When you think of meditation you probably don’t associate it with better digestion and gut health. I know I didn’t until I learned just how much stress influences our gut health and just how powerful meditation is for decreasing stress.
What Evolution Has to do With Healthy Digestion
Issues like leaky gut often come from living a high-stress lifestyle. Most of us are under a lot of stress in today’s world. When you’re feeling anxious or rushed, your body goes into fight or flight. This is a survival mechanism that’s been with us since long before our frontal lobes developed. Back when we had to struggle just to survive, fight or flight was useful, but nowadays we don’t have to fight off predators and run for our lives (at least not often). This response to external stress kicks in anytime something triggers our stress response.
When your body is in fight or flight it isn’t able to direct much energy towards proper digestion. The food we take in when we’re in a hurry, working, or worried just sits in our guts until we’ve calmed down enough to initiate digestion. But a person’s still gotta eat and that’s where things get tricky. If you want healthy digestion, more energy, clear skin and a calm nervous system, meditation is one the answers.
How Meditation Helps Our Digestion
Learning and practicing meditation over time helps to decrease stress and turn off the fight or flight response that many people are all too familiar with. The nervous system and the gut are inextricably linked. Humans were never designed to be stressed out all the time, and when we learn to calm our nervous systems our health improves dramatically.
When you get used to tuning into your breath and releasing stressful negative thought patterns your digestion will improve, you’ll have more energy for fun activities and life will seem a whole lot less overwhelming.
Easy Ways to Incorporate Meditation in your Life
- Simply taking even 5-10 minutes a day to sit down in a quiet comfortable place and focus on the breath is enough to make a difference.
- Set aside time each day to do nothing but breathe. Allow any thoughts that arise to drift away without attachment.
- HeadSpace happens to be one of my favorite apps that you can use to help you easily make meditation a part of your life.
Mediation and deep breathing are just one part of the puzzle. If you’re seriously interested in getting healthy, restoring your digestion and boosting your energy then check out my comprehensive Restore your Gut & Thrive Program! In the program you get group and personalized coaching, a ton of delicious satisfying recipes as well as strategies that will help rebuild your intestinal flora. Check it out today!
