Sports

Lets talk about bloating and Irritable Bowel Syndrome!

When they said ‘follow your gut’ they weren’t kidding. Since I started following my gut, I’ve discovered so much about myself. It has consisted of a lot of trial and error, mood swings, sleepless nights of tossing and turning, feeling invincible, finally feeling in control of my gut and then tumbling right back to square one. When I finally got an answer from a Doctor here in San Diego that I have I.B.S, I was relieved because now I could find ways to cope with it.

The number one thing that screwed with me is bloating. Especially as a Coach that exercises daily, ‘eats healthy’ and still ends up with a beer belly by the end of the evening, without any of the beer!!

This has caused massive frustration for me over the last few years which leads to even worse bloating, constipation, fogginess and fatigue. I would be training clients and teaching fitness classes and feeling absolutely exhausted before I even started. I was in a mindset of ‘why me’. It wasn’t until I changed that to ‘why not me’ that things started to shift in a positive way. There was moments of ‘why am I so drained, maybe I am in the wrong career. ‘Why I am moody and crying for no reason? Maybe I’m depressed.

It was all because of the stress that was going on in my gut!! I know this now because when I made changes the symptoms started to fade and go from been severe everyday to a tolerably once a week.

Over the last few months I have discovered strategies and ways to except my gut and listen to it, properly.  Here is my top 3:

1. Stopped eating garlic and onions: I was a garlic lover, I still love the smell of it but anytime I ate it I would be gassy and bloat like a beast. I was in denial for a long time about this one but I finally gave it up and saw big changes. Onions is another one to avoid! This isn’t the same for everyone, we all have different triggers but these are the ones that have triggered me. Its a tough one for eating out because garlic is used in so much but don’t be afraid to ask the server, your gut will thank you!!

2. Avoid raw foods: we all know that micros matter but my tummy just doesn’t like to digest leafy greens from scratch which is a bit of a mind twist because they are so ‘healthy’. A nice big salad was my go to when eating out but not anymore. So now to get my veggies and fruits in I will either blend them into a smoothie or eat them cooked. One of my most recent fav smoothies is carrots, lemon, apple and orange! Try to make your smoothies at home so there is no unnecessary added sugar.

3. Cut out fake sugars and weird protein bars: a new rule of thumb, if I can’t pronounce it don’t eat it. Sweeteners will cause bloating and are very hard for our gut to digest especially sorbitol and fructose which is in many protein bars. Try to stick to wholesome, real food!! Another thing is, it may say low sugar on the nutritional facts because they put it into the carbohydrate section so watch out for that.

These changes may not make a difference for some, thankfully we are all different and unique. This is what has helped me, among other changes. I would love to hear your story and what has helped you or if you find any success with the above things that have helped me! Comment below!