Yep, I said it. If you work with pregnant women, you might think I’ve completely lost the plot after reading this — but I promise, just stay with me!

The Research on DRAM Has Changed. A Lot.

Over the past five years, I’ve spent hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars on courses, trying to figure out the best way to treat Diastasis Rectus Abdominis (DRAM).

But about three years ago, I had a lightbulb moment: None of it made sense.

So I stopped teaching pregnancy and postnatal exercise classes altogether. Because telling women to avoid using their abdominal muscles during pregnancy and early postpartum, then expecting them to be strong enough to:

get through labour,
lift babies in car capsules, and
wrangle prams and baby gear like a ninja…

just did not add up.

And guess what? Turns out… I was kinda right! Now we have some exciting research that needs to be shared

🚨 Here’s Where We Went Wrong

We took research about how the core works in:

men, and
women who’ve never been pregnant,

and applied it to pregnant and postpartum women.

Big mistake. Huge.

So Let’s Set the Record Straight

The role of your core changes during pregnancy and postpartum.

The core muscles — rectus abdominis (the 6-pack), obliques, and transversus abdominis (deep lower abs) — behave differently in pregnancy and early postpartum than at any other time.

And how we treat the core when there’s pain or dysfunction? That’s different for every woman.

⚠️ There is no one-size-fits-all when treating DRAM. So if you’re confused or worried — please reach out. Patients and health and fitness profressionals who work with pregnant women should know this.

🔍 What We Know Now

100% of pregnant women will have a DRAM by 35 weeks.
The connective tissue down the centre of your abs (called the linea alba) stretches and thins to make room for your growing baby.
➡️ This is normal and necessary.
The tissue does not tear or split (unless you have a hernia — which is a different story).

💪 Here’s Where It Gets Interesting (Hang Onto Your Hats!)

In pregnancy — and only in pregnancy (we think!) — the rectus abdominis (RA) plays a vital role in core stability.

✔️ Its job is to brace and stabilise, helping the other abdominal muscles pull on it,
✔️ This reduces tension on the midline,
✔️ And if strong enough, it can actually help draw the midline in and protect it from widening too much.

Meanwhile, the transversus abdominis (lower abs) pulls on the linea alba, which can actually widen the gap.

🤯 Wait, the muscle we’ve been obsessing over for years in postnatal rehab (the TvA) might actually contribute to increased separation if not balanced correctly? YEP.

🧬 Other Fascinating Bits

Up to 3 cm (30 mm) of separation is now considered normal after having a baby.
Anything over 3 cm may be diagnosed as DRAM — so yes, 2 cm is still normal.
Your collagen type matters.
We all have a mix of:

Type 1 (tough and firm) and
Type 3 (stretchy and elastic).
The ratio you’ve got plays a big role in how DRAM presents and recovers.

What matters more than the gap at rest?
👉 How much it narrows during a curl-up.
A DRAM that goes from 7 cm at rest to 2.5 cm during movement is probably functioning just fine.
A gap that only narrows from 4 cm to 3.5 cm might not be.
Bulging, tension, softness or hardness during ab exercises?
🤷‍♀️ Honestly… it might not matter at all.
The linea alba isn’t under load in early postpartum — it’s like a floppy noodle. Of course it bulges.
There’s no good evidence that bulging is bad — or that it’s safe. So I’m firmly in the “who cares for now” camp until we know more.

🎉 The Exciting (and Slightly Frustrating) News

There’s a clear correlation between:

DRAM,
decreased rectus abdominis strength,
pregnancy-related pelvic girdle pain, and
reduced physical function.

❗ But — we’re not saying one causes the other (yet).
We just know they’re linked. And we also know that lingering pelvic girdle pain postnatally often shows up in women with DRAM and lower rectus strength.

Wait… So What Have We Been Telling Women to Do All These Years?

🤦‍♀️ “There’s nothing you can do during pregnancy for pelvic girdle pain — just wait until baby arrives.”
🤦‍♀️ “It’s all just hormones — it’ll settle down on its own.”
🤦‍♀️ “Avoid strengthening your rectus abdominis — focus on the TvA instead.”

Yeah. No.

💬 Let that sink in for a moment while we move on to Part 2…