FAQ

Absolutely, you can take our courses while you're on your period and you can also include the daily exercises. The exercises can help you experience these days naturally and with a sense of well-being.

You can use tampons or any other aid during the courses of Kriston Method while you‘re learning the gymnastics. However, you should avoid using vaginal devices during everyday practice for greater effectiveness.

The benefits of the Kriston Method can include an early cessation or reduction of cramps. This is conditional on the changes facilitated and implemented by the course. According to our students' feedback the effect often occurs during the course already.

Yes, this is a very common experience for those who have gone through a major change in their femininity during the emotional and physical processes of the training. This is completely normal and you have nothing to worry about.

Of course you can. In the session we only create beneficial changes, the acquired elements have no harmful effects. The learnt material can be applied in case of endometriosis and all other conditions too.

It would be a shame to miss it. The course guarantees you to acquire exercises to prepare your birth canal and you get a personalised exercise programme up to and after birth. A significant part of the preparation is the emotional process that you'll experience on the course, thus reducing the inhibition of the birth canal. From the first moment of pregnancy to the last, the Kriston Method can be learnt, as long as the expectant mother feels comfortable and there are no medical contraindications. After the Kriston Intimate Training course, it's also possible to learn the Kriston for Expectant Mothers and the Kriston Secrets of a Geisha.

It's recommended to take the course as early as possible. During the course you and your baby will be completely safe regardless of the stage of your pregnancy.

You can arrive at the last minute too. You will definitely benefit from the training before giving birth, and you will also learn how to restore your muscles after giving birth.

If you haven't learnt the Kriston Intimate Training yet, wait 6 weeks before learning. In some cases, you can start sooner if your physical condition is good. If you already know the exercises, do them as you've learnt. By the end of the cot, your doctor and your partner are guaranteed to be amazed at the results.

It's definitely beneficial to compensate for the 9 months of stress on the lower abdominal area after a caesarean as well. You should start doing the Kriston training as you’ve learnt, when the pain in the surgical area has disappeared.

Absolutely. In the case of an IVF (in vitro fertilisation) treatment it's still recommended to take the Kriston Intimate Training, the Kriston for Expectant Mothers, the Kriston Secrets of a Geisha courses and the Kriston Practice Session for women classes. You can apply what you've learnt with confidence. Improving the function of your organs will increase your chances of implantation. If your doctor recommends a normal lifestyle, you can do the exercise element of the course. If you need to be more alert in your daily life for whatever reason, there are substantial benefits to experiencing the theoretical part of the course.

We can't ‘over-strengthen’ our mouths, nor can we ‘over-strengthen’ our vaginas. Dilation depends on the ability to let go, which we develop in the course. Don't confuse preparing the muscles for labour with doing squeezing exercises with your perineal muscles in maternity classes. You wouldn't be fit for swimming in deep water by doing laps at the side of the pool either. Don't think that doing perineal squeezes will prepare your perineum for childbirth!

You're safer if you do the right exercises than if you leave the little bump with the slowed circulation unattended.

The Kriston Intimate Training has a complex effect, not specifically focused on one symptom. Hemorrhoids can be caused by several components. We work on each of these in the session.

Absolutely: in cases of prostate enlargement, inflammation, after TURP and prostatectomy surgery, it is essential to consciously maintain prostate health.

You are safer if you exercise than if you don't.

Before exercising, ask your physician if you can return to a normal lifestyle. After certain operations extra caution is needed, e.g. after an organ removal (prostate, uterus).

It is definitely recommended to do the Kriston Intimate Training and then practicing the exercises you have learnt after the following procedures and operations: miscarriage, abortion, TURP, Wertheim surgery, hemorrhoid surgery, rectal, uterine, bladder suspension, incontinence surgery. Be sure to check with your Kriston Instructor before starting the exercises! After surgery, it is best to wait 6 weeks before learning.

Once you are no longer in pain, you can participate in any Kriston course. Be sure to check with your Kriston Instructor before the training!

The answer to this question may vary from individual to individual and from symptom to symptom. It is worth checking with your doctor and your Kriston Instructor!

After the course ends, the audio is only available to listen via the website (after giving feedback). If a problem emerges, please contact your Kriston Instructor.

Written material will be provided by your Kriston Instructor, which contains the knowledge needed for regular practice. Drawings and texts will help you recall the exercises. You will also receive audio material to support you in practicing the movements in a good quality.

