{"id":7458,"date":"2026-10-02T07:38:00","date_gmt":"2026-10-02T07:38:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bioprofile.com\/?p=7458"},"modified":"2026-10-05T20:35:29","modified_gmt":"2026-10-05T20:35:29","slug":"belly-after-birth-what-the-first-weeks-change","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bioprofile.com\/en\/belly-after-birth-what-the-first-weeks-change\/","title":{"rendered":"Belly after birth: what the first weeks change, why the belly stays slack and what a gut scan measures"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<article class=\"wp-block-group bp-blog is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n\n<link rel=\"preconnect\" href=\"https:\/\/fonts.googleapis.com\">\n<link rel=\"preconnect\" href=\"https:\/\/fonts.gstatic.com\" crossorigin>\n<link rel=\"stylesheet\" href=\"https:\/\/fonts.googleapis.com\/css2?family=Poppins:wght@300;400;500;600;700&#038;display=swap\">\n<style id=\"bp-blog-design\">\n.bp-blog {\n  --bp-ink: #212527; --bp-teal: #005859; --bp-teal-deep: #006B62; --bp-emerald: #228A62;\n  --bp-green: #7CA74D; --bp-lime: #B7CB33; --bp-lime-soft: #B7CB3329; --bp-green-aa: #4F6B28;\n  --bp-beige: #EDEAE5; --bp-sand: #DBD4CB; --bp-pale-teal: #D9E6E6; --bp-white: #FFFFFF;\n  --bp-foot: #6b6b6b;\n  --bp-font: 'Poppins','Segoe UI',Arial,sans-serif;\n  --bp-fs-h1: 40px; --bp-fs-h2: 29px; --bp-fs-h3: 21px; --bp-fs-body: 17px;\n  --bp-fs-lead: 19px; --bp-fs-small: 14px; --bp-fs-foot: 13px; --bp-fs-btn: 17px;\n  --bp-lh-body: 1.75;\n  --bp-s-2: 8px; --bp-s-3: 12px; --bp-s-4: 16px; --bp-s-5: 24px; --bp-s-6: 32px;\n  --bp-s-7: 44px; --bp-s-8: 72px;\n  --bp-measure: 875px; --bp-prose: 875px; --bp-side: 40px; --bp-portrait: 132px;\n  --bp-radius-card: 20px; --bp-radius-btn: 10px; --bp-radius-chip: 999px;\n  --bp-shadow: 0 10px 30px rgba(0,88,89,0.10); --bp-shadow-soft: 0 2px 10px rgba(0,88,89,0.06);\n  font-family: var(--bp-font); font-size: var(--bp-fs-body); line-height: var(--bp-lh-body);\n  color: var(--bp-ink); background: var(--bp-white); -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;\n}\n.bp-blog, .bp-blog * { box-sizing: border-box; }\n.bp-blog p, .bp-blog li, .bp-blog h1, .bp-blog h2, .bp-blog h3, .bp-blog a, .bp-blog td,\n.bp-blog th, .bp-blog cite { overflow-wrap: break-word; min-width: 0; }\n.bp-blog h1, .bp-blog h2, .bp-blog h3 { text-wrap: balance; }\n.bp-blog p, .bp-blog li { text-wrap: pretty; }\n\/* WordPress core's flow layout puts 24px above every child after the first; inside\n   a grid or a flex row that is a misalignment (measured on the scan pages 2026-08-21) *\/\n.bp-blog .bp-blog-author > *, .bp-blog .bp-blog-related > *, .bp-blog .bp-blog-verify > * { margin-block: 0; }\n\n\/* --- sections: one column, the article measure, the section rhythm ------------ *\/\n.bp-blog-sec { position: relative; background: var(--bp-white); margin-block: 0;\n  padding-block: var(--bp-s-7);\n  padding-inline: max(var(--bp-side), calc((100% - var(--bp-measure)) \/ 2)); }\n.bp-blog-sec > *:last-child { margin-block-end: 0; }\n.bp-blog-sec > p, .bp-blog-sec > ul, .bp-blog-sec > ol, .bp-blog-sec > .wp-block-quote,\n.bp-blog-sec > .bp-blog-faq-item, .bp-blog-sec > .bp-blog-takeaways, .bp-blog-sec > .bp-blog-toc,\n.bp-blog-sec > .bp-blog-refs, .bp-blog-sec > .bp-blog-srclead { max-width: var(--bp-prose); }\n.bp-blog-sec--head { padding-block: var(--bp-s-7) 0; }\n.bp-blog-sec--body { padding-block: var(--bp-s-6) var(--bp-s-7); }\n.bp-blog-sec--beige { background: var(--bp-beige); }\n.bp-blog-sec--wash { background: linear-gradient(180deg, #B7CB331A 0%, #B7CB330D 100%), #FFFFFF; }\n.bp-blog-sec--tight { padding-block: var(--bp-s-6); }\n\/* A COLOURED SECTION IS A PANEL, so it carries the panel radius. Measured on the\n   live site 2026-08-28 rather than chosen: bioprofile.com's own coloured blocks\n   come in two families, full-bleed strips (w=1440 edge to edge, radius 0, 40px\n   side padding) and inset panels (the lime block w=677 and the sand block w=576,\n   both radius 16px). Ours cannot be the first: the theme's content wrapper is\n   1140px, so a coloured section here stops 150px short of the screen on both\n   sides and reads as an inset panel with square corners, which is the thing the\n   operator saw. So it takes the panel treatment. 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In een echo-onderzoek was de baarmoeder op dag 60 nog aan het krimpen, van 162 +\/- 17,5 mm lang op dag 1 naar 63 +\/- 8,2 mm op dag 60 bij vrouwen die voor het eerst bevielen. Thuisarts beschrijft dezelfde weken van een andere kant: bloedverlies en stolsels worden minder en stoppen binnen 6 weken.\"\n          }\n        },\n        {\n          \"@type\": \"Question\",\n          \"name\": \"Hoe kun je je buik strakker krijgen na bevalling?