The Rings: Your Pelvic Floor, Your Digestion, and the Ancient Practice That Connects Them
Updated: 16 hours ago
Quick answer: "The rings" is a Taoist name for the ring-shaped muscles, called sphincters, that open and close along your body, from your lips and eyes through your digestive tube to your anus and urethra. When they open and close in sync, digestion and elimination flow. When they are too tight, too weak, or out of step, you can see constipation, hemorrhoids, urgency, leaking, and pelvic pain. A simple squeeze-and-release practice helps retrain them, and it is ultimately a form of pelvic floor care.
The short version: This post is called "The Rings," but the destination is your pelvic floor. The lower rings, the muscles around the urethra and anus, are the heart of pelvic floor health. The rest of the rings are how we connect that floor to your digestion, your breath, and your nervous system.
When I tell a new patient about the rings, I usually start with a question: what's the only sphincter you can name? Almost everyone says the anus. And that's true, but it's one of many. This idea comes from Master Mantak Chia's Taoist teaching, which he calls the ring muscles, and it's a lens I use constantly alongside Chi Nei Tsang in my San Diego practice.
What Is a Sphincter, Really?
A sphincter is a round muscle that squeezes closed and releases open. Like any muscle, it has tone, and tone can go wrong in two directions.
Too much tone, and the ring is clamped down. That can show up as constipation, pain, hemorrhoids, or fissures. Too little tone, and the ring can't hold. That can show up as leaking, urgency, or a weak pelvic floor.
These practices have been around for thousands of years, and their goal is simple: tone that is balanced, neither locked down nor slack, and rings that respond when they're asked to.
Your Digestive Tract Is a Very Complicated Donut
I like to describe digestion as a long, complicated donut: one continuous tube running from your lips to your anus, with a series of rings along the way that act as gates. Each gate has to open and close at the right moment for food, fluids, and waste to move on to the next section.
Your mouth lips are a ring. So are your eyes. And when you engage the lips and the back ring together, you are, in a sense, getting every ring in between to join the conversation. A lot of digestive trouble is a communication problem: gates that aren't opening and closing in sync.
Here are the main rings along the digestive tube:
Lips and mouth: where digestion begins
Upper esophageal sphincter: the top of the swallowing tube
Lower esophageal sphincter: guards the entrance to the stomach
Pyloric sphincter: the gate between the stomach and small intestine
Sphincter of Oddi: controls bile and pancreatic juices entering the small intestine
Ileocecal valve: the gate between the small intestine and the colon
Internal anal sphincter: involuntary, stays closed at rest
External anal sphincter: voluntary, the one you can squeeze
Depending on how you count, there are even more rings throughout the body, including the urethral sphincter, the muscles around the eyes, and the muscles around the nostrils.
Many digestive problems are really communication problems. The gates are not opening and closing in sync.
Signs Your Rings May Be Out of Sync
In my treatment room, the rings come up when I ask questions most people have never been asked. Do you get the urge to have a bowel movement? Do you get the urge to urinate? Sometimes the urge is overactive, sometimes it's underactive, and sometimes it isn't there at all. That disconnect tells me a lot.
Common patterns I see include:
Constipation and slow motility: too much tone, or rings that aren't coordinating, can make it hard for things to move along
Hemorrhoids and fissures: chronic straining and a clamped pelvic floor often travel together
Urgency and leaking: too little tone or poor coordination can mean the rings can't hold when they need to
Pelvic pain and painful sex: an overactive pelvic floor is often involved, and it needs release, not more strengthening
Bloating, prolapse, and poor sleep
Harsh self-talk about the body: "it never works right"
None of these symptoms point to a single cause, so this is a lens for exploring, not a diagnosis.
Scar Tissue, Surgery, and the Belly That Went Quiet
In my experience, a lot of these patterns trace back to the abdomen having been through some type of trauma often physical: childbirth, whether recent or decades ago, a C-section, a tummy tuck, or other surgery. Scar tissue can restrict how the abdomen moves, a tight diaphragm can limit the breath that helps drive the pelvic floor, and motility can be compromised along the way. This is exactly where hands-on Chi Nei Tsang earns its place alongside the practice.
The Emotional Layer: Letting Go
In Chinese medicine, the large intestine is the organ of letting go. So it's not surprising that when people are holding on, in their lives and in their bodies, constipation is often part of the picture. I sometimes ask patients a question I think about a lot myself: Who would you be if you no longer held on to this? What would your life look like if this thing from the past were no longer part of you or holding you back?
Sometimes the pattern starts early, and it isn't only physical. A child is shamed during potty training. Or there's a moment when no bathroom was available, and the embarrassment that followed was strong enough to stick. Experiences like these can imprint a belief on the body that letting go isn't safe. Many patients tell me they've "had digestive issues since they were little," or that their parents took them to the doctor because they were so constipated.
Letting go also takes a sense of safety. The rings can only release when your nervous system feels safe enough to allow it, and if that safety was never established, the vulnerability of releasing can stay hard well into adulthood. That's part of why I treat the nervous system and the pelvic floor together, and why the release half of the ring practice matters so much.
A patient story (details changed for privacy): A recent patient came to me with multiple hemorrhoids, frequent diarrhea, and incontinence. She had stopped going out because she was afraid she wouldn't find a bathroom in time, and the way she spoke about her body was harsh, as if her body had failed her. Alongside her treatment, we worked on two things: a daily ring practice, and reframing her relationship with her organs and her body. The reframing mattered as much as the exercise, because when you're at war with your body, it is hard to feel what it's trying to tell you.
