When dealing with a Diastasis Recti, making progress can be challenging. How do we know when to move forward in our workouts or perhaps step back and return to the basics? If someone is stuck in fear of making a progression forward, what signs can they watch for in their bodies to know how to proceed? What about people who are way ahead, doing challenging things that may not be wise for their abdominals?
Cartoon images were popular when Fit2B launched in 2010, so our original logo was a gal we called “Molly.” She is still represented on our Roku Channel, and we had some cartoons drawn (scroll down) of her everyday life to remind all of us that we aren’t alone on our fitness journeys. Molly looks a […]
Every day I talk to women all over the world who want — not just to tone or flatten their tummies — but to fully heal their cores with the right exercises for diastasis recti. Occasionally, someone will detail their journey in writing to me like T.A. has done here. I am sharing her story […]
Does wrapping your belly with a postpartum abdominal splint weaken or strengthen your core?
Do you or someone you know have issues with incontinence during daily life activities? Then this post is for you. There is hope, friends. Just because it’s common for women who’ve had children to leak some pee when they cough, laugh hard, make love, or jog to catch up with a runaway toddler, THAT […]
This blog about how your feelings and moods can have a huge affect on the speed of your healing from various injuries and issues — not just DRA — is actually the third installment in a 4-part series called The Unclosed Core that was originally published in 2015. I’ve been writing and praying this will offer hope to those […]
This post may be from August 2013, but the struggle to appreciate and cherish our bellies is a common theme. Are you and your core on good terms, or is there still some relationship work to be done? We’d love to hear from you in the comments! My son turned 5 this past week, and as I […]
This blog was originally published in July 2011 and has continued to connect with those searching for information about diatsasis recti, so we decided to update and republish it in April 2018. Regardless of your background (surgeries, pregnancies, age, etc.), you CAN obtain flatter, stronger abs. It’s NOT about your six-pack, and it IS all […]
Welcome to the new {Flashback} Friday series from Fit2B! The following post from 2011 has continued to resonate with so many of you that we thought reposting it with a few updates for clarity would prove beneficial. March, 2011 – Seven weeks ago, I started diastasis rehab with The Tummy Team. I didn’t think […]
Here we are, still going strong with filming TummySafe, diastasis-aware workouts for members in 45 countries worldwide, and I get asked all the time: How do I do it? How have we managed to launch a successful online fitness website and keep it running this long? How do I juggle exercise, motherhood, being a female […]
My belly would like to share a few thoughts with you. It has its own story to tell after carrying three lives and healing from diastasis recti. While we keep things very modest on this family friendly fitness site, it’s time to for my tummy to show it’s true tone and tell you a few […]
Recently, the diastasis recti awareness movement received some interesting press when this NPR article about 1 exercise that can be done for 10 minutes a day to get rid of your mummy tummy went viral. It’s catchy, isn’t it? The thought that you can do one thing for just a few minutes, and you’ll have […]
I recently had the privilege of interviewing Carrie Koziol from Pilates By Carrie. She’s unique because she is also a licensed Women’sHealthPhysical Therapist who is highly trained and knowledgeable about diastasis recti and pelvic floor dysfunction. Carrie compares cores to houses with your transverse abdominis being the front door, the roof being your diaphragm, and […]
When a grieving member of Fit2B whose belly had been through a great many hard things mentioned that she wished we had a series of gentle moves and words to help her with grief recovery, process her past, and do some deliberate releasing of the tension stored in her core, her request was instantly echoed by […]
As your belly muscles regain proper tension and strength, and your diastasis recti begins to narrow, the skin on your tummy may pucker and dimple as the pressure from within your core is more controlled. This isn’t about sucking it in and constantly flexing your abs, rather, as your transverse abdominus “corset” muscle that wraps […]
I was sitting there in a crowd of other mothers, watching our kids through a thick glass window as they practiced their gymnastics, flipping and tumbling around. Then, as is so classic of me – since I can’t have normal conversations with anyone because they ask me what I do, and then we proceed to […]
