MY REVIEW OF THE NEW PERIFIT CARE+
Shauna Ironside is an osteopathic manual therapist, certified athletic therapist, athlete, and mother of three. She has a busy clinical practice located in Ottawa, Canada, where she has been helping bodies of all ages and stages lead pain-free, healthy, strong, and active lives for twenty years. Learn more about Shauna here.
*Shauna is not a medical doctor. The information presented here should not be mistaken for medical advice. Please consult with your doctor or primary care provider if you are experiencing any issues with your body.
Please note that some of the links in this review are affiliate links, which means I may earn a commission if you make a purchase through those links. This commission comes at no additional cost to you. This review is based on my honest assessment of the product. I only recommend products or services that I genuinely believe will provide value to you, the reader.
Thank you for your support, and I hope you find the information in this review helpful in making informed decisions about the products or services discussed.
July 1st 2024:
Perifit is currently offering Healthy Mumma visitors and patients
25% OFF
the Perifit Care+ (or classic Perifit)
I am not sure how long this offer will last. This is a huge savings, so take advantage of it!
Please use the code HM15 to save!
You can buy it here.
This is an affiliate link, which means I receive a small token of thanks from Perifit, at no cost to you. This review is based on my honest assessment of the product. I only recommend products or services that I genuinely believe will provide value to you, the reader.
If you’ve been here before or follow me on social media you know that I am a huge supporter of the Perifit pelvic floor trainer. I purchased one on my own dime when I was trying to heal a mild pelvic organ prolapse (POP) that started during my third pregnancy. While I certainly took a full-body approach to healing after birth, I truly believe that Perifit was an important part of how I fully healed my pelvic organ prolapse.
Over the last three years, I have continued to use my Perifit for prevention and general pelvic floor health (I am never getting POP again!). And then Perifit reached out with the Perifit+.
My first thoughts were what?! I was genuinely surprised (alarmed!) that Perifit had come out with a new version. Honestly, the original Perifit was pretty close to perfection in my opinion. Over the years they continue to add fun new games, education and community to the app, which has been great to see.
What could they improve on? The fact that there are no other devices like it on the market speaks volumes. I was not expecting a whole new version, but maybe this isn’t a surprise when you consider just how dedicated the folks at Perifit are to pelvic health and femtech.
I couldn’t wait to discover what this little + was all about.
Before you read on, please note that when I wrote my original Perifit review I was just thrilled by this little device and wanted to share it with my readers, patients and friends. Now that I have an affiliation with Perifit, it’s really important for me to tell you that I come by this review of the Perifit+ in all honesty even though I did not pay for it myself. I have been testing it out since it arrived on my doorstep and these are my honest thoughts and opinions.
Okay, let’s get to it.
WHAT IS PERIFIT? A BRIEF INTRODUCTION IF YOU’RE UNFAMILIAR WITH THIS FEMTECH.
Here is the short of it: Perifit is a biofeedback device made of medical grade silicone that you insert into your vagina to help work on pelvic floor muscle control.
The Perifit app connects to your device by bluetooth and has seven programs that you can follow depending on your symptoms or goals. The app will then guide you through pelvic floor exercises by way of playing video games.
Video games that you control with your pelvic floor muscles.
Yes, I know how odd this may sound, but as a clinician, someone who has a vagina and has struggled with pelvic organ prolapse, I can’t tell you just how brilliant this concept is.
In Canada, 1 in 3 women experience urinary incontinence (leaking), and a staggering 50% of women who have given birth will experience pelvic organ prolapse (POP) in their lifetime. The fact is most of us will experience issues related to our pelvic floor in our lifetime, and these issues can greatly affect our physical and mental health. The mental load of having POP or incontinence can be debilitating.
We also know that working on the muscles of the pelvic floor is the first intervention for treating and preventing pelvic floor support issues. Yet, many women don’t know what to do for their pelvic floor muscles or how to do it correctly.
Perifit is on a mission to help women end pelvic floor issues, and to get us talking about and learning about this area of our body that is still taboo for many.
Perifit+ is the new, redesigned pelvic floor trainer from the folks at Perifit.
