How to Heal Diastasis Recti with Exercise and Diet

While there exist many ways to heal diastasis recti, exercises and proper diets are the main practices that will help you heal quickly.

Diastasis recti occurs mainly due to an increase in abdominal pressure. This can be solved by doing exercises and eating appropriate foods that will help in reducing pressure in the abdominal cavity. 

If you are ready to begin fixing your diastasis, Restore Your Core wrote an amazing diastasis recti guide that has all the information that you need.

How to Heal Diastasis Recti with Exercises

Exercises meant to heal DR normally focus on strengthening the core. It may take a bit longer to heal diastasis recti but it eventually heals with time and effort. 

Here are 4 main ways exercise can be used to heal diastasis recti;

1. Rebuild Your Core

Regaining the strength of your core is the primary thing in fixing your diastasis recti. 

You should consider exercises that will help in engaging your inner abdominal muscles to ensure that they gain strength first. The inner muscles will help in healing the gap between the stretched muscles. 

Exercises that can be used to strengthen and stabilize the core includes; 

• Side Planks
• Walking
• Wall Sits
• Heel Slides
• Heel Drops

However, avoid exercises that involve inserting pressure on the pelvic floor such as sit-ups and crunches.

2. Practice Diaphragmatic Breathing

Unlike upper chest breathing, breathing through the diaphragm allows you to relieve the abdominal pressure. 

Diaphragm breathing can be done in just a few steps;

• Lie on your back with your hands on the rib cage
• Try to relax then inhale in such a way that the ribs move outwards and sideways
• Then repeat this exercise in a different position like having your knees bent with your hands on the belly bottom.

Diaphragm breathing also encourages complete oxygen exchange hence stabilizing the blood pressure. This means that more oxygen will be supplied to the connective tissues that further help you to heal.

3. Work on Your Body Alignment

Your posture will determine the balance and stability of your abdominal muscles. Thus, you should try to ensure that the three main parts of your upper body are properly aligned perpendicularly.

Exercises that can help with body alignment include;

1. Downward- Facing Dog
2. Side Plank and High Plank
3. Thoracic Spine Rotation
4. Chest Opener

When you achieve better alignment, it will reduce the pressure in your abdominal muscles.

4. Practice Pelvic Floor Exercises

Pelvic tilts that are done work best healing diastasis recti. You can begin by lying down with your back on the ground in a neutral position with knees bent and feet flat on the floor facing forward.

Try to tighten your abdominal muscles to ensure that your back is flat on the ground. Then bend your pelvis up gently and hold for around 10 seconds.

Pelvic floor exercises are meant to strengthen your pelvic floor. You can do them at least 3 times a day for better results. 

How to Heal Diastasis Recti with Diet

Just as with other illnesses, a poor diet will impede your recovery from diastasis recti. To prevent this, here are some ways in which you can use diet to heal this condition:

• Eat food rich in Vitamin C: Since the abdominal muscles are made up of collagen fibers, foods like oranges, berries, kiwis, and green vegetables are what you need most.
• Eat food rich in fiber and omega fatty acids: This will help keep your digestive system healthy. Lack of fiber could lead to digestion issues such as constipation, improper absorption, and bloating.
• Eat food that improves blood circulation: This includes; nuts and green tea. Proper blood circulation is essential in delivering nutrients and oxygen to the connective tissue that will help to heal diastasis recti.
• Stay hydrated:  Having enough water in the body will boost blood circulation and enhance the functionality of the repair tissues. 

You should avoid inflammatory foods such as alcohol, caffeine, and processed foods as they will hinder the healing process.