The audio is a guided exercising session, where you will hear exactly what you need to practice in order to achieve the desired effects. The exercises used in the course to develop movement skills and muscle sensations are not included in the recording. You will only find the end result, the exercises that have a physiological effect, but not the exercises that lead you there, since you'll go home from the course knowing the movement programme. With regular practice, the sequence of exercises will certainly be memorised and incorporated into your daily routine like brushing your teeth.

Your individual exercise programme sheet will tell you the variations of exercise sessions you can do, depending on your time and energy. These versions will allow you to achieve and maintain the desired effect.

Every time you practise, you get closer to the desired effect. How long that takes, depends on the state you were in when you started exercising, and how regularly you can exercise. After 2 weeks of doing the personalised programme you’ve received, your body will show clear signs of adaptation. By the 4 week mark, even partners will experience the effects. After 10 weeks of exercise, your body's sensation in the lower abdomen is completely transformed. Muscle closure becomes stronger and organ function improves noticeably. However, the 'starting state' varies from individual to individual and from challenge to challenge. It's worth giving your body the time it needs to make the changes.

The human body intelligently adapts the amount of muscle tissue to the amount of exercise. Therefore, it's recommended that you continue doing the exercise routines you learn on the course as long as you can influence the good functioning of your muscles, i.e. even in old age. If you are looking for variety, we recommend the Kriston Practice Sessions, which are available also online, or the Kriston Secrets of a Geisha, which is fun and due to its intensity, can be practiced less often than the basic exercise series.

You can do the exercises as long as you like, they aren't mandatory. However, if the effects are important to you, it's worth devoting time to the Kriston exercises. The human body needs physical strain. The muscles that close the bottom of the pelvis only keep their strength from regular exercise. Neither men's nor women's muscles will keep their condition if they are not exercised.

You can start attending the Kriston Practice Session (even online) as soon as you have completed the Kriston Intimate Training for women or men.

You can come straight away, but it is best to have a 10-week 'training boot camp' and then sign up for the advanced group. If you haven't practiced as much, the advanced training can give you a boost.

Of course everyone is dressed at all times. Be sure to bring comfortable leisurewear to the training. Make sure that you wear loose trousers that don't restrict your pelvic floor muscles and tummy while sitting. For men, especially for the last session, boxer-type underpants are recommended under the top trousers. We are in socks during the course, but you may also want to bring slippers. Tops should be weather appropriate. You can increase your comfort by bringing a pillow, blanket or shawl from home. If you use incontinence pads, it's recommended to bring a few spare ones.

The Kriston trainings consist of complex, compound sequences of exercises that build on each other and are essential to maintain the correct sequence and progression, so it is impossible to ‘pick out’ a few exercises in advance. You will learn all the required steps at the training.

You are guaranteed to learn and receive all the information and knowledge you need during the training in a format you can practise. Recording the training is not allowed for a number of reasons, you can read more about these in the declaration you sign before the course.

Sex will inevitably get better. The changes in perspective, emotional release, the release of frozen and tensed up organs due to experiencing the couse, the strengthening of perception will have an effect on you during the session already. The self-confidence built up during the movement sequence attaches to the muscles of the lower back, and then you create a noticeable change by practising at home. The effect on sex is quickly noticeable. However, to a lesser or greater extent, changes in your partner may also be necessary, helpful and sometimes unavoidable.

To help your partner make the decision, tell them about your experiences regarding the training, and the effects you are experiencing. In many cases the visible, tangible change in one inspires its environment too! Therefore, partners are often happy to come looking for a similar experience. Good example is contagious. There are some useful phrases that 'work' in the subconscious for a while and then end up bringing the client to the course. For women and men alike, the knowledge gained throughout the course can be a useful tool for health. It would be a shame to miss it!

Yes, the Kriston Instructors learn a lot before they are allowed to start teaching courses. It's a very serious investment for an instructor (and for their family), a lot of energy to prepare, hundreds of hours of learning. Then, their activities are mostly done freelance, which involves renting a studio, marketing, teaching. It is a business and the added value they offer deserves money.

For prevention. The Kriston Intimate Trainings are also beneficial for people who don't have any problem - or do not realise they do. The goal of this Hungarian health promoting method is to improve the function of the lower abdominal organs for both sexes, from preschool to old age, and is designed for prevention and 'self-rehabilitation'. Together with the acquired knowledge, we can live a much more successful life.

Of course. It's even possible to eat during Kriston courses too, on request. However, the day before the session you should eat a meal that will make your digestion as comfortable as possible.

Kriston courses and the knowledge of those can only and exclusively be taught by qualified Kriston Instructors who have completed the necessary 300-390 hours of training to become one. Without the Kriston Instructor training, it is irresponsible and illegal to teach the method. The Kriston Method is protected by copyright and is registered in the Hungarian Intellectual Property Office as a unique training method developed by Andrea Kriston.