\",\n          \"acceptedAnswer\": {\n            \"@type\": \"Answer\",\n            \"text\": \"Het onderzoek geeft twee antwoorden die naast elkaar staan. Bij vrouwen die al diastase hebben maakte een gericht programma van kernstabiliteitsoefeningen met ademhalingstechnieken, voorlichting plus kinesiotape de afstand tussen de rechte buikspieren -26,25 mm kleiner (95%-BI -29,41 tot -23,09) tegenover geen programma. 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Wat Thuisarts wel geeft is een tijdlijn: bloedverlies stopt binnen 6 weken, en na een keizersnede duurt het ongeveer 6 weken voordat je weer alles kunt doen, met geen huishoudelijk werk in de eerste 2 weken, geen zwaar werk in de eerste 6 weken en nog geen sport in de eerste 6 weken.\"\n          }\n        },\n        {\n          \"@type\": \"Question\",\n          \"name\": \"Hoe krijg je buikvet weg na de bevalling?\",\n          \"acceptedAnswer\": {\n            \"@type\": \"Answer\",\n            \"text\": \"Langzaam, en het gemiddelde is gemeten. In een Taiwanees cohort van 461 vrouwen was het gewicht dat nog werd meegedragen vergeleken met voor het kind 4,6 +\/- 3,5 kg een maand en 2,1 +\/- 3,3 kg zes maanden na de bevalling. 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It is not a diagnosis.<\/li>\n\n<\/ul>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group bp-blog-toc is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n\n<p class=\"bp-blog-toclabel wp-block-paragraph\">Contents<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\n<li><a href=\"#hoe-ziet-je-buik-eruit-na-de-bevalling-de-eerste-weken\">What your belly looks like after birth: the first weeks<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n<li><a href=\"#waarom-je-buik-na-bevalling-slap-blijft\">Why your belly stays slack after birth<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n<li><a href=\"#buik-binden-na-bevalling-en-de-buik-strakker-krijgen\">Belly binding after birth, and getting your belly firmer<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n<li><a href=\"#het-gewicht-dat-blijft-en-eten-in-deze-maanden\">The weight that stays, and eating in these months<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n<li><a href=\"#wat-een-darmscan-meet-en-wat-niet\">What a gut scan measures, and what it does not<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n<li><a href=\"#samengevat\">In summary<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n<li><a href=\"#veelgestelde-vragen\">Frequently asked questions<\/a><\/li>\n\n<\/ol>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"hoe-ziet-je-buik-eruit-na-de-bevalling-de-eerste-weken\">What your belly looks like after the birth: the first weeks<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"bp-blog-lead wp-block-paragraph\">In this article you read what happens to your belly after birth in the weeks and months that follow: how fast the womb shrinks, why the belly can stay soft, what the studies on belly binding and exercises really measured, and what a gut scan can and cannot say about you. That matters, because the timeline people expect is much shorter than the timeline that has been measured, and because a soft belly and a bloated belly are two different things, two different answers go with them. <a href=\"https:\/\/bioprofile.com\/en\/scan-gut-symptom-test\/\">The BioProfile gut scan<\/a> gives you an indication of where you stand today on gut symptoms, as one of the 11 areas the full scan assesses. This is not a diagnosis. It is insight, to see where you stand today, and to help you make better choices in your food and your daily routine. What this scan does not do: point to a cause or make a diagnosis. Only a doctor can do that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group bp-blog-byline bp-blog-byline--photo is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"1000\" src=\"https:\/\/bioprofile.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/rt-portret-dimitar-marinov.webp\" alt=\"Portrait of Dimitar Marinov\" class=\"wp-image-5795\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bioprofile.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/rt-portret-dimitar-marinov.webp 800w, https:\/\/bioprofile.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/rt-portret-dimitar-marinov-240x300.webp 240w, https:\/\/bioprofile.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/rt-portret-dimitar-marinov-768x960.webp 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"bp-blog-byline-name wp-block-paragraph\">Written by <a href=\"https:\/\/bioprofile.com\/experts\/dimitar-marinov\/\">Dimitar Marinov, MD, PhD<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"bp-blog-byline-cred wp-block-paragraph\">Doctor, with a doctorate from the Medical University of Varna<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"bp-blog-byline-date wp-block-paragraph\">Approved on 3 October 2026<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In an ultrasound study in Lithuania, 46 women were followed after an uncomplicated vaginal birth, 24 of them giving birth for the first time and 22 who had given birth before, with ultrasounds on days 1, 3, 10, 30, 42 and 60.