Kegel exercises for men: how to do pelvic floor exercises, and do they work?

Kegel exercises for men are pelvic floor exercises by another name. You squeeze and lift the muscles you'd use to hold in wind or stop the flow of urine, hold for a few seconds, then let go. One NHS hospital leaflet points out that you can do them anywhere and at any time.

What are Kegel exercises?

Kegel exercises are repeated squeezes of your pelvic floor muscles, each one held and then relaxed. BAUS, the British Association of Urological Surgeons, describes the Kegel technique as doing pelvic floor exercises regularly to strengthen the muscles used in ejaculation. The NHS leaflets used for this guide are about bladder and bowel control.

BAUS calls them an important part of preparing for surgery to remove the prostate, as they can help reduce urine leakage afterwards.

The same muscles matter for sex. POGP, the Pelvic, Obstetric and Gynaecological Physiotherapy network, says good pelvic floor muscles help to maintain an erection and may prevent premature ejaculation, and a Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS leaflet says much the same.

Do men have a pelvic floor?

Yes, men have a pelvic floor. BAUS describes it as a layer of muscles and ligaments that stretches like a hammock from the pubic bone at the front of your pelvis to the coccyx (tailbone) at the bottom of your spine. It supports your bladder and bowel, and the urethra and back passage pass through it.

According to BAUS, the pelvic floor supports the organs in your pelvis and tummy, especially when you stand or strain. It helps keep the urethra closed when you cough, sneeze or strain, and it controls leakage of wind or poo from the lower bowel.

BAUS lists what can weaken it: operations on the prostate or other organs in the pelvis, damage to the nerves of the pelvic floor, repeated straining on the toilet (usually because of constipation), a long-term cough such as a smoker's cough, being overweight, lack of general fitness and ageing. An NHS leaflet from Aneurin Bevan University Health Board in Wales adds that, although there's no research evidence, many think persistent heavy lifting weakens it too.

How do you find your pelvic floor muscles?

To find your pelvic floor, sit or lie comfortably with your thighs, buttocks and tummy relaxed, as BAUS suggests. Tighten the ring of muscle around your back passage as if holding in wind, then imagine stopping your flow of urine midstream: BAUS says you should feel the base of your penis move up slightly towards your tummy. Step by step:

1. Find the back. Tighten the ring of muscle around your back passage, as if you were trying to hold in wind, then relax. Practise this several times, trying not to squeeze your buttocks, thighs or tummy.
2. Find the front. Imagine stopping the flow of urine midstream. If your technique is right, BAUS says you'll feel the base of your penis move up slightly towards your tummy; the Gloucestershire leaflet adds that you should feel your testicles pull upwards.
3. Put them together. Once you have the hang of each, POGP suggests lifting the front and back together. That's one pelvic floor contraction.
4. Check in a mirror. Standing in front of a mirror, you should see the base of your penis draw inwards and your scrotum lift when you squeeze, according to POGP.

You can test it for real by stopping your flow while you pee, but only now and then: BAUS says no more than once a week and the Gloucestershire leaflet says no more than once a fortnight, because it may interfere with normal bladder emptying.

If you can't feel a definite tightening, POGP suggests getting professional advice.

How to do Kegel exercises, step by step

To do Kegel exercises, squeeze and lift your pelvic floor, hold for as long as is comfortable, then relax fully, and repeat until the muscles tire; then do a set of short, quick squeezes. POGP says to do this at least 3 times a day. The steps below follow the POGP booklet for men, with details from BAUS.

1. Find your starting point. Squeeze and lift, and count how many seconds you can comfortably hold. Then see how many times you can repeat that hold before your muscles tire. In POGP's example, if you can hold for 5 seconds and repeat it 6 times, you start with 6 holds of 5 seconds.
2. Rest between holds. Let the muscles relax fully, resting for at least 5 seconds before the next one.
3. Add quick lifts. Count how many short, quick squeezes you can do before the muscles start to tire, and do that many after each set of long holds. BAUS describes them as pulling up rapidly and letting go straight away.
4. Repeat through the day. POGP says to do the long and short squeezes at least 3 times a day; BAUS says at least four to five times. You may find sitting or lying down easier at first; as your muscles improve, do them standing up too.
5. Keep breathing. Try not to hold your breath, push down, or tighten your tummy, buttocks or thighs. Both POGP and the Aneurin Bevan leaflet say some tightening in the lower tummy is normal. POGP says you're more likely to breathe easily if you lift your pelvic floor on an out-breath.

How do you build up a Kegel routine over the weeks?

Build up gradually from where you start. POGP says to increase the length of each hold and the number of repetitions over the next few weeks, aiming for up to 10 long squeezes held for up to 10 seconds each, followed by up to 10 short squeezes.

Building up your pelvic floor routine

	Long squeezes.	Quick squeezes.	How often.
To start	Hold for as long as is comfortable and repeat until the muscles tire (for example, 6 holds of 5 seconds), resting at least 5 seconds between holds	As many as you can do before the muscles tire	At least 3 times a day
Over the next few weeks	Gradually hold for longer and do more	Gradually do more	At least 3 times a day
Aim for	Up to 10 holds of up to 10 seconds each	Up to 10	At least 3 times a day (BAUS says at least 4 to 5 times)
Once things improve	Keep going regularly	Keep going regularly	For the rest of your life, says POGP (BAUS suggests twice a day once bladder and bowel control is back)

Based on the POGP booklet for men (2021) and the BAUS leaflet (2025). POGP says these aims will be too easy for some men and may be too hard for others: start with what is comfortable for you.

