Sit

Stand facing away from a wall.
Place your back against the wall and then walk your feet out in front of you so that the wall is supporting you.
Bend your knees until they are at 90-degree angles and engage your pelvic floor. Keep your navel drawing up and in towards your spine so that your lower back is pressing into the wall.
Reach your arms straight out in front of you hold for 60 seconds, then release.

Split Tabletop

Start by lying down with your knees bent and your feet on the floor. Place your arms down alongside your body with your palms facing down.
Engage your pelvic floor and lift your feet off the ground. Parallel your shins to the ground so that your knees are at a 90-degree angle.
Keeping your knees at 90-degree angles, inhale to separate your thighs into a straddle.
Exhale to squeeze your thighs back together and contract your pelvic floor.
Repeat for 15 reps.

Butt clenches are convenient but probably not the best exercise.

Image Credit: Morsa Images/DigitalVision/GettyImages

Maybe you've been typing away for hours, having the most productive day of your life. Or perhaps you're on the couch, several hours deep into your favorite reality show. Whether pampered or productive, your butt is likely to take a snooze after a long period of sitting.

Intentional or not, butt clenches may be your go-to exercise to either wake your booty up or strengthen the glutes. But unfortunately, this popular move probably isn't doing much for either. Instead try a few other stretches an exercises to get your blood flowing and muscles growing.

Does the Butt Clench Exercise Really Do Anything?

The butt clench is a pretty self-explanatory movement. You squeeze the glutes, hold for a few moments and release. While this move may get a lot of publicity and can be done pretty much in any position, they're not a very effective glute exercise, says Jereme Schumacher, physical therapist at Bespoke Treatments in San Diego.

If you're sitting at a desk or on the couch for a few hours, chances are, your butt and legs may fall asleep. This happens when nerves or arteries are pressed for long periods of time either at the lower back or buttocks, Schumacher says. But it's not likely that butt clenches will solve this, either.

"Based on how you could get numbness or tingling in your legs, butt clenches would not be a very good solution to alleviate or prevent this sensation," he says. So, what really happens when you do butt clenches in your seat? Probably nothing.

That doesn't mean you have to stop doing them, though. "Although it may not be the most effective glute workout, I do not feel there is any harm in doing them," Schumacher says. "Especially if you are just standing around and want to do them throughout the day." Just don't expect significant glute gains.

Alternatives to Butt Clenches to Do While Sitting

Considering butt clenches aren't the most effective exercise to counteract sitting all day, you may want to ditch them altogether. Instead, Schumacher recommends you opt for these exercises you can do without leaving your seat:

1. Seated Thoracic Rotation

Come to the edge of your seat.
Keeping your back as flat as possible, raise your right arm and reach down to your right foot.
Raise your left arm up toward the ceiling and rotate your torso to open up toward the left, keeping the lower body facing forward.
Pause here for a few deep breaths (or as long as needed).
Switch to the opposite side.

"These twists will help promote greater spinal motion, which can help to alleviate nerve tension when sitting," Schumacher says.

2. Seated Hamstring Stretch

Come to the edge of your chair, back flat and arms at your sides.
Extend your left leg straight in front of you, heel on the ground.
With both hands, reach for your toes, keeping a slight bend in your left knee.
Pause here for a few deep breaths, then repeat on the opposite side.

3. Seated Figure Four Stretch

Scoot to the edge of your chair and sit with your back flat and arms at your sides.
Cross your left ankle over your right knee, keeping the right leg bent at 90 degrees.
Grasp your left ankle with the left hand and hold the edge of the chair with your right hand.
Press into your right heel to keep your body in place and bend your torso forward toward your left knee.
Lean as far as you can while maintaining a flat back.
Pause here for several deep breaths and switch sides.

If you've been sitting for a long time, you'll definitely want to prioritize this stretch. "[The seated figure four stretch] will help decrease muscle tension in your buttocks and alleviate excessive tension during prolonged sitting," Schumacher says.