First Things First: Check Your Belly for Diastisis Recti
This post is a part of our first Kickstart Fitness week on Fit Bottomed Mamas to help moms and future moms be fitter and healthier in 2015. Read all of this week’s special content here!
Whenever you throw in a workout DVD, you’re guaranteed to see the same warning flash on the screen: “Check with your physician before starting this or any exercise program.” It’s good advice, although I’m sure most people don’t hit pause and run out to to see their doctors. But if you’re a new mom ready to start back into the fitness game after a hiatus—whether six weeks postpartum or six years—it’s a good idea to check in with your doc to get the go ahead for exercise.
We get so many questions about losing pregnancy weight and how to firm up the belly after you have the baby. And while you might think eating right and working out are the key to getting those abs back, like one of our readers found out, her workouts were only aggravating an existing ab issue: diastisis recti, or a separation of the abdominal muscles. Because no one wants to spend a ton of time in an abs class only to find out it’s not helping—especially when the condition can be fixed—we’ve got a way to “check your belly before you wreck your belly.”
The Tupler Technique is one popular method for fixing diastisis recti, and certified providers will be doing free belly checks as part of its diastisis recti “Check Your Belly Before You Wreck Your Belly” campaign this month. Watch the below video if you suspect your abdominal muscles have separated for tips on how to check for the condition.
Can’t see the video? Click here for more information on diastisis recti.
Whether you’re already a fit mama who thinks her abs may be an issue or a mom who wants to increase her fitness, check your belly before you steam ahead with your workouts in the New Year! And if you’ve fixed your belly, let us know what you did that helped! —Erin