Diastasis recti repair: Why closing the gap is not what really matters

Diastasis recti. You might have heard of it and/or experience it.

While you are looking for diastasis recti exercises and ways to fix it, you have to be aware that there are lots of misconceptions about it.

Closing the gap is not what matters the most. I know that sounds surprising, but in this blog post I’m going to show you what is the most important when planning your diastasis recti repair plan.

diastasis recti repair
Leslie Abraham

By Leslie Abraham

In today’s post, I will talk about 4 parameters to take in account for diastasis recti repair:

Table of Contents

Tissue quality matters more than the width of the gap:

When testing for diastasis recti, you should not only assess the width of the gap between your rectus abdominis (your six pack muscles), but also the tissue quality of this gap. 

If you’re not sure how to test for diastasis recti, you can head over to this blog post, How to tell if you have diastasis recti, where I show you, step-by-step how you can self-test for this and how to understand the results.

Once you have perform your assessment, you are left with 2 types of results:

  • The gap width: is it greater than 2 fingers?(commonly accepted as a diastasis recti)
  • The tissue quality: how do the tissues in that gap feel: Springy? Squishy? This is the most important parameter as it is a direct reflection of the “health” of your core muscles. Have they been really weakened by your pregnancy? Is there enough resistance left? This, more than the width, will give you an idea if your diastasis recti is really dysfunctional or not. 

When I say “squishy”, I’m not talking about the cute layer of fat we all have on our bellies after pregnancy. I’m talking about what can be felt deeper. You don’t have to put a lot of pressure to feel that, but still you don’t want to stop at the very first layer just underneath your skin.

diastasis recti postpartum

One word of warning here, diastasis recti is something extremely common among postpartum moms.

But one does not equal the other. As I just explained, the tissue quality is really important to notice. That’s usually a sign of weakened and compromised tissues, and it might need more time to heal with a specific treatment plan.

Discomforts, pains and symptoms you need to be aware of:

Something else you want to note here is if there are any side pains and discomforts going along with this diastasis recti.

You see, everything happening in your body, doesn’t happen only locally. If your abdominal wall is compromised by a dysfunctional diastasis recti, you  might experience some pains, discomforts and symptoms like:

  • Lower back pain: one-sided or on both sides. This has to do with the lack of support that your core muscles are unable to provide. You can experience this when transitioning from one position to another, when bending over to lift something or someone – aka your baby!, when standing up for an extended period of time, etc.
  • Hip pain: something really common among my postpartum moms. The presence of diastasis recti and a lack of integrity in your abdominal wall can trigger some mobility issues in your hips, translating in some pains and discomforts for you. 
  • Pelvic pains and pelvic floor dysfunction: as explained above, diastasis recti is a sign of a weakened abdominal wall. In turn, this will increase the pressure applied to your pelvic floor at all times. Add to this a whole pregnancy, labor and birth, you can end up with a pretty weakened pelvic floor. This can translate into pelvic pains during intercourse, leaks when running, laughing, coughing, sneezing or just playing around with your kiddos, and also prolapse, among others. 
  • Digestive issues: yes, a weakened abdominal wall can definitely play on your digestion. Diastasis recti usually comes along with posture issues and improper breathing. All together this can impair your digestion and leave you with more bloating and constipation.
  • Distanced pains and discomforts: your core muscles are stabilizers before anything else. If there is a breach in their integrity, like there is with diastasis recti, stability can’t be guaranteed, whenever you’re moving around or performing exercises/movement with other parts of your body. In this case, this is where you begin to experience what I call “distanced pains”: shoulder pain with no apparent cause, neck pain, knee pain, etc. 

Function matters more than aesthetics:

What needs the most attention from a healing point of view, is definitely the tissue quality. We need to ensure and re-establish the integrity of your abdominal wall, for all the reasons I stated above. 

You might still keep some kind of gap between your rectus abdominis but still have a strong and non-dysfunctional abdominal wall. This is exactly why closing the gap is not what matters.

Focusing on re-building a functional and strong core connection – and core-pelvic floor connection – is what matters the most. 

Not the aesthetics. So if you still have some kind of gap after doing your abdominal and pelvic floor recovery, I’m ok with that. As long as you learned:

  • How to support your abdominal muscles, 
  • How to properly engage your deep core muscles when moving around and exercising, 
  • You’re not experiencing any linked pains or discomforts,
  • And that you have re-built a strong and resistant tissue quality.

Learn how to breathe and correct your posture before doing abs exercises:

Lastly, how do you lay out your diastasis recti repair plan? It’s all about breathing and core-pelvic floor connection, my friend.

You see, when we breathe we usually do it backward. We tend to place more pressure on our pelvic floor muscles and our abdominal wall when we are supposed to follow the diaphragm movement. 

diastasis recti execise

When we breathe in, your diaphragm is going down, applying more pressure on your pelvic floor that goes down as well. Belly is usually being inflated, and your lower ribs are opening to the sides. 

When we breathe out, the diaphragm is relaxing up, and our pelvic floor muscles are following along by being gently lifted. Belly is usually coming in, your belly button is moving in and up, as well as your internal organs, your deep core muscles are being activated, and your lower ribs are coming closer to each other.

You see how your diaphragm, deep core muscles and pelvic floor are all working together? This is exactly what we need you to master in order to close the gap and re-build a strong and functional core.

Moreover, posture also plays a huge role. An imbalanced posture will alter the course of your core and pelvic floor recovery. Without proper posture, your diaphragm won’t be able to function properly, so won’t your deep core muscles and your pelvic floor. 

See how everything is connected? This is why I love this so much – postpartum recovery nerd here!

Doing crunches, sit-ups and other planks should be the last of your worries. You need to re-build a strong and healthy core-pelvic floor connection first. Then, after mastering a proper breathing technique and improving your posture, then only, you can start doing your favorite abs exercises. Only with, again, breathing it out and watching your posture!

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About Leslie Abraham
She is the founder and owner of Bonjour Baby, and the creator of the prenatal and postpartum Bonjour Baby online courses. Leslie is a prenatal and pediatrics Osteopath DO (France), certified pre and postnatal personal trainer and women health coach. She has devoted more than 10 years of her career to help woman be ready for birth and recover from it in the following months and years.
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If you want more details, you can head over to this blog post,  where I go a bit more in details on the best postpartum recovery program and on this one, if you want to see what kind of exercise you can do (this one is good for all mamas, not only the ones having diastasis recti).

If you need some help to start your postpartum recovery, I offer a free consultation where we could talk about it and dive more into what you need to do to start feeling better, more energized and more confident.  You can schedule your call by clicking here.

Disclaimer: Bonjour Baby strongly recommends that you consult with your physician before beginning and enrolling in any exercise program, even if you are in good physical condition, not suffering from any complications, and able to participate in the exercise.
Bonjour Baby is not a licensed medical care provider and represents that it has no expertise in diagnosing, examining, or treating medical conditions of any kind or in determining the effect of any specific exercise on a medical condition.

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