Digestion is the process of your body breaking down the food you eat and using it for energy, growth and repair. When your digestion is working well, you feel energized from the foods you eat and you are able to assimilate a wide range of nutrients. When your digestion isn’t working well, you often feel sluggish after meals and may experience a wide range of digestive disturbances, such as gas, pain and bloating. 

If you find yourself feeling worse after eating or maybe you experience regular stomach aches, this post is for you. Here are three simple steps that everyone can take (starting today) for better digestion.

1. Eat Slower 

You cannot fill your car up with gas while it’s moving. The same goes for our bodies. We need to slow down to fill up. It doesn’t really matter what you are eating — if you are eating too fast, it is going to negatively impact your digestion. 

Try to take a deep breath, slow down, and really chew your food. After all, digestion begins in the mouth. The act of chewing plus the enzymes in our saliva is the first step in breaking down your food. This initial prepping phase is an essential part of digestion. Without it, our body has a much harder time breaking down food. 

Slowing down also helps our bodies relax, which is another key component of optimal digestion. Our bodies need to rest in order to digest. So, if you slow down and eat in a more relaxed state, your body can absorb all the benefits from the food you are eating more easily.

2. Move Your Body Often 

Your body is not designed to be sedentary. It is designed to move! Long periods of sitting, no matter what you eat during the day, will negatively impact digestion. 

Your digestive system requires physical movement to function properly. Prolonged periods of sitting cause your abdomen to compress, which in turn slows down digestion. This can lead to stomach pain, bloating and constipation. 

I personally notice a huge difference in my digestion on days I am with my kids (moving all day long) compared to days I am working (sitting all day long). To help my digestion on days I am working, I take mini walking breaks throughout the day, and try never to sit for longer than a two-hour period. Don’t just take my word for it — try it for yourself. How does your body feel if you give it regular movement breaks?

3. Eat Plenty of Plants 

Here comes another car analogy… you can’t fill up your car with mountain dew and expect it to function properly. Same is true with our bodies. You can’t feed it crap and expect it to feel great, digestion included. This is not about judgement — it’s just about facts. We live in these beautiful bodies and when we feed them properly, they function more optimally. 

As far as digestion, plant foods (aka, lots of fiber from vegetables, fruits, legumes, and whole-grains) are key to an optimally functioning gut. Plant foods are loaded with fiber, which help keep us regular and feed the bacteria in our gut, which promotes a healthy gut microbiome.

If you want a healthy gut and optimal digestion, you must eat a lot of plants. It is recommended that women get 25 grams of fiber per day and men get up to 38 grams of fiber per day. This is a lot of fiber, but definitely doable if you are eating lots of plants throughout the day. 

Need a few simple tips to increase plant foods?

• Eat a fruit or vegetable at every meal
• Eat legumes, such as hummus, roasted chickpeas, black beans, or lentils, at least 3 times per week
• Focus on whole-grains over refined grains

Note: Increasing fiber too quickly may lead to more digestive issues, so it is always best to increase fiber and plant foods slowly. 

And there you have it. Three super simple tips for better digestion that you can start incorporating as soon as today.