‘Pilates

for post pregnancy’

Lizanne Jones

May 26th 2019




















Course Location: The Pilates Clinic Wimbledon



ABSTRACT

Throughout the nine months of pregnancy a woman’s body undergoes many
changes, particularly in the final trimester and during the actual delivery itself.
While every woman’s experience of pregnancy will be unique there are many
postpartum imbalances that most women will encounter to some degree – most
commonly these include a weakened pelvic floor, postural changes and
overstretched abdominal muscles. The latter often resulting in Diastasis Recti
also known as abdominal seperation. This is when the linea alba, or connective
tissue that runs down the midline of the abdominals, stretches and causes the
rectus abdominus muscle to separate. Diastasis Recti results in a weakened core
and can cause back pain and compromise pelvic floor function.

My client., Becca, came to me four months after the birth of her second child. Her
primary concern was that she felt her core muscles were weak – I noticed a slight
diastasis recti of a little less than one finger wide. She was also experiencing
some lower back pain and tight, sore upper back and shoulders, probably as a
result of breast feeding and carrying a baby and a toddler (her eldest child was
2).

With all this in mind I was able to devise a programme of twice weekly classes
using the BASI block system.
























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Table of Contents

Title Page

Abstract Page 2

Table of contents Page 3

Anatomical description Page 4

Case Study Page 5

BASI Block Programme Pages 6 & 7

Conclusion Page 8

Bibliography Page 9





























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The diagram above shows what a diastasis recti can look like. To check for
diastasis recti in a client you should do the following:-

1. Lie on back with knees bent
2. Place hands on the abdomen with fingertips extending two inches above and
below the naval
3. Exhale and lift head
4. If you feel a seperation that is greater than two fingers wide a Dr should be
consulted before embarking on any further exercise.

If a diastasis recti is detected, any exercise programme should avoid certain
moves depending on the severity. Whilst observing the utmost caution these
include crunches, hundreds, push ups, planks and oblique work. Pilates provides
a safe and effective way of returning to exercise and rehabilitating the abdominal
muscles not to mention providing a workout for the whole body.




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Case Study

Clients name: Becca

Age 31

Becca is the mother to a boy and a girl ( aged 2 years 6 months and 4 months).
Becca had not done pilates before coming to me but had done yoga and had very
good body awareness. Becca’s goals were:-

1. Regain abdominal strength
2. Strengthen her pelvic floor
3. Improve posture

Although her Diastasis Recti was not overly pronounced (barely one finger
wide), I decided to initially apply the usual limitations to a programme for a
person presenting with DR ie. No planking, no forward flexion of the upper torso
(sit ups), no upper body flexion with rotation and no extreme back extension.

We agreed that as much as possible to would try to do two classes a week. With
all this in mind I devised the following programme.



























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Becca’s BASI Programme for post pregnancy

Roll down
Mat warm up:-
Pelvic curl
Spine twist supine
Leg lifts
Leg changes

To avoid forward flexion I replaced chest lifts and chest lifts with rotation with
leg lifts and changes. I modified the spine twist supine by keeping knees bent and
feet on the mat.

FOOT WORK – on the Cadillac
Parallel heels
Parallel toes
V position toes
Open V heels
Open V toes
Calf raises
Prances
Single leg heels
Single leg toes

I gave a verbal cue to lift the pelvic floor whilst exhaling and straightening the
legs. Foot work on the Cadillac was a good strong exercise for the hamstrings and
being able to see her feet made any corrections easier to follow.

ABDOMINALS on the reformer
Short box
Flat back and tilt

I made sure there was no flaring of the ribs as the trunk hinged back. The tilt
was a great exercise for the obliques.

HIPWORK on the reformer
Frog
Circles down and up
Openings

SPINAL ARTICULATION on the reformer
Bottom lift
Bottom lift with extension

As well as a nice spinal articulation this also challenged the abs, hamstrings and
hip flexors.

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STRETCHES on the reformer and ladder barrel

1 Standing lunge

This was a nice hamstring and hip flexor stretch without any strain on the abs

2 Shoulder stretch 1 and 2

This was a great stretch for an area that is often tight after pregnancy and
breastfeeding. Later we also did shoulder stretch on the step barrel which
became a favourite.

FBI 1 on the Cadillac
Side reach

I made sure that her feet were kept pressed firmly on the upright poles to
maintain a stable pelvis. This was a challenging oblique exercise .

ARMWORK on the reformer
Arms sitting series

This was good for arm and upper body strength – very important with the
demands of carrying a baby and a toddler. Strengthening the upper back muscles
helped to improve posture which had been compromised due to hunching over
during breast feeding.

FBI 2 on the Cadillac
Saw
This was a good hamstring stretch and good work for the back extensors which
helped with posture and tension.

LEGWORK on the reformer
Single leg skating

I cued to push into the heel of the foot on the carriage to feel a good glute
challenge.

LATERAL FLEXION/ROTATION on the reformer
mermaid

Later on when the DR was closed I introduced side stretch on the wunda chair.

BACK EXTENSION on the reformer
Pulling straps 1 and 2

We progressed to swan basic on the wunda chair

ROLL DOWN 7



CONCLUSION

This was a very satisfying project for both myself and my client Becca. The BASI
block system, backed up by a bit of reading and research made devising a
programme relatively simple. Having such clear guidelines in the block system
gave me the confidence to teach classes that I knew were safe and effective. A
valuable lesson for me was realizing how important it was for Becca to feel that I
was confident in what I was teaching – motherhood can be a time of stress and
anxiety .

I knew that with dedication and perseverence the programme would deliver
results physically but what I hadn’t counted on was how much it would deliver
over and above that. The breathing patterns and choreography that Becca found
difficult at first became a really important part of the hour, helping her to relax.
The pilates classes continue and we both look forward to them.































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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Diagram www.mutusystem.com/diasasis-recti

Pilates Second Edition, Rael Isacowitz, 2014

Understanding Diastasis Recti: Part 1 www.bodyandbirth physio.com
Samantha Cattach PT, May 5th 2016

Diastasis Recti:The whole Body solution to Abdominal Weakness and Seperation,
Katy Bowman

Advice on Postnatal Exercise, www.rcob.org.uk

Pilatesanytime.com































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