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">1<\/a><\/sup> In the women giving birth for the first time the length of the womb went from 162 +\/- 17.5 mm on day 1 to 81 +\/- 8.4 mm on day 30 and 63 +\/- 8.2 mm on day 60; in the women who had given birth before, from 174 +\/- 13.5 mm to 83 +\/- 6.7 mm and 71.5 +\/- 12.1 mm over the same 60 days. The measurement from front to back went in the same period from 82 +\/- 10.1 mm and 94 +\/- 13.1 mm to 36 +\/- 3.9 mm and 39 +\/- 8.0 mm, and the shrinking follows the same pattern in both groups, while it takes longer in women who have given birth before.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">1<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What this means for you: two months after the birth, your womb is still getting smaller, but the shrinking of the womb alone does not explain how your belly looks. Your skin, the tissue under your skin, weight you are still carrying, how your abdominal wall works, your posture, diastasis and a bloated feeling can all play a part. Thuisarts describes those same weeks from another angle: after the birth you lose blood and clots through the vagina, and this becomes less and stops within 6 weeks.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">5<\/a><\/sup> After a caesarean section, the timeline is set out in the same terms: it takes about 6 weeks before you can do everything again, with no housework in the first 2 weeks, no heavy work in the first 6 weeks and no sport yet in the first 6 weeks.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">6<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"waarom-je-buik-na-bevalling-slap-blijft\">Why your belly stays slack after birth<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If your belly feels soft under your hand in these months, there is a second explanation besides the shrinking womb. The straight abdominal muscles, the rectus abdominis, lie to the left and right of a strip of connective tissue that runs down the middle, the linea alba. When that strip has been stretched wide, the abdominal wall gives way where it used to hold, and that is called diastasis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A cross-sectional study at the Shanghai East Hospital compared 200 women: 143 in whom an ultrasound found diastasis of the rectus abdominis muscles and 57 as a control group, with births between January 2019 and December 2021 and participants recruited between January 2022 and December 2023.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">7<\/a><\/sup> The measurements were done during the lying-in period, mostly within the first week after the birth, and then after 6 weeks, 3 months and 6 months. The cut-off used was a distance between the rectus abdominis muscles of more than 2 cm, measured 3 cm above the navel, at the navel, or 3 cm below it. In 122 of the 143 women with diastasis (85.31 percent) the linea alba was widened, and the muscle activity of the pelvic floor during a fast contraction was 39.48 microvolts in this group against 43.21 microvolts in the control group (p smaller than 0.05).\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">7<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In plain words: the slack look is connective tissue that has been stretched wide, and in this study it went together with a weaker fast response of the pelvic floor. How often it happens was measured in a Norwegian study: diastasis was present in 55.2 per cent of the exercise group and 54.5 per cent of the control group 6 weeks after a first birth, in 43.7 and 44.3 per cent after 6 months, and in 41.4 and 39.8 per cent after 12 months.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">2<\/a><\/sup> So one year after a first birth, four in ten women in that study still met the study&#8217;s criteria for diastasis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Your belly is not the only thing that changes. In a Dutch study of 415 women between 6 weeks and 1 year after giving birth, 57.1 per cent (95% CI 52.3 to 61.8) had involuntary urine leakage: 52.0 per cent among women who had given birth for the first time and 61.9 per cent among women who had given birth before. Of the women with involuntary urine leakage, 38 per cent called it bothersome.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">8<\/a><\/sup> So that is more than half, and many people in that group do not see it as a small thing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"buik-binden-na-bevalling-en-de-buik-strakker-krijgen\">Belly binding after birth, and getting your belly firmer<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Binding the belly after birth is an old custom that now has numbers behind it. A systematic review with network meta-analysis brought together 27 randomised studies covering 1,340 women after birth who had been diagnosed with diastasis.