Join Gina, perinatal fitness trainer and birth doula, for a 10-minute pelvic floor release workout designed to alleviate common areas of pelvic tension. This session includes diaphragmatic breathing, hip shifts, deep squats, lunges, and more, utilizing equipment like a yoga bolster, block, and foam roller. Follow along as we explore various pelvic positions to help regulate the parasympathetic nervous system and relieve tension.
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Why Pelvic Floor Relaxation Matters
The pelvic floor is a critical group of muscles that supports your bladder, bowels, and reproductive organs. While strengthening the pelvic floor is often emphasized, learning how to relax these muscles is just as important—especially during pregnancy, postpartum recovery, or if you experience tension-related issues like pelvic pain or discomfort.
Many of us have imbalances in our pelvic positioning, with one side of the pelvis sitting slightly forward while the other is slightly back. This affects how tension builds in the pelvic floor, which is why this workout is designed to target and release specific areas that commonly hold tension.
This 10-minute pelvic floor release routine will help you:
✅ Reduce pelvic tension and pain
✅ Improve hip mobility and core function
✅ Enhance breathing and relaxation
✅ Prepare your body for birth and postpartum recovery
What You’ll Need
For this routine, you’ll need a few simple props. If you don’t have them, don’t worry—household alternatives work too!
✔ Pillow or Yoga Bolster – To support hip positioning
✔ Yoga Block or Small Stack of Books – For stability in deeper stretches
✔ Thin Resistance Band or Strap – To add light resistance to movements
✔ Foam Roller – Helps with positioning (or use pillows if unavailable)
Supine Diaphragmatic Breathing With Hips Elevated
💡 Why? Helps expand the ribcage, engage deep core muscles, and passively stretch the pelvic floor.
How to Do It:
1️⃣ Lie on your back with hips slightly elevated on a pillow or yoga bolster.
2️⃣ Keep your feet flat on the floor and knees bent.
3️⃣ Place your hands on your ribcage and take a deep inhale through your nose, feeling your ribs expand outward.
4️⃣ Exhale fully, letting your belly relax completely.
5️⃣ Repeat for 1 minute.
🌟 Pro Tip: The elevation of your hips reduces gravity’s pull on the pelvic floor, allowing for deeper relaxation.
Side-Lying Hip Shifts
💡 Why? Releases hip and pelvic floor tension by gently shifting the pelvis forward and backward.
How to Do It:
1️⃣ Lie on your side with a pillow between your thighs for support.
2️⃣ Place your top hand on your hip and gently drive your top knee forward, stretching the bottom hip.
3️⃣ Then, drive your top knee back, stretching the top hip.
4️⃣ Continue shifting forward and backward for 1 minute.
🌟 Pro Tip: Squeeze the pillow or foam roller between your legs for additional inner thigh activation, which can help release tension in the pelvic floor.
Deep Squat with Breathwork
💡 Why? Opens the hips and allows for deeper posterior pelvic floor release.
How to Do It:
1️⃣ Sit in a deep squat position, using a yoga block under your bottom for support.
2️⃣ Keep your feet wider than hip-distance apart.
3️⃣ Round your back slightly to enhance relaxation.
4️⃣ Take a deep inhale, expanding your ribcage and feeling pressure in the back of the pelvic floor.
5️⃣ Exhale fully, letting go of tension.
6️⃣ Repeat for 1 minute.
🌟 Pro Tip: If you feel too much pressure in the front of the pelvic floor, adjust by sitting back more and ensuring your weight is evenly distributed.
Half-Kneeling Hip Shift (Right Side Focus)
💡 Why? Helps release overactive right pelvic floor muscles, which are often tighter due to pelvic asymmetry.
How to Do It:
1️⃣ Start in a half-kneeling position (like a Captain Morgan stance).
2️⃣ Keep your right leg open and your belly slightly away from your thigh.
3️⃣ Shift your weight into your right hip, feeling a stretch in your inner thigh and groin.
4️⃣ Gently rock forward and back for 1 minute.
🌟 Pro Tip: Keep weight in your right big toe to enhance the stretch and keep your pelvis aligned.
All-Fours Hip Shift (Left Side Focus)
💡 Why? Releases tension in the left posterior pelvic floor, an area that often holds tightness due to pelvic imbalances.
How to Do It:
1️⃣ Place a yoga block under your left knee.
2️⃣ Shift your weight onto your left side while keeping your right hip elevated.
3️⃣ Inhale as you drop your belly toward the floor.
4️⃣ Exhale as you round your spine, gently tilting your pelvis.
5️⃣ Repeat for 1 minute.
🌟 Pro Tip: You should feel a stretch in your left hip pocket area as your pelvis moves.
90/90 Hip Mobility with Resistance Band
💡 Why? Encourages pelvic repositioning by placing the hips in an opposite setup than they usually prefer.
How to Do It:
1️⃣ Sit with your right leg in front (90° angle) and left leg behind.
2️⃣ Hold a resistance band in both hands.
3️⃣ Pull the left arm back in a rowing motion while reaching the right arm forward.
4️⃣ Repeat for 1 minute, focusing on breathing and posture.
🌟 Pro Tip: This move resets pelvic positioning by adjusting ribcage expansion, which can help relieve pelvic tension.
Child’s Pose with Back Expansion
💡 Why? Encourages full pelvic floor relaxation and enhances diaphragmatic breathing.
How to Do It:
1️⃣ Sit back into Child’s Pose with knees wide apart.
2️⃣ Round your upper back slightly to allow for full expansion.
3️⃣ Take a deep inhale, feeling your back expand.
4️⃣ Exhale, releasing tension in the pelvic floor.
5️⃣ Repeat for 1 minute.
🌟 Pro Tip: If you tend to hold tension in your lower back and tailbone area, rounding the spine will help open up space in the back half of the pelvic floor.
Why This Routine Works
🎯 Targets Key Areas of Pelvic Floor Tension – Each move helps release tight muscles in different pelvic regions.
🎯 Uses Breathwork for Deeper Release – Proper diaphragmatic breathing helps engage the parasympathetic nervous system, which encourages relaxation.
🎯 Incorporates Mobility & Strength – Many pelvic floor issues stem from imbalances in the hips, core, and ribcage, so this routine addresses multiple factors.
Final Thoughts
This quick 10-minute routine is perfect for pregnant women, postpartum recovery, or anyone dealing with pelvic floor tightness. If any particular exercise felt extra tight, feel free to spend more time on that movement and modify as needed.
If you enjoyed this workout and want more guided routines, check out our prenatal and postpartum fitness programs! We incorporate movements like these to optimize pelvic floor function and support your body through all stages of motherhood.
Interested in how you can prepare your pelvic floor for birth? Check out this video!
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