Category: diastasis

April 10, 2010

Can I measure my own diastasis? Is that what is causing my funky midsection?

Yes, YOU can measure your own diastasis.  You don’t need a doctor or a surgeon to measure it.  Many doctors don’t even know HOW to measure it, in my experience.  But you can take control and empower yourself with how to find out if its a DIASTASIS that is causing that “I-can’t-put-my-finger-on-it-but-my-midsection-does-not-look-normal” look.

HOW TO DO IT:

  • Lay on your back (getting down by laying on your side and walking your hands down).
  • Bend your knees
  • Place your straightened fingers perpendicular to your body RIGHT at your belly button.
  • Lift your head just a little

If you have a diastasis you will feel a valley or a gully.
THE MEASUREMENT:  How many fingers can you place in the gully when you FIRST start to feel the muscles engage around your fingers?  Is it 1 fingerwidth?  Is it 2 fingerwidths?  3?  4?  5?  6?  7?  8? more?

  • REPEAT if you don’t know what your measurement was the first time by putting your head BACK down and then lifting it up just a LITTLE with your hands in place until you feel the muscles engage around the fingers again
  • REPEAT 3 inches ABOVE the belly button
  • REPEAT 3 inches BELOW the belly button

That’s it – then you will know your  measurments of your diastasis!

TROUBLESHOOTING?
“I can’t feel the muscle engage around my fingers”
You may be putting your head up too high.  Or if your pregnant, you will fill a protruding ridge rather than a gully, depending on how far along your are.  Or if you are a larger measurement like a 6 or 7, you will need to measure with BOTH HANDS.

Many people think its gross when they feel it for the first time.   But knowing is half the battle, as my husband always says.

SO GO FOR IT!!  Find out if the diastasis is causing a bulge, or unsightly look in your abdominals!  What did you find out?

March 13, 2010

Latest Results? Diastasis Recti…

I have decided to periodically post great results that I am seeing lately to let women know that surgery or perpetual frustration does not have to be the answer.  There is hope for your abdominals POST PREGNANCY!!

I have one woman in one of my classes who just had her 2nd baby 5 months ago.  Shet had a 5 fingerwidth separation of the recti three inches above the belly button, a SEVEN fingerwidth separation of the recti right AT the belly button, and a 4 fingerwidth separation of the recti three inches below the bellybutton.  (We always measure the diastasis in these three areas).  This case would be considered by many doctors and most plastic surgeons, if not all, to be a prime tummy tuck candidate to artifically bring the recti together.

Well, first thing she did was get a Splint to bring the two halves of her recti in closer approximation.  You can get a splint if you are two fingerwidths apart.  The larger the gap, the more pronounced the need to splint the recti.  She even wore hers to bed, so she would train herself not to jackknife out of bed.

She did 5 to 7 sets of 100 a day of seated tuplers.  Since she is a working mom, she would do all her sets on her commute to and from work.  She would say, “I’m going to do 2 sets by the time I reach Aurora” and things like that to give her a goal.

By the time the 6th week rolled around, we retested – she was 2 on the top, 3 in the middle, and 3 on the bottom – MARKED improvement.

The 8th (and final) class rolled around.  We measured her recti – TOTALLY CLOSED – TOP, MIDDLE, AND BOTTOM.  We measured her waist as well – 32.5 inches before, and 30.5 inches after – TWO inches lost. Total time to close a LARGE diastasis and get back her prepregnancy midsection?  8 WEEKS!!

Her husbands comments that last week (who she claimes never notices anything), “You look kinda hot in that tank top.”

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Another girl I trained during a private 3 session course was a very tall, dancer’s body, slender woman. She was frustrated about her tummy not looking right, 6 years after having twins.  She had a FOUR fingerwidth gap on the top part of her recti, a FIVE fingerwidth gap in the middle – right at the bellybutton – and a FOUR fingerwidth gap on the bottom. Her waist – 29 1/8  inches.  She was also what would be considered by many to be a prime tummy tuck candidate due to the separation of her recti.

