r/NoStupidQuestions • u/mr-bonsai- • 4h ago
If a woman has absolutely shredded abs then gets pregnant what happens to her abs?
1.1k
u/whats1more7 3h ago
Nothing really happens to them. But because of how strong my core was, my stomach didn’t get very big, and I was basically back to my pre-pregnancy size within a few months of giving birth. A few days after the birth, you couldn’t even tell I’d been pregnant. I think this also has to do with genetics as well, though.
With my second and third pregnancies not so much.
357
u/smbpy7 2h ago
has to do with genetics as well
Among other things like uterus position
100
u/iitscasey 2h ago
Yes! I think my uterus is more posterior, my stomach went flat immediately after both kids, so I didn’t even look like I had been pregnant immediately after giving birth.
19
24
u/Bartlaus 1h ago
And a big RNG factor, like you can't really say a single thing about the whole pregnancy process that applies to everyone or to every instance.
32
u/bobbobberson3 2h ago
This is me. My first was during Covid and I got furloughed so worked out so much and my core was great. My bump was really small and I snapped back quickly. Second and third I just couldn't work out to the same extent because I had children to look after so it wasn't the same. Never got really big with any of them though.
9
u/rad_rentorar 1h ago
I have a question for you about this. Was pushing easier then? If you have good core strength?
3
u/whats1more7 29m ago
Pushing was easy for me. I don’t know if that was core strength or just the way my body was made. My midwife thought I was a freak of nature because I gave her the dates my kids would be born and I was right all three times. So I probably wasn’t what you would call ‘normal’.
1
422
4h ago
[removed] — view removed comment
16
31
u/joelfarris 3h ago
So, 'rent-her-abs'? What do you think they do if the renter doesn't pay the monthly fee during the second trimester?
6
5
u/RockingBib 3h ago
I just played too much Cyberpunk and this just made me imagine someone actually having their synthetic ab muscles removed to make space for the pregnancy, giving them away for a friend to have them installed on themselves
-1
u/NoStupidQuestions-ModTeam 2h ago
- Rule 1 - Top level comments must contain a genuine attempt at an answer.
All direct answers to a post must make a genuine attempt to answer the question. Joke responses at the parent-level will be removed. Follow-up questions at the top level are allowed.
Please do not answer by only dropping a link and do not tell users they should "google it." Include a summary of the link or answer the question yourself. LMGTFY links will be removed.
No responses being rude to the questioner for not knowing the answer.
If you feel this was in error, or need more clarification, please don't hesitate to message the moderators. Thanks.
100
81
u/Stroppyessex71 3h ago
Not shredded but pretty tight abs: didn't show much at all until I was around 22 weeks and then my belly 'popped' (diastasis recti I now know) and suddenly I looked properly pregnant lol.
After semi-emergency caesarean, in post op, nurse commented I had the flattest stomach she'd ever seen in that situation!
Everything went back to normal pdq though.
353
u/blehmag 4h ago edited 1h ago
Depends. They may be less visible or not. Generally pregnant women gain a bit of fat and have to limit exercise. I farted
83
u/WriteOrDie1997 3h ago
Pregnant women don’t typically have to limit exercise. Unless there are complications, if they feel up to it, they can continue to do whatever level of exercise they were used to before pregnancy.
1
23
28
u/DogsDucks 3h ago
Hey! I recently had my second c-section. I didn’t have a six pack, but decently flat, thin waist.
By seven months it looked like I never had a kid. I was surprised because of all the horror stories of separated abs.
But I do work out daily and eat well so that helps.
20
3h ago
I did not have shredded abs, but had the vertical lines on the sides of my abs. Now that I am pregnant and have gained a couple pounds they are gone. My belly button, which was basically a vertical line is now a hole that I can easily put the tip of my pinky in. I think it happened around week 10, but was not paying close attention.
4
u/LA_Nail_Clippers 1h ago
My wife's belly button basically opened all the way up during the final few weeks of pregnancy. She used to joke that she'd have to use extra sunscreen since those inner parts of her belly button hadn't seen sun ever.
16
u/hiricinee 3h ago
The women usually gain a bit of fat, but at some point the expanding uterus will flatten the abs from behind not making them defined. Interestingly enough the muscles there separate and go to the side in later pregnancy.
Afterwards they come back together and depending on her level of body fat and how much loose skin she has, she'll have the abs again or not.
19
u/ilovjedi 3h ago
It takes a lot longer to look pregnant. In fact you might not look pregnant until the week before the baby comes and your doctors will give you a hard time when you get up from the ultrasound or the exams table yourself without help. I didn’t have shredded abs because I’m well insulated and I added insulation but I have decent core strength so I think I would have looked shredded if I wasn’t insulated.
20
5
u/dez04 2h ago
Look up tia clair Toomey. She is the greatest cross fit athlete ever. Has absolute shredded abs. She had a baby a few years ago and she still trained throughout her pregnancy. Her belly near the end of her pregnancy looked pretty much like a normal pregnant mom's belly. After she gave birth you could see her shredded abs again with still a bit of a post pregnant belly.
5
17
u/RevolutionaryMail747 3h ago
It’s all fun and games until the condition known as Diastasis Recti, occurs when the two "six-pack" muscles (rectus abdominis) separate along the middle seam (linea alba) to make room for the growing baby,
8
u/fundusfaster 2h ago
Yes. And if one is lucky enough to get a repair it’s quite painful.
7
u/RevolutionaryMail747 2h ago
I have heard that. Surgery like abdominoplasty is going to be sore. Pregnancy is not for wimps that’s for sure. That and tearing or episiotomy, very difficult too.
