How Do I Make My Stomach Look the Way It Did Before Kids?

The answer for me was to exercise, specifically sit ups. I saw a huge difference in two weeks and you will feel great.

I don't what "split abs" are but I can say that I have been taking pilates with the reformer, not floor pilates and at
age 51, my abs are better than I could ever imagine. I see it being all up-hill from here as I continue with the pilates.

A.

Ladies,

I won't call myself an expert, but here's the deal. Every woman who has had a child has had split abs. The abs are meant to split open to allow for the child (AKA the big pregnant belly). Most of the time, the abs will go back together on their own. You didn't mention how old your children were, but it is possible that yours will too, with time (not what you want to hear). Now it is true that when you get a tummy tuck, they go in and sew the ab muscles back together before they remove all of the excess skin. Yes, that is a very expensive proceedure (between 8-10 thousand). I had lost all of my baby weight and had a ton of flabby skin. I was so grossed out I couldn't even look at my body. I wasn't willing to have a giant smiley face scar though and the DR told me my little pouch would never go away, but that the skin would go back over time. Now this is for those other gals with extra skin...I told you I had lost the baby weight but I still had about 30 extra pounds on me for my height. I joined Weight Watchers (you don't have to buy their food!) in April and since I lost weight slowly, my skin actually shrunk back as I lost. By August I was looking better than I did even in HS. I also lost the pouch that Dr told me I wouldn't! I would really look into losing more with a low-fat high fiber diet.

I would like to know as well. I have lost all but 1 lb in almost 10 months but just seem to have extra skin. Does it ever go away? I do pilates 2x week.

stomic??? It is spelled stomach!!!

Well I completely understand your pain on the.. but I may have a solution and have seen a lot of the same results.. I had my first natural and the other 2 c- section.. my stomach used to hang which I call my pouch.. but last year I started pilates and it HELPS!! once you've gotten the hang of it and can do 30min or more you will defiantly see the results. Your stomach will start to shrink and become firm. I hope you get the results you want and be able to look as happy as you feel soon!!

I have the same problem... let me know what you find out!

I am sorry to say that I don't know this either, but if you get resopnces I would love it if you could share. I have only seen that the tummy tuck will bring the muscles back together, but that isn't something I would ever do. Thanks.

I don't think there is a lot you can do... I myself have that problem and it's pretty severe... When i lie back on the floor with my knees tucked under and come up slowly, i can put three fingers in the space(in middle of abdomen) that should be closed...the condition is worse if you've had a c-section due to the way they have to pull up on muscles/stomach to get a baby out.. i believe the condition is diastis recti or rectus, anyway i think a tummy tuck is the only solution... I'm waiting one year and seeing if i'm okay with it after i lose my last 10 lbs.
M.

I've had 5 children, I'm 48 and have a rather flat stomach due, I believe, to exercising! I do aerobics (bike, cycle, swim, or elliptical machine) 5 days a week for a minimum of 40 minutes. Three days I go for 50 to 60 minutes, my off days I lift weights. I don't just target my abs, but an overall body work out. A great website to check out is Prevention.com You can do it!

How funny... wish we all knew this remedy.

I breast fed both and that helped a bit... I walk a lot on a treadmill and do sit ups and lift small weights.... this seems to help.... drink lots of water and really watch what you eat.

Some say... when we hit 30 and now I'm almost 40, women may relax a bit in the lower ab area... meaning we need to do something... our metabolisms may slow a bit more than when we were younger. So, yes, something to think about...

It depends on if you want to take the surgery route or not. My doctor told me that you can't fix it unless they go in and sew it up, but it's expensive so I haven't persued it yet. You might be able to get it covered by your insurance since it's a medical condition.
I used the Windsor pilates series and it helped tone my abdominal area down considerably.
Good Luck!
A.

I have a sister in law who has that problem and her physician told her that the only way to repair it is to have surgery. He also said that if she should only get the surgery if she wasn't planning on having anymore children because it would most likely happen again.

Mine is terrible. I'm probably still overweight by about 20 lbs. but my stomach hangs and I had a c-section the first time and natural the second and it too looks divided. I've been told nothing will fix it but a tummy tuck. I would love to have that done but it's very expensive and not without risks and I'm a chicken. I know I work out all the time and crunches, etc. have never helped at all.

If you do get a response I would love to know too

As a mommy of two (with two C-sections), and a local yoga instructor, I can sympathize with you. Getting the stomach back to it's pre-baby shape is something we ALL struggle with. Practicing Yoga (and Pilates) tightens the core muscles and gives you an awesome workout for the mind, spirit and body. You can take classes at your local YMCA or health club or Yoga studio or try YogaJournal.com for pose advice. Try any of the yoga videos out there...for Pilates, I recommend Winsor Pilates, for Yoga, Om yoga with Cindy Lee, Baron Baptistes, vinyasa flow, Shiva Rea's Shakti or anything from Rodney Yee. Look at the positive side, you now have a new role in life...as MOMMY! Don't let that stop your from being AWESOME WOMAN!! Depending on where you live, you can come try one of my classes for free to see if you like yoga. Peg

I am sorry to say, the only fix for those split ab muscles is an abdominoplasty or 'tummy tuck'. I too have two beautiful baby boys...it's just my babies are now 4 and 5!! I breastfed both. Watched my diet w/ both. I only gained 35 lbs w/ each one. I lost all the weight within about 4 months after having them. NO situps or dieting in the world would fix those muscles or the sagging skin. SO, I just had the tummy tuck. My dr was DR Moliver in Clearlake. While the cost varies GREATLY by how much work you have to do, mine was $6900. That includes ALL anesthesia, follow ups, and the consultation...everything! A friend of mine never did a sit up in her life and was always just built bigger and taller than me...her estimate was $11900....see the difference? I was REALLY down for the count for a week and a half. But by day 7 I drove my son to kinder. It's a risk. And it costs $. I was just so desperate to have part of the body I once had. I really took care of myself before, during and after my pregnancies...I didn't want to fight this for the next 50 yrs!!! I took a loan out of my husband's 401K. If he wants to go out on a boat and beach...the only way I was going to go w/ him...or take the kids to the wavepool...was to fix my problem area. Good luck.