Can Exercise Encourage the Good Gut Bacteria: Top 5 Revealed!

If you want another reason to exercise, here it is. Studies show that exercising regularly can improve the number and diversity of beneficial bacteria living in the gut in addition to weight loss and boosting mental health.

There are trillions of beneficial microbes in the gut that play an important role in various bodily functions and overall wellbeing. Many factors influence your gut microbiomes, such as genetics, diet, stress levels, sleep quality, and more. Exercise, too, is emerging as an important factor in determining the composition of your gut microbiome, which contributes to overall health.

A randomized and controlled clinical trial was conducted on 102 patients diagnosed with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) to evaluate the effect of exercise on IBS symptoms. The treatment group was instructed to increase their physical activity, while the control group maintained their lifestyle. The study showed that exercise improved gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms in IBS patients and that they incurred less damage from IBS compared to the physically inactive control group ^[1].

A clinical trial was conducted on 28 professional martial arts athletes to determine if the gut microbiomes of high-level athletes were significantly different than those of low-level athletes. The fecal microbiomes of 12 high-level athletes and 16 low-level athletes were analyzed for this study. The study showed that high-level athletes had a higher microbial diversity and carbohydrate metabolism compared to low-level athletes. ^[2]

A clinical trial was conducted on 19 mice with chemically-induced colitis to study the effect of exercise-induced modifications on their gut flora. 10 mice were given access to running wheels, while 9 mice remained without access, for 6 weeks. It was observed that the exercise-induced mice had more β-diversity, better metabolite profiles, and reduced colon inflammation. They also had a reduced response to chemically-induced colitis ^[3].

A study was conducted on 8 people complaining of abdominal bloating who were subjected to mild exercise. The researchers found that mild physical activity prevented gas retention and enhanced intestinal gas clearance ^[4].

Read on to learn about the best exercises for digestive health and get tips to incorporate them into your routine.

Exercises that can Improve Your Gut Health

#1. Yoga

Yoga is a discipline that has been used by people for thousands of years for good health. It is a practice that connects the body with the mind, and also involves a spiritual aspect for many people. It includes:

• Breathing techniques (pranayama)
• Gentle movement (asanas)
• Meditation (dhyana)

Yoga stimulates your parasympathetic nervous system, also known as the rest-and-digest system. It also stimulates Agni, or digestive fire, which regulates your metabolism and appetite.

It relieves digestion problems by promoting gut motility, increasing circulation, regulating bowel movements, and decreasing stress. It also helps with IBS and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Certain studies suggest that yoga may be useful as a complementary treatment for digestive issues.

Moreover, it boosts your digestion and supports the detoxification process of your liver and kidneys. If you’re dealing with digestion issues, the following yoga poses may help:

• Seated Twist (Ardha Matsyendrasana)  
• Cobra Pose (Bhujangasana)
• Knees to Chest (Apanasana)
• Seated Side Bend (Parsva Sukhasana)
• Bow Pose (Dhanurasana)
• Supine Spinal Twist (Supta Matsyendrasana)
• Belly Twist (Jathara Parivartanasana)
• Cat-Cow (Marjaryasana-Bitilasana)

Adamantine Pose (Vajraasana) is one of the few yoga poses you can do right after having your meal. It relaxes your breathing and stretches your upper body, which aids in digestion and reduces bloating, especially after eating a heavy meal.

Physicians recommend sitting cross-legged as in Padmasana while eating as it instantly brings a sense of calm and aids in digestion.

# 2. Aerobics

Aerobics is any type of cardiovascular exercise, also known as cardio or cardiovascular workouts. Cardio works your large muscles and helps relieve chronic pain, improve respiratory parameters, and makes your heart work more efficiently, pumping blood to your digestive tract and other parts of the body more quickly.

In addition, it helps with constipation, increases the production of microbial metabolites, reduces intestinal permeability, and improves body composition. Aerobic exercises differ from anaerobic exercises such as sprinting and weight lifting as they require quick bursts of energy and involve maximum effort for a shorter duration. Aerobic exercises, on the other hand, are performed over a longer period. Some of the most effective cardio exercises include:

Brisk Walk

Walking is a mild exercise that has numerous health benefits and is suitable for people of all fitness levels and age groups. It is inexpensive and accessible to everyone. Studies have shown that people who go for a walk regularly are likely to stay more active and energetic throughout the day and are able to sleep better. It may also help prolong your life and prevent certain diseases.

