Your core (or the central portion of your body excluding your arms, legs and head) is made up of a number of muscles that help you to maintain a correct posture. Having good posture is not just about whether you have rounded shoulders!! With a correct posture you keep your bones and joints properly aligned, which in turn limits abnormal wear and tear, decreases stress on ligaments, decreases the risk of strains and muscular pain, reduces the risk of back pain and injury.

Bonus? It’ll also make you look and feel better and slimmer!

The core muscles include your rectus abdominis (or “six pack”), your transversus abdominis (the deep core muscles often referred to as TVA), your obliques (at the sides of your core) and your erector spinae (that runs either side of your spine).

Your left and right rectus abdominis are separated by fiborous connective tissue known as your linea alba. If someone has a defined six pack then it is the linea alba you see as an indent running down the middle via the belly button.

During pregnancy, as your baby (and bump!) grow, your rectus abdominis and linea alba stretch to accommodate your growing baby. In the majority of pregnancies, the internal abdominal pressure of your uterus pressing against your rectus abdominis and the hormones in your system to loosen connective tissue leads to a gap forming between the right and left rectus abdominis and a stretching of the linea alba. Still wondering how to know if you have diastasis recti? You have DR if the gap between the left and right rectus abdominis is more than 2 – 2.5 finger widths apart. (“Diastasis” means separation and “recti” refers to your rectus abdominis.)

If you haven’t already, you can take my DR Test here and find out if you have abdominal separation and how to begin healing.