LET’S PAUSE AND TALK ABOUT PELVIC FLOOR PHYSICAL THERAPY
I have to dedicate some space here to the importance of pelvic health physical therapy. While not necessarily accessible to everyone, seeing a pelvic floor physical therapist should be your first step in healing or reducing pelvic floor related issues. A pelvic floor physical therapist will properly diagnose your condition, work with you to help determine and modify triggers, formulate a treatment plan based on your goals, and will expertly adjust your treatment plan as you progress through it.
The pelvis is a complex area, and dysfunction (ie organ prolapse, leaking) are often related to other body issues. Some of these issues may even be found outside the pelvis. For this reason, a pelvic floor physical therapist is a truly critical component of the road to healing pelvic dysfunctions. Perifit is not meant to replace the one-on-one pelvic floor support that you can get from a physical therapist. It is not the full-body approach that many people need for full resolution of their problems. This is important to keep in mind.
But it’s also important to know that simple pelvic floor muscle exercises (often referred to as Kegels) have been shown time and time again to be one of the most powerful ways of preventing and treating issues such as incontinence. Studies have also shown that people with weaker pelvic floor muscles are far more likely to have continence issues.
This is where Perifit shines, helping you improve the strength and relaxation of your pelvic floor muscles with real-time, visual biofeedback. This feedback is really important considering many studies have shown that women often have difficulty doing proper pelvic floor exercises and that guidance (typically from a clinician) improves their success.
But the big question is:
HOW IS THE PERIFIT+ DIFFERENT THAN THE ORIGINAL PERIFIT?
The biggest change is that the Perifit+ is smaller and more anatomical than the original Perifit. While it is the same diameter, it is 2cm shorter and slightly curved. It also has some flexibility to it between the sensors.
This curvy, flexible and smaller design mean that it is better suited to fit comfortably in any vagina.
One issue many people find with the original Perifit is that it can creep out of your vagina as you train. While this could be because of strength or the quality of contractions, it could also be because the Perifit is a bit too big or because of its more rigid design. Many women correct this creep by keeping a finger on the end of their Perifit to hold it in place while they train, or wear underwear, some adding a small washcloth folded up and placed to keep pressure on the end of it, keeping it in place.
The larger, rigid size of the original Perifit is also not very conducive to training in sitting, stranding, or while moving or doing exercise. Many of us tried, but it didn’t work well!
A huge benefit of this trimmer, more adaptable Perifit+ is the that it can be used easily while sitting, standing, moving or full-body training. This is really great considering most women with pelvic floor related issues are more symptomatic in sitting or standing positions and during movement. Progressive training in positions that trigger symptoms can be really beneficial.
I tested the Perifit+ in various positions and movements, you can read about how it went below.
The two sensors in the Perifit+ are exactly the same as the original, but because of the new design they are positioned for better sensitivity and accuracy. The sensor at the tip monitors your internal pressure, while the other monitors the tone (strength and relaxation) of your pelvic floor muscles.
The app is the same (same games, same community, same educational articles), except for an Advanced Workout feature for Perifit+ users that is currently in beta. More about this feature below!
HERE IS A QUICK SUMMARY OF THE PERIFIT VS. PERIFIT+
TESTING THE NEW PERIFIT+
As I mentioned, the trimmer and flexible design of the Perifit+ means that it is probably going to feel better training in sitting or standing, than the original Perifit. It also means that it can be used during full-body movement or exercise.
THIS IS HUGE friends! This is what was missing from the original Perifit, and I can’t tell you how excited I was to put the plus to the test with movement.
How did the Perifit+ do with the app games while lying down?
The first two times I tested out my new Perifit+, I trained as I normally would with my original, in bed, playing the games. I only train once a week (Sunday evenings) these days, because I am not working on healing any issues, and I know my pelvic floor gets other “training” when all of my other sports and activities. My Sunday evening routine involves putting a facial mask on, and spending 15 minutes doing my Perifit training while my mask does it’s thing. It’s a great way to start the week!
Once I put the Perifit+ in, I didn’t have to touch it or readjust it. I never found the original Perifit to be uncomfortable, but the Perifit+ definitely felt different, in a good way. I suspect it’s the the flexibility in it and the slight curve, it just felt better.
The Perifit+ uses all of the same games (same app) as the Perifit. I love that you can pick and choose the ones you want to train with.
I can’t speak to my overall performance with the Perifit+ relative to the original. I do think that the Perifit+ is more sensitive, especially the deep sensor, but it’s hard to compare my previous stats with new ones this early on.
