If you still look pregnant or experience abdominal pain weeks or months after giving birth, you might be suffering from a condition called diastasis recti, or abdominal muscle separation.
However, a belly bulge that doesn't go away for months after delivery can be a sign of diastasis recti—a separation of your abdominal muscles. The normal separation between your abdominal muscles is about 0.5 – 1 centimeter or about one finger width.
Expect it to take around six weeks for your uterus to contract fully. At six weeks, you may have already lost the weight you gained during pregnancy. This is especially true if you're breastfeeding. Breastfeeding mothers shed around 500 calories per day.
Typically, postpartum bloating is due to some form of constipation caused by a temporary factor like the fluctuating and rebalancing of your hormones, medications to relieve pain, change in diet, change in movement habits, lack of sleep and the stress of having a new human to care for.
During pregnancy, the abdominal muscles stretch apart to accommodate the growing fetus. However, after birth, if these muscles do not go back to their original position and close the gap, the organs behind the muscles bulge out, causing the belly to sag. This is diastasis recti.
It takes time for your body to fully recover from pregnancy. Your postpartum belly won't instantly go back to how it was before you were pregnant – it's a process that can take months or even years, while some bellies may take on a different shape permanently.
After giving birth, it can take several weeks or even months for the skin around the abdomen to "spring back," but some may find that their skin has lost elasticity altogether. Diastasis recti, or abdominal separation, can also occur.
Most women lose around 13 pounds (6 kg) right after childbirth, which includes the baby's weight, as well as the weight of the amniotic fluid and placenta. When it comes to fat loss, with a healthy diet and regular exercise, you may lose about 1 pound (0.5 kg) a week.
You should plan to return to your pre-pregnancy weight by 6 to 12 months after delivery. Most women lose half of their baby weight by 6 weeks after childbirth (postpartum). The rest most often comes off over the next several months. A healthy diet with daily exercise will help you shed the pounds.
Believe it or Not, Eating Healthy will Help Lose Your Post Baby Belly. In addition to exercise, a healthy diet can help you lose the postpartum belly. Remember though, if you are breastfeeding you need to consume enough calories to support you and your growing baby so extreme dieting is not recommended.
You could have a condition called Diastasis Recti Abdominus, or DRA. DRA is caused by an increase in abdominal pressure and occurs when the rectus abdominus, the abdominal muscle that runs down the center of your stomach, separates.
A belly "bulge" that can look like a baby bump is the telltale sign of diastasis recti, and it's usually most noticeable when you're contracting or straining muscles in your abdomen. You may notice that when straining, your stomach area tents upwards instead of flattening out.
Holding onto to some extra pounds after pregnancy is normal
Most women who gained the recommended amount of weight during pregnancy, remain 2-5 lbs. above their pre-pregnancy weight a year after giving birth. A sizable minority, 15-20% of women, will hold onto 10 lbs or more.
Additionally, research has shown that breastfeeding can support your postpartum weight loss. However, in the first 3 months of breastfeeding, you may experience no weight loss or even some weight gain. This is due to increased calorie needs and intake, as well as reduced physical activity during lactation.
Your body is still healing.
“Many women gain a large amount of gestational weight. And after the baby comes, you have less time to exercise, less sleep, and your body is still healing from pregnancy and delivery,” explains Laura Arndt, a pre- and postnatal expert and the CEO of Matriarc.
Postpartum weight gain can happen for a number of reasons, from the fact that you're fatigued or don't have time for a regular excercise routine, or because of an underlying health condition that requires attention, such as postpartum thyroiditis, diabetes, or PCOS (polycystic ovary syndrome).
That may sound extreme, but nearly every mom who's ever exclusively breastfed her baby can agree that breastfeeding is a workout and makes you HUNGRY, since the body needs to replenish the calories it burns producing milk (about 20 calories per ounce).
Thicker Thighs and Legs
The extra fat then gets distributed to places where women most often put on weight: the backside, hips, and thighs." It can take up to a year to lose the weight gained during pregnancy, says Dr. Dawson.
Breastfeeding should not be used as a weight loss method because you could actually gain weight while nursing if you don't pay close attention to your diet. It is it a myth that breastfeeding burns up lots of calories making milk.
Difference between diastasis recti and belly fat
One way to tell if you just have excess weight or an actual muscle gap is by tensing your belly muscles. Try lying flat and then lifting your head like when doing a sit-up. If present, the gap or bulge of diastasis recti will be pronounced in the center of your belly.
The key to healing diastasis recti is rebuilding your core from the inside out. You need to strengthen the transverse abdominis (TVA) muscle, which is the deepest abdominal muscle and can provide support for those muscles that have been stretched.
Place your fingers on your belly button, pointing towards your pelvis, and press down. Lift your head up about an inch while keeping your shoulders on the ground. If you have diastasis recti, you will feel a gap between the muscles that is an inch wide (~ 2 fingers) or greater.
Untreated in adults, diastasis recti or when your abs separate, can lead to lower back pains, poor posture, hernia, constipation and weakened pelvic alignment.
During pregnancy, the muscles stretch to accommodate the growing fetus. The connective tissue between the abdominal muscles can thin and weaken, and that can lead to a bulge in your belly. That post-pregnancy bulge is commonly known as a "mommy pooch" or "mommy-tummy" and it will not go away with diet and exercise.