She immediately got a  Splint to approximate the recti.  She did her 5 sets of 100 seated tuplers a day and by the 2nd session (two weeks later) was down to CLOSED recti at the top, 2 fingerwidth split in the middle, and ONE fingerwidth split on the bottom. Her waist size  27 5/8  – down 1 1/2 inches.

She continued to do her 5 sets of 100, get up and down correctly, avoid “crunches”, and wear the splint. We measured her after the 3rd session and she was CLOSED on top, CLOSED in the middle, and CLOSED on the bottom. Total time to close her diastasis and get back her prepregnancy midsection? 6 weeks!

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Do you know of anyone who has a “mummy tummy”?  Feel free to spread the word – its VERY HARD information to find.  Most practitioners, surgeons and most personal trainers DO NOT KNOW this is out there for their clients and patients!  Spread the word and give some hope for those who don’t know that there is an answer to post-pregnancy midsection woes!

March 2, 2010

What do you mean I shouldn’t do crunches? Never? But…

Yes, I have been asked this question many times.  Lets face it, people just LOVE their crunches.  I don’t know why – it doesn’t make sense to me.  Even before I knew the damage they could do to the recti, I knew that they hurt my neck muscles.  There is ALWAYS an abdominal bulge-out.  Even when people THINK they are bringing their stomach muscles in, they are not able to fully engage the abdominals because it is PHYSICALLY IMPOSSIBLE to bring in the innermost abdominal muscle (TRANSVERSE) while doing a crunch.

In fact, the only REASON, in THEORY, to do a crunch is to SHORTEN the long stretched out recti muscles (outermost abdominal muscles – 6 pack muscles)  and make them strong, toned, and lean.

Well, a crunch will shorten the recti from the TOP by bringing your head off the ground, and a crunch will shorten the BOTTOM of the recti by bringing your legs to a bent position in essence tilting the pelvis.  HOWEVER, the pitfall is that it DOESN’T shorten the recti from the MIDDLE – which is the MOST important part.

Why doesn’t a crunch shorten the recti from the middle you ask?  Because it does NOT work the transversus abdominus – a.k.a transverse.

If the crunch does not work the transverse, or shorten the recti from the middle, is there ANY POINT in doing the exercises?

The answer is so VERY simple – absolutely not!!!

WHAT IS THE ANSWER?!?!?

Two things:

SEATED TUPLERS: Imagine your belly is a sideways elevator and the 1st floor is where your belly is normally at in its relaxed position. Bring your belly all the way back to your spine (5th floor) and hold it there for a second, then release to the 3rd floor (in between the 1st and 5th), then back to 5th floor again (squeeze and hold for a second) then back to 3rd floor. Continuing doing until you reach 100.

100 may seem like a lot, but a set of 100 only takes 2 ½ minutes. Do 5 sets a day, altogether, or spaced out, whatever is easiest. Do this exercise sitting down with firm back support. You should be able to feel this in your back, as it also works the lower lumbar muscles. This is the FASTEST way to repair your recti and bring them back together, closing the diastasis.

Yes you DO breathe. You “sniff” to bring air in, and COUNT as your exhale, which forces the air to work through your body.

HEAD LIFT: Lay on your back with your knees bent. Expand your belly to allow air to come into the body, Exhale, bring your bellybutton all the way to the spine (this is working the TRANSVERSE ABDOMINUS – the key to bringing in the recti). Hold the belly there and you slightly tilt your pelvus to bring the small of the back pressed into the floor, tuck the chin, and then lift up your head and bring it back down fairly quickly.

If your abdominals show any movement, then it means your TRANSVERSE is not quite strong enough. There should be no visible movement on your abdominals.

ONE LAST QUESTION: How do you get the transverse strong enough to do the headlift? THE SEATED TUPLERS – it is the fastest way because it strengthens your abdominals in a seated position, which is the MISSING LINK of abdominals. You will not have gravity working against you in a seated position. Then when you begin to do abdominals while laying on your back where gravity is working against you, you will already have a mind body connection to the muscle to tell if your transverse muscle is actually engaged.

