# Tightening exercises for scarred lower abdominal muscles? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 21, 2013, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tightening-exercises-for-scarred-lower-abdominal-muscles/676925 "2013-12-21T23:59:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2013, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tightening-exercises-for-scarred-lower-abdominal-muscles/676925/1 "2013-12-21T23:59:45Z")
A friend of mine once had a vertical C-section that left scarring on her muscles below the navel. She’s on an exercise kick, working out every day, trying to get her whole body tight and toned, but that’s the one part that resists her efforts. Can anyone suggest any exercises? ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2013, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tightening-exercises-for-scarred-lower-abdominal-muscles/676925/2 "2013-12-22T00:39:21Z")
I sense that she is having an issue not with a lack of tone to her muscles but rather scar tissue and loose skin. If thats the case, neither exercise or diet will help much. A cosmetic procedure to remove and tighten the loose skin is about it. ---
**Author:** ![SerafinaPekala](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecae2f/32.png) [@SerafinaPekala](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SerafinaPekala)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2013, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tightening-exercises-for-scarred-lower-abdominal-muscles/676925/3 "2013-12-22T01:12:15Z")
imho the kettlebell swing is the best allover workout if done correctly: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/0_XjJjLc7NE/hqdefault.jpg "Kettlebell swing instruction") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_XjJjLc7NE) ---
**Author:** ![SerafinaPekala](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecae2f/32.png) [@SerafinaPekala](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SerafinaPekala)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2013, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tightening-exercises-for-scarred-lower-abdominal-muscles/676925/4 "2013-12-22T01:21:51Z")
and a better vid for the swing: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/TNJMGZTmmvg/hqdefault.jpg "The KETTLEBELL SWING - Updated version with Lauren Brooks & Franz Snideman") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNJMGZTmmvg) ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2013, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tightening-exercises-for-scarred-lower-abdominal-muscles/676925/5 "2013-12-23T02:49:16Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > I sense that she is having an issue not with a lack of tone to her muscles but rather scar tissue and loose skin. If thats the case, neither exercise or diet will help much. A cosmetic procedure to remove and tighten the loose skin is about it. No, I asked her about that, she say’s it’s the actual muscles between navel and crotch that won’t tighten up, even though she does a lot of abdominal crunches. ---
**Author:** ![yawuntz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/a5b964/32.png) [@yawuntz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yawuntz)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2013, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tightening-exercises-for-scarred-lower-abdominal-muscles/676925/6 "2013-12-23T04:48:57Z")
For toning the abdominal muscles, I like [Uddiyana Bandha](http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/1707) followed by [Nauli Kriya](http://www.nauli.org/2009/06/learning-nauli/) ---
**Author:** ![Ca3799](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9f8e36/32.png) [@Ca3799](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ca3799)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2013, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tightening-exercises-for-scarred-lower-abdominal-muscles/676925/7 "2013-12-23T14:19:07Z")
I have to agree with the loose skin theory above, and add that the muscles themselves might have been stretched or lengthened from the pregnancy, not the surgery. The vertical C/S divides (not ‘cuts’) the rectus muscle at the midline from belly button to pubis. The rectus runs the same direction as the vertical incision- there is not reason to ‘cut’ it. The line where the muscle is divided is kind of thin there. Usually, the doc would pierce this muscle sheath at the midline and gently tear or divide the muscle upwards and downwards to lengthen the opening. The same thing (piercing and tearing or dividing) would be done to the next layer (the omentum or peritoneum) as well. The only ‘cuts’ are to skin and uterus. And, there are actually 4 layers of closure for a C/S: uterine, omentum (or peritoneum) , muscle, and skin. I find a lot of people are surprised by this. I don’t see any reason why dividing this muscle would cause a weak lower abdomen anywhere except the midline at most, and that has been repaired. The tissue is a little beit of tendony there. If there were weakness, it would be in the midline where the division took place (perhaps increasing the chance of a hernia, which doesn’t happen much), not on the whole low abdomen from left to right. (And before anyone get all freaked out about the ‘dividing or tearing’- you have probably experienced this effect if you have ever deboned a cold chicken (I hope this is a good example). You night have noticed that there are distinct areas where the chicken divides easily- that breast section that leaves the ‘tender’ behind, or that large muscle that peels away from the thigh easily.)