Safe & functional exercises for the core

Many of you were asking me for details of exercises you can do to strengthen the core without putting pressure on the midline, especially if they have an abdominal separation otherwise known as a Diastasis Recti.

Now please don't dwell too much on this as even women (& men) who haven't had a baby can have this condition. The Diastasis is not a postnatal specific issue. It can actually be caused by doing sit-ups, leg raises etc incorrectly or any exercise which puts internal pressure on the midline. Added to that sometimes the midline never closes completely.

When performing an abdominal check, if the midline doesn't feel soft or pulsating & there is good tension to the fascia (or gap) and if the woman can function well without pain or any other symptoms then I wouldn't worry too much about it.

Now we've got a lot more information than what we had 20 years ago and we've moved on to more functional core work. You don't need to do sit ups or crunches to get flat abs. No matter how many crunches or exercise you do if you have a layer of body fat over those muscles...well no one can see them can they?

In fact I would have to say that eating well and doing whole body workouts is a lot more important to getting good looking abdominal muscles you can see, whilst also keeping an eye on good posture. Not to mention that if you are feeding your body the protein, water, good fats, vitamins & minerals it needs, it is more likely to heal quicker.

If you're just doing crunches but not working on the opposite muscle (your lower back) then your posture is compromised and your core as a whole remains weak. Think of your core as a cube with 4 sides;

Front abdominal wall (including your TVA, Obliques & Rectus abdominis)

Back muscles

Pelvic floor muscles

Diaphragm (which works with the intercostals when forcing breath in & out)

All 4 sides need to be equally strong to function properly and remain balanced out.

So going back to my title, I'm going to post a video at the end of this blog with a few 'safe' exercises you can do to work on your core even if you have a Diastasis. Now if you know me, you know how much I love to throw in squats & a few lunges in your workouts. There is a reason for this...

Here are just 2 reasons why you should be working on your glutes. Strong glutes help keep your pelvis in place for optimal Pelvic Floor tension + working on those leg muscles helps increase pelvic floor activation, amongst other things. Click on this link to read in more detail if you find this concept interesting. So no matter what you come to me for, I'm afraid I'm always going to throw in at least a couple of these in!

All the exercises in this workout can be done with or without weights. The core is being worked on indirectly by using leverage, stabilisation & moving the centre of gravity. If you have any questions please get in touch.