It’s NEVER Too Late to Heal Diastasis Recti (or Your Pelvic Floor)Even if Your Kids Are Teenagers

Let me start this off by saying something that might ruffle a few feathers: I am genuinely disappointed (and low-key offended) at how little we’re prepared for postpartum recovery. We get:

• “Congrats on the baby!”

• “Rest for 6 weeks!”

• “Okay… you’re cleared. Have fun out there.”

And absolutely zero:

• Pelvic floor guidance

• Diastasis recti checks

• Posture coaching

• Deep core breathing education

• How to safely return to lifting, running, or literally existing

The 6-week check-up is treated like this magical finish line, when in reality, for most women, it’s the moment the real healing should begin. And the fact that nobody tells you this makes me want to scream into a pregnancy pillow.

But here’s the truth:

Healing Isn’t on a Timer & Your Body Doesn’t Expire

Whether you had a baby 6 months ago or 16 years ago, your core and pelvic floor are absolutely capable of healing, strengthening, and becoming functional again. And yes this is backed by research, not just “fit mom advice from the internet.”

Let’s break down the actual science.

What the Research Says

1. Connective Tissue Can Remodel at Any Age

The linea alba, the tissue that stretches during pregnancy and contributes to diastasis recti, is made of collagen. And collagen is not “one and done. Studies on connective-tissue remodeling show it can continue adapting for months to years, regardless of age. Collagen turnover averages 7–18 months, meaning your body is always capable of restructuring and strengthening the tissue between your abs.

2. DR Can Improve Even 10+ Years Postpartum

Clinical trials and physical therapy case studies have shown meaningful improvement in diastasis recti in women:

• in their 40s and 50s

• multiple pregnancies later

• 10–20+ years postpartum

Why? Because DR is primarily a pressure-management and muscle-coordination issue, not a “postpartum deadline issue.” When you retrain the transverse abdominis, diaphragm, and obliques, your core responds, whether you’re 25 or 65.

3. Pelvic Floor Therapy Works for Women Up to Their 80s

A 2018 study published in the International Urogynecology Journal found that pelvic floor muscle training significantly improved symptoms in older women, including those who’d had kids decades earlier. Translation: If an 80-year-old can strengthen her pelvic floor, so can you. Motherhood age does not matter.

4. Neuromuscular Training Has No Expiration Date

Your brain can re-learn how to use muscles at any time in life. You can re-pattern breath, posture, deep core activation, and pelvic floor coordination years after babies. Healing is about skill, not “catching it in time.”

Why So Many Women Struggle (It’s Not Your Fault)

Because no one teaches you:

• How to exhale during effort

• How to release a tight pelvic floor

• Why coning/doming matters

• How posture affects pressure

• What movements help vs harm

Instead, we learn the hard way:

• Peeing when laughing

• Lower back pain

• A belly that feels “stubborn.”

• Weakness despite working out

• Feeling unsupported in your core

It’s not you mama, it’s the system.

Okay, So How Do You Actually Heal?

Here’s the simple, sustainable protocol I use with clients, even those who “barely work out” or who have high schoolers running around.

1. Start With Breath (The Foundation of Everything)

This is the pillar of healing DR and pelvic floor dysfunction. Practice:

• Inhale: ribs expand sideways, belly gently relaxes

• Exhale: think “hug baby to spine” the deep core wraps in

• Keep ribs stacked over the pelvis

Just 2–3 minutes a day changes everything.

2. Fix Your Posture (Not in a rigid way, in a functional way)

Most women with DR/pelvic floor issues sit or stand in:

• Tucked hips

• Ribs flared

• Glutes clenched

• Neck forward

This changes pressure, breathing, and core engagement. Corrected posture = healed core.

3. Gentle Deep Core Exercises

Start with moves like:

• Heel slides

• Dead bugs (modified)

• 90/90 breathing

• Elevated planks

• Glute bridge with deep core activation

These look easy… until you do them correctly.

4. Strengthen Glutes + Back (Your Core’s Best Friends)

Most DR issues come with:

• weak glutes

• overactive hip flexors

• underactive lats

• too much lower-back compensation

Training these makes healing faster.

5. Remove the “flare-up” or coning movements temporarily

For a few weeks, avoid:

• Crunches

• Sit-ups

• Heavy planks

• Twisting core moves

• Aggressive front-loaded lifting

Let your midline heal, then progress safely.

6. Rebuild Strength Progressively (Not all at once)

When your deep core is functioning again, you gradually reintroduce:

• lifting

• running

• impact

• heavy core work

Healing isn’t about avoiding movement; it’s about sequencing it properly.

7. CONSISTENCY > PERFECTION

Even 10–12 minutes a day, 4 days a week, makes a significant change. You don’t need:

• gym equipment

• hour-long workouts

• a perfect schedule

  
  

You just need consistency with the right tasks.

So… Can You Really Heal DR 10 Years Later? YES. A thousand times yes. Your body is incredibly intelligent and adaptable. It doesn’t matter if your kids are having babies of their own. If you start now, your core and pelvic floor can absolutely improve. The fact that women are left to “figure this out” on their own after one of the most physically demanding events of the human experience… wild.

But the good news? Your healing timeline is NOT over. It never was. Your body is waiting for direction, not a deadline. And if you need support, I’m here to help you rebuild your core, your confidence, and your strength… at any stage.

Xoxoxox

Jade Morning