The Ring Qigong Practice, Step by Step
This is the practice I teach. It is simple, it takes a few minutes, and the details matter.
Lie on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor (or lift your feet if that's comfortable for you). Let your belly and jaw soften.
Squeeze and release. Gently draw up the lower rings, the muscles around the urethra and anus, and hold briefly. Then release completely. The release is half the exercise.
Count nine. Do nine squeeze-and-release repetitions. That is one set. Do three sets.
Connect with your breath. A natural pattern is to inhale and soften, exhale and draw up. Don't hold your breath.
Add the upper rings as you progress. Once the lower rings feel familiar, gently engage the lips and soften the eyes at the same time, so the whole tube joins in.
Repeat a couple of times a day. Consistency beats intensity. A gentle squeeze every day does more than a hard squeeze once a week.
What's the idea behind it? By squeezing and releasing the rings at both ends, we help re-establish communication between the beginning and the end of the digestive tube, and many patients find it helps their awareness of the whole system, including their sense of when they need to go. Pelvic floor muscle training itself has solid research support for urinary incontinence. The broader digestive benefits of ring practice are rooted in a traditional system and have been studied far less, which is why I teach it as one part of a larger plan.
How This Is Different From Kegels
You've probably heard of Kegels. They are the Western clinical version of pelvic floor training, and they have a real place. Ring practice goes a little further in a few ways:
It treats the front ring (urethra) and back ring (anus) as distinct muscles you can learn to feel separately.
It connects the pelvic floor to the breath, the lips, and the eyes, not just an isolated squeeze.
It gives equal weight to releasing, which matters enormously if your pelvic floor is already tight.
Looking for a deep dive? Check out my Jade Egg course for Pelvic Floor Health
Before You Start: When to Get Checked First
Ring practice is gentle, but a squeeze-heavy practice is not right for everyone. Please see your doctor or a pelvic floor physical therapist first if you have:
Pelvic pain, painful sex, or difficulty starting urination or bowel movements (your pelvic floor may already be too tight)
Blood in your stool, unexplained weight loss, or a recent change in bowel habits
New or worsening incontinence or prolapse symptoms
Pregnancy, or recent childbirth or surgery, so you can be cleared first
I love working with pelvic floor physical therapists. They can do the internal assessment I can't, to tell whether the muscles are too tight or too weak, and we can still support circulation, awareness, and healing from the outside. If you're looking for a referral to to qualified Physical Therapist - please reach out - I'm happy to connect you to someone in your area that addresses your pelvic floor condition.
The Rings for Women and for Men
For women: Women usually come to me for digestive concerns, and the pelvic floor is often part of the story. Common themes include constipation, hemorrhoids, and bloating; postpartum recovery, whether recent or decades ago; leaking, urgency, or a sense of heaviness; and painful sex or a tight, guarded pelvic floor.
For men: Men more often come in for urinary concerns, and male pelvic floor health rarely gets talked about. Common themes include urinary urgency, frequency, or a weak stream; prostate-related symptoms (which should also be evaluated by a doctor); sexual function concerns; and pelvic tension from sitting, stress, or surgery. I wrote more about this in Male Pelvic Floor Health: The Conversation We Don't Have.
How I Combine This With Acupuncture and Chi Nei Tsang
This is really the heart of how I work. I can treat the pelvic floor with acupuncture and dry needling to calm overactive muscles and bring in circulation. Chi Nei Tsang abdominal massage works on the belly, the diaphragm, and the scar tissue and tension that surround the organs. The ring practice is what you take home, so the work continues between visits. Together, that's a full approach to pelvic floor health, from the inside out and the outside in.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are "the rings" in Chi Nei Tsang and Taoist practice?
The rings are the ring-shaped muscles, or sphincters, that open and close throughout the body, from the lips and eyes down the digestive tube to the anus and urethra. In Taoist tradition they are meant to work together, and ring practice is a way of building awareness and tone in them.
Is working with the rings the same as pelvic floor training?
The lower rings, the urethral and anal sphincters and the muscles around them, are part of the pelvic floor, so ring practice is ultimately pelvic floor work. The difference is that the rings approach connects the pelvic floor to the rest of the digestive tract and to the breath.
How are ring exercises different from Kegels?
Kegels usually isolate a contraction of the pelvic floor muscles. The ring practice also engages the front and back rings separately, adds the lips and eyes, pairs the movement with breath, and gives as much attention to fully releasing as to squeezing.
How often should I practice the ring exercise?
A common routine is lying on your back and doing three sets of nine squeeze-and-release repetitions, a couple of times a day. If you are new to it or have pelvic pain, start with fewer repetitions and a gentler squeeze.
Can ring practice help with constipation or hemorrhoids?
It can support them as part of a broader plan by improving awareness, circulation, and coordination in the pelvic floor, but it does not replace a medical evaluation. Persistent constipation, bleeding, or pain should always be checked by a healthcare provider.
What if my pelvic floor is already too tight?
If you have pelvic pain, painful sex, or difficulty starting urination or a bowel movement, your pelvic floor may be overactive. Get assessed by a pelvic floor physical therapist or your doctor first, and focus on relaxing and releasing rather than strengthening.
Yes, it can be an effective treatment for finding relief.
Breathe. Rest. Restore.
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Medical disclaimer: This article is for educational purposes and reflects the clinical perspective of a licensed Doctor of Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine. It is not a substitute for individualized medical advice. If you have bleeding, severe pain, or new or worsening symptoms, please see your healthcare provider. The term "ring muscles" comes from the teachings of Master Mantak Chia.
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