5 Tips to Prevent Constipation

As a pelvic health physiotherapist, one of the most common problems I address with my patients is constipation. Whether it’s the main reason someone comes to see me for support or it’s an issue that comes up during our initial conversation, helping people overcome irregular bowel movements, straining, hemorrhoids, and hard stool is a huge part of my day job.

Having healthy bowel movements is a very important part of having great pelvic health, though it’s not something many of us know. Irregular bowel movements, straining to pass stool, never feeling fully empty after a bowel movement, or having very hard and dry stool impacts your pelvic floor in many ways. Here are some surprising things you might notice when you are constipated:

• Increased urinary incontinence (leaks)
• Increased urinary urgency and frequency
• Increased back pain
• Increased pain with intimacy
• Increased pelvic organ prolapse symptoms

Optimizing your bowel movements is a key part of optimizing your pelvic floor, so here are five helpful tips to help you avoid the dreaded constipation.

5 Tips To Prevent Constipation

1. Drink enough water: Hydration is the first thing to watch if you’re trying to avoid constipation – especially if you sweat a lot, are breastfeeding, or are traveling. Finding a way to track how much water you are drinking can be helpful. I like carrying my favourite 1L water bottle with me and being sure to drink at least 2 of them throughout the day. For most of us, aiming for 2 to 3L of water every day is a good target. Your pee is a really good indicator of how well hydrated you are. The darker yellow it is, the more water you need to drink! Aim for urine that is light yellow – like lemonade.

2. Respond to the urge: When your body tells you it’s time to go, GO! Ignoring the urge to have a bowel movement because you are in a public place, sharing a hotel room with a special friend, or are nervous that someone will hear or smell your number 2 is a really quick way to start the constipation cycle. When we delay the urge, the stool that was ready to come out retreats and becomes drier and harder. The more we delay, the harder that stool becomes…and before we know it, we have skipped a day or two and our stool is no longer soft, smooth, and easy to pass.

3. Find something to put your feet up on: Using a small stepstool, a tipped over garbage can, two yoga blocks, or anything else that allows your feet to be elevated off the ground enough to have knees higher than hips helps make it easier for you to actually pass a bowel movement. There is a pelvic floor muscle that loops around your rectum and helps keep you continent; when you sit on a standard toilet, that muscle isn’t fully relaxed. But when you get your knees higher than your hips AND lean forward slightly, that muscle lengthens out and creates more space in your rectum for the stool to pass through. This is a great tip whether you are constipated or not and it will certainly help you have easier and quicker bowel movements with less straining.

4. Eat more fibre: It’s a fact that most of us are not getting enough fibre in our diets. Trying to have one fibre source at each meal or snack can help us bump up our dietary fibre, which helps create stool that is softer, smoother and more regular. Pick up some dried prunes from the store, choose fresh fruit or veggies at every meal, and have high-fibre snacks like popcorn + smoothies on hand to keep that fibre content high and the poops moving well. If you’re not sure how much fibre is in the foods you like, ask google or your favourite AI for a list of fibre-rich foods you can include in your diet.

5. Move your body: Your bowels LOVE movement – did you know that when you move your body with a walk, a jog, an exercise class, mobility or strength training, it actually helps move the poop through your digestive system? Most of us are very sedentary throughout our days, so regular movement breaks can really help keep bowels regular.