Most new-mom workouts skip this.

During pregnancy the linea alba — the connective tissue down the center of your abs — stretched to make room for a baby. After birth it does not snap back because you did enough planks. It closes because you retrain the deep core, the breath, and the pelvic floor to work together again.

That is why crunches at 12 weeks can make a pooch worse, not better. You are loading a wall that is still a doorway.

If you are 3–6 months out and cleared to exercise, the work looks unimpressive on purpose:

• Exhale on effort, not on rest

• Train on your back and side before you jump to planks

• Stop when you see doming down the midline

• Fifteen focused minutes beats a 45-minute class you pay for with fatigue

The goal is not a flat stomach by month four. The goal is a core that holds you up while you hold the baby.

If that is the season you are in, you are in the right place.