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">3<\/a><\/sup> The highest-ranked treatment was a physiotherapy programme that combined abdominal exercises, breathing techniques, education and kinesio taping. In the network analysis, it went together with an estimated greater reduction in the distance between the rectus abdominis muscles of -26.25 mm (95% CI -29.41 to -23.09) compared with no exercise programme, and exercises with electrical muscle stimulation came to -22.62 mm (95% CI -26.58 to -18.67). Individual aids on their own scored much lower: an abdominal binder alone gave -10.32 mm and kinesio tape alone -3.93 mm.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">3<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What this means for you: an abdominal binder can reduce the distance between the rectus abdominis muscles compared with no treatment, but the research does not show that a binder improves the way your belly looks, your strength, pain, your daily functioning or your quality of life. Exercise combined with other techniques seems to work better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Norwegian study is the warning on the other side. 175 women after a first birth were randomised, 87 to exercise and 88 to control, with a supervised programme of 16 weeks that started 6 weeks after the birth. The authors&#8217; conclusion: a weekly programme of strength work for the pelvic floor and the abdominal muscles plus daily pelvic floor exercises at home gave no lower prevalence of diastasis than no programme, measured up to 12 months after the birth.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">2<\/a><\/sup> Read together, the two studies say that a targeted programme in women who already have diastasis changes the measured distance, while a general programme offered to everyone after a first birth did not change the numbers with diastasis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As a foundation under all of this, the Gezondheidsraad says that adults should do at least two and a half hours of moderate-intensity physical activity a week, and that muscle- and bone-strengthening activities are recommended; its advice to the Minister of VWS is to encourage people to keep moving more and sit less.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">9<\/a><\/sup> According to the same page, this lowers the risk of chronic diseases such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease, of depressive symptoms and, in older people, of fractures.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">9<\/a><\/sup> After a caesarean section, the first 6 weeks are the exception to this.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">6<\/a><\/sup> Once your recovery allows it and there are no medical reasons not to, the longer-term goal is to build back gradually to the general advice of at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity a week. When and how quickly you build up to that depends on the birth, how your wound heals, your symptoms, how active you were before and any complications before or during the birth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"het-gewicht-dat-blijft-en-eten-in-deze-maanden\">The weight that stays, and eating in these months<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a cohort of 461 women at a medical centre in the north of Taiwan, recruited between March 2014 and March 2016, the weight still carried on average compared with the weight from before the child was 4.6 +\/- 3.5 kg one month after the birth and 2.1 +\/- 3.3 kg after six months.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">4<\/a><\/sup> That is the middle of a wide spread, and it is a number measured over months instead of over weeks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you feed your child at the breast, the Voedingscentrum is clear about eating less. Your body needs more energy and nutrients than usual to make milk, and you eat about as much as you did in the months before the birth.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">10<\/a><\/sup> Active dieting is advised against, because eating less than you need is not good now that making milk asks extra energy of your body, and a strict diet can leave you short of nutrients.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">10<\/a><\/sup> Feeding at the breast can, in some women, help weight come off, and that differs a lot from person to person.