So my question is WHY WOULD YOU DO A CRUNCH when there is really no benefit, and EVEN damage you can do to your stomach muscles (further splitting of the recti)?  Even if you CLOSED your diastasis, the gap, why would you then go back to an INFERIOR way?

Have you tried these?  Did you get stumped?  Did you feel the seated tupler exercise in your back or your kegel area (that would mean you are doing them right)?

February 5, 2010

Why don’t I just get a tummy tuck?

So this is a question I get periodically – and I got tonite while teaching one of my classes.
The woman in my class was mentioning her friend who just had twins opted to get a tummy tuck rather than just “take the class.”

So a discussion commenced on what the downside is in basically stitching two muscles (the recti) together that are weak. Technically this is one of the three parts that happens in many tummy tucks. The first is liposuctions, the second is raising the skin up to the ribs just below the breast before tightening the muscle, and the third is the diastasis operation, which is bringing the two muscles together without stitching the muscles themselves, but stitching the fasica that houses the muscles instead. In other words, tightening the diastasis.

So apart from all the normal risks of swelling, bruising, pain, numbness surgery , tummy tucks involve a MASSIVE scar from hip to hip, as well as a lengthy recovery.

But what I REALLY want to address, is what can be the danger later if the muscles are not strengthened and they get a tummy tuck. THERE IS NO GUARENTREE THAT YOUR DIASTSIS WON’T OPEN UP AGAIN AFTER A TUMMY TUCK IF YOU EXERCISE INCORRECTLY, or do a jackknife getting out of bed. So even if you’ve had a tummy tuck, you should do the Tupler Technique in order to strengthen the abdominal muscles.

The best bet LEARN TO DO ABDOMINALS CORRECTLY!! For most women, this will save you the cost and inconvenience of pricey, many times IMO not necessary surgery. If you learn to do them correctly, you can TOTALLY get your abdominals back.

I have seen woman after woman close their diastasis in a matter of weeks in my classes or sessions. AGAIN and AGAIN! People who have been told by doctors and surgeons that they needed to get SURGERY to repair them.

So women out there, education yourself. There is a BETTER WAY!!

Best bets to educate yourself: Lose Your Mummy Tummy Book and Lose Your Mummy Tummy DVD

And if your pregnant, Maternal Fitness by Julie Tupler, and Maternal Fitness DVD.

EMPOWER YOURSELF!!

January 8, 2010

QUESTION: Once your close your diastasis…can it REOPEN????

Of course it can!  Have I had it happen to me?  Of course I have!

In fact, I became lacksidasical about  “GETTING UP AND DOWN CORRECTLY” and “LAYING DOWN CORRECTLY” the past months (ahem…holidays…still not much of an excuse for THAT…!)

Those may seem like VERY insignificant things, but let me tell you – they can be VERY influential for the good, or the bad – as can some of the other culprits – incorrect abdominals, and pregnancy.

To LAY DOWN CORRECTLY:  From a sitting position (and while keeping your transverse in) you walk your hands down to one side and let you hand slide down and let the head and body inch down as your stationary hand supports your body in this process.  You will then be lying on your side, with your head on your arm.  Then lay your head down on the ground first, and then let your body roll over onto your back.  If you DONT lay your head down on the ground before your body rolls over, you will get a BULGE OUT.

And that is how it happened…(getting up and down incorrectly) a few times at least. And SHAME on me, I measured my previously beautifully closed recti, and discovered I had a 1 on the top, 2 in the middle, and 1 fingerwidth gap on the bottom.  This was 2 1/2 days ago.

(On a side note – getting up and down correctly out of bed is a very common culprit for women who have small children who cry in the middle of the night. They bolt upright out of bed – jacknife – and it causes a very forceful forward movement and SPLITS the recti further.)

Well, I was very upset with myself for letting that happen.  And I was not keeping up to at LEAST 5 sets of seated Tuplers a day, so I am sure my transverse and recti muscles atrophied a little.