Walking allows your body to produce more digestive enzymes and helps in the better assimilation of absorbed nutrients. This improves your digestion and relieves stomach problems.

Moreover, conventional wisdom suggests that a short stroll after a meal aids digestion and clears your mind. It also helps to regulate your blood sugar levels, which helps ward off the risk of type 2 diabetes. Even on the days, you don’t feel like exercising, a 30-minute brisk can do the job.

Cycling

Cycling is an enjoyable cardiovascular exercise that offers numerous health benefits. It is low-impact, meaning that it causes less strain as compared to other exercises. It regulates your bowel movements and prevents the growth of bad bacteria in the gut. It also helps improve digestion by improving gastrointestinal passage time, which prevents the water from being reabsorbed by the body and reduces the water in the stool.

Maintaining the cycles handles according to what’s ahead of you helps improve your reflexes and hand-eye coordination. Additionally, cycling raises your respiration rate and increases your lung capacity, which increases your oxygen intake.

It is time efficient as it allows you to exercise while serving as a means of commute and is easy to incorporate into your lifestyle by riding to work, school, shops, parks, or running errands. Indoor cycling is also a great way to reap the benefits of cycling, especially if you don’t have access to a safe cycling route. Many gyms offer indoor cycling classes as well.

Cycling for just 20-30 minutes, once or twice a week can work wonders for your digestion. Make sure you have the right posture while cycling to prevent injuries. Avoid hunching over and keep your spine neutral, as it helps to maintain the body’s natural alignment.

Swimming

Swimming provides a full-body workout as it uses all the muscles in the body. It tones your muscles, increases muscle strength, and is a great way to cool down in the summers. The gentle swimming movements combined with the weightlessness and healing power of water are highly beneficial for the body. Not only does it help with healthy intestinal movement, but it also reduces inflammation and helps manage IBS symptoms, including gas, bloating, cramping, diarrhea, constipation, and more.

Water is 800 times denser than air. Thus, moving through the resistance of the water makes swimming a great workout that allows you to burn more calories in a small amount of time. It works your insides and increases your lung capacity, making it a great option for people with asthma. It is also a gentle but effective workout for pregnant women and people with joint problems or injuries. In fact, it may even help you recover from an injury and reduce some of your pain. Knowing proper techniques makes your workout easier and more efficient. Movements including flutter kicks and dolphin kicks are great for strengthening your core. It’s recommended to swim for 30 minutes, 3 to 5 times a week, to get the most benefit. However, being a low-impact exercise, it is suitable for people who like to work out every day.

#3. Pilates

Pilates is a full-body workout comprising controlled movements using your body weight. Although it focuses on core workout and breathing, its end goal is to use the core strength to stabilize your muscles and develop sustainable and functional movements. It helps you to carry out your daily activities more freely and with less pain. It includes about 600 exercises and their variations and can be done on an exercise mat or using the equipment. The seemingly simple pilate exercises make you break into a sweat in no time.

Pilates improves your flexibility, balance, and endurance, without putting too much pressure on your joints.

Pilates has something for everyone.

1. Prenatal Pilates is not only suitable but also incredibly beneficial for pregnant women.
2. Pilates is also a great way of restoring your digestive health.
3. The stretching movements in Reformer Pilates stretch your digestive tract, which helps in the proper processing of food and maintaining healthy digestion.
4. It emphasizes deep breathing and its twist movements massages your stomach muscles and organs, both of which stimulate your digestive system.

Some of the most beneficial pilates exercises for digestion include:

• Criss Cross
• Pelvic Clocks
• Roll-ups

#4. Crunches

The crunch is a typical core exercise which makes it popular among people who aspire to get flat abs. But crunches are also one of the best exercises for digestive health. They use the push and pull actions of abdominal muscles, which exert positive pressure on your gastrointestinal system. They also strengthen your core muscles and support better bowel movements. Moreover, when combined with a full-body workout, crunches can help reduce belly fat, which causes inflammation in the body.

