During pregnancy the body goes through many tough stages and because of that the body changes a lot One change is the stomach muscles stretch to make space for the baby inside and the right side separates from the left so after pregnancy most women notice a big gap in the middle of the stomach, today at Fitness Garage we'll offer you some ways to close that gap because it also causes some back pain.
How to test for muscle separation
There are some ways to help you know if you have muscle separation or not and the methods are:
- Lie on your back with your feet on the ground and your knees bent.
- Lift your head off the ground.
- Place your hand on your lower belly.
- Move your hand vertically on your belly if you feel it sinks down sometimes.
- Usually, you have a muscle separation.
- The more your fingers sink in, the wider the gap and the bigger the separation.
How to fix muscle separation
The way to fix this is to strengthen your inner muscles to help tighten this gap, also strengthen the pelvic muscle and the diaphragm. There are some easy exercises that can help reduce the gap and we will mention them next. And try to avoid planks until you regain your inner muscle strength.
Easy exercises to treat muscle separation
You should check with your doctor before starting these exercises to be sure they are fully right for you. Muscle separation varies from person to person and the exercises are:
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First exercise: Umbrella Breathing with Kegel
How to do the exercise
- Start standing with your knees bent a little.
- Try to pull your chest area as far as you can.
- Fill your chest with air then slowly breathe out.
- Repeat this exercise 10 times.
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Second exercise: Pelvic Tilts on Hands and Knees
How to do the exercise
- Stand on your hands and feet with your spine straight.
- Take a deep breath in and out and pull it down as much as you can.
- While exhaling try to relax your glute muscles.
- Repeat this exercise 10 times.
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Third exercise: Kneeling Leg and Arm Extension with Knee Tap
How to do the exercise
- Support your body on the ground with your hands and knees.
- Keep your heart muscles contracted while moving your knees and hands out and in.
- Breathe slowly during the exercise.
- Repeat this exercise 10 times.
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Exercise 4: Toe Taps Lying on Back
How to do the exercise
- Lie on your back.
- Lift your legs up then bend them.
- Inhale.
- Lower your right foot to the ground.
- Then do the same with your left foot.
- Repeat this exercise 10 times.
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Exercise 5: Single Leg Reach Lying on Back
How to do the exercise
- Lie on your back, stretch your legs up.
- Then bend them towards your chest and stretch them out.
- Repeat this exercise 10 times.
Exercise six: C-Curving
How to do the exercise
- Sit on your pelvic bones.
- Lift both your legs up.
- Your knees should be at chest level.
- Breathe in and out.
- Repeat this exercise 20 times.
Exercise seven: Side Plank
How to do the exercise
- Put your hand right under the shoulder.
- Your other arm should point up.
- Your upper leg should be in front.
- Breathe slowly.
Treating muscle separation takes more time and patience so don’t expect quick results, but you will notice a difference after a while. You can get help from Fitness Garage trainers to design workouts suited for your condition that will help you more.
