DEBUNKING DIASTASIS: - What's in and What's Out in Training Clients Healing from Diastasis Recti
Teaching clients with diastasis recti is simple.
Society and confusion around the issue has made it much more complex than it is.
The confusion about DRA (Diastasis Recti) was finally addressed on episode 33 of The Connected Yoga Teacher podcast, bringing clarity to this commonly misunderstood issue.
It is what we've been teaching here at Pregnancy Pilates Impact (Formerly Your Pregnant Core);
And these ideas are what Katie Bowman, Dr. Sarah Ellis Duvall, Carolyn Anthony, and many others who work primarily with pre and postnatal women, have been exploring and teaching around the subject of DRA.
But much of our ideas were not research based, ......just logic based.
Until now!
Shannon Crow, host of The Connected Yoga Teacher podcast welcomed Dr. Sinead Dufour Pelvic Health PT, and a professor in the Health and Science department at McMaster University and is the Director of Pelvic Health at The Womb.
Dr. Sinead has dedicated extensive amounts of time and energy to working through the vagueness of diastasis recti information, and finding solid answers to this misunderstood condition.
Dr. Sinead directed a consensus study by the top 22 Diastasis experts in Canada in order to establish a protocol for DRA.
The experts reviewed existing diastasis recti guidelines for the following:
- Prenatal period,
- Early postpartum period,
- Later postpartum period, and
- The assessment of the condition.
You can go directly to the podcast episode to see the details of this study, and listen to the episode.
I have taken the top 5 pieces of information and shared them below, and put it into Pilates teacher language.
What's Out and What's In with DRA
The following is a simplified version of the consensus, organized like this:
What is out - previous ideas about DRA,
and
What is in - new ideas about DRA that we want to start adopting now!
So, here we go!
1. Assessment of DRA
What is out:
2 Finger Width as a sufficient tool of measurement.
What is in:
It is the condition of the linea alba that should be considered.
2. Scope of Practice
What is Out:
Physiotherapists and physical therapists are the only qualified professionals that can work with this population.
What is In:
Pilates instructors who are knowledgable about this condition can do a lot to help this population!
Dr. Sinead says that Yoga teachers (and I will insert Pilates teachers here as well) are in a great position to get ahead of the curve to spread new information discovered through research (before it will be widely taught).
3. Flexion vs No Flexion
What is Out:
Flexion Exercises - "The Hundred" - during pregnancy and early postnatal
What is In:
- Emphasis on facilitating optimal co-activation of the deep inner unit.
- You can do this by teaching a simple technique we call, Hug the Baby, where mom-to-be simply pulls her baby in and up towards her spine.
- Emphasis on the "Core 4" - Multifidus, diaphragm, transverse, and pelvic floor without flexion
- Optimal load transfer at linea alba
4. What to Look For When Teaching
What is Out:
Checking for doming only
What is In:
Intra-abdominal pressure regulation without doming or sinking of the stomach (invagination)
Watch for doming or invagination (sinking in) at linea alba during exercise.
5. To Close or Not To Close the Gap
What is Out:
Focus on bringing the rectus back together post-natal.
What is in:
Intra-abdominal Pressure regulation through proper lateral thoracic breathing and posture through all activities-everyday movements and exercise.
Dr. Sinead says that emphasizing postures that reduce excessive strained intra-abdominal pressure.
To get the best explanation of all of the above, visit The Connected Yoga Teacher Podcast website - Episode 33- where you can download the interview, go directly to specific areas of discussion, and see the consensus report.
Teaching this population can be a simple procedure. Society and confusion around the issue has made it much more complex than it is.
Thank you for taking the time to learn more about this special population!
Share if you found this helpful!
Alison Marsh - Founder of PregnancyPilatesImpact.com
References:
A New Perspective on Diastasis Recti
http://www.theconnectedyogateacher.com/033-a-new-perspective-on-diastasis-recti-with-dr-sinead-dufour/