When it comes to we want to know anything and everything. When it comes to fitness, we tend to shy away and avoid it at all costs – instead choosing to and whack on four hours of Netflix.
We know that there is an element of fitness involved in sex but we thought that mainly involved squats and leg day so you can bounce up and down to your heart’s content. But did you know that you’re meant to be keeping your insides toned too?
We recently caught up with porn star and sexologist, Madison Missina, to discuss but she revealed something that we didn’t know about before: If your vagina isn’t toned, it may be preventing you from.
Now, before you freak out and sign your vag up for F45, toning your insides up involves different techniques, which we will run you through in just a sec.
But first we have to explain how your vagina can lose tone.
How do you get knots in your vagina?
Madison explains, “If you think about it, we have muscle cramps when we pick up heavy things, and the vagina is encapsulated in muscles,” so you can cause damage there just as often as in your back or neck. When we do, you create a knot you know, those little muscle balls of annoyance that get attacked when you have a massage and that knot is seriously lacking in blood flow.
The most important thing to know about knots (in terms of sex) is that muscles that are lacking in blood flow are also lacking in sensitivity. So if you have a build-up of knots in your vag, that means that you’ll be less sensitive to visitors in that area.
How do you know if you have knots in your vagina?
Well, the first sign would be that you’ve noticed a decreased sensitivity down there (and by down there, we really mean in there). But you can physically check too, with a vaginal massage. This involves, essentially, fingering yourself and tracing the walls of your vagina to feel for lumps and bumps. Madison explains that this is one of the first things she does to clients during her sex workshops.
“If I’m working with a woman to help her get more pleasure out of sex, I do what we call ‘vaginal massage’, and I put my hand in and inside the number of knots I find is huge particularly after childbirth.”
So don’t be overwhelmed if you discover a fair few knots up in there, just consult the next little block of text to figure out how to chill them out.
How do you get rid of knots in your vagina?
Firstly, you’re going to need to employ you’re new best no knots friend: Kegel balls. These are the best tool for ironing out knots internally, and they’re technically a sex toy too, so you might have some fun during your ‘vagina toning’. Madison explains why exactly they work so well for getting rid of knots.
“Basically these are just hard solid objects that we insert into our vagina, and they move up and down your vagina and they help you with your ‘kegels’ so you get a stronger vagina, but also, because they’re hard, they help you with releasing knots inside your vagina. Using kegel balls just wakes up the whole area.”
Essentially, you just insert and roll in and out – or try and move them hands-free by tensing and releasing your pelvic floor muscle. Madison revealed that even if you’re pretty sure your knots are all gone, if you’re not massively enjoying penetrative sex, then you should work out your vaginal walls anyway, because it will heighten your sensitivity, and that can make sex even better.
Which kegel balls are best for toning my vagina?
Pretty much any weighted kegel balls will do the trick for ironing out your vaginal knots, but these are rated the best balls out there, so if you’re planning on picking up a pair, go for one of these bad boys.
Tracey Cox Supersex Kegel Toner Set, $49.95 from Lovehoney.
Single Kegel Trainer, $19 from Unbound.
Ben Wa Magnetic Hematite Love Balls, $34.95 from Lovehoney.
Jopen Key – Stella III Kegel Ball Set, $42.99 from Wild Secrets.
Double Kegel Trainer, $28 from Unbound.
Ami by Je Joue 3 Step Luxury Kegel Balls, $79.97 from Lovehoney.