Core conditioning is where it’s at these days. The same is true during pregnancy, but some unique considerations come into play.
With special precautions, women can continue to work their abdominal and back muscles throughout their pregnancy. In fact, developing and maintaining a strong trunk helps prepare women for child birth, the most challenging physical task they’ll ever face.
Strengthening the core can also relieve certain back and hip problems that many pregnant women face. Plus, having strong pelvic-floor muscles can reduce the risk of incontinence after pregnancy.
A common problem that arises in physically active women during pregnancy is diastasis recti. Simply put, the condition involves the separation of the two halves of the rectus abdominus muscle, which runs down the middle of your belly.
To test for diastasis recti, lie down on the floor with your knees bent and lift your head off the ground while you place your finger tips about an inch above your belly button. If you can feel a space and can fit more than two fingertips in that depression, or if you can feel a ridge protruding from your abdominal midline, your muscles have separated.
The worst thing you can do to aggravate the separation of these muscles is to do abdominal crunches. These exercises can lead to a protruding ridge or make an existing one worse.
But don’t worry: in most cases, the rectus abdominus muscles will come back together after child birth over time. Many hospitals and birthing centres offer clinics or physiotherapy sessions that specifically address diastasis recti after child birth.
And if you do have diastasis recti, you can still work your core without the crunches.
Here are two exercises to try:
Kneeling Single-Leg Raise
- Rest on your hands and knees, with your knees directly underneath your hips and your hands underneath your shoulders.
- Maintain a neutral spine.
- Pull your belly button toward your spine to keep your abdominal muscles engaged.
- Lift and extend one leg behind you, with your heel in line with your hip. Breathe out as you extend your leg.
- Inhale as you bring the leg back in.
- Alternate sides, holding the leg up until you feel stable each time.
- Do one to three sets of 10 repetitions on each side.
Superwoman
- Follow the instructions for the Kneeling Single-Leg Raise and add the opposite arm.
- Exhale as you extend your right leg and left arm and hold until you feel very balanced.
- Inhale as you bring your leg and arm in.
- Alternate sides.
- Do one to three sets of 10 repetitions on each side.