Well, Repentently I did some HEADLIFTS (another post for another day)  – which are essentially the CORRECT version of “crunches” but where you KEEP YOUR SHOULDERS ON THE GROUND at all times, slightly tilt your pelvis, and approximate your recti as you lift JUST your head, and  (OF COURSE) keep your transverse in.  I also put on my SPLINT the next day and wore it all day.  Today – 2 days later – TOTALLY CLOSED.

Is this the first time this has happened to me?  ABSOLUTELY NOT!!!!!
In my experience teaching and training, and observations with myself, I have noticed that once you gain the mind-body connection of bringing the recti together and closing the diastasis, its MUCH easier to bring it in during the occasional relaspe.   I think of it as TWEAKING!  I have to do it SEVERAL times on myself – Maybe once every 4 – 6 months or so…usually when I get lazy.

BUT HERE IS THE DIFFERENCE – (Instead of this initial 5 months it took me to close my diastasis measuring 3 on top, 3 in the middle, and 3 on the bottom) it only takes me a day or two now to get everything back together BECAUSE of the mind-body connection, and GREAT Transverse (innermost abdominal) strength (Referred to also as “CORE” )

So – its not an ALL or NOTHING thing.  Diastasis can be the DARNDEST things.  You just have to show them who is boss!  And don’t GET DISCOURAGED!!  I have not met one yet that couldn’t be tamed, trained, and fixed 🙂

December 29, 2009

Realistic BELLY expectations…post baby…Exercise, Nutrition, and Results examined

 So how much bounceback can you expect your belly to have after having kids. Is it really “gone for good?” What is realistic?

After kid #2 – it took me 5 months to get to my pre pregnancy belly – I went froma 32 inch waist to a 25 1/2 inch waist. It took me as LONG as that because at the time i wasn’t doing the Tupler Technique, that I now teach, correctly. I was stuck at a 27 inch waist. When I realized what i was doing wrong – it went down to the 25 1/2.

After kid #3 – Losing weight in the 3 months it took me seemed like the LONGEST 3 months ever. My belly went from 32 inch waist AGAIN to a 25 1/2 inch waist AGAIN after 11 WEEKS. It was much faster this time because I used the Tupler Technique throughout my entire pregnancy. I was back in pre pregnancy clothes within a week – just used the low waisted ones and worked my way up. And I did 10 sets of 100 Tuplers for 11 weeks.

BEST BET – combine GOOD NUTRITION with the Tupler Technique during and right after baby comes. You can start doing the Seated Tuplers within 24 hours after giving birth. Within 1 week after a C section.

Now lets talk skin. Skin tautness on the belly is a combo of AGE and GENETICS. Having said that there are some herbs and digestive enzymes that can aid your skin elasticity, which is what you want. That is another post for another day.

FOR ME PERSONALLY

AFTER BABY #1 – Skin looked great after the initial belly jelly.

AFTER BABY #2 – Skin looked pretty good after the initial belly jelly.

AFTER BABY #3 – Skin elasticity fairly good after the initial belly jelly. Its not “perfect” but slowly it got to where I was pleased with it. Can I tell I had a baby now? Not necesarily. But I know it is not identical to pre pregnancy skin. I am in low 30s for anyone in age comparison.

BEST BET for skin: Hydrate your skin, Lots of Lycopene (from tomatoes), Good Quality Contouring creme (from a reputable company – this is just my opinion, but it has worked for me), Get lots of vegetables, DARK berries – blackberries, blueberries, strawberries, Beta Carotene – carrots, sweet potatoes, Mangoes, and take a good quality digestive enzyme which will aid skin elasticity. These same things will help prevent stretch marks if you follow before you get pregnant. AVOID the five whites, which AGE YOUR SKIN!!!!!! Also take into allowance predisposition to stretch marks.

You can have high standards for your belly with the right STRATEGY. GOOD NUTRITION and GET YOUR RECTI TOGETHER!