Overall, I didn’t find the Perifit+ was much different from the original when I trained lying down. It was really comfortable (I could barely feel it) and didn’t require any adjusting or help keeping it in place as I trained as I sometime would have to with the original.
TESTING THE PERIFIT+ WITH EXERCISE
Why movement matters for your pelvic floor?
Our pelvic floor muscles should respond automatically (without conscious thought) when we move, load, lift, run and jump, but as you are probably aware, these muscles very often perform sub-optimally. This is often related to weakness, underuse, hypertonicity (high tone), hypotonicity (low tone), increased pelvic pressure (ie during pregnancy), adhesions or scar tissue, trauma, misalignment, or a neurological issue.
Training our pelvic floor muscles consciously and intentionally is the path to reestablishing great autonomic control and in so many cases resolving pelvic floor related symptoms. This training should encompass a variety of positions and movement.
As an orthopaedic therapist, when a patient notes that a specific daily task reproduces a symptom, we will work on connecting to the core and pelvic floor muscles during similar movement patterns to reestablish autonomic control. For example if a patient has experienced leaking when they walk down stairs or off a step, we will work on connecting to the pelvic floor during a variety of progressive step-down exercises. We might need to work on relaxing the pelvic floor so it can respond (contract) optimally on impact, or perhaps contracting it prior to stepping down is the way to go, or it could be that we need to work on the whole core canister and internal pressure management.
Another example might be a patient who experiences pressure or heaviness in their pelvic floor when lifting or carrying a load, such as their child. We would work on a variety of exercises in standing, addressing variables such as alignment, conscious pelvic floor control, internal pressure regulation, etc.
As you can imagine, having real-time feedback about the pelvic floor muscles and internal pressure while working through rehab exercises would be really (really!) helpful!
HOW I TESTED THE PERIFIT+ WITH MOVEMENT
At the time of this review being published, there are two ways to use the Perifit+ during movement:
the Advanced Workout
or
the Practice Lab.
Both of these features are part of the Perifit app.
Using the Perifit+ in the Advanced Workout
The Advanced Workout feature of the Perifit app is currently in beta. It is the only feature on the app that is only for Perifit+ users.
I was a bit disappointed to learn that there is currently only one movement in this feature, a sit-to-stand exercise. I know Perifit is working hard on adding to and improving this feature of the app for Perifit+ users and I can’t wait to see it, but I was a bit surprised to just see one movement pattern available right now.
The first step in the Advance Workout is to calibrate your Perifit+ in sitting, then you move through ten sit-to-stands focusing on your pelvic floor muscles as you do so.
If you fail to hold a contraction, you “leak” and a droplet appears on the right side of the screen.
My thoughts on using the Advanced Workout feature for training with the Perifit+
Honestly it took me a bit of getting used to even with the tutorial, in which you perform three guided repetitions.
The screen shot here is my first time going through a full set and you can see I still didn’t have the knack of it with many “leaks”! The small purple circle in the bottom of the screen indicates when you can sit back down, but you have to tap the circle before you do. This part was confusing and lead me to “leak.”
The number of reps felt a bit too, well repetitive, as well. Once I got the hang of it, and could do all ten reps leak-free, I felt like I would not want to redo that exercise again, unlike the games, where it always seems like a fun challenge. This felt more like a challenge in coordinating the required steps.
I didn’t love the liquid droplets either. If I’m training for a reason other than incontinence (ie POP, sexual pleasure, prevention) I don’t really want to see droplets falling from me if I fail. I would love to see a reward system here instead, like the games.
I would also love to see Perifit add some breathing guidance to this movement based training. An exhalation through pursed lips is a fantastic way to increase the quality of a pelvic floor contraction and regulate internal pressures, especially in standing and with movement or exercise. It’s something I teach all of my patients when we’re working on conscious control, especially during exercise and loading tasks. I think it’s really important to incorporate this in.
Lastly, and perhaps this is only something a therapist would notice, but for this sit-stand exercise I really want to see the bot moving with better biomechanics. The hip hinge is poor with the pelvis in a tilt (posterior tilt) and the head is too far forward. This is how a lot of people sit-to-stand and it’s not ideal. We know that tucking your tail bone under is not great for pelvic floor function or the pelvic organs, so let’s not train in a posterior pelvic tilt. I want the bot to show me proper mechanics, with a neutral spine and pelvis. Again, maybe only a therapist would notice this, but visuals matter.
