The Gut Feeling You Can’t Ignore: 5 Ways to improve your Microbiome
Feeling sluggish, stressed or like your digestion just isn't on point? It might have to do with something surprising: your gut! Yep, that whole "gut feeling" thing? Turns out, there's a lot of truth to it.
My own experience inspired me to write this piece and raise awareness of gut health issues. My life has become challenging due to my anxieties over what meals and when will sicken my stomach and bedridden me. Gut health is an expansive topic that can be difficult to comprehend, so I wanted to share a few things that have been helpful to me with all of you. I’m by no means a professional or medical expert, but I learned a lot and I'm here to share my experience!
Low-Impact workouts:
Ok, let’s start off strong (no pun intended.) This past summer, I fell in love with running. I used running as an outlet to clear my mind, test my strength and, overall, just feel good. At the time that I was running my longest distances, my abdominal pain would creep in and flare up throughout the afternoon. It was unbearable. However, I never wanted to quit because I believed it was the best workout for me and when I was running, pain was nonexistent. But one day, I woke up as I was preparing for a 10-mile run on the treadmill and I began to talk to myself. My conversation with myself begging to get better was a sign that I needed to realign my habitats and make choices that would benefit me consistently. Not just temporarily.
That morning is when I made the life-changing switch. So, as one does, I began to research. I found that low-impact workouts like walking, pilates, yoga and other core-focused workouts help with digestion, lower inflammation and improve your metabolic health. This made so much sense! I was averaging 60-90 minutes of cardio a day with little to absolutely no strength or core training. Pilates is a combination of repetitive exercises that create muscle exertion and increase strength in your abdominal muscles, lower back, hips and buttocks as well as stabilizing your spine.
Discovering this and harping on my habitats was a huge wake-up call for me. While I thought I was doing everything right, research was telling me the opposite. There’s so much power in researching your symptoms and lifestyle choices, so if you’re feeling stuck, whether medically or physically, I challenge you to go the extra mile and search for better solutions.
Reduce your intake of processed foods:
I understand your thoughts — this one is difficult! As busy college students, we sometimes find ourselves reaching for Goldfish or pretzels as an afternoon snack or on the way to class. Sadly, processed foods are loaded with chemicals that have little nutritional benefit for our bodies. The lengthy ingredient list on the label has many ingredients that are difficult to digest, including carbohydrates and inflammatory oils.
I am fortunate to have been raised in a family that prioritizes our health and well-being. As a young adult, my mother — who suffered from severe asthma — was prescribed eight separate medications. However, she naturally stopped taking all eight of her prescriptions when she began to emphasize eating real, clean foods. Since then, she has never taken an asthma medication! That’s the power of a clean diet.
Eat the rainbow! Make sure your plates are balanced while arranging your breakfast, lunch and dinners. You will not only be satisfied but also well-positioned for success if you eat a balanced diet rich in proteins, vegetables, fruits (be cautious, citrus fruits are difficult to digest), healthy fats and carbohydrates (no, not the fake stuff).
My mom has shown me just how easy it is to make my own snacks using clean and simple ingredients. I have no patience when it comes to the kitchen, but believe me when I say that creating your snacks is simple, time-efficient and leaves you feeling good.
You can find loads of quick, simple and nutritious snack recipes on social media for things like oat balls, muffins, smoothies and even desserts. I urge you to check out Instagram and TikTok as that's where I get all of my inspiration for homemade snacks! It's been a lot of fun to home-make my snacks, and it's comforting to know exactly what's in them.
Cooking and baking isn't for you? No worries — brands like Siete, Lesser Evil, Purely Elizabeth and Simple Mills are great swaps for some of your favorite snacks. These brands are very transparent about their ingredients and their lists are short and clean and contain no inflammatory ingredients.
Analyze your FODMAP:
FODMAP stands for fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides and polysaccharides. Oh my! To put it simply, FODMAP (fahd-map). Short-chain carbohydrates, or sugars, known as FODMAPs are poorly absorbed by the small intestine and frequently cause digestive pain. Some fantastic resources and graphics will show up if you search "FODMAP." I found it very helpful to quickly peruse the lists that classified fruits and vegetables as high or low fodmap when a specialty doctor suggested I try this diet. Understanding that certain foods are more difficult to digest than others helped my stomach to settle and my mind to relax.
When I saw the list of fruits and vegetables that are high and low on the FODMAPS, my mind was blown. The idea that some veggies would give me severe pain while I could tolerate others made perfect sense.
A low FODMAP diet is very restrictive, so make sure you consult a medical professional before you make this switch. But for now, I challenge you to write down which foods aggravate your system. This will help you identify if the FODMAP route is the way to go.
Meditation and Journaling
Did you know stress slows down digestion, which can lead to bloating and, in extreme cases, irritable bowel syndrome? Your gut muscles are triggered when you experience stress or anxiety because your neurological system goes into "fight or flight" mode.
I laughed when someone advised that I meditate. I had to have my stomach checked before I was compelled to practice meditation. My life has been altered by it. Stress can be reduced when cortisol levels drop, which will then help with digestion and relieve stomach pain.
I cannot sit still so if I can meditate for 5-10 minutes a day, so can you. All you need to do is start with a self-guided meditation and lucky for you, there are tons of great ones out there. When I started my mornings centered around gratitude and inner peace, it was incredible to see how my mental and physical well-being improved. I now feel more capable of managing my anxiety and focusing on the aspects of life that matter.
Journaling was also a life-saving habit I incorporated into my daily regime. Every day, I make an effort to write down my feelings and follow them up with constructive suggestions for improving them. I also use my journal to track my food. This has helped me determine which foods my stomach likes and dislikes.
Supplements
I don’t have a lot of knowledge of supplements. I do not take them and have not had positive experiences with them. If you're a supplement lover, don't forget to do your homework because, while improving your health is the primary goal of supplements, taking the wrong kind can have negative effects.
Together, let's adjust and embrace our lifespan. It's time to seize and claim that “health is wealth” era for ourselves! Once again, I want to be clear that I am not a professional expert in any way. My goal is to help you get well by sharing what resources have helped me. You can find me on Instagram @hopeyslookbook where I am beginning to share recipes and practices that have helped me along the way.
Thank you to @theedgemagazine for giving me this platform to share my experience. It is time to glow in so we can glow out!!