Diastasis Recti
The current research, healing and self-assessment.
If you are here, then I’m guessing that you have either been diagnosed with diastasis recti at one point or another or think you might have it. Every woman develops the space during pregnancy that is DR, and how could you not? When you are pregnant, everything gets stretched out around the abdominal wall and the connective tissue (linea alba) in the middle of your belly is sure to get wider. It’s more genetics of how well your abdomen can withstand that pressure and return to normal post pregnancy. Length of recovery is dependent on that, how strong your abs were before you got pregnant or before the separation started to happen and lastly your breathing pattern. And in second pregnancies, things tend to give way more as well! What a lot of women don’t realize is the impact the diaphragm and pelvic floor also have on the creation and healing of DR.
Your Abdominal Muscles
The rectus abdominus is the most well known at the most superficial layer (your 6-pack, strengthened with crunch-like exercises). Then you have your internal and external obliques (2 layers of muscles that attach at your ribs, your pelvis and your linea alba - strengthened with side planks, rotations, etc). The deepest layer which plays a major role in pregnancy, birth, and postpartum is your transverse abdominus or TVA. This muscle also connects to your ribs, pelvis and linea alba (strengthened with planks, deep breathing, etc). These are important to know for healing.
Healing Diastasis Recti
There is a common misconception that in order to heal diastasis recti, you need to close the gap (aka the width between your left and right abdominal muscles). What has been found however, is that it’s not the width that matters, but rather the tension. Tension is measured by how deep you can sink your fingers into the linea alba. You can assess this on yourself in my video below!
The question you might have now is, okay, so how do I increase tension? The stretching of your abdominal muscles can create weakness in them, and your ability to regain tension after birth is a big determinant of how quickly you can “heal” from DR. So, in order to improve DR, you have to strengthen the connective tissue, strengthen ALL of the abdominal muscles, and strengthen the core. Not to mention the importance of improving the function of your diaphragm and pelvic floor. Now you just have to know what exercises you can do that are “safe”!
Read more about how to exercise safely with DR
Checking for DR
Disclaimer: While I am a certified prenatal and postpartum performance specialist, I am not a medical professional. If you have any questions or concerns, please consult your physiotherapist.