If you were hoping for a fixed 6-week plan, none of the NHS or physiotherapy leaflets used for this guide sets out a week-by-week schedule, and a 2019 review of the trials found that no optimal training programme has been identified. The leaflets start from what you can do now and build up instead.

To keep going, POGP suggests making the exercises part of your daily routine, just like brushing your teeth: set a reminder on your phone, or do them after you've emptied your bladder. The Aneurin Bevan leaflet includes a tick-box diary for the first 12 weeks, to remind you to do them 3 times a day.

How long do Kegel exercises take to work?

Kegel exercises take weeks to months before you may notice a difference. BAUS says you probably won't notice an improvement for several weeks, and it may take a few months to get the maximum benefit. POGP says that if you practise as it describes, you should notice an improvement in 3 to 6 months, and calls the exercises "not a 'quick fix'".

If you see little or no change after 3 months, the Gloucestershire leaflet recommends getting help from a health professional, such as a specialist physiotherapist. Once things improve, keep going: POGP says to carry on regularly for the rest of your life, and BAUS suggests twice a day for life once bladder and bowel control has come back.

Do Kegel exercises work?

Kegel exercises can help some men, according to the studies so far, but the evidence is limited. In a 2004 UK trial of 55 men with erection problems, 40% had regained normal erectile function by the final assessment, after a programme of pelvic floor exercises, biofeedback and lifestyle advice. For premature ejaculation the evidence is weaker: a 2026 review found that exercise programmes alone did less than the medicine dapoxetine or combined treatments.

Kegel exercises for erection problems

That trial was run in Taunton and published in 2004. It included 55 men with erection problems, aged 22 to 78. Of these, 28 were taught pelvic floor exercises by a physiotherapist in five 30-minute sessions over consecutive weeks, with biofeedback on a computer screen and lifestyle advice, and then did the exercises at home every day for 6 months. The other 27 got lifestyle advice only.

After 3 months, erectile function had improved significantly more in the exercise group, and the comparison group then moved on to the exercises too. At the final assessment, the men told a urologist who didn't know which group each had been in whether their erections were worse, the same, improved or back to normal. Counting all 55 men, including those who had dropped out, 22 (40%) had regained normal erectile function, 19 (34.5%) had improved and 14 (25.5%) had not improved. Separately, 22 of the men (40%) left the trial before the planned end, some because their erections had already improved. The authors call the number who withdrew a concern and say the study was limited by its small number of men.

The home exercises included three strong holds each standing, sitting and lying, morning and evening, and tightening the pelvic floor rhythmically during sex to help keep the penis firm. POGP also suggests tightening your pelvic floor during sex to maintain the quality of your erection.

A 2019 systematic review of 10 trials found that every trial that measured erection problems showed improvement. The reviewers rated the studies as low to moderate quality, and the programmes varied widely in therapist contact, length, frequency and intensity.

Erection problems can also have physical causes, which our guide to erectile dysfunction covers.

Kegel exercises for premature ejaculation

The evidence for premature ejaculation is thinner. BAUS lists the Kegel technique among the behavioural strategies for it, and the 2019 review found that most trials showed improvement, though overall cure rates ranged more widely than for erection problems.

An Italian study published in 2018 followed men for three years. It looked back at 154 men with lifelong premature ejaculation, who started a 12-week programme of pelvic floor physiotherapy, electrical stimulation and biofeedback, three sessions a week, which is a lot more than squeezing at home. The authors report that 111 of the 122 who finished gained control of their ejaculation reflex. Of the 95 who completed the 36-month follow-up, 64% still had satisfactory ejaculation control 24 months after the programme and 56% at 36 months. There was no comparison group, which the authors name as the main limitation, and results were measured as the change from each man's own starting point.

A 2026 review and meta-analysis of five randomised trials, with 236 men taking part, found that pelvic floor exercise programmes on their own had a smaller effect on the time to ejaculation than dapoxetine or combined treatments. Results varied a lot between the pelvic floor trials. Dapoxetine (Priligy) is a medicine licensed in the UK for premature ejaculation, which local NHS areas can choose to prescribe. The NHS lists headaches, dizziness and feeling sick among its common side effects, and says it isn't recommended for some men with heart, kidney or liver problems.

For techniques and medicines side by side, see how to stop premature ejaculation: every treatment compared. The stop-start and squeeze methods are explained in what is edging? Stop-start and squeeze techniques.

When should you see a GP or a physiotherapist?

See a GP or go to a sexual health clinic if erection problems keep happening: the NHS says it might be a sign of a health condition that can be treated. See a GP, too, if finishing too quickly is a persistent problem; the NHS says your GP will discuss it with you and may examine you or refer you to a specialist.

If you're finding the exercises hard to follow, or your symptoms aren't improving, POGP suggests asking to be referred to a physiotherapist with experience of men's pelvic floor problems, or referring yourself where that's available. If you've had recent surgery and still have a catheter in, the Gloucestershire leaflet says to wait until it has been removed before trying the exercises.

Sexual health clinics are free and confidential, the NHS says, and many offer a walk-in service: use the NHS sexual health clinic finder. For everything else on lasting longer, see how to last longer in bed.