Nearly 100% of women suffer from abdominal separation after pregnancy. If you have recently given birth, know that no amount of dieting will help you lose the pooch unless you learn how to fix diastasis recti first.
Luckily, it is pretty easy to fix your abdominal separation and it is possible even years after you give birth.
This post contains affiliate links. I only promote products I recommend and trust. Please read my Disclosure for more information.
What is Diastasis Recti?
Diastatis Recti is also known as abdominal separation and is defined as a gap of roughly 2.7 cm or greater between the two sides of the rectus abdominis muscle.
Although is can happen to anyone, it is most common in pregnant or post-partum women especially if they have multiple pregnancies.
Risk Factors for Diastasis Recti in Pregnant & Postpartum Women
- High birth weight of baby
- Woman over 35 years
- Multiple birth (twins, triplets etc)
- 2nd or more pregnancy
Most doctors and wellness professionals will check for diastatis recti while you are pregnant or at your postpartum check-up.If you attend a prenatal yoga class, they sometimes check for it during the class too.
How To Fix Diastasis Recti
Although surgery is an option in cases where a women has hernias or other complications, in most cases, it is easy to eliminate or drastically improve your separated abdominal muscles with simple exercises.
Exercises For Diastasis recti
Although not life-threatening, abdominal separation can be hard for a woman’s body image and self-esteem. It can also eventually lead to posture issues and a weakened pelvic region.
Luckily, physiotherapy is quite successful at reducing the size of the gap in postpartum women.
You can also try to do some exercises at home to close the gap and fix your diatasis recti yourself. The most important thing is to be careful which exercises you do so that you don’t injure yourself even further.
Many women have found success with the Mutu System which was especially created to help postpartum women get their shape and confidence back.
Things To Avoid With Diastasis Recti
The goal with diastasis recti is to slowly rebuild your core and reduce the separation. You need to be careful, though as too much too soon, or putting more pressure on the muscles can cause further separation and even hernia.
- Traditional crunches, curls and sit-ups
- Bicycle legs
- Pilates “the hundreds”
- Intense planks
Many traditional abdominal exercises can make your diastasis recti worse by stretching the muscles and forcing them out.
How To Fix Diastasis Recti With Exercise
I love this video from pelvicexercises.com.
It is full of gentle, deep exercises that can get you started on closing the gap in your abdominals.
Youtube has a lot of other videos with exercises for closing your gap, I also like this book if you want more information..
More Health Tips
The Ultimate List Of Sea Vegetables & Their Benefits
10 Natural Health Gift Ideas Your Friends Will Love
Leave a Reply