So you just had a baby, or a couple of months ago (maybe even years ago), congratulations on this next phase of life! You’re probably wondering where to start. What’s safe for you to start with and maybe when you can start. One big thing moms are scared of is Diastasis recti. The separation of your abdominal muscles in pregnancy. DON’T worry, this a absolutely normal and happens to the majority of women in pregnancy. It’s an amazing adaptation of the human body to make space for the growing baby.
There is a lot of information out there which can be so confusing! Some information may even be designed to scare you. DON’T do this DON’T do that…its a lot to take in. I’m taking another since on rehabilitating your body after baby. Lets teach you what you CAN do and where to begin.
First we will start with how to check for diastasis. Its a quick and simple tool you can use to measure where you are now and track your progress as you begin your exercise/workout routines.
You are going to lay on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor. You’ll want to find a neutral spine (which means you aren’t pressing your back into the ground and you don’t have too much space between your back and the floor.
Find your belly button and take 2 fingers running sideways and press down just bellow your belly button. Hold them there. notice if you feel pain and how far down your fingers sink. Notice as you breathe in if you feel a band of tightness under your fingers. Do your fingers sink deep or remain shallow.
As you hold your fingers down, gently lift your head off the floor (not too far) and notice if you can feel your rectus abdominus muscles (your 6-pack muscles) gently squeezing around your fingertips. Rest your head down. If you don’t feel the muscles hug your fingers add three fingers and try again. Keep adding fingers until you feel the muscles hug your fingers. Take note how many fingers you use and remember your fingers are running sideways from hip to hip not from top to bottom.
Measure again just above your belly button and just bellow your ribcage.
Once you have your measurement, try the test again in all spots. But, this time as you lift your head, you are going to add a Kegel and core activation. So as you lift your head you will exhale and Kegel then measure the gap and the depth. Notice if there is a difference. Notice if you get any coning/doming both soft and hard domes.
Now you have an idea of where you are starting, you can build your foundation of exercises to help begin to heal.
When it comes to exercise postpartum you’ll want to begin with the basics. Alignment, Breath and Coordination. Your A,B,C’s before adding the exercises in.
Alignment is how you stack your body from the top to the bottom. Head, ribcage, pelvis and feet. Having them stacked will provide the environment for your body heal. Remember, you don’t have to be in optimal alignment 100% of the time as long as you have awareness and correct as you go throughout your day. I go over this more in my FREE guide which you can grab HERE.
Breath work is the next layer of the puzzle. It is one of the most important part of rehabilitation in my mind. Enabling your body to breathe fully into the spaces you should which will invite the muscles to function and support you body in the way it needs. I like to use the philosophy of Exhale on Exertion. Which means to breath out with the most challenging part of the exercise. For example, when you squat, you will inhale when you lower to the bottom of the squat and exhale (breath out) when you stand. Again, if you want to learn a little more about breath work you can get my FREE guide HERE
Once you have mastered your breath and alignment, you can start to coordinate them all with the movements you choose. The key to healing Diastasis recti is how your breath and alignment can assist the movements you do. It isn’t about the movement it’s self, it’s about how you do the movement. If you see a guide which says Diastasis recti safe exercises you need to take it with a pinch of salt. Are they ruling out a lot of exercises or are they guiding you through how to perform them to help you heal?
Coordination is all about pressure management when it comes to exercise. Managing where the pressure goes and how much pressure your body has to perform an exercise. The pressure I’m talking about is intra-abdominal pressure, the pressure in your abdomen/belly. With the correct breath/coordination/pressure you can control doming or coning of your belly to a certain extent. Although new research is showing that coning and doming isn’t actually THAT detrimental to a functioning core. HOWEVER, if you are suffering with symptoms such as pelvic pain and incontinence along with Diastasis recti, the doming and coning might be something you was to watch for.
Having this information will set you ahead with your movements. Take a moment to read through my FREE guide to dive a little deeper and to follow along with an example workout to start you off.