October 19, 2009

Before you get pregnant again….


Before and After

Yes – there IS something that must be addressed before you get pregnant again.

That is to CLOSE YOUR DIASTASIS. You know, that gap in your recti muscles that I talk about on this blog.

Whats the big deal? If you start a pregnancy with this gap, then you will split your recti further apart with each pregnancy.

So what? The further the rectus abdominus (outermost abdominal muscles – the six pack muscles) are, the HARDER they are and the LONGER it takes to bring it back together.

ALSO – did you know that a DIASTASIS is the reason that you show SOONER during subsequent pregnancies than the first? It is your recti splitting further and further apart. If you don’t bring it back together BETWEEN pregnancies- this will happen more and more with each one.

What is the matter with having split recti – a.k.a. diastasis? First of all, it looks unsightly. Your intestines bulge out and literally have nothing to hold them in except a thin piece of connective tissue that is then spread across your intestines like SARAN WRAP. And if you get a HOLE in that – umbilical HERNIA!

Yeah, not ONLY that but you will have back aches. The Purpose of your recti, aside from holding you in, is BACK SUPPORT. If your recti are split your back muscles are compromised. You will most likely have back aches.

AND if your recti are split you will have a tough time pushing that baby out. It will be a STRUGGLE my friend. The recti are what help you push out that baby.

So to prevent WORSENING that saggy belly look, prevent back aches, push the baby out efficiently, get into pre-pregnancy clothes much FASTER, and to feel much BETTER and STRONGER during your next pregnancy, BRING the two halves of the recti together.

HOW? If I don’t live near you – or someone trained in this technique – you MUST check out the book “Lose Your Mummy Tummy” by Julie Tupler. You can find it on AMAZON. Also, the current official website is

www.diastasisrehab.com

Are you planning another pregnancy? Do you know if you have a diastasis?

July 2, 2009

Kickboxing Postpartum…What you NEED to know…


So does anyone out there still do kickboxing? I think kickboxing is so fun and gives you that feeling like you can do anything and no one better mess with you. I remember doing that everyday before my wedding 9 years ago. (Anyone remember Tae bo with Billy Blanks? What ever happened to him anyway….)

However, there are some things you MUST know if you have had a baby…no matter how long ago. In 98% of women, there has been a split in the rectus abdominus muscle. If you don’t do anything to bring it back together, it will stay separated. It looks unsightly and creates a bulgy poochy “mummy tummy” and it can cause and exaserbate back problems, effect posture..

So if you have NOT brought your diastasis (split stomach muscles) together then you must avoid a couple things of kickboxing.

When you punch, don’t go side to side . Don’t punch (in the air) on the right side of your body with the left fist, and the left side of your body with your right fist. This will cause a

SHEARING MOTION.

Any side to side motion is a SHEARING MOTION on your diastasis and can make your split BIGGER!!

How to modify until your close your diastasis? Try bringing your belly button to the spine and punching straight in front of you. When you CLOSE your diastasis… then you can go back to punching from side to side, but take care that you can bring your belly button ALL the way back to the spine (transverse) EVERY time your punch.

When you do your kicks, your belly button must be all the way back to the spine (transverse muscle) or your can make your diastasis bigger. If you can’t do this, then the exercise is either too hard for you (transverse muscle not strong enough) or you shouldn’t be doing it.

Do you kickbox? Or do you prefer softer movements for condition – such as pilates and yoga? Do you like to mix up your workouts – muscle confusion – to condition the body?

June 17, 2009

The pitfalls of PILATES


I LOVE Pilates – and so you must read this post KNOWING that. Pilates has become the IN and the ALL for many people – especially women.

One thing to understand is that the pilates that we do is ADAPTED Pilates. The original work of JH Pilates was mostly on machines.

One other thing to point out – JH Pilates was a MAN.

In the perspective of a Personal Trainer who specializes in helping Pregnant and Postpartum women LOSE and AVOID a “MUMMY TUMMY” I modify ALL, I repeat, ALL of the BACKYLYING Pilates exercises so they don’t increase the size of their split stomach muscles (DIASTASIS).