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">10<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"wat-een-darmscan-meet-en-wat-niet\">What a gut scan measures, and what it does not<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A belly that stays round in these months can be a womb that is still shrinking,\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">1<\/a><\/sup> a linea alba that has been stretched wide,\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">7<\/a><\/sup> weight that is still being carried,\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">4<\/a><\/sup> or a belly that is bloated from the gut. Those last complaints are what the gut scan asks about: how much you notice of them over the past two weeks, converted into a score and a reading band, so that you have a starting value instead of a memory. What the causes of a bloated belly can be is in <a href=\"https:\/\/bioprofile.com\/en\/bloated-belly-causes-gut-scan\/\">a bloated belly and what a gut scan measures<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A questionnaire cannot tell those four apart. A questionnaire does not measure the distance between your rectus abdominis muscles, which needs an ultrasound and a fixed cut-off,\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">7<\/a><\/sup> and it points to no cause. It is not a diagnosis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Thuisarts names the signals to watch for. In the first 10 days after the birth you call the midwife or the gynaecologist, and after 10 days the GP or the out of hours GP service.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">5<\/a><\/sup> Call straight away if you have a fever or a flu like feeling, heavy blood loss from the vagina, a foul smell to the discharge together with fever or belly pain, a growing headache that painkillers do not ease, double vision or flashes of light, pain high in your belly, nausea or vomiting, a swollen face or swollen hands or feet, a thick, red and painful leg, severe anxiety or confusion, or severe low mood.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">5<\/a><\/sup> After a caesarean you call the midwife or the doctor at the hospital if you have a fever above 38.5 degrees, a lot of belly pain, a severe headache, or heavy blood loss again.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">6<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"samengevat\">In summary<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The womb shrinks quickly after birth and is usually almost back to its pre-pregnancy size after four to six weeks, but the way your belly looks can keep changing for months.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">1<\/a><\/sup> Behind a slack or pudding belly after birth there is often a widened linea alba, present in about 55 per cent of women 6 weeks after a first birth and in about 40 per cent after 12 months.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">2<\/a><\/sup> A network meta-analysis estimated a 10.32 mm greater reduction in the distance between the rectus abdominis muscles with an abdominal binder than without specific treatment. A separate programme of exercises, breathing, education and kinesio taping had a larger estimated reduction, but it did not include an abdominal binder,\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">3<\/a><\/sup> and the weight still carried on average was 2.1 +\/- 3.3 kg after six months.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">4<\/a><\/sup> A gut scan gives you a baseline for gut symptoms such as a bloated belly and is not a diagnosis. The warning signs above belong with the midwife, the gynaecologist or the GP.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">5<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group bp-blog-sec bp-blog-cta is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Measure where you start<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A few questions about the past two weeks and your gut score is in your dashboard. What the gut scan measures and what the gut scan is based on is on the scan page.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/bioprofile.com\/en\/scan-gut-symptom-test\/\">Start the gut scan<\/a><\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"bp-blog-ctamicro wp-block-paragraph\">Free, about 3 minutes. An analysis of your answers, never a diagnosis. <a href=\"https:\/\/bioprofile.com\/en\/free-health-check-tests\/\">All health scans<\/a><\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group bp-blog-sec bp-blog-sec--wash is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"veelgestelde-vragen\">Frequently asked questions<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group bp-blog-faq-item is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How long does it take before your belly is gone after the birth?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Longer than most pictures suggest. In an ultrasound study the womb was still shrinking on day 60, from 162 +\/- 17.5 mm long on day 1 to 63 +\/- 8.2 mm on day 60 in women giving birth for the first time.