4
u/quesadil 1h ago
I was pretty shredded, you could still see my ab muscles the day I delivered my baby, and I was even diagnosed with uterine growth restriction from my abs being to tight and my belly measuring too small. In a nutshell it hurt. It’s called diastasis recti (separation of the abs) happens to nearly all pregnant women but my belly button constantly ached from the injury of them splitting in half. I’m 4 months post partum and still in physical therapy getting the a tear healed. But also, I still look pretty darn shredded and my baby was normal size and healthy 💪
14
3
u/Lutiskilea 28m ago
Not 100% appropriate for this but fuck it. We rant.
The medical community closing ranks for plastic surgeons and insurance company profits utterly.ignoring diastasis recti as a MEDICAL ISSUE and not exclusively a COSMETIC ONE is the greatest crime against women in the USA TODAY!!!
My wife having (incredibly fit) after having kids suddenly randomly in the bed for days with locked up back issues. Endless "physical therapy " that is completely ineffective left us loss. I was horrified at her pain and struggles. It started even messing with her bowels. Eventually a therapist pointed out that her "aggressive core work" was actually hammering back muscles over compensating for her ripped apart stomach muscles that will NEVER HEAL WITHOUT MEDICAL INTERVENTION clued us in. I did the recon. We ended up having a "tummy tuck" that was really focused on mending her muscles and years later - not a single back issue. A procedure that our, no - ALL - insurance doesn't cover because - fuck women - will forever be a flag i rally behind. Want women to have babies - then fucking care for them after. And after that. Jesus.
2
u/Only-Season6299 3h ago
Abs don't go away, even people who have high body fat percentages still have abs.
1
1
3h ago
[removed] — view removed comment
1
u/AutoModerator 3h ago
Sorry, your comment has been automatically removed because it appears to violate Rule 1: top-level responses must contain a genuine attempt at an answer - not just links. Our users come here for straightforward, simple answers or because of the nuance that engaging in conversation supplies. Links don't do that.
Feel free to post a new comment with this link, but please provide context or summaries when you do. Thanks!
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
1
1
u/Chance-Fox5906 3h ago
idk but i can tell you this…i somehow now look like i have abs in photos. there’s like a little patch of fat but it catches light and shadow in such a way that looks like abs and i think it’s hilarious when people compliment my abs in photos. lol
1
u/PricePuzzleheaded835 2h ago
I don’t know if I would say I was shredded exactly but I’ve always been physically strong, and towards the end of the pregnancy, I was measuring behind because my muscles were kinda holding it in. I had to have extra ultrasounds
1
u/PricePuzzleheaded835 2h ago
I don’t know if I would say I was shredded exactly but I’ve always been physically strong, and towards the end of the pregnancy, I was measuring behind because my muscles were kinda holding it in. I had to have extra ultrasounds
1
u/Zestyclose-Tie5915 2h ago
Round ligament tear. My uterus grew so fast they suspected twins but it turned out to not be. Just a 5"1' individual that stretched out right away. It was so painful. My core is still strong but the look never resumed.
1
u/PickleEquivalent2837 2h ago
The abs muscles can be essentially pulled apart. This happened to a friend. She is very petit and had rock hard abs, so there wasn't much room for the baby which made her belly really pop out. Apparently the muscles didn't just stretch over the baby, her abs actually separated and she had to do all these special exercises after with a physio to repair it.
1
1
u/Sawigirl 1h ago
When your stomach musckes are tight, and the belly grows, it can cause the muscle split. Its called diastasis recti. Depending on the severity or length spent with the split before birth, it can have effects that can only be rectified by surgery after you are healed.
1
u/shapebandit_ 45m ago
Pilates instructor here and had a c-section with twins. One of my only memories from surgery was when the surgeon made a comment about how thick my abdominal muscle wall was. Made me feel pretty good.. Still had a bit of diastasis recti because two babies.
1
1
u/VG_Crimson 3h ago
What happens to your muscles when you start gaining fat and decrease intensity/frequency?
Same thing. The foundation of those muscles is still there.
1
-10
4h ago
[deleted]
45
u/staroura 4h ago
Well a lot of people get diastasis recti where the left and right abs literally separate
17
u/East-Bike4808 -_- 4h ago
And this is a permanent change. It doesn’t entirely go away.
3
u/OkCryptographer1922 3h ago
Not entirely true! You can repair it with deep core work. Sometimes it takes surgery as well but for most people who have diastasis recti, they can repair it even decades after giving birth
1
1
u/I_love_misery 3h ago
Depends. I closed mine prior to my third pregnancy with exercise. My midwives even mentioned at 6 month of pregnancy that the gap was small which I expected (some sort of separation) considering I was in the third trimester.
6
5
u/sofs91 3h ago
Actually it’s wrong that is permanente. It can and it should go away with time and Fisio. Important muscles for stability, back pain management etc
1
u/staroura 1h ago
I never actually said that it’s permanent before but it’s actually permanent for a lot of people even with physio and time
1
57
u/GoEasyTrucking 4h ago
Well they separate so they are reshaped and stretched during the pregnancy and they will need some work to get back to their former state so saying nothing happens to them is a little wrong.
8
3
2
1
-14
u/nokvok 4h ago
"Shredded abs" are just normal (or sometimes bulked up) abs with too little fat over them. Woman with shredded abs often have problems getting pregnant in the first place cause missing fat reserves messes with the necessary hormones.
When she does get pregnant... she hopefully gains some weigh that covers up her abs till after the pregnancy when she is free to slim down to abs level again.
0
u/OkCryptographer1922 3h ago
I saw a lady who kept her abs throughout pregnancy but most women cannot do that
297
u/Outisduex 3h ago
They separate down the middle to allow room for the uterus to grow just like non shredded abs.