Yes.

Kriston Instructors will help you to double check if they have learnt the technique in a correct way. The children are guaranteed to be in good hands.

No. The structure, communication and focus of the Kriston trainings vary in different age groups, so it's useful for the parent to do the training separately. In this case, the focus is not on learning the movements, but on the approach that the parent builds in the training, which can then support their child's health development in the area of intimacy.

This is important for administration purposes.

Of course. It is just a physiological process, her comfort level will only improve.

Children progress at a different pace in the learning phase, depending on their age, mental and physical abilities.

Kriston Intimate Training and Kriston for Girls/Boys are services that require payment upfront. We only take on a child if there is an opportunity for improvement.

Yes. We teach body conscious lifestyle, the protection of lower body health. It can take various forms: lectures for faculty members, parents, presentations, practical sessions, workshops for children, teen courses.

Teens can, but only in individual setting, not in groups. Children are not to be taught online in order to guarantee the correct learning process.

Professor Kegel's method consisted of the following 3 steps: 1. External observation of the patient in a supine position. 2. Vaginal examination by finger. 3. Insertion of a measuring device into the vagina and continuous monitoring of the vagina by performing it 3 times a day for 20 minutes. (John D Perry, Leslie Talcott Hullett: The bastardization of Kegel's Exercises, Gerontological Society, New Brunswick, 1988.) Kegel's approach was groundbreaking. He applied his procedure only to postpartum incontinent women. Never in other cases. He never used the procedure on men. He used no teaching method for learning the movement, only one instruction: squeeze. "On the other hand, most urologists and gynaecologists just smile politely at the mere mention of Kegel's legacy, knowing fully well that sooner or later almost every incontinent person will eventually submit to surgery or urological treatment." The Bastardization of Dr. Kegel's Exercises) John D. Perry Phd and Leslie Talcott Hullet, MS, RN Paoli (Pa) Memorial Hospital, Continence Program International pelvic floor muscle exercise instructors refer to Kegel, however, they did not learn the movement from Kegel, nor do they perform it the way Kegel did. Nowadays, Kegel gymnastics simply means gymnastics for the pelvic floor muscle group. There are countless versions of this. For example, some gymnastics that carry the Kegel name are very different from each other, and are not similar to Kegel's method, nor to each other: ● Assistant's finger's in the rectum or vagina and the client squeezes. ● Imagine you have a pencil in your vagina and write down: Happy birthday! ● Push as if you were defecating! ● Squeeze anywhere, at least 1000 times a day! ● 3 big squeezes every other day. ● Squeeze with vaginal weight in your vagina! ● Stop the flow while urinating! The Hungarian physiotherapy practice during a training session called Kegel, based on their protocol procedure: ● The client lies down, and the physiotherapist checks the squeezing with a finger inserted into the client's vagina. ● A physiotherapist who conducts further training for physiotherapists says it is not possible to squeeze the vagina. Therefore they perform rectal squeezes and abdominal retractions under the Kegel name. ● When you can hold the vaginal weight for 15 minutes, you can start jumping with it. "The activities of physiotherapists are governed by the Health Ministry's professional guidelines, which reads as follows: Effective care is provided if the physiotherapist accurately assesses the patient's medical history and condition during the physiotherapy examination: ● anamnesis ● examination of pelvic floor muscle function ● muscle examination by palpation ● instrumental muscle strength tests ● modern imaging tests." Andrea Friedrichné Nagy, Semmelweis University, Department of Physiotherapy, 2017. Under the name of Kegel, there are many types of movement with various results. Thus, when someone refers to Kegel, it is not possible to know what they mean, only the body part can be identified. So the present practice under the Kegel name is significantly different from the procedure conceived by Kegel. And the procedure, which they call intimate gymnastics, differs substantially from the teaching methodology developed by Andrea Kriston. "Experience has shown that simple verbal or written instructions are not sufficient to exercise the pelvic muscles, since 30% of women are unable to contract their pelvic floor muscles when instructed and 25% cause incontinence through poorly performed effort." (Robert & Ross, 2006) The beginner course in the Kriston Method is the Kriston Intimate Training. We impact our students' quality of life for the better in 3 ways: 1. changing habits for healthier organs 2. reducing and eliminating emotions that inhibit healthy organ function 3. improving healthy organ function through personalised muscle development. Kriston Method is: ● Designed for all ages, both sexes ● an educational health preserving method used for prevention and self-rehabilitation ● perineology, which is a method of self-development at the intersection of the following fields: urology, gynaecology, proctology, andrology, psychology, sports science, sexology, pedagogy ● focused on improving body perception, so there is no external personal or instrumental control. ● a teaching concept guaranteeing success in learning the movements safely. ● also suitable for the improvement of the blind, the hearing impaired, prosthetic and wheelchair users, people with lower mental capacity and people with incontinence pads. ● building on the foundation of the Kriston Intimate Training, additional modules improve the quality of life of the population in the following areas: sexuality, healthy fertility functions, childbirth in ecstasy, fitness for protecting lower abdominal health, student programme, rehabilitation after lower abdominal surgery.

