2 • OUR ASSES, OURSELVES
A Brief Anatomy Lesson
Although anatomy is part of science and medicine, the study of anatomy is less objective than one might think. There are a variety of differing interpretations and opinions about the internal structure of our bodies—especially the nuances and complexities of our sexual anatomy. This is certainly true for anorectal anatomy. The discussion of anatomy and the anatomical illustrations in this book are based on my interpretations of several sources, including medical textbooks, sex manuals, and conversations with sex educators.[13]
The Anus, Anal Sphincters, and PC Muscles
The anus is the external opening of the anal canal. It is comprised of folds of soft, pink tissue that give it a wrinkled or puckered appearance. The area around the opening is full of hair follicles; the hair may be fine and light, coarse and dark, or somewhere in between. Everyone has hair surrounding the anus.
Rich in blood vessels and nerve endings, the tissue of the anus is incredibly sensitive and responsive to touch and stimulation. In fact, it can be one of our most sensual erogenous zones, but it is one too often feared, forgotten, and left unexplored. With regular bathing and personal hygiene, the anus is generally clean, with only trace amounts of feces, which carry bacteria from the bowels.
Two muscles—the anal sphincters—surround the anal opening (see figures 1 and 2). The external sphincter is closest to the opening. With patience and practice, you can voluntarily control the external sphincter, making it tense or relax. The internal sphincter is controlled by the autonomic nervous system, which controls involuntary bodily functions like your breathing rate. This muscle ordinarily reacts reflexively; for example, when you are ready to have a bowel movement, the internal sphincter relaxes, allowing feces to move from the rectum to the anal canal. Because the external and the internal sphincters overlap, they often work together.
Other surrounding muscles also contribute to sensations in the anal area. The perineal muscles support the area between the anus and the genitals. In this group are the pubococcygeus muscles (PC muscles), which support the pelvis from the pubic bone to the tailbone. For both men and women, these muscles contract during sexual arousal and climax; specifically, they usually contract randomly when you are aroused and rhythmically during orgasm.
I love the control I have over my ass muscles and how powerful they feel when grip my lover’s cock.
The more attention you pay to your sphincter muscles, the easier it will be to begin to relax them. Because the two muscles work in tandem, you can encourage the internal sphincter to relax by relaxing the external sphincter. Many people have found that by exercising and strengthening their PC and pelvic muscles, they can have more control of their sphincter muscles and can achieve more intense orgasms.
Exercising Your Pelvic and PC Muscles
The following exercises can help you to become more aware of your sphincter and PC muscles and learn to control and strengthen them. They will help you get in tune with the feelings in your pelvic area, increasing your sensitivity and responsiveness. The exercises will also tone the pelvic muscles, making them more flexible and more receptive to pleasurable sensations; plus, when you exercise the PC muscles, other muscles in the area also are exercised and strengthened.
You can do the exercises lying down, sitting, or standing. As with any exercise regimen, you should do them daily for best results. If your muscles seem tired at first, don’t worry—that’s normal. Use your common sense, and don’t overdo it to begin with. The harder the exercises are to do for you, the less toned your PC muscles are, and the more you need a workout; however, if you experience any pain while doing them, see a doctor. Exercising the PC muscles during masturbation or foreplay increases blood flow in the area, thereby increasing arousal.
JAY POSITIONED HERSELF CAREFULLY over the woman’s back, her arm drew back and the muscles that had lifted beams now poised for a more delicate power. She pushed her finger, blunt and strong, into Carol, feeling the tight resistance of the ass muscles, the strong sentinels protecting the soft world inside. Carol moaned a different sound from when Jay penetrated her cunt. This was deeper, almost as if the body was finding a new voice for this more guarded entry.
Women who regularly exercise their PC and pelvic muscles report some very positive benefits: heightened pelvic sensations and greater anal sensitivity; increased pleasure during clitoral stimulation, and during vaginal and anal penetration; more control over orgasms; and better, more intense orgasms. Some of the following exercises are called Kegel exercises, named for the physician who first studied PC muscles and popularized the theory of exercising them, and others are those recommended by other health care professionals.[15]
Exercise: Your PC Muscles
In order to locate your PC muscles, pretend that you are trying to stop peeing (or while you are peeing, you can actually stop the flow of urine). The muscles you contract to stop the flow are your PC muscles. If you put your finger on your perineum—the area between your vagina and your anus—while you do this exercise, you can feel the contractions.
Take a deep breath and while you inhale, contract the muscles and hold the contraction for a few seconds. Then exhale and relax the muscles. This combination of inhale-contract and exhale-relax is what your body does naturally. For best results, you should do about a hundred repetitions per day.
Take a deep breath and this time while you inhale, tighten and release the muscles repeatedly (about ten times), then exhale and relax. Try to do these contractions as quickly as you can. Twenty to fifty sets a day is recommended.
For this exercise, inhale and pretend you are sucking water inside your vagina and anus. Then exhale and bear down, pushing out that imaginary water. You will exercise your pelvic muscles and your stomach muscles. For best results, do ten to thirty each day. I suggest combining the Kegel exercises with lots of free movement in a variety of settings. The positive effects of this movement will be limited, however, if you hold your pelvis rigid while moving the rest of your body. In fact, habitual, chronic, pelvic “holding on” is one major reason why so many people need Kegel exercises. Holding the pelvis requires muscular tension which re stricts movement. Restricted movement allows muscles to deteriorate.[16]
Renowned anal health expert Jack Morin recommends moving your body while you do your pelvic exercises:
Try combining the exercises with walking, running, dancing, or simulating a hula-hoop motion.
My friend Wendy—dirty enough to do it but too coy to give details—describes the allure with vague biology, using terms like membrane and pressure points. But physical sensations are secondary.
The best part is how one small act can make you so dirty so fast.
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1. Jack Morin,
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Joan Nestle, “
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2. These exercises are recommended in
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Sarah Miller, “