Stomach Woes
Let me just preface by apologizing if I sound vain...it goes without saying that it's all worth it, but I do care what I look like. Also, not sure where else to ask this so hopefully there are some others here who know.
I'm about 5 months post partum with my second. I had a diastis recti and my muscles are pretty much back to normal spacing now. I still have a bit of a bulge but I'm being religious about doing these abdominal breathing excersizes to try and stregthen my transverse abdominal muscles to help make my stomach lie flat again. It's helping a bit but it seems slow going. It's definitely a lot better this month then it was previously though.
With my first pregnancy I got big (gained about 50lbs or so) all in my belly and I did the same with this pregnancy. But after my first I was back to normal without any exercise quite quickly and ended up below my pre pregnancy weight by this time or soon after. This time I've lost all the weight already and am back at pre-pregnancy weight. I actually have been for the last 3 months, but my stomach is in no way normal yet.
Does anyone have any recommendations for more exercises I can do to help tighten my stomach muscles to get the bulge to lie flat or flater?
Also, I didn't get any stretch marks with my first. But by the end of this pregnancy I had a few very faint white lines. They weren't really stretch marks but little horizontal white lines where you could tell my skin was stretching but they weren't a typical "stretch mark" as in purple or red lines or streaks. These striations that I had have pretty much disappeared but my belly is wrinkled! My midwife said that the wrinkles should go away with time just like the linea negra will by my skins natural process of shedding. My linea negra is almost gone but there is still a hint of it. But the wrinkles seem a little more stubborn. Is there a chance that these just won't ever bounce back and I'm just going to have to learn to live with the wrinkles? Anyone else have this? Any ideas besides surgury on how to help improve it?
Thanks for any ideas, advice, or commisseration.
I'm about 5 months post partum with my second. I had a diastis recti and my muscles are pretty much back to normal spacing now. I still have a bit of a bulge but I'm being religious about doing these abdominal breathing excersizes to try and stregthen my transverse abdominal muscles to help make my stomach lie flat again. It's helping a bit but it seems slow going. It's definitely a lot better this month then it was previously though.
With my first pregnancy I got big (gained about 50lbs or so) all in my belly and I did the same with this pregnancy. But after my first I was back to normal without any exercise quite quickly and ended up below my pre pregnancy weight by this time or soon after. This time I've lost all the weight already and am back at pre-pregnancy weight. I actually have been for the last 3 months, but my stomach is in no way normal yet.
Does anyone have any recommendations for more exercises I can do to help tighten my stomach muscles to get the bulge to lie flat or flater?
Also, I didn't get any stretch marks with my first. But by the end of this pregnancy I had a few very faint white lines. They weren't really stretch marks but little horizontal white lines where you could tell my skin was stretching but they weren't a typical "stretch mark" as in purple or red lines or streaks. These striations that I had have pretty much disappeared but my belly is wrinkled! My midwife said that the wrinkles should go away with time just like the linea negra will by my skins natural process of shedding. My linea negra is almost gone but there is still a hint of it. But the wrinkles seem a little more stubborn. Is there a chance that these just won't ever bounce back and I'm just going to have to learn to live with the wrinkles? Anyone else have this? Any ideas besides surgury on how to help improve it?
Thanks for any ideas, advice, or commisseration.