Diastasis Recti - the Mutu System .... has anyone tried it?

[MrsMcGregor]

Posted on Chat but no response over there so re-posting here. Has anyone tried the Mutu System and does it work? Really need to do something about my tummy and would like to whip it into shape in time for some A/W shopping! Positive and negative feedback welcome if anyone has given this a go.

Thanks

[CharlotteCollins]

Ha, at that price?! No way.

I ordered BeFit Mom from the US, because I could find nothing reasonable here. It worked well and I enjoyed it. Actually, four years down the line I have just ordered it again because I gave away the old one and my tummy is starting to sag again...

[MsFiremanSam]

Hi, I have done the full MuTu programme and it really worked for me. I reduced the gap in my stomach muscles from 5 to 1.5 fingers and feel much stronger in the core. Read all the science bit on the website. It's the only programme I found which heals your body after pregnancy and childbirth. There's an app you can download, and a book for about £6 which covers the basics. Maybe try that first before committing to the full programme.

[MrsMcGregor]

Thanks both ... the split in my tummy is really visible MsFireman .... it's like a dip in the middle with ridges either side - ugh! I'll check out the book and app, that's good advice, thank you. Will also have a look at BeFit Mom, Charlotte - thank you.

[FrugalFashionista]

I used the Tupler method, which boils down to pulling your navel towards your spine throughout the day as often as you can remember. My diastasis went from 3 to 1 fingerwidth and I don't notice it any more. I also bought an American DVD but it is still shrinkwrapped - life is too short

Good luck!

[missmoon]

I did the Mutu system, and it really helped, both with core strength (I had trouble lifting DD) and general tone/ fitness. It's pricey but was really worth it for me, and you can do it in short chunks of time at home (while children are napping, or sometimes with them!). The programme is designed to address general health too, eating, walking etc., which is very useful. The only thing I would say is to make sure that you don't move on too quickly to the intensive exercises, (as explained on the Mutu website) you need to wait until your DR gap is sufficiently small. I had trouble measuring my gap so went to see GP who measured me. I made much quicker progress once I figured out how to properly contract my stomach muscles, I found a good tip on a website: breathe out through your mouth making a hissing sound (like the letter "s"), while pulling the muscles in. Then do the one lot of exercises while keeping the muscles contracted, but breathing normally. I did this while walking etc. and it helped too. Good luck!

[missmoon]

Should say, my gap was awful: 6-7 fingers, now down to around 1.

[CharlotteCollins]

That's inspiring, Frugal. I think my gap's been widening again partly because I've been contracting the wrong muscles. It was 2 or less and is now 3... Still an improvement from 5 or 6 at its worst, though!

[SaulGood]

I did the Tupler Technique. Bought the book for a couple of quid on ebay and that's the only expense. Closed a gap of 4 fingers down to less than a finger.

I now have a rather impressive six pack but that's down to an awful lot of hard work done since closing the separation!

[CardiCorgi]

I've just signed up for the MuTu system. I don't think that my gap is too bad, but I suddenly felt a bit saggy and would like to go about toning my core the right way. I also spend a fair bit of time at work reading about the perils of a weak pelvic floor which scared me.

If you sign up for the free tep ten exercises, they send emails with blog entries or special offers, one of them was the main programme for 44% off in the "Wendy's birthday sale". I think that there were a couple of other occasions when there were sales too.

[MsFiremanSam]

I also saw a women's health physio for a one-off session which really helped me to understand how and why my body was damaged - I did a couple of weeks of exercises to restabilise my pelvis before starting mutu. I was having a lot of lower back pain before that.

[Coastingit]

This is all super interesting. Just lurking really. I have birth ten wks ago by c section and I feel terrible from head to foot. I'm a stone over my pre baby weight but feel starving hungry if I try to eat small amounts like I used to. I am unfit, have backache, sleep deprivation and probably a bit depressed and stressed, I have stomach ache from stress which I haven't had before. It's vain but also just about my own health, I want to get my body back. Looking at Pilates as a more long term thing. Not sure whether I have DR or not, it's all so wobbly round there. I had my first period already (formula feeding) and I just feel all bloated, achey and pcos-y all the time. I wish I could go for a run on my own without two tiny children needing me! And eat zero carb for a few days at least.

God that was a rant, sorry. Blame the sleep deprivation for that.

[CharlotteCollins]

Just remember, Coasting, that it took 9 months for your body to get like that. So make sure you give it 9 months (at the very least!) to get back into a shape (literally and health-wise) that you're happy with.

[FrugalFashionista]

Coasting it's early days still for you. DD2 is five, and I noticed this spring that my belly is flat again. I've been doing a huge clearout and I my clothes from the mid-1990s fit again! I started with pram pushing and continued with 5K about five times per week. Am to lazy and busy to do anything else. I was exhausted when DC were small, so don't be too harsh on yourself.

The diastasis recti means that your straight stomach muscles are split in the middle. If you just do traditional crunches, it can get worse, so you have to train the often neglected oblique ones that pull the split together and strengthen your internal girdle. You can do Kegel exercises simultaneously while you pull your navel towards the spine but what has helped most with the post-partum leakiness is a set of tiny weights designed for the pelvic floor that I wore for half an hour during my morning routine. They cause the muscles to contract automatically so you do not need to spend any bandwith on dull repeat exercises - you just increase the weight gradually. I still use them a few weeks every year to maintain the results.

Also google 'Lindsay Brin diastasis'. She has a free youtube video with a good diastasis routine. Anything too complicated and I won't do it but these worked for me.

[FrugalFashionista]

[Coastingit]

Thank you Charlotte and Frugal.

Sorry for ranting! I know it's early days and I do feel bad for letting it get to me so much.

[CharlotteCollins]

Feel free to rant and don't feel bad for being upset by it. When it's your body right now, it's hard to see that it might ever be better... So I was just presenting a view from 5 years down the road.

[Neonbib]

Thanks McGregor for pointing me here - lots of good advice :)

[Neonbib]

Coasting - I feel the same as you. Really miserable at the moment. Like FiremanSam said above, please go to your GP for a referral to a women's health physio if your GP diagnosed DR.

[CharlotteCollins]

Frugal's post inspired me to make an effort to isolate the deep tummy muscles properly and I realised I'd been tightening the wrong muscles in the past. After only two weeks, my gap had gone from 3 back to 2 and I don't really feel I did anything: just did that as often as I remembered.

DVD is still unused.

[FrugalFashionista]

Well done Charlotte, really impressive!

[JohnsonsSpreadsheet]

Place marking as I can't work out how to without commenting on my app!