Mutu system for distasis recti. Anyone?

[littleraysofsunshine]

Anyone used this and felt the benefits and worth the splurge???

[seaoflove]

Watching with interest.

I have DR (diagnosed in second pregnancy but DEFINITELY had it after the first) and probably an umbilical hernia. I'm a mess!

[littleraysofsunshine]

I really want to try but just unsure

[littleraysofsunshine]

Umbilical hernia is here too...

[SueGeneris]

I have this program but haven't got round to starting it since DS was born a few months ago.

However, when you sign up you get access to the private facebook page and going by this there are a lot of people who are getting great results closing the gap. Also lots of useful discussion about hernias, diet, exercise, body image and DR generally. I do intend to start the program soon. I think it cost me about £40. I'd recommend it going by what I see on FB.

[seaoflove]

I signed up to the emails (still pregnant right now!) and they sent me a 15% discount code, so I might take the plunge using that.

[littleraysofsunshine]

I have too, it's still like £58 though... I know it's got big reviews. But seems pricey in comparison to most fitness dvds. Must be very good though. And I know that gym memberships can cost this each month. I just don't want to get another programme and feel the same way with the same broken tummy... Does it specify on there about umbilical hernias?

[tantantan]

Hello ladies - I am a full MuTu fan. It is not just a fitness dvd, it's a very well researched, very up-to-date pelvic health rehabilitation program, which takes the realities of life as a mother into account. As SueGeneris puts it, the discussions on the private facebook page are extremely helpful and cover a wide range of topics, lots of knowledge from the participating mamas but also regular feedbacks by Wendy Powell herself. Updates to the program uptil now have been free of charge. Depending on your needs, you can choose the Focus Program or the full 12-week program, which is more intense if you are seeking weight loss or a more distinct toning up. Thanks to the Focus program, my gap closed up from 2.5 cm to 1 - 1.5 cm and I am not always consistent..
It can be really life-changing in the sense of empowerment by knowledge and awareness: What is happening to your body and what you can do to be healthy and strong, now but also in the long run. You yourself or the health care providers around you. I would really say, the best money you can spend for yourself and therefore also for your loved-ones.

[LisaButlerBeYOUFit]

I discovered the MuTu system after being told, at 37, that i would need the Transvaginal Tape procedure to 'fix' my postnatal stress incontinence (baby was 3 at this point). I had been to the Doc, the physio and gynae - and then watched the procedure on Google (recommendation....don't!!). I decided then that there had to be another way.

MuTu was the only pelvic floor/DR programme that I could find and I signed up. I went back to the Gynae for follow up appointments a few months later and was told that there was significant improvement in my pelvic floor symptoms so I no longer needed the surgery.

At that time I was in the British Army and subsequently decided, as a result of the sh** I went through over that postnatal period, to retrain as a Women's Exercise Specialist, working only with women and focussing on pre/postnatal and pelvic floor issues.

The MuTu system is fabulous to introduce you back to healthy eating and exercise habits...the overall cost is reasonable and the online FB group is accessible and very friendly.

What I would say though, is that an online product, regardless of how well put together and directed, cannot replace the personal approach.

I would recommend and URGE any woman, when PN and concerned about any pelvic floor / DR / hernia issues to see a Doc and to seek help from a WOMEN'S HEALTH Physio. Do not accept a standard physio - they are fabulous but they are not specialists in the female physique...certainly the advice I was given by my generalist physio hindered my DR recovery.

There are not many of them around and you may have to pay privately but that will be the best money spent and should be your starting point. They will give you both an internal and external examination and tell you what is REALLY going on for you - and then give you a bespoke exercise 'prescription' to help you.

Closing DR is not just about exercise and nutrition....it is about correct posture, breathing, movement, alignment, releasing tight muscles before strengthening weak ones..hydration, optimum rest, nutritional supplementation....many of these aspects can only really be optimally assessed in person.

In my research there have been only 2 programmes which I have used and endorse. The first is the MuTu - but with the caveat that you should see a Women's Health Physio and Doc first and the second is the 6 week Foo Foo Fun Club (FFFC) run by Burrell Education.