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">1<\/a><\/sup> Thuisarts describes the same weeks from another side: blood loss and clots get less and stop within 6 weeks.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">5<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group bp-blog-faq-item is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How can you get your belly firmer after birth?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The research gives two answers that sit side by side. In women who already have diastasis, a targeted programme of core stability exercises with breathing techniques, education plus kinesio tape made the distance between the rectus abdominis muscles -26.25 mm smaller (95% CI -29.41 to -23.09) compared with no programme.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">3<\/a><\/sup> A general supervised 16-week programme offered to all women after a first birth did not lead to a lower prevalence of diastasis than no programme, up to 12 months.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">2<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group bp-blog-faq-item is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What is the 3-3-3 rule after the birth?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The sources checked for this article describe no 3-3-3 rule. What Thuisarts does give is a timeline: blood loss stops within 6 weeks,\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">5<\/a><\/sup> and after a caesarean section it takes about 6 weeks before you can do everything again, with no housework in the first 2 weeks, no heavy work in the first 6 weeks and no sport yet in the first 6 weeks.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">6<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group bp-blog-faq-item is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How do you get rid of belly fat after the birth?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Slowly, and the average has been measured. In a Taiwanese cohort of 461 women, the weight still being carried compared with before the child was 4.6 +\/- 3.5 kg one month and 2.1 +\/- 3.3 kg six months after the birth.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">4<\/a><\/sup> If you breastfeed your child, the Voedingscentrum advises against actively dieting, because milk production asks extra energy of your body and a strict diet can leave you short of nutrients.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">10<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group bp-blog-faq-item is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Does belly binding work after birth?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In the same network meta-analysis of 27 studies, an abdominal binder alone gave -10.32 mm and kinesio tape alone -3.93 mm, compared with -26.25 mm for a combination of kinesio taping with core stability exercises.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">3<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group bp-blog-faq-item is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Can a gut scan see whether I have a diastasis belly after birth?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">No. Diastasis is established with an ultrasound and a measured distance between the rectus abdominis muscles, with a limit of more than 2 cm at fixed points around the navel.\u2060<sup class=\"bp-blog-sup\"><a href=\"#bronnen\">7<\/a><\/sup> The gut scan measures how much you notice of gut complaints such as a bloated belly, and gives you a starting value. It is not a diagnosis.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group bp-blog-sec bp-blog-sec--beige bp-blog-sec--tight is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"bronnen\">Sources<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"bp-blog-srclead wp-block-paragraph\">Every source below was checked on the day this article was published. The numbering follows the text.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list bp-blog-refs\">\n\n<li>Paliulyte V, Drasutiene GS, Ramasauskaite D, Bartkeviciene D, Zakareviciene J, Kurmanavicius J. Physiological Uterine Involution in Primiparous and Multiparous Women: Ultrasound Study. Obstetrics and Gynecology International, 2017;2017:6739345. <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1155\/2017\/6739345\">doi.org\/10.1155\/2017\/6739345<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n<li>Gluppe SL, Hilde G, Tennfjord MK, Engh ME, Bo K. Effect of a Postpartum Training Program on the Prevalence of Diastasis Recti Abdominis in Postpartum Primiparous Women: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Physical Therapy, 2018;98(4):260-268. <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1093\/ptj\/pzy008\">doi.org\/10.1093\/ptj\/pzy008<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n<li>Bigdeli