INTERVIEW
q+a with toni melaas
ODDOBODY: WHEN DID YOU BECOME AWARE OF YOUR PELVIC FLOOR AND THE IMPORTANCE OF IT?
TONI:
I realized the importance of the strength and the mobility of my pelvic floor when I began dancing professionally. The pelvic floor is a beloved resource; it can lift you up and ground you all at the same time.
ODDOBODY: MOST COMMONLY MISUNDERSTOOD IDEA ABOUT THE PELVIC FLOOR?
TONI :
The pelvic floor, like most muscles, operates most optimally when it is as strong as it is flexible and as stable as it is mobile. This balance between mobility and strength is the key to the potency of the pelvic floor.
ODDOBODY: EASIEST WAY TO INCORPORATE STRENGTHENING YOUR PELVIC FLOOR INTO YOUR DAILY LIFE?
TONI:
Recognize that your pelvic floor is made up of muscles providing a hammock of sorts for the bowl of your pelvis, in the front, middle and back with a right and left side. If you pull up on the hammock, you will feel the muscles strengthen upward providing lift and stability to your postural alignment. For a more tactile experience, bend your knees and place a hand cupping the front and back of your pelvic floor. Gently pull up with your hands as you straighten your legs, squeezing them inward and extend your torso up out of your hips.
ODDOBODY: TOP FAVORITE PELVIC FLOOR STRETCH?
TONI:
One of my favorite ways to teach pelvic floor awareness is by squeezing a yoga block or pillow between the upper, inner thighs while standing in parallel and using that midline hug up through the legs and pelvic floor to the low, deep belly muscles to draw your heels up off the floor to balance on tiptoe.
ODDOBODY: THE PELVIC FLOOR IS MOSTLY DISCUSSED IN RELATION TO PEOPLE WITH VAGINAS, ESPECIALLY POST-PARTUM. WHY IS IT IMPORTANT FOR THOSE WHO DON'T GIVE BIRTH AND WHO DON'T INTEND TO GIVE BIRTH?
TONI:
All humans have a pelvic floor and the awareness of it should be celebrated as a resource. The pelvic floor is the keystone to our bipedal existence, giving us a connection to the legs that ground us and the core muscles that allow us to fight gravity. It also supports our organs and that alone shows how vital the pelvic floor is.
ODDOBODY: ONE THING YOU THINK SHOULD BE EMPHASIZED MORE WHEN PEOPLE TALK ABOUT OUR PELVIC FLOORS?
TONI:
The pelvic floor is not just about vaginas. Pelvic floor health is accessible to all of us and necessary for proper postural alignment which sets the foundation for all functional movement.