The FFFC is instructor led and has a significant health questionnaire and consultation as part of the programme to ensure that your Core Restore Coach can really help you to back to optimal strength. The advantage of this programme is the 1-2-1 aspect and the lifelong skills you will gain.

Whatever exercise you choose to do postnatally, please don't do any sit-ups, planks, tyre lifts, v-sits...or any movement that causes your tummies to 'dome' as you sit up. Make sure that whatever you choose is specifically aimed at your stage of life and whoever is teaching you is properly qualified and therefore insured to work with you.

Ultimately - you can get cheaper DVDs and instructors but you only have one body....hernias, stress incontinence, DR etc are all your body's way of saying 'HELP' and a DVD and a FB group can never really come to the rescue in place of a personal service.

Good Luck!

[seaoflove]

That's a great recommendation Lisa, thanks! I wasn't able to get an appointment with a physio during this pregnancy (well I could, but they could only offer me 8.30am appointments, which isn't ideal for a non driving SAHM of a three year old with hideous SPD) but I'm told I can call up within four weeks of the birth to get in the system.

Is MuTu recommended for umbilical hernia? I've done a bit of reading online and some sources seem to suggest it can only be repaired surgically, unlike a diastasis.

[LisaButlerBeYOUFit]

That sounds awful seaoflove - I'm sorry you are having such a crappy time. When are you due?

I think that surgical repair is really the only option for an umbilical hernia, esp after pregnancy...the muscular walls are already weakened and even if you do everything as you should, you would always have a weakness.

www.nhs.uk/conditions/umbilicalhernia/Pages/Whatisitpage.aspx

If you have SPD as well, I'd suggest your core stability is incredibly unstable and weak and an online programme mightn't serve you the best.....perhaps working in a small group or 1-2-1 on a bespoke diastasis programme might serve your body the best - and if your exercise practitioner were to coordinate with your Women's Health Physio, all the better.

Key for SPD is your posture & alignment....you need to sit/walk like a princess...nice and tall, knees together and deliberately!!! Sleep with a cushion between your legs, and if your sofa or chair leaves your knees higher than your pelvis, you might consider raising yourself up with cushions so your pelvis/knees are level.

Have you considered a pregnancy specific osteopath? Some do home visits that could work?

Where are you?

[LisaButlerBeYOUFit]

Also - consider wearing a Baby Belt to ease the pressure of your bump from your pelvis...

www.burrelleducation.com/shop-for-the-baby-belly-belt/

[seaoflove]

Baby is coming out via ELCS next week I'm a physical wreck - the SPD has been bad for the entire pregnancy, and to be honest my pelvis didn't recocer from my first pregnancy in 2011 (still experiencing pain after brisk walks three years later). So I agree that I have a whole heap of issues that need correcting, it's just a question of knowing when and where to start.

I had a couple of sessions with a physio when DC1 was around 6/7m, but I ended up cancelling because the physio was clearly irritated by the presence of a screeching baby interrupting things (understandable, but I had no one to babysit!) and didn't do much other than recommend Pilates type exercises and pass comment on how incredibly weak I was

So that's why I was drawn to MuTu - something I can do at home in my own time, without having to shlep to the hospital in the next town, potentially having to bring children with me! I've also considered an osteopath but honestly didn't know whether it was entirely appropriate for my issues.

Any recommendations for private practitioners/bespoke diastasis programmes? I'm in South Essex.

[SisterConcepta]

I found it very good overall but as previous poster mentioned, I didn't actually decrease the gap until I got instruction from an excellent physiotherapist.

[LisaButlerBeYOUFit]

seaoflove - I don't know Essex at all (I'm a country bumpkin in the West Country!) but could suggest you check on here to see if there is anyone nearby that could help. I know most Ambassadors will do 1-2-1 and all are trained in diastasis healing.

www.foofoofunclub.com/find-an-ambassador/

There is an absolutely wonderful fabulous awesome WHP in London if you could get someone to mind the older baby and maybe wee baby too - her name is Maria Elliott and she does a Mummy MOT...I am going up to London to have mine - 4.5 years PP. She is truly fab and so well trained/connected/recommended.

themummymot.com

x

[Bluetrews25]

Specialist women's health physio gets my vote over a personal trainer.

