2 months ago
How Can Exercise Help Constipation?
Exercise helps constipation by lowering the time it takes food to move through the large intestine. This limits the amount of water your body absorbs from the stool. Hard, dry stools are harder to pass. Plus, aerobic exercise speeds up your breathing and heart rate. This helps to stimulate the natural squeezing (or contractions) of muscles in your intestines. Intestinal muscles that squeeze better will help move stools out quickly.
When Is the Best Time to Exercise?
Wait an hour after a big meal before doing any tough physical activity. After eating, blood flow increases to your stomach and intestines to help your body digest the food. If you exercise right after eating, blood flows away from your stomach and to your heart and muscles instead. Since the strength of your gut's muscle contractions depends on how much blood it has, less blood in the GI tract means weaker contractions and the food will move sluggishly through your intestines. This can lead to bloating, gas, and constipation. So after a big meal, give your body a chance to digest it before you start on that nature hike.
Yes, it has been confirmed that exercise, especially regular walking is effective in improving constipation. However, other life style changes such as a balanced diet, adequate sleep as well as regular consumption of water must be encouraged. Since the causes of constipation can vary from person to person, any poor improvement in constipation should necessitate a visit to the doctor for a proper investigation.
constipation. Some can easily be prevented by changing habits and lifestyle, but often the reason(s) are not so obvious.
Following are the more common causes of constipation:
Lack of exercise. People who exercise regularly generally don't develop constipation. Basically, the colon responds to activity. Good muscle tone in general is important for regular bowel movements. The abdominal wall muscles and the diaphragm all play a crucial role in the process of defecation. If these muscles are weak, they're not going to be able to do the job as well. But exercise is not a cure-all. Increasing exercise to improve constipation may be more effective in older people, who tend to be more sedentary, than in younger people.