Episode 15: Q&A: high intensity exercise & digestion, sugar & gas, & the quickest way out of a flare
Your questions are in…
In this episode, Erin is answering questions that were submitted through The GUT Community, including:
Is it possible to do high intensity exercise, like running, again without a flare?
Does sugar cause gas?
What is the quickest way out of a flare? Should you just not eat?
You can check out the podcast on iTunes here, Spotify here, and on YouTube here! Below is a full transcript of the episode if you prefer to read through it or want notes.
Don’t forget to connect to others in The GUT Community, a Facebook group for those with IBS and digestive disorders to support one another and dive deeper into each episode together.
Welcome back to The Gut Show! This episode is another Q&A from our members in The Gut community on Facebook, as well as some of our Instagram followers. Hopefully your question gets answered, or maybe a question that you've thought of yourself and wanted to ask but haven't been able to yet. So the way this is going to work is I'm going to just read off the question, and then we'll have a conversation around the answer. If you have a follow up question in relation to that topic or that specific question, go join us at The GUT Community on Facebook.
So the first question is, is it possible to do high intensity exercise like running again, without a flare. So as you may know, or maybe you don't, high intensity exercise can cause a stress response in the body and can actually trigger IBS symptoms. And this can happen in the moment where the exercise itself will trigger the symptom that day, it may also be something that over time increases the level of cortisol in the body, and can trigger a response ongoing or down the road or kind of an underlying response.
So what we typically do whenever we're looking at managing IBS is we typically bring intensity of exercise down, and then we try to tailor that to each person based on their preferences, as well as how their body reacts. So remember that all of our bodies are very unique, and our IBS is also very unique. So those with constipation predominant typically handle higher intensity exercise a little bit better than those with diarrhea predominant. And then the level of intensity that you're going to be able to tolerate is going to vary based on your your fitness levels, and how your body responds to the stress that is put on it. There's no clear definition between what's high intensity, or what's low intensity, it really depends on how your body responds in the moment, which can depend on a lot of different factors, not just your fitness level, but it can also depend on your fitness level.
So a lot of people who are dealing with IBS, especially IBS with the diarrhea predominance, are going to decrease some of that intensity, and for many runners, that means decreasing their running. And so this specific question is around running, but this can apply to all types of intense exercise, not just running. So whenever we're dealing with that decrease, just like what we do as food, where if we eliminate something, we want to actually challenge it back and find a tolerance level if we can, in order to include that thing, that food, that activity, that thing that you really want in your life in a way that's manageable. And then we're able to hopefully increase that in time as the gut allows and is able.
So with exercise, it's the same way, where if you eliminate an exercise, or you bring your intensity way down, and what you want is to increase that, again, challenge small bits of that exercise, and see how your body truly responds. See if there's a tolerance level, maybe a mashup of high intensity and low intensity together, maybe the combination of breath work added into the high intensity, and play around with different options to see what works where you are now, and then come back and continue to evaluate as you move forward and especially as your gut improves in time.
There's no one size fits all answer when it comes to what that tolerance level will be, and if that tolerance level will get to the point that you want it to be. So maybe for some people, they get to the point where they can run a marathon like they wanted to. For others, it might not look like that, it may be you know, stopped at running just you know, short bits at a time mixed with walking and breathwork and slowing down and letting the body cool back down. So it really depends on the person, and it also depends on the other factors and the other layers of your care. So there are many different factors that can actually impact IBS, and so if you're only focused on the exercise, just like we see with food, and you're restricting certain exercise, there may be some other components that can come in and help support your body so that then the exercise can fit in more.
So all that to say yes, it is possible to run again, it's possible to increase your exercise intensity, it's possible to eat the foods you want, it's possible to do those things. How your body gets there is going to be very unique, and what that actually looks like will be very unique, which is where that personalized care and support is going to come into the picture. So this is what we help our clients with one to one and a little bit through our group program.