Again, I look forward to seeing what Perifit has planned for this movement-based part of the app. There is SO much that could be done, from different exercises, to full body workouts for different levels and conditions. The possibilities are really endless, and I imagine it’s going to take some time for the folks at Perifit to really maximize the potential here for Perifit+ users.
Using the Perifit+ with the Practice Lab
You can also use the Perifit+ for movement training in the Practice Lab. This feature has been part of the app for years, and it has improved quite a bit. I used it with my original Perifit to test out some exercises in lying and when I just wanted to “free play” often doing deep diaphragmatic breathing, contracting and relaxing my pelvic floor muscles in sync with my breath, without the restraint of a game.
The Practice Lab gives you a more clear look at your real-time function than the games because you see each of the sensor’s pressure measurements (in grams).
To remind you, the Perifit+ (and Perifit) has two sensors, a deeper one that monitors your internal pressure and a superficial one that monitors your pelvic floor muscle activity. In the Practice Lab, the sensors appear on the screen as green (pelvic floor sensor) and red (pressure sensor) trackers that kinda look like a sperm swimming along. On the right side of the screen, in corresponding green and red circles, your max measurements for strength and pressure are tracked.
When you contract, the green tracker will rise up, and when you relax it lowers back down. The red tracker will do the same depending on your internal pressures. Your goal is to always keep the red tracker below the green tracker. The Quality gauge in the bottom of the screen will move into red if your pressure rises too high.
When you are lying down and stationary (ie playing the app games) your internal pressure should stay really low or 0g if you could actually see a measurement in the games (you can only see the Quality gauge in the games).
If you are sitting or standing, there is naturally more internal pressure. This means that it is normal to see the red tracker (pressure) increase somewhat in sitting or standing when using the Practice Lab. While Perifit doesn’t provide you with a “normal range” for internal pressures in various positions, you do want to try to keep the red tracker steady while you perform your exercise or movement, keeping internal pressures as low as possible. Less internal pressure means less pressure down onto your pelvic organs and pelvic floor.
It’s important to note that your (green) strength values are going to fluctuate depending on many variables, such as your position, the exercise you are doing, your fatigue level, and where you are in your monthly cycle if you have one.
I should also note that your time using the Practice Lab does not contribute to your “training time”. I think this is something that needs to be reconsidered for the Perifit+.
I tested the Perifit+ with 4 different exercises in Practice Lab:
Lying down: Dead-bugs (legs only)
Kneeling: Resistance Band Pull-downs
Standing: Squats
Standing: Kettlebell swings
Remember, there are no specific exercises in the Practice Lab, you can do whatever you want. I don’t have any reason for choosing these exercises except that they are common, and provide a variety of positions and movements. The possibilities, however, are endless!
I also tested my Perifit+ through some plyometrics: hops, high-knees and jumping jacks.
Before moving onto a new exercise, I made sure to recalibrate in whatever position I needed to be in for that exercise.
My thoughts on using the Practice Lab feature for training with the Perifit+
I found the Perifit+ completely comfortable with all of the exercises I tested it in. I easily moved through all four of my test exercises and the plyometrics without feeling it or having to readjust it. This was such a great feeling, and is a huge improvement over the original Perifit which felt bulky and would creep out of my vagina when I tried it in various positions and with movement. Perifit has really nailed the new design.
I tested the four exercises a few times each and found each time to be quite accurate. The sensors seemed to be really responsive and it was neat seeing the different force productions (green) and internal pressures with the various exercises and plyometrics.
I think the most beneficial part of using the Practice Lab during training is the deep pressure sensor. I could easily change my breathing or bear down (even slightly) and the red sensor would rise (swim) up along with the Quality gauge to light up red.
This is really (really!) helpful for anyone who is unsure of their pressure regulation, especially during loading tasks. Poor pressure regulation typically causes undue pressure down onto the pelvic organs and pelvic floor. This is a very common reason why many people have pelvic floor dysfunction.
Internal pressures regulation can be a really hard thing to teach people and an even harder thing to feel if your system has been unregulated for some time.
