Tummy Strength During Pregnancy
Think about what you do to ready your baby for an outing. You lift, slide, pull, push, and position the baby and stroller, sling, car seat, diaper bag, and more. In preparation, you bend, stoop, kneel, and a lot more with the baby's bath, feeding, dressing, burping, calming, and of course TLC. Think about the exertion diaper changing alone calls for. As these typical scenarios demonstrate, the prenatal or post natal mother needs abdominal strength that comes from regular and proper exercise.
Exercising one’s abdomens correctly prevents many problems such as sciatica, poor posture, saggy abdominal muscles, lower back pain, etc. and promotes an overall sense of well-being. Strong abdominal muscles can ease labor and deliver. They help with the physical activities of motherhood i.e. the lifting, sliding, pulling, tugging...
Where Does this Tummy Strength Come From?
From your abdominal region, specifically the region between your 4th/5th ribs to your pelvis.
What Happens to These Abdominal Muscles During Pregnancy?
To answer this question, let’s first look at the anatomy. The rectus abdominus consists of two bands of muscle fibers that are glued together by the linea alba. (See Picture). It runs from the 4th / 5th rib down to the pubic bone.
During pregnancy the growing baby and hormones (primarily relaxin) cause the linea alba to "unzip" in such a way that the rectus abdominus separates. (See picture). This separation, referred to as diastasis, allows the baby to come forward rather than push backwards on the spine- the normal condition of pregnancy. A problem occurs when the recti over separate, leading to lower back discomfort, sciatica, weak abdominals, separation of the symphsis pubis and more.
Do I Have the Separation?
Here's a way to find out. Lay on your back with your knees bent. Place your fingertips directly on your navel pointing toward your feet. Relax your abdominals. Slowly lift your head until you feel a ridge pulling in the midline of your body. This is diastasis. For the majority of women this separation is detectable by the 5th month.
How Can I Prevent the Separation from Worsening?
First, be informed that abdominal exercises such as crunches, criss-cross, jackknife, roll-up, roll over, and other exercises that involves flexion and extension of the spine are not for the pregnant mother. As a rule, during pregnancy, do not perform exercises that in the prone position require exertion of the abdominal muscles through lifting of the head and shoulders off the floor or mat and/or double leg lifts.
Exercises calling for you to lie on your back decrease your circulation and your baby's. Also, exercises that involve rounding and "curving" of the spine (for instance when your shoulders roll forward) shift your weight back onto the spine. The shift can over stretch ligaments of the spine, tilt the uterus back increasing your chance for back labor cause, supine hypertension (decreased circulation) and more.
What Exercises Should I Do?
There are proper exercises that avoid these complications and allow you to modify abdominal or core strengthening exercises. The key is to do the exercises correctly by working the transverse abdominus that wraps around the abdomen like a belt.
Here is an exercise that works the tranverse abdominus:
Step 1: Sit comfortably with the legs crossed. Head, shoulders and sacrum (area between the lower back and buttocks) should be supported by a wall behind you. If you feel tight in the lower back and hips and feel as if this may inhibit your posture, place a pillow(s) underneath your buttocks that allow your legs to rest at a sloping angle to the floor.
Step 2: Place one hand at the top of your recti (where your ribs come together) and the other hand over the center of button). Elbows should be relaxed and by your side. Chest and shoulders should also be relaxed much the same way they are in a sigh of relief. The same muscles are affected.
Step 3: Breathe in through the nose. Keep your chest relaxed and still. Stretch the lungs by expanding the belly. Exhale with hands drawn back to the spine.
Step 4: Tighten the abdominals. Make a slight cough to engage the tummy muscles. Repeat 3 times breathing slowly.
Step 5: On the last exhale hold the backward movement. Count out loud to regulate your breathing. Start with 30 seconds and work up to 2.5 minutes a day.
Practice this exercise 3 times a day. Try it before breakfast, lunch and dinner.