5 Best Diastasis Recti Exercises To Fix Your Stomach Muscles After Baby
Learn The Best Exercises For Diastasis Recti
This quick 10 minute class features some of the best diastasis recti exercises to build strength and muscle, helping to repair the damage to your core from pregnancy.
It is estimated that every 1 in 2 women have diastasis recti after giving birth. Furthermore, many of those women are told it gets better on its own, and there is nothing that needs to be done.
In some cases when abdominal muscle separation is very mild this may be true but for the majority of women, rehab exercises need to be done to safely build muscle and reduce the abdominal separation.
I’d go as far as to say every woman who has been pregnant should be doing specialized diastasis recti exercises for the core. It is so important to do the best diastasis recti exercises and avoid exercises that can make it worse such as crunches and planks.
This 10 minute diastasis recti workout can be done at home and no equipment is needed. If you’re a busy mama trying to find the time to squeeze in a little exercise, this is the class for you! It will get you results and leave you feeling strong and looking great!
What Is Diastasis Recti?
Diastasis recti refers to the separation of the rectus abdominis muscles. These are the muscles that run down the midline of your stomach. Diastasis recti is very common during and after pregnancy because the uterus stretches the muscles in the abdomen to make room for your growing baby.
Do I have Diastasis Recti?
It’s a good idea to do a quick test to see the severity of your abdominal separation and also to check any progress you make as time goes by.
It’s a quick and easy test. Lie on the ground with your feet flat on the ground and hips width distance apart. Lift your head off the mat and bring your chin to your chest. Perform a mini crunch. Your shoulders should remain on the ground.
With your index finger and middle finger, take them to the midline of your stomach and press down. Feel how many fingers wide the separation is and also how deep the separation is. The depth is also very important because it lets you know the severity of the damage.
If you feel a gap, or separation of one to two finger lengths, you likely have a mild case of diastasis recti. If you have more than two fingers, it is considered severe diastasis recti and will require dedication and commitment to see improvement.
Diastasis recti symptoms
Many of my clients have actually never heard of diastasis recti and are surprised to find out they have it.
You’ve probably heard of the mama pooch and know that many women struggle to achieve a toned strong stomach after pregnancy. The reason for this is often diastasis recti and the integrity of the linea alba which is the connective tissue that runs down the front of your mid-section.
When there is a split between the core muscles, not only does it affect the physical appearance of your stomach area but it impacts the function. Many women experience back pain as a result of this. It can also result in many women looking pregnant years after giving birth, simply because it creates a protrusion in the mid-section.
Strength based exercises are required in order to bring the muscles back towards each other and heal the damage. It’s important for women with diastais recti to follow a class or plan dedicated to improving this as there are many exercises that should be avoided in the early stages of repairing the damage.
Anything that causes too much intra abdominal pressure can actually make it worse! It can be very demoralizing for women to be dedicated to working out and improving their appearance and not see any results simply because the wrong exercises are being done.
This is a list of the common symptoms women experience from diastasis recti.
- pelvic pain
- Back Pain
- Postural misalignment
- Pelvic floor dysfunction
- hernia (less common)
In some countries such as France, women are seen by a pelvic floor specialist after birth who provides you with exercises and tracks your progress. This however is not the norm!
It should be suggested that every woman carry out core and pelvic floor exercises after birth to heal and build strength in the compromised muscles. This also helps to prevent further issues down the track in older age.
It is my mission to make sure women have access to such a program to support them through some of the biggest changes their body will undergo.
Diastasis Recti Treatment
Postpartum treatment for diastasis recti usually involves pelvic floor and deep stomach muscle exercises that target the transverse abdominis. The muscles respond well to regular exercise, so I recommend doing my classes at least 3 times a week.
These are some of the best diastasis recti exercises and if you practice them several times a week you will see a huge improvement. Not only will you feel stronger but the appearance of your stomach area will improve.
Other things to be aware of:
When lifting a heavy object, such as an older child, be sure to contract your core and pelvic floor muscles. Meaning as you lift the heavy object, you engage your muscles
When sitting up from lying down, be sure to roll to your side and lift yourself up with the support of your arm. The same is to be done when lying down, be sure to roll to your side. This is because crunches are to be avoided.
Things You Should Avoid
- Exercises where you can see your ab muscles are bulging out
- Lifting or carrying heavy loads
- Coughing without engaging your ab muscles
- Crunches
- Planks
- Heavy weights at the gym
- No backbends such a bridge
- No cobra (yoga posture) because it increases stress on the abdominal tissues