We’ve all heard of Kegels and how they can enhance your sex life, strengthen your pelvic floor, reduce bladder leaks, and even treat organ prolapse.
But they’re a bit of a chore, and 50% of us don’t even do them correctly.
Enter INNOVO: these pelvic floor training shorts use electric stimulation to cause your body to perform 180 perfect Kegels in just 30 minutes. They are clinically proven to eliminate bladder leaks, and I’ve tested them out.
I can’t wait to explain how these work, and don’t miss my reaction video when I tried these shorts for the first time! Let’s dive into it.
Disclaimer: This review is sponsored by INNOVO, but all opinions expressed here are my own. A perk of working with INNOVO is I’ve snagged a discount code for $250 off the kit with code MAMABEAR250!
What are INNOVO shorts?
INNOVO is a non-invasive, FDA-cleared technology that’s clinically proven to eliminate bladder leaks in 12 weeks or less. You wear a pair of shorts (they look and feel like cycling shorts) for 30 minutes per day, 5 days per week.
The shorts use electrical stimulation to complete 180 perfect Kegels in just 30 minutes!
Half of women can’t do a Kegel correctly, so INNOVO is even cooler as it guarantees you’re doing it perfectly and precisely every time. It’s even cooler because it also teaches you how it’s supposed to feel so you learn how to do them correctly!
The device strengthens your pelvic floor, which means no more bladder leaks when you cough, sneeze, laugh, lift something heavy, exercise… the list goes on!
A strong pelvic floor also has some other perks, including enhancing your sexual health and even treating pelvic organ prolapse, which is common in postpartum moms. Note that you shouldn’t use INNOVO until at least 6 months after childbirth or until you stop lactating (consult your doctor first).
Get the full list of precautions here.
My experience using INNOVO shorts
Many of us experience some postpartum troubles, including a weak pelvic floor.
While pelvic floor disorders affect women of all ages, childbirth increases the incidence of stress urinary incontinence (SUI) and pelvic organ prolapse – particularly in women who have given birth vaginally (Hafsa Memon and Victoria L. Handa, “Pelvic floor disorders following vaginal or cesarean delivery”).
So I had no qualms about giving INNOVO a try. What do I have to lose by strengthening my pelvic floor?!
Here’s how it worked and what those electrical pulses feel like!
How to use INNOVO
To use INNOVO, turn the shorts inside out and spray the sensors.
Then, you put the shorts on, connect the controller, and adjust the pulse level until you reach a therapeutic level. I’ll explain how that feels in a second.
Keep the shorts on for 30 minutes, and honestly, you can just go about your day, either standing still or laying down during the treatment.
I even folded laundry during the 30-minute session!
How INNOVO feels
I was not prepared for the physical sensation I got when INNOVO started the electrical stimulation. It was more of a surprise than anything because I did get used to it after about 5 minutes.
At low intensity, you feel a gentle vibration in your rear.
As you increase the intensity, the vibration gets stronger. Because this was such a unique feeling, it almost honestly felt a little painful at first. That definitely went away as the session went on.
I finally reached a therapeutic intensity level, and I knew this because I could literally feel my insides tightening. It is such a bizarre feeling to know that my body is doing Kegels without my having to do any work at all! It’s also incredibly cool and effortless!
I would definitely advise starting at a very low intensity and working your way up. My husband didn’t think anything of it and started jacking the intensity number up, and it definitely did not feel good.
However, as I slowly went up a few numbers and got used to the feeling, I found it easy to increase a few more until I finally got to the correct intensity.
You can watch this Tik Tok I made to learn more (and see my reaction):
A few thoughts on the INNOVO experience
The INNOVO shorts are actually very comfortable, and they don’t look crazy, either. I didn’t feel embarrassed wearing them in front of my family, and I’m obviously posting photos on the internet for the whole world to see…
I think the biggest thing to note is the sensation the electrical stimulation gives you. Just prepare yourself for a funky feeling and increase the intensity slowly, especially during your first session. Once you get used to it, it’s no big deal.