It’s important to pay attention to your form while doing crunches as the wrong posture may hurt your back or neck. You may start with 8-10 repetitions daily and build up gradually as you increase your tolerance to avoid overworking your abs.

There are different variations of crunches, including Bicycle Crunches, Reverse Crunches, Long Arm Crunches, and Vertical Crunches. You may also try alternate crunches, such as Bird Dog and Mountain Climber, which engage your core muscles while being gentle on your spine. A personal trainer can help you attain the right form and suggest modifications while training.

#5. Breathing Exercises

It is often believed that breathing is only an involuntary action, such as blinking your eyes and heart beating. However, intentional breathing and certain breathing patterns stand alone as an exercise that can improve your mental and physical health significantly. It has been scientifically proven that breathing exercises relax your gut muscles.

Additionally, it relaxes your system and increases blood flow.
People with gastrointestinal symptoms benefit from Diaphragmatic Breathing (or abdominal breathing) as this creates a massaging action for organs like the stomach and intestines, which can reduce bloating, abdominal pain, and constipation.

It boosts your core stability, reduces cortisol levels, regulates your hormones, and calms down diarrhea urgency. It also strengthens your diaphragm, the respiratory muscle located at the bottom of your ribcage, right below your chest. It’s the basis of most meditation and other relaxation techniques, which regulates all other bodily functions. Other beneficial breathing techniques include 4-7-8 Breathing and Box Breathing. 

Try to perform breathing exercises for 10-20 minutes at a time, one or twice a day. Breathing exercises are the most effective when you’re relaxed.

#6. Martial Arts – (A little something extra)

Many of us overlook martial arts when choosing a workout, as it may seem daunting, and is often stereotyped as a form of self-defence. But the truth is that most people can perform some form of martial arts and reap its health benefits. Performing martial arts allows you to strengthen not just your body, but also your mind. It may also help you to develop patience and emotional stability. By practicing martial arts, you can develop more self-confidence, and assertiveness, and reduce your aggression.

Martial arts are known to reduce gut inflammation, which is one of the primary causes of conditions like diarrhea, IBS, or acid reflux. Its gentle movements allow your body to obtain the right alignment, build muscle, and improve your balance, flexibility, and reflexes. People who practice martial arts regularly tend to have more regulated dietary signals and have lesser food cravings. Here are some of the popular martial art forms that you can easily try at home:

• Karate: Predominantly a striking art, karate uses punching, kicking, elbow strikes, knee strikes, and open-hand techniques such as palm-heel strikes and spear hands.
  
  
• Taekwondo: It involves punching and kicking techniques with an emphasis on fast kicking techniques, spinning jump techniques, and head-height kicks.
  
  
• Tai Chi: Also known as shadowboxing, Tai Chi is practiced for self-defense training, meditation, and health benefits.
  
  
• Kalaripayattu: It is a traditional Indian Martial Art that focuses on Yoga, hand-to-hand combat, weaponry, and Ayurveda.

How exercise affects your gut health?

Our modern sedentary lifestyle is highly detrimental to our digestive health. Prolonged sitting after a meal compresses the abdominal cavity. Our bowel functions don’t function as efficiently and slow down digestion giving rise to digestive disorders. This may lead to problems such as bloating, constipation, acid reflux and even inflammatory diseases. Sitting also leads to hormonal imbalances, affects sleep quality, decreases insulin resistance, and causes inflammation. All of these factors further contribute to poor digestion.

Physical exercise, be it low or high impact exercise increases blood flow to different parts of your body, including your digestive system. This stimulates the passage of food through your digestive system — a process known as peristalsis. This allows your body to digest food effectively thus helps aid digestion and ease bowel movement.

Our gut microbiome is highly sensitive to your intestinal environment. An imbalance of the good and bad gut bacteria leads to dysbiosis, which results in problems including digestive issues, compromised immune system, high stress levels, fatigue, skin problems, and more. Other factors that trigger responses in the gut microbiome include increased blood flow, intestinal mobility, and regulated hormones. The gut and the brain are intimately connected, and strong emotions like stress and anxiety may cause your gut to react. Exercise can help reduce digestive problems by reducing your stress levels.

