1️⃣ Diastasis isn’t an injury. It happens in 💯% of pregnant women. It involves the two rectus abdominis muscle bellies widening and is necessary for the belly to make room for a baby.
2️⃣ Doming along the midline is not necessarily a problem, especially if the doming feels soft. If the doming feels hard, there is still no need to panic! Maybe just don’t do the same thing over and over again, 50 times in a row 🤷♀️
3️⃣ Diastasis is not a ‘wait and see’ situation. After the first 8-12 weeks most natural improvement of the separation has occurred. After this any improvement in your abdominal wall will come down to a bit of (expertly guided 😉) blood, sweat & tears. Better yet, get started early (I often start women exercising their abdominal wall at 2 week postpartum).
4️⃣ The exercises you’re doing are probably not hard enough 😬 #sorrynotsorry
Often I see women avoiding anything to do with the abdominals out of fear that they’ll make things worse. But to see improvements in strength, endurance (and yes, appearance too), you will probably need to train harder (and smarter), not just give it more time.
5️⃣ The things you’re doing because you’re worried about your diastasis – wearing tight high-waisted paints, sucking your belly in – are likely causing more issues than the diastasis itself (btw, this goes for prolapse too). PS – A bit of early abdominal support can be helpful; I’m talking about the habits that hang around.
6️⃣ BONUS 🔥 Bringing your abdominal muscles back together will probably not help the overlying skin / fat that is bothering you. Sorry 😕 Tummies that don’t ‘bounce back’ to what they were before pregnancy are more likely related to connective tissue that has been stretched and thinned out, skin that has lost it’s elasticity and/or more fat being stored in the abdominal region
So, tell me…did you learn something? Let me know your biggest A-Ha below ⬇️