Core Strength, Diastasis Recti and Return to Activity

Core weakness, abdominal changes, and difficulty returning to exercise can occur during pregnancy, after childbirth or surgery, or following a period of pain or inactivity. Physical therapy provides individualized guidance to help you improve strength, coordinate your core and pelvic floor, and return to the activities that matter to you safely and confidently.

Concerns We Can Address

Physical therapy may help with abdominal weakness, diastasis recti, difficulty activating or coordinating the core, discomfort with exercise, pelvic-floor symptoms during activity, and uncertainty about how to progress safely. Care may also support a return to walking, running, lifting, fitness classes, recreational activities, physically demanding work, or sports.

Diastasis recti involves a widening and change in tension of the connective tissue between the abdominal muscles. Treatment looks beyond the size of the separation to consider abdominal function, pressure management, movement, strength, and how your symptoms affect daily life.

How Physical Therapy May Help

Your individualized plan may include breathing and pressure-management strategies, core and pelvic-floor coordination, progressive strengthening, mobility exercises, and modifications to everyday movements or workouts. We can also evaluate activities that are difficult or uncomfortable and help you gradually rebuild the strength and capacity needed to perform them.

Treatment is based on your current abilities and goals rather than a one-size-fits-all exercise program or timeline. The goal is to provide practical exercises and strategies that you can use at home, in the gym, and during the activities you enjoy.

What to Expect

All new patients begin with a private, one-on-one telehealth evaluation. During this visit, we will discuss your symptoms, medical and activity history, current exercise routine, and goals; assess your movement, strength, breathing, and core coordination; and develop a personalized treatment plan.

Follow-up care may continue through telehealth or include an in-home appointment near Apex, North Carolina, when additional assessment or hands-on treatment would be beneficial. Telehealth appointments are available to patients located in North Carolina, Virginia, Georgia, and Florida.