I am re-posting this question with hopes of an answer, Thanks!

[wendyosier]

82186, "Another Diastasis Recti question"


Hi Cathe,
Strangely I am usually one of one in a million odds when something goes wrong with my body. It was a relief that even someone as fit and healthy as you shares my problem.(Not that I would wish it on any body) Now I know this is something I can manage. It has been 11 years since the birth of my second child and all of that time I did not know I had this condition until about a month ago when I started seeing a physical therepyst about an abdominal tear, a completely seperate condition from the diastasis recti. My main question is, do you think after all this time I will still be able to control it and make it flatter? The funny thing about all of this is I have worked my abs so hard for years trying to get rid of the pooch and nothing helped. I even have exclusively done your ab routines at least 3 times a week for about the past 5 years. My abs were always hard and strong but never flat and sexy. I guess what I would really like to know is did you avoid all the crunches and obliques exercise while focusing on your transverse until you were able to flatten it out and then start with the crunches again? I am curious because all of your videos have so many of the exercises to avoid. I really look forward to any advise you may offer. I understand that you are not a doctor but I put a lot of faith in your personal experience. Thank you.
Wendy

 

[Cathe Friedrich]

Hi Wendy! I hear your frustration. What makes it even more frustrating is there really isn't a lot of research out there to give us the answers we are looking for. Many still don't even know what this word means. I feel like we are our own trial and error experiments in finding the right and wrong exercises to keep this condition under control.

I heard all of those exercises that were supposedly "horrible" for our condition should be COMPLETELY avoided if this was ever to correct itself(until the split repairs itself) yet, others said that the split will never repair itself. Then others said it will repair itself if the split is only 1 to 2 fingers separated.

I still don't have the answers and can only share with you what I did. After doing half of the wrong exercises (not knowing better) and then stopping when I did know better, and then not noticing any difference after stopping....to finally say the heck with it, its hopeless and I am just doing what I always did and what happens will happen.....For my body, I realized that nothing got worse, but it also didn't get better. I still have the split, I still can't contract my abdominals 100 percent, I still have trouble doing V-sits along with some other ab favorites....but I am no worse in the middle for continuing to attempt them. I have a pooch that has been there since the split. I can't change that. It is especially noticeable that time of the month. First thing in the morning it is pretty flat though (that's when I like to film, wink) and progressively protrudes forward as the day goes on. I just deal with it day to day and wonder if one day things will change (hopefully for the better


I know I haven't helped much but it really is all I can share with you at this time. Best of luck to you with your separation. Keep me posted

 

[Vee]

So you think you have a pooch Cathe? I wonder what you would call my stomach!

Wendy, I am so sorry to hear about your condition.

Cathe, I did not know that you had a split in your stomach.

I hope things will change soon for the better very soon for you and Wendy.

 

[wendyosier]

Oh, I'm so excited. I really appreciate your response to my questions and I am so sorry that I didn't keep looking for it. Now, three months later, I find it. It really is a big help and that was just about the conclusion I was going to make. I did notice that my abdominals flattened out at first while doing prescribed exercise from the physical therapist along with the Tupler method but then I also noticed that my rectus abdominus muscle became weak very fast. As a matter of fact, I did Core Max for the first time in about six months tonight. I tried substituting some other exercises for all of the crunches because no matter how hard I try, I cannot get my abs to stay in. I know my transverse is strong but my belly button bulges no matter what. I think I am going to try to go back to all of your ab routines a little at a time and substitute exercises where I can until I get stronger again. In the mean time I will keep doing exercises for my transverse as well. Thank you so much for being such a positive role model and inspiration.
Wendy

 

[tneah]

I just wanted to thank Cathe for being so frank and honest about this subject. I don't have kids, but can appreciate this frustrating problem.
Thanks Cathe, for pointing out even you and your hard earned physique have certain challenges you deal with.

 

[martwad]

Wendy, can you describe how you noticed this split? At first I thought it sounded like a general pooch on the entire lower abdomen, which I have. Then in your last post I'm picturing something more like a herniated belly button, where there is a large lump right in that area.
Leisha

 

[meowracer]

This is interesting, and I wonder if it is not my problem. After the birth of my daughter, once I lost the weight and firmed up my ab section again, I kept noticing a bulge slightly to the left side and below my belly button. I went to the OB/GYN b/c I was worried and he said it was a muscle tear or weakness, something like that, from giving birth. He compared it to a hernia, but not bad enough to do anything about unless I just insisted. Sometimes it is more obvious than others, but my stomach can look crooked - also have IBS issues so it can get bloated in about 2 seconds flat and go from nice and flat to about 4 months pregnant looking I digress though - I always have this little pooch thing going on.