The gap matters less than you think, and the tension across it matters more. That's the part most people skip, so we'll start there.
Diastasis recti is the two halves of the rectus abdominis sitting farther apart than they used to, with the connective tissue between them (the linea alba) stretched and thin. Nearly everyone has some separation at the end of pregnancy. For a lot of women it narrows on its own over the first few months. For others it stays wide or stays soft, and that's the group that needs a plan.
"Fix" is the wrong word for what we're doing. You're not pulling two muscles back together. You're teaching the deep abdominal wall to generate tension again, so the linea alba firms up and the whole front of your trunk can take load. When that happens, the gap often narrows too. Sometimes it doesn't narrow much and the belly still looks and feels better, because the tissue is doing its job.
Get clearance from your OB-GYN or midwife before you start, especially after a cesarean. And if you have leaking, a feeling of heaviness in the pelvis, pain with sex, or a gap that isn't changing after a couple of months of this, book a pelvic floor physical therapist. We wrote about what that appointment looks like here. One more thing, and then we'll move on: a bulge that hurts, heavy bleeding (soaking a pad an hour), fever, chest or calf pain, or thoughts of harming yourself or your baby are provider-now or 911 problems, not exercise problems.
Check it yourself
Lie on your back, knees bent, feet flat. Put two fingers pointing down into your belly, just above your navel. Lift your head and shoulders an inch off the floor, like the start of a crunch, and feel for the edges of the muscle on either side of your fingers. Count how many fingers fit in the gap. Then check at the navel and two inches below it.
Now the part that matters. Drop your head back down, exhale slowly, and gently press into the gap with your fingertips. Does it feel like a trampoline, firm and springy? Or do your fingers sink in like there's nothing there? Springy is good. Sinking is what we're training.
Also note whether the midline domes up or sinks into a trench when you lift your head. That's your coning test, and you'll use it every day to decide whether an exercise is right for you yet.
Write down the three finger-width numbers and the tension. Our core tracker is built for exactly this, and it's free.
The order of work
Breathing first. Everything else sits on top of it.
Lie on your back or sit tall. Breathe in and let your ribs widen to the sides and your belly soften. Breathe out through pursed lips, slowly, and feel the lower belly draw gently in and up, like you're zipping a low pair of pants. Your pelvic floor should lift a little on the same exhale without you forcing it. Ten breaths, three or four times a day. This is boring. It is also the thing that works.
Once you can do that without holding your breath or bearing down, add movement under that exhale.
Heel slides: on your back, exhale and slide one heel away along the floor, inhale and bring it back. Eight each side.
Bent-knee fall outs: one knee drops to the side a few inches, belly stays flat, bring it back. Eight each side.
Bridges: exhale, lift the hips, hold two breaths, lower. Ten.
Bird dog from hands and knees, starting with just an arm, then just a leg, then both. Six each side.
The rule for every one of these: watch the midline. If it domes, make the move smaller or go back a step. If it stays flat, you're fine. The first two weeks are usually just breathing and heel slides. Weeks three to six, add the rest. After that, you start loading.
Loading is where people get nervous and where the real change happens. Carrying things, standing exercises with a band, squats, step-ups, side planks on the knees. The abdominal wall needs resistance to get stronger, and a baby who gains a pound every few weeks is already handing you a progressive overload program. Exhale when you lift the car seat. Exhale when you lift the baby out of the crib. Roll onto your side to get out of bed instead of sitting straight up.
Walking counts. Twenty to thirty minutes most days by the end of the first six weeks, if your provider agrees. It's upright, it's loaded, and it's the easiest thing to keep doing.
Sleep, protein and water aren't optional extras. Connective tissue remodels slowly and it remodels better when you're fed and rested. That's not a diet. If you're breastfeeding, don't go under 1,800 calories, and don't go on a crash diet at all.
What to stop doing
No crunches, sit-ups, bicycles or full planks for the first few months, or until you can do the breathing and the basic moves with a flat midline. These load the linea alba in the exact way it can't handle yet.
No waist trainer worn all day. A soft binder after a cesarean for a week or two of comfort is fine. Twelve hours of compression is not, because it turns off the muscles you're trying to turn on and pushes pressure down onto a pelvic floor that's already tired.
No holding your breath and straining. On the toilet, lifting, coughing, laughing with a full bladder. Exhale through the effort, every time, until it's automatic.
What usually changes, and in what order: the midline firms up first, often within a few weeks of consistent breathing. Then the coning stops. Then the finger count comes down, slowly, over months. The belly looks different last. We've written out what that progression tends to look like in the before and after post, with the real timeline rather than the one in the ads. Some women land at one finger with great tension. Some stay at two fingers with great tension and no symptoms, and that's a good outcome too. A wide gap with a hernia, or one that stays soft after six months of real work, is a conversation with a surgeon, and a PT can tell you when you're there.
If you want the breathing and the first six weeks laid out as one short daily session, our guide The 10-Minute Mom Pooch Reset is that, nothing more.
The 10-Minute Mom Pooch Reset
The 12-week, 10-minute-a-day core and belly plan for exhausted moms: the gap check, breath-to-core, three phases, kitchen-counter and naptime routines, food that helps, and 6 printable trackers.
See the plan →Not sure yet? Take the free 2-minute quiz
Educational content from the Mom Pooch Reset team. Not medical advice for your specific situation. Get clearance from your OB-GYN or midwife before exercising after birth, and see a pelvic floor physical therapist for leaking, pain or a bulge.