Having the guidance of a physical therapist in a clinical setting is invaluable, but having real-time biofeedback in the palm of your hand at home could mean the difference between restoring function and not for many.
If you want to learn more about how I used the Practice Lab, stay tuned for a full step-by-step guide. I’ll have to ready soon!
THINGS THE PERIFIT+ CAN IMPROVE ON
The Advanced Workout
As I have said, this feature is in beta, but its current state is really basic with just one exercise, a bit confusing to use, and the bot and droplets need some consideration.
I look forward to seeing what Perifit does with this, there is so much potential here. I’d love to see a variety of exercises in lying, sitting and standing. I’d also love to see Perifit add in some breathing guidance with the exercises to help people really tap into a strong solid core foundation, which includes the pelvic floor muscles.
Stretch and Relaxation
As I mentioned earlier, you can exercise with conscious, intentional pelvic floor control, or without thinking about it at all. Each has a time and place.
When I tested the Perifit+ using the Practice Lab I did one set of each exercise without thinking of my pelvic floor muscles at all just to see what my numbers would look like, but the majority of my testing was done with very intentional pelvic floor control, which is a lot of work!
I spent about 40 minutes total testing out the exercises and the plyometrics. While this is far more than Perifit (or I!) would ever recommend to someone, it did make me consider how Perifit might want to incorporate relaxation and mobility into the app for Perifit+ users specifically. Pelvic floor training with movement has the potential to be far more intense than lying down, and fatigue can happen faster. With fatigue comes suboptimal control, and it could easily lead to dysfunction.
I made sure to pause for a minute or so between exercises (I did 2-3 sets of each exercise to really test it out) to give my pelvic floor a bit of a reset, but even with this I felt the need to stop half-way through for some pelvic floor specific stretch and relaxation exercises. I was able to get through the rest of the exercises and plyometrics without feeling fatigue, but this amount of training was not ideal. I stretched again when I was done testing.
Again, I did way more than Perifit prescribes, but I think it’s important to consider pelvic floor relaxation after even one movement based exercise.
Currently, each game on the app incorporates pelvic floor relaxation and there is an article on relaxation in the Learn portion of the app, but there is no specific feature that guides users through a routine that takes advantage of various positions to facilitate relaxation. I think this is really necessary especially with the Perifit+, as I could see users easily overdoing it with even one or two exercises in a training session of 5-10 minutes.
I would love to see a stretch and relaxation routine built into the Advanced Workout feature.
MY FINAL THOUGHTS ON THE PERIFIT+
If you are new to Perifit and considering which one to buy, I’d strongly recommend the Perifit+ over the original. It’s more functional design is reason enough. And while I don’ t have any insight into what Perifit has in store for Perifit+ users, I have a feeling it will be great.
With this fantastic new device, they have an even bigger task of maximizing its functional potential. There is just so much they can do. I have no doubt they will continue to raise the bar and make training your pelvic floor muscles
I hope this was helpful. Drop your questions in the comments if you have them or email me at shauna@healthymumma.com.
Shauna
The lovely people at Perifit have extended a discount code for my Healthy Mumma readers and clients.
Please use the code HM15 for 15% 25% your Perifit Care+ (or classic Perifit)
You can buy it here.
I am not sure how long this offer will last. This is a huge savings, so take advantage of it!
References
Hilde G, Stær-Jensen J, Ellström Engh M, Brækken IH, Bø K. Continence and pelvic floor status in nulliparous women at midterm pregnancy. Int Urogynecol J. 2012 Sep;23(9):1257-63. doi: 10.1007/s00192-012-1716-0. Epub 2012 Mar 17. PMID: 22426877.
Woodley SJ, Boyle R, Cody JD, Mørkved S, Hay-Smith EJC. Pelvic floor muscle training for prevention and treatment of urinary and faecal incontinence in antenatal and postnatal women. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2017;12:CD007471.
Boyle R, Hay-Smith EC, Cody JD, Mørkved , S. Pelvic floor muscle training for prevention and treatment of urinary and fecal incontinence in antenatal and postnatal women: A short version Cochrane review. Neurourol Urodyn 2014;33:269–276.
Nie X, Ouyang Y, Wang I, Redding S. A meta-analysis of pelvic floor muscle training for the treatment of incontinence. Int J Gynaecol Obstet 2017;138:250–255.