Andrea Kriston developed the Kriston Method herself, including all the modules, thus the Kriston Intimate Training as well. She did not have any literature at her disposal. As a physical education and biology teacher, she didn't learn about the pelvic muscles and their development at the Ho Chi Minh Teacher Training College nor the Hungarian University of Sports Science. She'd played sports since childhood, then went to a medical technical school and wanted to become a doctor, but her interest shifted to physical education. All these mosaics contributed to the development of her interests. Then, the various stages of her own womanhood, and later the constant feedback from her students, helped her develop her method, which continues to this day. The Kriston Method is 100% Hungarian. This is confirmed by written material issued in the past. ● Andrea Kriston developed her method herself. She did not rely on any literature, as it was not even available to a teacher in Kazincbarcika (north-eastern town in Hungary) in 1986. ● Many people wanted to teach Andrea Kriston's method professionally, which is why instructor training started in 1998. ● Andrea Kriston's method can be taught by those who have studied in a hundreds of hours framework: anatomy, pathophysiology, Kriston movement methodology, Kriston conduction technique, Kriston health psychosomatics, Kriston individual movement programme, Kriston advanced training.

Only people who have certificates of their anatomical and physiological knowledge can apply for the Kriston Instructor training. If they don’t yet have these, they must obtain them at the beginning of the training. Module 1 of the Instructor training course is Anatomy with a perineological approach which is mandatory for everyone. Kriston Instructors have a thorough knowledge of anatomy, which they demonstrate by examination.

The term ‘intimtorna’ (Hungarian for intimate exercises) was coined by Andrea Kriston at the beginning of her work for her method, a term that hadn't existed in Hungarian or in any other language. The Hungarian Intellectual Property Office has repeatedly confirmed this. The term associated with her method, became more and more popular with its successful application and became part of the Hungarian language. Many people wished to learn her method as trainers so that they could use it, but they did not want to put the energy into it, they just wanted to use the name. The Hungarian Society of Physiotherapists litigated for four years to take the confidence boosting name, introduced by Andrea Kriston. On the grounds that the name had become popular and part of the vernacular, the court lifted the trade mark protection of the term 'intimate exercises'. This way anyone could use it for any procedure. This caused a great deal of confusion, as physiotherapists did not learn Andrea Kriston's method, but applied her well-established name to Kegel gymnastics. This gave rise to countless complaints. At the time, a public opinion poll proved that the majority of the Hungarian population still identified the term 'intimate exercises' (intimate gymnastics) with Andrea Kriston's name. Those who use the service are rightly confident in its promised effects. Kegel never used the term intimate gymnastics and the two procedures are not even similar, apart from the fact that they both affect the perineal area. It seemed that since the name 'intimate exercises' could only be applied to Andrea Kriston's method, clients who wanted its effects could identify it as such. Doctors who'd learnt about Andrea Kriston's method at conferences and professional forums also recommended it to their patients as only 'intimate exercises'. After that, a group of competitors, led by a physiotherapist, who wanted to use the name 'intimate exercises', sought to sue Andrea for the name in court again, which also lasted 4 years. This lawsuit once again ended with a decision to cancel the trade mark protection of the name 'intimate exercises'. Thus Andrea Kriston's method is identified by the name KRISTON. From then on, the term 'intimate exercises' was used by people who hadn’t learnt it. Based on experience, we do not recommend these.