How must these exercises be modified? Very simple – if you keep your shoulders GLUED to the floor, and keep your belly button PLASTERED to your spine, you will be fine.

What happens if your shoulders come OFF the ground? Your transverse (innermost abdominal muscle) bulges forcefully forward. It is a forward forceful motion or pressure that CREATES a diastasis.

So for the pilates 100 – you may either keep your head glued to the floor if you are not as strong, or tuck your chin and lift your head like you were nodding YES. Also, my other problem with the teaser, is that your legs are at a 45 degree angle. If you cannot keep the small of your back on the ground for this, your transverse muscle is not strong enough, and you will have another BULGE OUT.

I frequently meet women who do pilates that have very large diastasis. This is because their instructors do not have that missing puzzle piece about the diastasis, the transverse, and how the two must be considered with every exercise taught.

The other PILATES NO-NO for pregnant or POSTPARTUM WOMEN (no matter how long PP) is no JACK-KNIFES!!!!! This creates a big bulge out and is one of the prime sources or prolonged split stomach muscles. Most people go in and out of bed this way. Once those shoulders come off the ground, that transverse bulges forcefully forward and widens your split.

About 10 to 30 minutes AFTER the classes I teach are spent modifying people’s pilates moves to accomodate their POSTPARTUM bodies (even if it has been TENS of YEARS since having a baby).

FAST RULES TO MODIFY PILATES FOR WOMEN:
1) keep shoulders on the ground at all times
2) keep small of the back on the ground while doing back-lying pilates
3) keep your belly button GLUED to the spine (we call this 5th floor in my classes)

Do you do Pilates? Are there any exercises that haven’t felt right to you? Have you ever modified your OWN Pilates? What Pilates exercises do you love?

April 7, 2009

DIASTASIS RESULTS – what can 6 weeks do?

So I measure the diastasis of the women I teach on the 1st day of class, and 6 weeks later, on the last day. I give them each “homework” to do for the class.

They have to do 5 sets of 100 Seated Tuplers PER DAY to keep up with the progression of the class and to get results.

They are required to avoid ALL JACKNIFING, especially in and out of bed.

Many of them purchase “splints” to approximate their recti, which they wear at all times, but ESPECIALLY when they are lifting things, or exercising. This is diferent than those wide belt-like things they give you at the hospital, which rest on bones – pelvis and ribs. A SPLINT goes IN BETWEEN your ribs and pelvis to bring them closer together. This is a MUST for women who are over a 3 fingerwidth diastasis.

So, just a couple of results from 6 week class that just ended:

Virginia had a 4 fingerwidth diastasis in ALL THREE PLACES YOU MEASURE (3 inches ABOVE the belly button, AT the belly button, and 3 inches BELOW the bellybutton). When I went to remeasure her, she said “I think I forgot how to measure myself.” I measured her and she had COMPLETELY closed the diastasis in ALL THREE PLACES. No wonder she thought she FORGOT how to measure – she couldn’t find it anymore!

Jennifer is 6 months PREGNANT. She measure a 2 on top, 3 in the middle, and 2 on the bottom. Even though her belly is rapidly EXPANDING (constant forward force which creates or enlarges a diastasis) she CLOSED her diastasis on the top AND the bottom.

Normally I don’t measure after 1 week, unless I have been specifically asked. PATTY, a girl in a different class, asked me last night to measure her after 1 week. She was a 5 FINGERWIDTH DIASTASIS in ALL THREE PLACES. She had gone to a 2 3/4 on top, 3 in the middle, and 3 on the bottom, in ONE WEEK. That is SPACTACULAR and QUICK results.

A girl I am doing private training width, has a 5 fingerwidth diastasis all the way down. A SURGEON told her the ONLY way she can get it back together is with SURGERY. Well, with all due respect to his training, that is ABSOLUTELY NOT TRUE!!!!!!!!!!