[littleraysofsunshine]

I had a gap with my first which wasn't diagnosed and I also didn't realise there was a problem until I was expecting and gave birth to baby number two where I had stretched a bit more (small frame) and got a 5cm gap. Then I fell pregnant with my third and got a 7-8cm split after him.

All big babies. Fat deliveries and one back to back so a lot of abdo pressure there. I have also basically been pregnant or breastfeeding for the past four and a half years so the relaxin hormone is always there.

My belly button popped all. Three ones and my tummy looks fine until you see the middle surrounding my Belly button where it looks like I'm an 80yo lady. Pokes out with horrible shapes. When I lay down my tummy sinks in completely, still a 5cm gap at least, along with the 'muscle bunches' as the physiotherapist said.

I've been told that surgery would be an option if j were to have no more kiddies. Hard decision for me o make at the age of nearly 26 as we didn't want to end yet and I believe that it shouldn't take surgery to fix? Or am I wrong?

My thing is that I need to know that my tummy can heal is the current state. I just think that I could do all this works out for the Ealing to not go back as it should. As in, when I exercise, I feel like it's not healing back over / or 'forming and fusing back together' only it feels like it's just healing in the wrong place

Does this make sense?

[littleraysofsunshine]

I had a gap with my first which wasn't diagnosed and I also didn't realise there was a problem until I was expecting and gave birth to baby number two where I had stretched a bit more (small frame) and got a 5cm gap. Then I fell pregnant with my third and got a 7-8cm split after him.

All big babies. Fat deliveries and one back to back so a lot of abdo pressure there. I have also basically been pregnant or breastfeeding for the past four and a half years so the relaxin hormone is always there.

My belly button popped all. Three ones and my tummy looks fine until you see the middle surrounding my Belly button where it looks like I'm an 80yo lady. Pokes out with horrible shapes. When I lay down my tummy sinks in completely, still a 5cm gap at least, along with the 'muscle bunches' as the physiotherapist said.

I've been told that surgery would be an option if j were to have no more kiddies. Hard decision for me o make at the age of nearly 26 as we didn't want to end yet and I believe that it shouldn't take surgery to fix? Or am I wrong?

My thing is that I need to know that my tummy can heal is the current state. I just think that I could do all this works out for the Ealing to not go back as it should. As in, when I exercise, I feel like it's not healing back over / or 'forming and fusing back together' only it feels like it's just healing in the wrong place

Does this make sense?

[CurrerBell]

Hi, I'm wondering about getting this too. My youngest is 6yo and I still haven't sorted out my tummy...

My tummy is very wrinkled and lumpy and makes some very odd shapes... my belly button still sticks out. I am quite small and carried my big babies right out the front.

However I have just done the 'finger' test and there is only about 1.5 fingers' gap, so I don't know if that's too bad - it says 3+ is a problem? I know I have weak core muscles though and need to do something about it.

[LisaButlerBeYOUFit]

My suggestion to you all is see a WHP if you can afford to - or certainly seek a referral from your Doc.

The muscular walls can mesh together - I have 2 finger gap and that is fine but it is the strength of the muscular fibre between the vertical lines of the muscle AND the gap AND the overall coordination of the muscle around the body that will heal the gaps.

If you have done the tummy tests yourself, your fingers must be side by side when you feel up and down the linea alba...people often do it with the fingers stacked.

The width of gap determines what exercises you can do - twisting type movements can stretch the diastasis and hinder recovery - e.g., side bends, sitting twists.

I'm not saying MuTu doesn't deliver - it is a very good programme and I have had success with it. Just be aware there is no consultation before use and the FB group often does not have the right people answering the questions.

Seriously - ladies. Your bodies and health should be a No 1 consideration. See someone who can genuinely assess your body and needs...if it is a PT then ask to see their qualifications. If you can get to a WHP, that would be where I would go first. If you can get to a Core Restore Coach via //www.foofoofunbox.com, I'd recommend that highly as the programmes they are qualified for include extensive consultation, discussion with WHP as to suitability of any programmes subscribed for them and there is a specific diastasis programme.

Inside out is where you must and need to start...don't stress about what you like like...getting back to where you want to be will come. For now, concentrate on good nutrition, hydration, good posture, rest.