Whether you’re just coming out of pregnancy or looking to get back into your pre-pregnancy shape, Stacy Irvine shows us her tips for post-pregnancy abdominal exercises.
– The abdominal region is one of the most common areas women complain about post-pregnancy. Because of this, many women try several variations of abdominal exercises to try to reduce the size of this area and get back to their “pre-pregnancy” shape.
– Many women will try abdominal crunches as a way to get their abs back into shape. Because of the very high risk of abdominal and pelvic floor strain, this is one of the worst exercises we can do during or post-pregnancy.
– We need to look at the abdominal cavity in a three-dimensional way. If we are doing crunches and other traditional forms of abdominal exercises, we are only training the front area of the abdominal region.
– These types of exercises can actually make your abdominal cavity in worse shape if you have a Rectus Diastasis or pelvic floor injury post-pregnancy. Approximately 65% of women will have a Rectus Diastasis (abdominals split down the middle). Many do not even know they have one.
– The best way to understand how to effectively train these muscles is to understand the abdominal cavity with a front, back, two sides, a top (your diaphragm) and a bottom (your pelvic floor). When you have just delivered a baby, your pelvic floor should be the first place you start to condition.
– The best exercises to start with are Kegels, and other bracing and breathing techniques. Then I would start with a program such as Pfilates or Hypopressive Exercise Techniques.
Courtesy Stacy Irvine, Totum Life Science, www.totum.ca