You Might Be Peeing Wrong

You Should Know: There are many situations in which going faster is better: driving a racecar, swimming in the Olympics, competing in a pie-eating contest. One time when you shouldn’t try to go fast and hard, however, is when you pee. That’s right: Power-peeing is a thing, and it’s a hard no.

Going Deeper: The pelvic floor is a bunch of muscles at the base of the pelvis that supports reproductive, urinary, and digestive organs. As board-certified pelvic floor physical therapist Sara Reardon explored in her recent book, Floored, peeing too quickly and forcefully can damage the pelvic floor over time. Everyone has a pelvic floor, but pelvic floor dysfunction (PFD) is largely a women’s experience, affecting one in three women. PFD is commonly characterized by urinary leakage, constipation, or painful intercourse. 

Takeaway: Your bladder works when it’s relaxed, allowing urine to flow naturally and easily without taxing pelvic floor muscles. Regularly rushing to push out your pee can cause weakened pelvic-floor muscles, hemorrhoids, muscle confusion, or even organ prolapse. 

Bottom Line: Don’t hold in your pee, but also don’t try to speed up the process. Take deep breaths from the diaphragm to relax pelvic floor muscles and get that stream going on its own.