Last month, Rennie challenged me to make a few lifestyle changes to possibly reduce bloating and improve my digestive health in general. As you may know already, I suffer with stomach cramps, bloating and indigestion, so I always have a packet of Rennie in my handbag as they get to work really quickly, but I want to see whether these three simple lifestyle changes can make any difference to the way I feel on a daily basis.
First up is the first little change I've made and that's being more cautious with how I chew, which may seem like an odd concept to some people, but digestion actually starts with the mouth and can affect the way your food is digested. I wanted to take longer to chew my food, making sure that I enjoyed every bite and wasn't just eating it as fast as I can on the go. It was one of the easiest to do, but out of the whole line up, was probably the one that I saw the most difference in straight away. I felt better in just under a week and actually sitting down to have a meal, taking my time and not talking throughout, left me feeling a lot less bloated and... gassy in general.
I've always been a fairly active person, cycling for a few hours a day, several times a week and then a couple of at-home workouts in between to help strengthen too. That being said, I never looked at the possibility that breathing exercises especially during yoga can actually aid digestion and reduce bloating too. On my cool downs after my workouts, I've been consciously taking ten minutes or so to concentrate on my posture and steady breathing to ensure that I'm sitting up straight which thus releases any acid reflex I may have.
The last little change I've made is adding more fibre into my diet in the form pulses such as chickpeas and beans, but by also getting my five a day in often in a tasty smoothie at the start of the day. I never realised before that aside from veggies and the odd chickpea curry, I often wasn't getting a lot of fibre into my diet, a element that is great for your gut health. It was so easy to start introducing new foods and finding new recipes to accommodate were even better. Adding a black bean topping to my jacket potato, eating wholemeal bread and blending up my favourite green smoothie are all different ways I started to get more fibre and I've noticed a difference with the rest of these changes to how I feel overall.
Will you be looking at incorporating any of these little changes into your daily routine?
Written in collaboration with Rennie, but all thoughts are my own. Rennie Heartburn, Indigestion and Wind Relief Chewable Tablets. Always read the label.
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