Many people with weak cores and back pain turn to yoga for help, but if you have diastasis recti, many yoga poses should be approached with caution. This shocking photo will hopefully help all of you better understand how DEEPLY a diastasis recti affects your abdominal’s appearance, function and integrity. That is one my members […]
With so much WRONG information about the core out there and bad advice about how to safely tone your tummy and strengthen your whole midsection, it has become vitally important to me that fit2b.com provide the RIGHT education from MANY viewpoints. So a couple years ago, I began dreaming and talking with my co-founder Chris […]
Holding your tummy in all the time is NOT the solution for your big belly. In fact “holding stuff in” benefits FEW facets of our life. Yes, I know, sometimes we just don’t know how to let go of stuff, and by “stuff” I mean dreams, children, tummies, that one exercise we just can’t seem […]
Now, I’m not sure if you know this, but my husband, myself and our two wildlings live on 7 acres of God’s green earth in rural southwest Washington State. It’s been just a little over a year now since we traded one-tenth of an acre surrounded by busy streets and nosy neighbors who tut-tutted […]
Things that caught my eye and made my body-nerd-brain glow this past week… The feeling of being surrounded by supportive colleagues; images of movement in 3D on an awesome yoga site; a happy member who is back into her unpregnant jeans at 4 wks postpartum after her 4th baby; a great phone call […]
Even the smallest bellies can establish a healthy core connection! Let your child join our children for some bitty belly moves that teach how to activate the transverse abdominus. Plus, learn how lots of other fun moves and tricks utilize our core on a daily basis. Leave lots of room in your exercise area for […]
When I respond to questions in the private member forum, sometimes the members “like” it a whole bunch of times, and that’s when I think to myself, “Hm, you should make this into a blog!” But grand ideas get away from me, so I’ve created this post to just copy and paste these random threads […]
Equipment needed: Bench or straight back chair. Maybe a pillow for your lower back. Here is one of our most basic routines designed for those who need to dial it back to the most simple aspects of “finding” their core via the basic breath. The title comes from a term that means “root lock” in […]
There is 3-finger gap in maternal care, yet with all the awareness being raised about birth empowerment, this one is not being discussed much. Diastasis Recti is another form of pregnancy and birth-related trauma that is preventable and treatable without surgery, yet women are willingly and silently suffering with it because general practice doctors often […]
Okay, I get a bit giggly at my own cheesiness whenever I can work my last name – which is “Learn” – into a blog post. And now that I’ve got that tidbit out of my exhausted brain, I can tell you some of the AWESOME things I learned while on a roadtrip with Kelly […]
If your middle is muddled like mine was after having two kids – but you’ve never had kids, or maybe you have eight – and it makes weird shapes when you try to sit up, or you could swear you can fit your whole hand in your tummy trench, and no matter how much you […]
Dear Doctor who doesn’t understand diastasis or how it has impacted me and my friends, my cllients, our bodies, our lives, our ability to mother, our comfort in the bedroom, even the way we laughed for a while… I hope you read this! I’m angry at you. You should have known about this common abdominal […]
Before any major abdominal training is done, it’s important to lay a foundation. This simple 4-minute routine will wake up your ab muscles in a safe and gentle way. As if setting a gently morning alarm, you’ll be tapping them on the shoulder and saying, “time to wake up and do your job for me!” […]
“Welcome to my home and this workout!” -Bethany This routine was filmed in my old home in Portland, Oregon! It’s not as swanky as some of other places we’ve filmed, but these are my pictures and my 1940’s fireplace, and the green chair is where I spent many an hour nursing my sweet boy. We’ve […]
This quick crunch-free, plank-free mini-workout you’re about to do will connect your breath and alignment to your core throughout several simple motions. The second video summarizes the first video in a short recap. You’ll find two videos below – the long and short version – but Fit2B has more (and less) when you’re decide to shift […]
If you’ve been rehabbing your abs, and you are feeling stronger and ready for more, this workout will keep you standing and moving the whole time while helping you safely transition to slightly more intense motions while also showing you how to incorporate your transverse abs with breath and activation at the proper times. This […]