The second question is does sugar cause gas? So a part of this question was that's typically what providers recommend first. So when it comes to sugar, so sugar is our simplest form of our carbohydrate, right? It's the basic form, one molecule. It is typically not going to make its way to the bacteria of the large intestine, because it's usually going to be absorbed and used along the process more quickly because it doesn't have to get broken down. So sugar itself is typically not going to be fermented into gas by the bacteria of the large intestine and the way that we would typically think about gas.
Now, if there's bacteria in the small intestine with like SIBO or something like that, then yes, there could be some fermentation of that sugar, because it’s a little bit further up in the GI tract, easy to eat. But it’s not as likely, usually fiber is going to be fermented and translated into gas.
Now, there are other reasons why we can have some irritation or gas that could be going on. And so if you're having large amounts of sugar, and that's irritating your gut and sugar, it's not a good or bad thing, right? It's not that you have to have no sugar, or all the sugar. And there again, is there's a level, there's a personalization piece that goes into this and it needs to be dealt with more individually to see kind of what's really going on, but a large amount of sugar can be a little bit irritating to the gut, especially if the guts already irritated for another reason, or with IBS, the gut is a little bit more irritable, so the sugar might be impacting you a little bit more than maybe others.
And so with that large amounts of sugar could be contributing to overall symptoms and irritation, but it might not be the only piece. So when we're saying the sugar caused gas and like the sugar is the one to blame for the gas that you're having, likely not just the sugar, so just eliminating sugar may not be the answer. I think what we need to look at is the full picture and see what all is actually going on here. Where does the sugar fit in? When does the gas happen? What else is at play? Is there something else that could be fermented more frequently, like cauliflower or kale, even like that might cause more gas. And so remember that, just because there are these like blanket recommendations that are out there, and even some providers might provide that information on the front end, that might not be the full answer. So that's why you want to make sure that you're keeping a log to know your own body and trust what you're learning about your body. And that you're also working with someone that can help you fill in the gaps and understand that a little bit better, and personalize it. Because some people may eliminate sugar or decrease sugar and they may feel a lot better. Some people may decrease sugar and not feel any better at all, which will lead to a lot more frustration, so that's the value of working with a registered dietician.
Doctors do a great job at their role, they're not the ones that are providing the nutrition care, they don't get a lot of nutrition education specific to that level, they're focused on bigger things, right? And so going to a registered dietitian is a great thing to do whenever you're trying to work through the diet and the specifics around diet in order to find a plan that is sustainable and works for you.
And then the last question that we're going to talk about on this episode is what is the quickest way out of a flare? Should you just not eat? So I love this question! It's in a short sense, the answer is not fun, and it's the answer that we typically give to most people that they don't like. And that is it depends! It depends on you, it depends on what works for your body, it depends on what caused the flare, it depends on what the flare actually looks like. It depends on you.
So when we're looking at the best way out of the flare, if I did break this down, then the first thing I would say is rest and relaxation. And that doesn't mean go sit in a corner and just breathe all day. What that means is taking time to slow down and give your body space to get its stability back, calm for a moment, so not contributing to that stress trigger cycle that could be going on, and allow the body to work through what it's working through.
A lot of times what we see when someone's in a flare is panic. And so that might look like trying to stop it really quickly, which can trigger an opposite flare. It may look like the panic of oh no what's happening, this is going to be really bad, and then there's stress and anxiety that's happening in the brain that then goes and triggers more of a spiral in the gut. Sometimes what we also see in a flare is this kind of self sabotage principle, where it's like, well, I'm already in a flare, I might as well, whether that's conscious or subconscious that's happening, and it leads is a nasty cycle that's really hard to get out of. And so when you're in a flare, that is that's my quickest way to get out, is finding ways to really calm the body and allowing the body time and space to rest. So bringing in those reminders to like calm, settle the mind. Rest, rest, rest, rest, rest.
