Bloating can be a real party pooper, leaving you feeling like a balloon about to burst, so I am excited to be sharing 3 ways to decrease bloating. What I know from experience, is bloating can also be such a damper on mood and body image! Fear not, There are empowering ways to beat the bloat and restore your digestive harmony. AND because I will always give it to you straight, one thing to note is – you GET to make some empowering lifestyle changes hunny! Believe me these will not only help to decrease bloating, they will work in your favour for your fitness progress and overall mental well-being. So, while there are many factors that contribute to bloating, addressing certain lifestyle habits (like I did, and the ones you are about to read), can help alleviate symptoms and promote better digestive health. Let’s dive in!
1. Manage Traces of High Functioning Anxiety & Busy Mind to Heal Your Gut.
You may not want to hear this, but it may be one of the reasons you are bloated. If you are addicted to the fast-paced adrenaline-fuelled way of life, this is affecting the pH of your Gut Health. There’s no other way to put it, other than stress will kill your healthy gut microbiome and affect the pH of your gut and entire body, sending your body straight to survival.
So what to do? Firstly, one of the biggest things I set as a groundwork for my clients is mastering their schedule & planning. Most of us think we ‘need’ to do all the things, and yes being a high functioning business owner, I get it however, there comes a time you have to prioritize your health, as dis-ease starts in the gut.
Second, start writing. Get a planner or Journal and use it. Those ruminating thoughts are not letting your body drop into Rest & Digest. Also, I recommend reading this blog as you will get more insight into what shifts you can make to decrease bloating.
2. Allow Your Body to Initiate Enzymatic Activity Before You Start Eating
This is likely one of the biggest things that helped me decrease bloating! Yes I did try taking enzymes but it did not work and is not a long term solution so let’s talk about sustainable ways to Decrease Bloating. Being a busy body or having ruminating thoughts, means your body is in an activated state, call it externally focused, or call it Fight or flight. When the body is in these states it is NOT in a Rest & Digest mode. Allowing yourself to rest for 10 minutes before meals was a game changer for me to decrease bloating (along with aligning my Body & Mind and clearing old trauma, & survival patterns). Simply getting horizontal and slowing down your thoughts allows your body to start dropping into Rest & Digest which initiates enzyme activity and a gradual decrease in stomach acid levels.
As I say in tutorials on the Optimal Health Membership, we want our stomach acid levels to be HIGH. Things like alcohol, coffee, acid reflux tabs, and stress will decrease the Hydrochloric Acid levels of the stomach.
Lastly, the digestion process takes a lot of energy, so do yourself a BIG favour and CHEW your food well hunnies! This goes hand in hand with calming down your mind and body so you’re not inhaling your food.
3. Start Learning to Breath with your Diaphragm (and STOP sucking in)
This is so effective to decrease bloating and improve your digestive health. Firstly, start catching yourself sucking in. You 100% do it, so simply get aware and start letting go of the tension. As I said in my 4 week group program, Optimize, this sucking in creates so much tension in the torso and inner tissues. Second, start breathing more. Whether you take deep breaths or just breath mindfully throughout the day, life changing to help decrease bloating. Lastly, learn how to breath with your diaphragm, which is your breathing muscle. The activity of the diaphragm is an internal massages for the colon and intestines and helps to propel movement which will greatly decrease bloating and digestive stagnation.
In conclusion hunny, I want you to think of these as empowering changes! Please do not feel like a victim and trust that your actual life will improve. Don’t limit yourself by staying in the same patterns that you are in now. It can be better! I so understand the underlying mental frustration that comes with being bloated either all the time, or after meals. These are some holistic practices that can be greatly helpful to decrease bloating. The conversation around bloating, digestion, and gut health is LONG and can involve other factors. Implementing these first and sticking with them will help to unstick your gut and help to decrease bloating.
If you feel like this is an area you want to call in support for so you can see more progress in your health, fitness, mental health, mood, focus, clarity, and ability to scale your life, just know there is support.
Feel free to reach out to me via Instagram or Email to get a convo going and I’d be happy to see if I can support you through this.
Asma Kassam, BHK, CSNA, CFST
Former Fitness Business Owner, Kinesiologist, Certified Sports Nutrition Advisor, Certified Fascial Stretch Therapist, turned Women’s Health advocate & coach.
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