Repairing my stomach area.

traceyjj
traceyjj Posts: 406 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
OK this might seem like a very silly question so please go easy on a relative newbie.

First a bit of background....

When I was pregnant with my eldest child I had to have an operation which basically cut me from my bikini line to my belly button. The muscles didnt have time to repair properly as my stomach area was expanding. Even after the birth I wasnt allowed to exercise for a while. Fast forward a couple of years with little to no exercise and another pregnancy (big twins!) and one more pregnancy with complications, and finally one more surgery, but this time across the bikini line.

OK now for the question.... how do I start to build/repair the muscles here, or is this going to require more surgery to repair the muscles.
I currently exercise 6 days a week.
3 days of swimming and aqua-aerobics and 3 days of cardio and resistance machines.

Over the recent weeks, I have noticed my body changing shape, but my stomach area still looks odd / mis-shaped

Any advice/guidance on where to start to repair or build the muscles would be very much appreciated.

Many thanks in advance
T :)

Replies

  • traceyjj
    traceyjj Posts: 406 Member
    Bump... anyone?
  • pawoodhull
    pawoodhull Posts: 1,759 Member
    Mine is mishapen, but then that's due to the two hernias I have (one above and one below the waist). Just wondering if that might be part of the shape for you? With the pregnancies you describe, it's a possibility.
  • Kelly_Runs_NC
    Kelly_Runs_NC Posts: 474 Member
    You should consult a personal trainer and an doctor whom specializes in sports and/or the athlete.
  • Duck_Puddle
    Duck_Puddle Posts: 3,237 Member
    Are you down to the muscle on your stomach? Or do you still have fat to lose? I don't know about repairing muscles, but my entire torso is covered with scars, and as I have lost weight, the scarred skin doesn't act like "normal" skin and things look misshapen simply because of the way the scarred skin is holding the fat (kind of like squares in a comforter-sort of). As I lose more, the misshapenness changes, but since I've still got fat-I'm not calling in the jury on my shape until that's gone. But then again, given the extent of the scarring, my MD advised my loose skin will never go away without surgery, so that's in my future regardless (even though you aren't asking about skin). I guess I've rambled on here and given you nothing of benefit.
  • whitneyps7
    whitneyps7 Posts: 409 Member
    i would ask a doctor first their advice, but i know u can go to a massage therapist and they can use friction and cross fiber friction to loosen the collegen thats stuck there and holding onto your adipose tissue (fat) and can cause it to be mishapen.
  • millers617
    millers617 Posts: 21 Member
    I am not sure if this is what you are dealing with, but I also had twins which caused my abdominals to split (Diastasis recti) about three fingers wide at my belly button. Doing any sort of crunches will make the split worse. Any core work should focus on transverse abdominals. When I lie on my back and lift up at my shoulders you can see a slight buldge in the middle and definitely feel the split.

    You can go to a physical therapist that has experience in this to help. I just started looking at this website to get a better understanding of what happened and how to close the gap. http://www.diastasisrehab.com/diastasis-rehab.html#qa

    My twins just turned two and I am just now focusing in on my abdomen damage! I would definitely get this looked at by a professional, but also google Diastis recti.

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