Author: Dr. Teresa Irwin

What is Pelvic Organ Prolapse and does working make it worse? Exercise is a prescription for good health. Regular physical activity provides benefits from managing weight to improving your brain health, reducing the risk of disease, and strengthening bones and muscles, as well as improving your ability to do everyday activities.

If you have a pelvic condition, however, you may wonder what exercise should be avoided and what activity can be a benefit. For instance, will walking make the prolapse worse?

Let’s explore walking as an exercise with pelvic organ prolapse.

Pelvic Organ Prolapse (POP)

Known as POP for short, pelvic organ prolapse is a condition whereby one or more of the organs in your pelvis slip down from their normal position. Prolapse can affect your uterus, bowel, bladder, the top of the vagina, the small intestine, and/or perineum.1

Prolapse is caused by weakened muscles in your pelvis and, in more severe cases, the impacted organ may bulge onto another organ or outside your body. Your symptoms may vary depending on where the prolapse is located, but the most common symptom is feeling a bulge in your vagina as if something were falling out of it.2

If you’re wondering about exercising with prolapse, some of the other symptoms may impact your ability or desire. For instance, some women experience a bulge or pressure that worsens throughout the day, or when they are on their feet too long.2

As well, incontinence often coexists with Pelvic Organ Prolapse (POP), which can impact your quality of life, including exercise. You may have the related symptoms of:3

Stress incontinence: leaking pee when you cough, laugh, or exercise
Urge incontinence: a frequent urge to pee that’s hard to control

So what does that mean for exercising with prolapse, and can you include walking in your daily routine?

Will Walking Make Pelvic Organ Prolapse Worse?

Different women experience prolapse in different ways, so the answer to this question is not as simple as YES or NO.

One study, for instance, stated that women who exercise generally have stronger pelvic floor muscles than women who don’t exercise. Stronger muscles may help avoid or improve prolapse. The study also stated that mild to moderate physical activity—such as walking—decreases the risk of urinary incontinence.3

It went on to say that female athletes are about three times more likely to have urinary incontinence, and that there is some evidence that strenuous exercise may cause and worsen pelvic organ prolapse—although data is inconsistent.3

The most common athletic sports that lead to urinary incontinence are volleyball and marathon running. It is high-intensity, pounding types of exercise that are more likely to result in those issues. Walking does not create the stress and strain that the other two types of exercise do.

There are some women who feel the pressure gets worse after walking.3 Others say that walking is fine, but walking while pushing a stroller for a long distance, for example, made their prolapse worse.3

In general, however, it seems that low impact exercise is safe and, in fact, beneficial for women who have a prolapse. Walking is one example of a low-impact exercise, along with swimming, seated cycling, and low-intensity water aerobics.6

Start with Short Walks

One suggestion is to start with short walks and build up in steady increments. You may find your prolapse bothers you if you do too much too soon.6 If you suffer from incontinence, then sanitary products or planning bathroom breaks may make you feel more confident about heading out for a walk.

Walking may be preferable to more intense exercise like lifting heavy weights, high-impact aerobic activities which involves jumping or hopping, or sit-ups. After your walk, incorporate Kegel exercises to help strengthen your pelvic floor.7 Exercises, such as yoga and belly dance can improve your pelvic floor. The result of one study indicated that 12 weeks of belly dancing intervention significantly increased the maximum pressure of the pelvic floor muscle contraction and reduced urinary incontinence.

Ask a Doctor - Physician Finder Tool

If you have pelvic organ prolapse, use our Physician Finder to find a doctor near you with expertise in women’s health. Talk to your doctor about incorporating walking and other exercise into your daily routine. A healthcare provider can give you advice on exercise and prolapse for your specific situation.

Physicial Finder Tool

Learn more about the Pelvic Awareness Project.