I still can’t get over that this device causes your body to do Kegels without you having to do any work. And you don’t have to insert any devices, which can be uncomfortable. That’s a huge differentiator of INNOVO compared to other options.
Speaking of other options, let’s see how INNOVO stacks up in the pelvic floor trainer market.
INNOVO vs Flyte vs Inexpensive Probe Options
INNOVO is not the only pelvic floor trainer on the market. Another clinically proven leader in this space is Flyte, which is also designed to treat urinary incontinence by contracting the pelvic floor muscles.
You can also find inexpensive trainer sets out there that claim to strengthen the pelvic floor muscles, too.
Here’s a quick chart to see how they compare and contrast:
INNOVO | Flyte | Bodyotics | |
|---|---|---|---|
Cost | $499 (get it for $249 with my code MAMABEAR250) | $395 | $79.90 |
Placement | Outside of the body (you wear the shorts that have external electrodes) | Intravaginal | Intravaginal |
Time per day | 30 minutes | 5 minutes | 15 minutes |
# of Kegels per session | 180 | 10 per session (recommended you do it 3x/day) | “Replaces” 100 |
Standard treatment time | 12 weeks (80% of women are leak-free after 4 weeks) | 6 weeks | Not provided |
How it works | Pulses (electrical stimulation) – you don’t need to do any Kegels, the device does it for you | Gentle pulses (mechanotherapy) and guided Kegel exercises | Self-guided exercises |
Who does the work? | The device | Half you, half the device | You |
Clinically tested and proven to work? | Yes | Yes | No |
The clear benefit of INNOVO is the sheer number of Kegels the device does (180!) without you having to do any work. Just put on the shorts, increase the pulse intensity until you’re comfortable and feel your pelvic floor contracting, and go about your day for 30 minutes.
It’s the only permanent fix and gets to the root of incontinence by strengthening your pelvic floor. I also like that I don’t have to put anything inside my body when doing the pelvic floor training, and obviously, this is leaps and bounds better than having surgery!
While INNOVO is more expensive than simpler options on Amazon, you can get $250 off with code MAMABEAR250, making it less expensive than similar competitors like Flyte.
Plus, INNOVO is clinically tested – 87% of users were defined as dry or nearly dry after 12 weeks. Even after just 4 weeks, 80% of users saw a significant reduction in leaks.
INNOVO cost and discount code
INNOVO retails for $499, which makes it one of the most expensive pelvic floor training devices on the market. However, with code MAMABEAR250, you can get a $250 discount, bringing the cost down to only $249.
Other higher-end pelvic floor training devices on the market have price tags in the $295-$475 range, making INNOVO less expensive.
Also, INNOVO is HSA/FSA eligible.
INNOVO pros and cons
Pros of INNOVO:
- Eliminates bladder leaks in 12 weeks
- You don’t have to insert any devices
- You get to do 180 perfect Kegels without actually doing any work at all
- With my discount code MAMABEAR250, you can get $250 off, which makes the price less expensive than comparable trainers
- Clinically tested and proven to work
- FDA-cleared
- Non-invasive, and you don’t have to get surgery!
- No prescription needed
- No side effects
- HSA/FSA eligible
Cons of INNOVO:
- The electrical stimulation sensation can feel offputting or even slightly painful at first
- Preparing the shorts for use can feel like a process, and you do need to do it 5 days per week for 12 weeks – this is definitely a commitment
- Not many pre-owned, used INNOVO kits have sold on eBay so you may have a hard time selling it when you’re finished, though it’s recommended you continue using INNOVO 1-2 times per week to stimulate the pelvic floor and achieve optimal results (so you may not want to sell it)
Conclusion
If you leak when you cough or sneeze and are fed up with it, you don’t have to resort to an invasive surgical procedure. INNOVO has been clinically proven to permanently eliminate bladder weeks in 12 weeks or less.
Don’t forget to use my discount code MAMABEAR250 to get $250 off, or essentially half off this pelvic floor trainer!