It's not wrong per se, but you don't know what they teach. Intimate gymnastics are not taught to physiotherapists, fitness instructors or others. Just because someone is a physiotherapist, it does not mean they know this specific area of the lower body. So where did they learn it? No one learnt the Kegel exercise from Kegel or anyone else. On the internet, anyone can become an 'expert' in half an hour. Anyone who wants to seriously understand the development of the intimate muscles and help others do it, enrol in the Kriston Instructor training, where they are guaranteed to learn it. We take no responsibility for others, but in Hungary we often encounter clients who are tricked and made ill: spasming muscles, bladder hernia, self-esteem problems. Our worst story was when a woman wanted to commit suicide after a course with a 'specialist'. Then, after the basic Kriston Intimate Training, she blossomed and signed up for all the subsequent training sessions. The Kriston Method has nothing to do with courses under the name of intimate gymnastics, where the movement of the vagina or rectum is checked with a finger, where a flashlight is used to look at it through clothes, where negative suggestions are made about muscle function, where an electrical stimulus is used to make the muscles contract, where this area of the body, which is soaked with strong emotions, is treated as regular gymnastics. This is how it happened that a young man with chronic pelvic pain syndrome was taught by an 'intimate gymnastics instructor' in a private clinic, after which he could not sit for weeks and his pain increased to extreme intensity. In a hospital in Budapest, the physiotherapist who was teaching 'intimate gymnastics' got their client on the operating table in 3 weeks. A few minutes of 'intimate gymnastics' in a maternity session gave women the hope that they would be prepared for childbirth. Unfortunately, there are often reports of a torn abdominal wall and a blocked birth canal if this is the foundation the mother builds on. We distance ourselves from such instructors. Kriston Instructors always identify themselves under the Kriston name. People who are genuinely interested in how to help with intimate issues are prepared with the necessary knowledge before standing in front of people.

Kriston Instructors regularly keep their knowledge up to date through compulsory training, they are regularly renew their exams, and can be tested at any time by trial purchase. Kriston Instructors are guaranteed to produce high quality work. Those who no longer actively teach the method, have gone in a different direction with their lives. They have no right to continue it and their knowledge is not up to date as they failed the exams or decided to have a change of career. This is how their clients come to us with complaints, where it turns out that they have received harmful and incomplete information. There are also people, who offer their courses at an extremely high price in order to appear authentic. It’s thought-provoking how much a student can trust someone who acts incorrectly. Those who desire change, development, and a better quality of life will certainly not be let down by a Kriston Instructor. The Kriston Method has been developing since 1986.

In 1987, three hospitals asked Andrea Kriston to collaborate, independently of each other: Bajcsy Hospital, Schöpf-Merei Hospital and Szent Rókus Hospital. By choosing the latter, she was able to develop her programme in the urogynaecology ambulance team in a hospital setting, which she could verify by surveys and instrumental measurements. The members of the team were János Demeter, MD, Dr Zsolt Simon, MD and Lajos Nagy, MD. The clinic's visitation reached unprecedented levels due to the number of people who signed up for courses. The results of our effective work have been presented at numerous conferences. Thus, physicians have had the opportunity to encounter them in the following fields: urology, obstetrics, gynaecology, andrology, sexology, neurology, sports sciences, rehabilitation, gerontology, menopause. In 1999, the Hungarian Society of Obstetrics and Gynaecology elected Andrea Kriston as a member of the Board of the Gynaecology and Urology Section. Out of 416 physicians, 415 voted for her without her initiation or presence. These doctors voted for her only on the basis of their experience. To this day, more and more doctors are finding that it makes a difference in their clients’ lives when they learn to do what only they can do for themselves. Every doctor can look into this method. Andrea Kriston is a keen participant in professional forums, and her books are evergreen and have been available to the public since 1991. Her method is taught by a growing number of instructors, brought together by the Kriston Centre. Many doctors recommend their clients to do intimate gymnastics, but learn only Andrea Kriston's method. Among doctors, as in all professions, there are informed, open-minded and well-meaning individuals.

In Hungary, before Andrea Kriston, no one had worked on the rehabilitation of the perineum. This was recognized by the leadership of the Hungarian Society of Physiotherapists. The first physiotherapist who started her activity 15 years after Andrea Kriston, was also inspired by her. Inspiration, however, does not mean knowledge. Since then, a few people influenced by physiotherapists have taken on jobs without proper knowledge.

Physiotherapists do not study intimate gymnastics as part of their undergraduate training at university. So physiotherapists, by virtue of their training, do not necessarily understand the training of the perineal muscles. Midwives, nurses, university students and doctors who do not even have a degree in movement training can apply for their further training. Their accredited training is 1 day long, most of which is theoretical: instrumental, finger testing, use of different instruments, demonstration of symptoms, and some movement. In the Kriston Intimate Training students take a longer time period to learn the skills. So, in a 1 day training course, even people who are not familiar with physical education can learn the modified Kegel gymnastics under the name of intimate gymnastics. The physiotherapist leading this training in Hungary has also led the trademark lawsuit against Andrea Kriston on 2 occasions, so that intimate gymnastics (in Hungarian: 'intimtorna') could be used by anyone.