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
EMPOWER YOURSELF!!
I didn’t know there was a DVD! That’s great! Thanks for the links. I’ll get one. (Since I’m not close enough to take your class.)
At least I was told I’d need physical therapy and not surgery. I figure this is what they’d do in therapy.
BTW, I just ordered the book. 🙂 My trainer was interested in the technique as well.
Cool! Let me know if your trainer has any questions 🙂
Hey Bonnie, you don’t know me, but I’m Robyn’s cousin and a big fitness and nutrition fanatic myself. Anyway I was curious to know if it’s the lower abs your technique focuses on. That mommy pooch below the belly button? My upper abdominals are fine, it’s just the lower. Is that what these videos work on? Because honestly it doesn’t matter how hard I work out, or how well I eat, or how many ab exercises I do. It’s still there!
The technique focuses on the transverse abdominus – innermost abdominal muscle – which goes from the top of the pelvis to the bottom six ribs and all the way around your back – its like a giant belt that goes around and around your belly. Since it has two different insertions of the muscle, sometimes only the top of the muscle gets worked and not the bottom, or vice versa.
It sounds to me like you have a diastasis on the lower area of your rectus abdominus (the outmost abdominals), so you need to do the seated tuplers and headlifts and isolate with a splint the lower area of your abdominals.
Also, it sounds like you would benefit from wearing a splint on a regular basis to give your recti support if they are indeed split.
The book and dvd both cover those topics. I see many women who have issues with the top but not the bottom, or vice versa depending on how their recti have split. So until the diastasis is closed, that problem will not be addressed.
Good luck! Let me know if you have diastasis – the book will tell you how to measure it. I will cover it too on one of my future posts 🙂
Bonnie!
I have just discovered your blog site. Love it! I wanted to get you opinion.. I do believe I had a diastisis (my second child was born 2 yrs ago). I would practice the tupler technique on and off. I think my diastisis is pretty much closed. I still look 5 months pregnant. Do you think the tupler technique can give me back my abs even without much of a diastisis.
-Julie
My questions to Julie would be these:
How confident are you in how you remeasured your diastasis?
Did you measure in the THREE places – at the belly button, 3 inches above, and 3 inches below?
Did you wear a splint?
Do you avoid the 5 whites? (white flour, white pasta, white rice, white potatoes, white sugar)
And lastly – YES – you can still definitely get GREAT results doing the seated tuplers, and bringing your transverse all the way back to your spine (or belly button to the spine) during the work part of EVERYTHING you do.
And NO prohibited movements – crunches, sit ups, v sits, jacknifes.
And BE CONSISTANT! Everything good requires consistancy.