Hi, I strongly suspect that I have a tear in my linea alba - but it's due to my being overweight and always having had weak abs. I've never been pregnant. I was told that this board is a good place to get answers on this condition, even though I do not plan to have children. I discovered it about 2 years ago, and it never bothered me. The idea of it kind of freaks me out, though! I can feel the edge of the split directly behind my navel - in fact, the shape of my navel has changed. The tear seems fairly small right now, although it is larger than it was a year ago. I have recently begun working out again after a long slump. For the last two weeks I have been doing crunches, obliques, and low-back stabilization exercises - but only about 40 - 45 reps total. Last night was when I realized the tear had enlarged because my navel looked different, and it feels larger. I obviously want to continue strengthening my abs and losing weight (2.5 lbs so far, 61.5 more to go!); However, I don't want to tear the abdominal tissue any more! I keep imagining my guts spilling out! Anyway, are certain variations of crunches contraindicated? I've read that, for new mothers, strengthening the abs will eventually help to close the split (how is this even possible?), but it makes more sense to me that it might tear the linea alba more. Will I have to resort to abdominoplasty if I want to remain active? Any feedback you can offer would be appreciated! Thanks for your help!
--Geoxena
--Geoxena