Diastasis Recti: What It Is, How to Check and What Helps

Diastasis recti is the widening of the gap between the two halves of your abdominal muscle, and it is one of the most misunderstood things about the postnatal body. This guide covers what it actually is, how common it is, how to check at home, what genuinely helps and when to get assessed. It is written for UK readers in pregnancy or the first years after birth, with no promises about closing gaps.

TL;DR

• It is a normal adaptation to pregnancy, not an injury or a failure.
• Nearly all women have some degree of it by late pregnancy, and much of it resolves on its own in the first two months after birth.
• Tension across the midline matters more than the width of the gap.
• Doming during a movement is your signal to make that movement easier.
• Gentle, consistent loading over months is what helps. There is no quick fix.
• Men and people who have never been pregnant can get it too, usually from rapid weight gain or repeated heavy straining.

What diastasis recti actually is

Your rectus abdominis, the muscle people mean when they say abs, runs in two vertical halves down the front of your abdomen. They are joined along the middle by a band of connective tissue called the linea alba.

During pregnancy, hormonal changes soften that tissue and a growing uterus pushes outward, so the band stretches and thins and the two halves move apart. That is diastasis recti. The muscle is not torn and nothing has gone wrong. It is a structural adaptation to making room.

How common is it? Some degree of separation is present in the large majority of women by the third trimester. It is closer to universal than to unusual. A good proportion of it then narrows on its own over the first eight weeks or so after birth without any specific intervention, which is why a gap measured at six weeks does not predict where you will be at six months.

Why the gap width is the wrong thing to obsess over

The traditional measure is finger-widths: how many fingers fit between the two muscle edges. It is a useful rough screen, and two fingers or fewer is generally considered typical.

But width on its own is a poor guide to function. What matters more is whether the linea alba can generate tension, meaning whether it stiffens enough to transfer force across your midline when you move. A narrow gap with tissue that sinks under your fingers can be less functional than a wider gap that stays springy and supportive.

This is why chasing a measurement is a frustrating way to track progress. Judge it on what you can do without your middle bulging, not on how many fingers fit.

How to check for a tummy gap at home

A rough screen, not a diagnosis. Stop if anything hurts.

• Lie on your back, knees bent, feet flat.
• Place your fingertips just above your belly button, pointing down towards your feet.
• Lift your head and shoulders slightly, as if starting a small curl up.
• Feel for the firm muscle edges either side and note how many fingers fit between them.
• Repeat below the belly button and a few centimetres above, since the gap varies along its length.
• Then press gently and notice whether the tissue feels springy or whether your fingers sink in.

What the symptoms actually are

A gap on its own often causes no symptoms at all. When it does, the common ones are a rounded or cone-shaped bulge down the middle when you sit up or strain, a feeling that your middle is weak or unsupported, lower back ache, and for some people bloating or a sense of pressure.

What diastasis recti is not is a measure of fitness or a cosmetic failing. The phrase mummy tummy gets used a lot and it muddles a normal tissue adaptation with body image, which helps nobody.

What actually helps

Three things, in this order.

• Breathing and pressure management. Learning to exhale as you exert, rather than holding your breath and pushing outward, changes how much pressure the midline has to absorb. It is dull and it is the most important part.
• Gradual, progressive loading. Connective tissue responds to load over months. Too little and nothing adapts, too much and you dome. The skill is finding the version of a movement you can do with a flat middle, then making it slightly harder over time.
• Training the whole system. Glutes, hips, deep abdominals and pelvic floor all share the job of stabilising your trunk. Strengthening them takes demand off the midline.

Our step-by-step routine is in diastasis recti exercises: a gentle place to start, and what to skip is covered in diastasis recti treatment.

On equipment: a small ball to squeeze between the knees and a light loop for glute work cover most of the early routine. Our Postnatal Recovery Kit has both plus a latex-free band, a cotton strap and a printed pelvic floor guide for £14.99. It makes the gentle work easier to feel. It does not treat diastasis recti, and nothing sold as equipment does.

Shop the Postnatal Recovery Kit

When to see a women's health physiotherapist

Get assessed if you have doming you cannot control by making the movement easier, back or pelvic pain, leaking, a dragging or heavy sensation, or no change after three months of consistent gentle work.

A physiotherapist assesses tension rather than just measuring width, and will progress you faster than guessing. You can be referred through a GP. The Pelvic, Obstetric and Gynaecological Physiotherapy network and the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy both list practitioners, and the NHS covers the wider recovery picture in its guidance on your body after the birth.

FAQs

How do I know if I have diastasis recti?

The home check is to lie on your back with knees bent, lift your head slightly, and feel for a gap between the two firm muscle edges above and below your belly button. More than two finger-widths, or tissue your fingers sink straight into, is worth getting assessed. A visible ridge or cone when you sit up is another sign.

Does diastasis recti go away on its own?

Often it improves substantially on its own in the first couple of months after birth as tissues recover. Whether it resolves completely varies a lot between people. If a gap is still causing symptoms after several months, that is the point to get assessed rather than to keep waiting.

Can you fix diastasis recti years later?

Yes, function can improve years afterwards, because connective tissue still responds to progressive loading. The realistic goal is a midline that transfers force well and a body that does what you want, which many people reach while still having a measurable gap.

What exercises make diastasis recti worse?

Anything that makes your middle cone or dome upward, most commonly sit-ups, crunches, double leg lowers and full planks done too early. They are not permanently banned, they are simply too much load before the midline can manage it. Regress them and reintroduce later.

Is diastasis recti the same as a hernia?

No. Diastasis recti is a widening and thinning of connective tissue with the muscles intact either side. A hernia is a defect through the abdominal wall that tissue can push through. They can occur together, and a lump that is firm, painful or does not reduce when you lie down should be seen by a GP.

Can men get diastasis recti?

Yes, though it is far less common. It is usually associated with rapid weight gain, repeated heavy lifting with poor pressure management, or persistent straining. The management principles are the same: breathing, progressive load and avoiding movements that dome the midline.

Conclusion

Diastasis recti is normal, common, and far more about tension than about finger-widths. Breathe well, load gradually, use doming as your guide, and give it months rather than weeks.

Start with our gentle exercise routine, and if you want the small amount of kit that makes it easier to feel, the Postnatal Recovery Kit covers it at £14.99.