How To Fix Diastasis Recti Years Later

It's Never Too Late To Heal Diastasis Recti

For a long time, diastasis recti wasn’t talked about much, which means a lot of women were left thinking it’s “too late” to fix.

But that’s not the case.

With the right corrective exercises for diastasis recti, you can start rebuilding core strength at any point, whether you’re a few months or many years postpartum. Your body can relearn how to engage and support your core when you train it properly.

Why It Hasn’t Healed Yet

If your diastasis recti hasn’t improved, it’s usually not about time, it’s about approach.

• not engaging the deep core properly
• poor breathing mechanics
• postural issues

Learn more about reasons you have a mom pooch and know that it's NOT just about exercise.

Symptoms Of Diastasis Recti

Wondering if this might be you?

While an assessment from a pelvic floor physio or postnatal specialist is best, there are some common signs to look for:

Some common symptoms of diastasis recti are:

• Low back pain
• Bloating
• Belly pouch
• Poor posture
• Leaking

Since your core and pelvic floor work together, poor abdominal function can also lead to pelvic floor issues like leaking.

3 Steps To Healing Diastasis Recti Years Later

Regardless of how long it’s been since you’ve given birth, you can work on improving the engagement of your abdominal muscles and healing connective tissue.

To do this, you’ll start with the three steps below.

• Breathing
• Posture
• Core engagement

It’s not a fast process. Like anything, strengthening your abdominal muscles takes consistency and slow, controlled focus.

But it’s possible.

Step 1: Correct & Relearn Breathing Patterns

Relearning proper breathing patterns is tricky and takes time. But it makes all the difference.

If you’re experiencing a “distended” lower belly (the pouch), try your best not to just “suck it in”. Doing this pushes the pressure inside down which can result in leaking and an overworked pelvic floor.

How To Do It

• Lay on the floor with your head supported on a pillow
• Place your hands around your ribcage or on the sides of your stomach if possible.
• As you inhale, push out to the sides, towards your hands (laterally).
• At the same time, try pushing breath into your upper back.
• You don't want your ribcage to flare, but to gently expand to the side. This is called a 360 breath.

Practice your breathing daily for 10-15 breaths.

Sometimes, this is easier to understand when you lay your chest over a Swiss Ball which gives better feedback.

Terryll Bladock, a pelvic floor specialist has some really amazing videos on her YouTube Channel about breathing and how to progress it throughout the postpartum period.

Step 2: Posture

Posture and core function go hand in hand, poor posture can lead to a weak core, and a weak core can worsen posture.

Start by finding your “neutral”: ribs stacked over hips, shoulders aligned, and no rib flare.

From there, focus on improving upper body mobility, especially in the thoracic spine and shoulders, check out the best exercises for the thoracic spine as well as dynamic breastfeeding stretches for nursing neck). This helps with breathing, movement, and core engagement.

To improve this, you’ll want to practice finding a good position while laying down (keeping your ribs tucked!) and implementing the following dynamic stretches:

• Floor angles
• Pull overs
• Thoracic openers

Try to do these exercises for 10 repetitions each, two sets, and a few times per week.

Step 3: Exercises

Now, before panic sets in, know that these exercises are very low-impact, can be done on the floor, and are far morebased on engagement than intensity. You need to focus.

Your goal is to learn how to connect your breathing to your abdominal engagement through movement.

Use these four exercises as a starting point in learning how to fix diastasis recti (and check out these other exercises to heal mummy tummy too!).

TVA Engagement

This is your “deep abdominal” muscle and one you need to learn how to engage.

How To Do It 

• Lay on the floor on your back with your knees bent and feet flat
• Think of lifting up the lower half of your bum so you feel as if you're drawing your belly button into the floor
• Think of tucking your pelvis under or bringing your hip bones towards your ribcage.
• Your upper body shouldn't move, you are simply tilting your pelvic to stabilize.
• Hold 5-10s
• release fully

Reps: 8-10 repetitions. 

Heel Slides

This postpartum core exercise is a great way to combine the exercises you're already learned and put them into action with some movement.

It's still low impact, can be done anywhere and it really helps fine-tune the core and pelvic floor connection. Learn how to do heel slides.

How To Do It

• Lay on your back and place a washcloth (or use socks) under one heel
• One knee should be bent and the other out straight, keep the hip bones squared to the ceiling
• Create tension in the deep abdominals by lifting your pelvic floor "up and in" and using a minor pelvic tilt when you exhale
• At the same time, use that tension to pull the straight leg back towards your hips
• Keep the hips stable as you release the leg back out

Reps: 5-8 repetitions per leg

Knee Drops

Learning to resist movement and then engage to perform the concentric part of an exercise.

How to do it

• Lie with your back on the ground and knees bent. Tuck your ribs down and press your low back into the floor. Slowly drop one knee toward the floor.
• While you do this, do not let the low back arch or the hips tilt. Go as low as you can before form stalls, then, reverse the movement using your core to pull the knee up.

All of these exercises can be done for 8-12 repetitions, three sets and a couple times per week.

How To Start Healing Today

Once you’vemastered the basics above, you can move into performing specific diastasis recti workout.

From there you canbegin to add more and more intensity. Some other really great exercises you can include when you’re ready are:

• Deadbugs
• Bird dog
• Toe taps
• Glute bridge with squeeze
• Bench knee raises

Your next steps should be about continuing tocore strengthening exercises, making sure you connect it with your breath (after you've mastered engagement), while avoiding these exercises.

If you want a step-by-step plan that walks you through exactly how to rebuild your core (even years later), my Heal Your Core Program takes out the guesswork.