Regular exercise is linked to increased production of carbohydrate metabolism and short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) production, both of which are vital for a healthy gut. SCFAs such as acetate, butyrate, and propionate help maintain intestinal homeostasis. They improve gut health in many ways, such as mucus production, maintaining the integrity of the intestinal barrier or gut wall, and protection against chronic inflammation.

Exercise also reduces the risk of colon cancer and prevents gall stones.

Your body responds to small changes in your exercise routine even though the gut microbiome experiences transient modifications. This means that even the people who exercise regularly don’t have a permanently different microbiome. Thus, regular and moderate exercise can keep your gut healthy in the long run.

The Problem with Excessive Exercise or High Intensity Workout

Too much of anything is harmful, and exercise is no exception for example too much HIIT (high intensity interval training). While moderate exercise is essential for your wellbeing, exercising too much can lead to problems, such as IBS and the leaky gut, a condition in which the intestinal barrier becomes more permeable than usual, allowing toxins into your system.

When you exercise, the blood flows away from your digestive tract into the working muscles. Higher the intensity of the workout, the lesser the blood available for digestion. This alters the passage of food through your intestine, which leads to inflammation and irritation in the digestive tract, and damages the protective intestinal barrier. It also slows down your digestion, affects nutrient absorption, and results in loss of appetite. Moreover, experts believe that our immunity is impaired after 72 hours of intense exercise.

The nervous system releases certain chemicals called endorphins during exercise, and some people are addicted to exercise to its pleasure response. Signs of too much exercise include:

• Not being able to perform at the same level
• Unintentional weight loss
• Injuries during workout
• Feeling tired and irritable
• Falling sick more often
• Needing longer periods of rest
• Trouble falling asleep or sleeping too much.

Remember, exercise is a deliberate exertion and it’s important to identify when you’re over-exerting. To avoid exercise-related gut problems, make sure to stay hydrated throughout your workout as exercise is a dehydrating condition. It is also advisable to consume small amounts of protein and carbohydrates before and during the exercise. Too much exercise results in loss of appetite.

Finally, you should comfort zone and listen to your body. It’s important to take at least one day of rest to allow your muscles to repair.

If you do feel the urge to work out every day, you may do so, as long as, you don’t push yourself too hard and don’t obsess over it. Always start your workout with a warm-up and end it with a cool-down and stretching.

Importance of Diet in Exercise

A healthy diet is one of the best allies when it comes to an effective workout, and you can’t out-exercise a bad diet. When you have a poor diet, your workout performance and results suffer. You can’t get the most out of your workout as your body lacks the right nutrients and energy, and the workout becomes inefficient. A balanced diet can help you get the nutrients and energy you need for your everyday activities, including regular exercise.

Breakfast is often said to be the most important meal of the day, and rightly so. Starting your day with a healthy breakfast helps to fuel your muscles and brain. It becomes particularly important on the days you plan to work out, as skipping your breakfast can leave you feeling lethargic during your workout. A healthy breakfast should contain the following:

• Complex carbohydrates: They’re found in whole foods and provide lasting energy while being high in nutrients and antioxidants. These include whole grains, fruits, and vegetables.
• Protein: It is required for the growth, maintenance, and repair of muscles. Foods such as legumes, dairy, fish, and poultry are good protein sources.
• Fats: They are the primary energy source for light to moderate exercise. Healthy unsaturated fats provide essential fatty acids and help reduce inflammation. Foods that contain healthy fats include nuts, seeds, avocados, cheese, butter, olives, and olive oil.

An ideal pre-workout snack should combine proteins and carbohydrates to make you feel energized before your workout and prevents your blood sugar from dipping too low. Exercising on an empty stomach should be avoided at all costs as this makes the body use protein as fuel. Examples of good pre-workout snacks include bananas, yogurt, berries, grapes, oranges, nuts, and nut butters. A pre-workout snack should ideally be eaten 30 minutes prior to the workout. In addition, drinking black coffee half an hour before your workout can boost your workout performance.

