At what point is abdominal muscle training in pregnancy dangerous?
During pregnancy, training of the abdominal muscles is not always possible. In general, it is recommended to train the abdominal muscles only until the 20th week. Women who have already done a lot of abdominal training before pregnancy can continue the training without any complaints until the seventh month.
From the 20th week, the straight abdominal muscles begin to stretch to the left and right and to diverge a little as the uterus grows – this process is called rectus diastasis. In order not to intensify this process, you should stop training the straight abdominal muscles from the twentieth week onwards. If this is not taken into account, a gap can form in the abdominal muscles, which can only be compensated for by increased recovery exercises.
Therefore, you should put your hand on your abdomen and only perform those exercises where the straight abdominal muscles are not working. The oblique abdominal muscles can still be trained. At the end of the pregnancy you should also avoid exercises in the supine position, as the strain on the internal organs and the spine can then become too great and unpleasant pressure can develop. If pain, bleeding, dizziness and discomfort occur during training during pregnancy, the training must be stopped immediately and a doctor consulted!
Pregnancy regression
After giving birth, many mothers ask when they can start doing sports again. Most mothers want to regain their original figure as quickly as possible and reduce any weight gain during pregnancy. In general, mothers should first recover from the stressful birth and give their bodies time to regenerate.
This means that they should refrain from any kind of sport for the first 6 weeks. After the 6 weeks, however, sports activities can usually be resumed without hesitation. It is best to ask your doctor when you should start exercising again after the birth and to what extent.
The primary goal of pregnancy regression is not weight reduction, but rather training of the abdominal and especially pelvic floor muscles. Training the pelvic floor muscles after birth is essential for subsequent continence maintenance. For a suitable exercise of the pelvic floor muscles, one positions oneself cross-legged and tenses the pelvic floor muscles from the inside at regular intervals.
Exercises for the abdominal muscles correspond as far as possible to those already described above. An important note applies to mothers who have developed rectus diastasis during or after pregnancy, i.e. a divergence of the straight abdominal muscles: in this case, it must be evaluated wait-and-see whether the rectus diastasis has already regressed after 6 weeks. If so, the oblique abdominal muscles should be exercised first and later the long abdominal muscles.
In other cases, the muscle building training should be waited until the attending doctor gives the ok and the diverging abdominal muscles have sufficiently regenerated. Exercises for the abdominal muscles correspond as far as possible to those already described above. An important note applies to mothers who have developed rectus diastasis during or after pregnancy, i.e. a divergence of the straight abdominal muscles: in this case, it must be assessed in a wait-and-see manner whether the rectus diastasis has already regressed after 6 weeks.
If so, the oblique abdominal muscles should be exercised first and later the long abdominal muscles. In other cases, the muscle building training should be waited until the attending doctor gives the ok and the diverging abdominal muscles have sufficiently regenerated.