Now, not everyone is going to respond specifically to that strategy, and the way that strategy plays out is going to look different for each person. So when we're thinking about flares, what's important is while you're thinking about your IBS management plans, so preventing flares, and when you're coming up with a plan to prevent them, it's also important to strategize and do some trial and error and play around with different ways that you can actually treat or settle the flare, to stop the flare. And so you're going to have a preventative plan and you're also going to have a flare plan that you use and you know works for you.
So that's actually a benefit that we talk about with our clients early on in our programs when they are having flares, or if there's a flare that's induced by something out of their control, like hormone changes, external stressors, things like that, that it's out of their control, and they're in a flare. It's a great opportunity to try using some of these different strategies that we know might help based on their symptoms and what might be going on with the flare, whether it's gut brain or increased, cramping or spasms or something like that. We're able to kind of create a plan through that trial and error to find what works for them, and so when you have a flare plan, then you're going to have your own personalized plan in place that you can go to and that's your quickest way out of a flare.
The temptation sometimes is the second part of this question: should you just not eat? And the answer is no, not really. There could be lower quantity of meals, like eating a little bit lower portions, eating easy to digest foods like broth, soups, pureed foods, cooked down food, things like that. Also plain foods, a lot of people do respond well to that and there's something to that. It might look like you don't eat as much, or maybe there's one meal that you don't eat, right, maybe there is a meal that you skip, because you don't feel well, your gut is very volatile, and things are moving way too quickly or just you're in a lot of pain and that's understandable.
When you wait and try to deprive yourself or starve yourself until your body is completely settled, that starvation mode or the skipping meals and not eating can actually contribute to more symptoms, and can actually contribute to the flare. So just not eating is not a great plan. And if that's the cycle that you're stuck in of, you know, trying to prevent, not really sure what to do in a flare, not eating, and then you know, self sabotaging maybe in that and then back into the flare, that's a cycle that's very hard to get out of when you're on your own. You don't have those strategies that you can use, so you can feel a little bit lost and overwhelmed and just covered by that. I get that. And so that would be the value, again, working with a trained professional, going through a flare plan talking about what to do on specific to symptoms in flares, how to actually prevent them, what those strategies look like, how to adjust when you're in a flare, because that's a big one….things that work for you when you're not in a flare may not work as well for you when you're in a flare.
Coffee is a great example. You might drink coffee every day and be fine, but when you're in a flare, your gut might be a little bit more vulnerable to that and the coffee might then trigger some symptoms. So it's good to know those different layers and how that toolbox in your mind that you can pull from, that's the stuff that we teach in our Master Method group program as well as with our one to one clients. It's something we do, and something you'll also be able to find through other trained IBS professionals. That's a great question to ask your providers, especially whenever you're trying to find new providers, ask them those questions like, do you provide kind of a scope of information that I can use during a flare, before a flare or after a flare, to take care of my gut through these different situations that might be in my control, as well as out of my control? It's important to have those different layers ready.
Skipping meals is one that is very nuanced, and there's a lot to this. There might be some situations where a period of maybe some fasting could be beneficial. But hear this, that doesn't mean for everyone, and there can be this really disordered pattern that sneaks up that can contribute to more symptoms long term. So remember that some things may work in the short term, and may be a quick fix, but they may not actually benefit you in the long term, so that's why it's so important to get really good support and get really good guidance so that you're looking at the long term, as well as the short term. And you're able to see that full picture when you're making those decisions and those choices for yourself, as you know how it'll impact you specifically, and what that will actually look like in the long run.
So I hope that was helpful, answering those quick few questions, very short and sweet. So I'd love to finish this conversation, join me in The Gut Community over on Facebook, if you're listening to this in real time, awesome! Come on over! If you're listening to this later, if it's delayed, still come into the community! We are there and we are still there to answer your questions and continue the conversation so bring it up again. We would love to hear from you and be able to get to know you better.
I see you, I hear you, I'm with you. I love getting to know you and can't wait to get to know you more, so I will see you in the community and then here on the next episode.