N, Yalfani A, Doosti-Irani A, Qodrati A. An evidence-based comparison of rehabilitation strategies for diastasis recti abdominis in postpartum women: a systematic review and network meta-analysis. Scientific Reports, 2025;15:39591. <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1038\/s41598-025-22574-2\">doi.org\/10.1038\/s41598-025-22574-2<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n<li>Shao H-H, Hwang L-C, Huang J-P, Hsu H-Y. Postpartum Weight Retention Risk Factors in a Taiwanese Cohort Study. Obesity Facts, 2018;11(1):37-45. <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1159\/000484934\">doi.org\/10.1159\/000484934<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n<li>Thuisarts.nl (NHG). Ik ben net bevallen: belangrijke adviezen. Last updated 20 March 2025. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thuisarts.nl\/bevalling\/ik-ben-net-bevallen-belangrijke-adviezen\">thuisarts.nl<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n<li>Thuisarts.nl (NHG). Ik ben net bevallen met een keizersnede. Last modified 9 January 2025. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thuisarts.nl\/keizersnede\/ik-ben-net-bevallen-met-keizersnede\">thuisarts.nl<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n<li>Li M, Wang N, Wang R, Liang B. Ultrasonographic evaluation of diastasis recti abdominis and its association with pelvic floor dysfunction in postpartum women: a cross-sectional study of a two-year retrospective cohort. Frontiers in Medicine, 2024;11:1441127. <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/fmed.2024.1441127\">doi.org\/10.3389\/fmed.2024.1441127<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n<li>Moossdorff-Steinhauser HFA, Berghmans BCM, Spaanderman MEA, Bols EMJ. Urinary incontinence 6 weeks to 1 year post-partum: prevalence, experience of bother, beliefs, and help-seeking behavior. International Urogynecology Journal, 2021;32:1817-1824. <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1007\/s00192-020-04644-3\">doi.org\/10.1007\/s00192-020-04644-3<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n<li>Gezondheidsraad. Beweegrichtlijnen 2017. Advice to the minister of VWS, published 22 August 2017. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gezondheidsraad.nl\/documenten\/adviezen\/2017\/08\/22\/beweegrichtlijnen-2017\">gezondheidsraad.nl<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n<li>Voedingscentrum. Eten als je borstvoeding geeft. Accessed 30 September 2026. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.voedingscentrum.nl\/nl\/zwanger-en-kind\/borstvoeding-en-flesvoeding\/borstvoeding-geven\/eten-tijdens-de-borstvoeding.aspx\">voedingscentrum.nl<\/a><\/li>\n\n<\/ol>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group bp-blog-sec bp-blog-sec--tight is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Also read<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group bp-blog-related is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/bioprofile.com\/en\/gut-complaints-what-to-measure-and-when-to-see-your-gp\/\">Gut complaints: why your gut does what it wants, what you can measure yourself and when to go to your GP<\/a><\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/bioprofile.com\/en\/bloated-belly-causes-gut-scan\/\">A bloated stomach: the causes, what a gut scan measures and when to go to your GP<\/a><\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group bp-blog-sec bp-blog-sec--foot is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n\n<p class=\"bp-blog-legal wp-block-paragraph\">BioProfile analyses your health status to guide you and your coach. It does not make a diagnosis, only a doctor can do that. Built on validated health questionnaires; the combined BioProfile score is not itself a validated clinical instrument yet. Your answers stay private (GDPR).<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\n<\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Your belly after birth: how the womb shrinks in the first weeks, what diastasis is, what belly binding does and when you call the midwife.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":7188,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"2","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-image":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-image-id":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-image":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-image-id":"","inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[68],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7458","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-gut-health-en"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Belly after birth: what the first weeks change | 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