A healthy post-workout meal provides your body with adequate nutrients to get the most benefits from your workout and help in recovery. It also restores your glycogen levels, which tend to drop during exercise. Consuming a nutrient-dense post-workout meal also reduces the free radicals and helps eliminate toxins that are released after a strenuous workout.

Choose protein-rich and easily digestible foods, such as oatmeal, grilled chicken, protein shake, whole-grain toast, and more. You should have your post-workout meal within 45 minutes of exercising.

You can keep dried fruits handy in your workout bag and snack on fruits like bananas before your workout. If you have trouble consuming raw vegetables on their own, you may try soups and salads as they are more appetizing than eating them solo.

Conclusion

Regular exercise provides a wealth of health benefits. It helps you lose weight and maintain it, improves your mood, boosts your cognitive functions, increases your energy levels, supports muscle and bone health, promotes healthier skin, and improves sleep quality. It also helps reduce the risk of heart disease, obesity, diabetes, and high blood pressure. Additionally, you also get digestive health benefits long after you’ve finished your workout.

Regular physical activity increases your intestinal activity and stimulates the gut, ensuring proper digestion. It increases the blood to your digestive tract and allows the food to pass through your digestive system more quickly. It also helps maintain a healthy gut microbiome, which plays a critical role in controlling digestion. Ideally, you should include different kinds of exercises in your workout routine for maximum benefits and avoid boredom. It’s the consistency that matters more than the duration of exercise. This is because your body has to work extra hard to maintain your fitness levels.

Finding the right activity for digestion can be tricky, especially if you suffer from gastrointestinal disorders. Choose a workout that you enjoy and what works for you. Your choice of workout may also depend on factors like your age, health, and accessibility. For instance, walking is a great no-equipment exercise, but swimming is more suitable for people with joint problems. Similarly, asthmatic people may greatly benefit from yoga and breathing exercises. Just like your diet, regular physical activity should be a lifestyle and not a fad.

As a general guideline, you should aim to get at least 150 minutes of moderate exercise. Working out in the morning has its perks, but the ideal workout time is the one that works for you and allows you to have a consistent exercise regime. This way, you get the most out of your workout. People with injuries, chronic health conditions, as well as pregnant women should consult their healthcare providers before starting any exercise regime. Furthermore, if you’ve been experiencing digestive problems for quite some time, it is best to speak to your doctor to identify the root cause and later switch to one of the Top 10 Best Prebiotic and Probiotic supplements that positively affect your gut in the long run.

References

1. Johannesson E, Simrén M, Strid H, Bajor A, Sadik R. Physical activity improves symptoms in irritable bowel syndrome: a randomized controlled trial. Am J Gastroenterol. 2011 May;106(5):915-22. doi: 10.1038/ajg.2010.480. Epub 2011 Jan 4. PMID: 21206488.
   
2. Liang R, Zhang S, Peng X, Yang W, Xu Y, Wu P, Chen J, Cai Y, Zhou J. Characteristics of the gut microbiota in professional martial arts athletes: A comparison between different competition levels. PLoS One. 2019 Dec 27;14(12):e0226240. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0226240. PMID: 31881037; PMCID: PMC6934331.
   
3. Allen JM, Mailing LJ, Cohrs J, Salmonson C, Fryer JD, Nehra V, Hale VL, Kashyap P, White BA, Woods JA. Exercise training-induced modification of the gut microbiota persists after microbiota colonization and attenuates the response to chemically-induced colitis in gnotobiotic mice. Gut Microbes. 2018 Mar 4;9(2):115-130. doi: 10.1080/19490976.2017.1372077. Epub 2017 Sep 22. PMID: 28862530; PMCID: PMC5989796.
   
4. Villoria A, Serra J, Azpiroz F, Malagelada JR. Physical activity and intestinal gas clearance in patients with bloating. Am J Gastroenterol. 2006 Nov;101(11):2552-7. doi: 10.1111/j.1572-0241.2006.00873.x. Epub 2006 Oct 4. PMID: 17029608.