What is Irritable Bowel Syndrome?
There are a lot of syndromes in the medical lexicon that for a huge population majority of syndromes might sound alien. One such syndrome is Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), although you might have got an idea for what this syndrome is about by just looking at the name.
Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) is a disorder of the small intestine. It is a chronic syndrome, which means it takes time to treat this condition. Some of the common syndromes of IBS includes the following:
Signs of irritable bowel syndrome are sporadic in nature and can affect any day of your routine. They often come and go. You might struggle with the symptoms for a day, a week, or a month. The period of your life when you have the symptoms is called an IBS flare-up.
The most critical part of IBS is that it does not have a permanent cure. But for some, changes in their lifestyle and habits help to minimize the visit of IBS symptoms. It is also said that exercising regularly helps to improve the IBS condition.
How to Heal Irritable Bowel Syndrome Naturally?
With this article, we will be sharing some of the exercises that you can practice to get rid of this chronic disorder. Some of the types of exercises that are good to fight with irritable bowel syndrome are- Walk, stretches, and breathing exercises.
1. Walk
Walking is the best you can do if you are an amateur to exercise. Also, this is one such exercise with which you can overcome a lot of other health issues. Walking every day is widely recommended, doing this will keep your body function in a good process. If done regularly, walking is capable of managing stress and promoting the movement of bowels. In addition to walking, some other exercises that you can do are:
- Jogging
- Relaxed and smooth biking
- Low impact aerobics
- Swimming
- Specific sports
2. Stretches to reduce pain
Stretches are another great way of dealing with irritable bowel syndrome. They will facilitate gas clearance as well as a bowel movement. They work by massaging the lower abdomen, pampering the digestive organs. Stretches are well known to help relieve oneself from any kind of stress. Yoga is the best stretch exercise that one can think of.
Some of the yoga poses for IBS that you can go for include
Irritable Bowel Syndrome3. Bridge
This is a classic yoga pose which you can go for. This one pose will mainly focus on your abdomen. Along with your abdomen, your hips and buts will also get engaged.
Direction to do:
- Lie down on your back. Bend your knees and plant your feet on the floor, hip-width apart. Place your arms at your sides, palms facing down.
- Engage your core. Raise your hips until your torso is diagonal. Pause.
- Lower your hips to the starting position.
Irritable Bowel Syndrome4. Supine twist
Supine twist plays with your lower and mid-torso. This is a great help to deal with conditions of IBS as well as is an amazing exercise to treat back pain.
Direction to do:
- Lie down on your back. Bend your knees and plant your feet on the floor, side by side. Extend your arms to a “T.”
- Move both knees toward your chest. Lower your knees to the right, and turn your head to the left. Pause.
- Return to starting position. Repeat in the opposite direction.
Irritable Bowel Syndrome5. Breathing exercises
When you are stressed what do people ask you to do? Or what is the first thing that you do to get yourself back to a tranquil state? “DEEP BREATH”. If this remedy is so popularly referred to break stress then don’t you think this can help you in dealing with the chronic IBS?
Definitely!!! Relaxation is the primary key to IBS and to achieve so, try slow and deep breath. Some breathing exercises that you can give a try are-
6. Diaphragmatic exercise
Diaphragmatic exercise is well known to promote relaxation and calmness. They are designed to encourage slow and deep breaths. This technique is also named as abdominal breathing.
Direction to do:
- Sit on any flat surface, your bed, or the floor. Keep your hands on your belly.
- Now very slowly and deeply, inhale for 4 seconds. Feel your belly pump outwards. Now pause.
- Exhale in the same way for 4 long seconds.
- Repeat this inhaling and exhaling process for 5 to 10 times.
7. Alternate nostrils exercise
The august Ramdev’s popular ‘anulom vilom’ can do wonders when it comes to any stress or breathing problems. This alternate breathing process is what anulom vilom is all about. This is a great technique for relaxing and maintaining inner peace. A lot of people do this with a combination of other yogas and meditations.
Direction to do:
- Sit on a chair or on the floor with your legs crossed. Do not stoop forward or backward. Keep your back straight.
- Bend your right index and middle fingers toward your palm.
- Close your right nostril with your right thumb. Slowly inhale through the left nostril.
- Close your left nostril with your right ring finger. Slowly exhale through the right nostril.
- Repeat this process for as long as you want.
Exercises to avoid
Keep in mind, there are some exercises that you should strictly say no to. Stay away from high-intensity exercises. They are not at all an Irritable Bowel Syndrome reliever. Instead, they will help you do badly with IBS improvement. The high-intensity exercises are:
- Running
- Competitive, harsh and fast cycling
- Competitive swimming, etc.
Always be careful to keep a proper check on things that trigger such symptoms on you. You will be in a better state if you stay away from such things. Although, after a long pause, chances are there that your body will cope up with those things without showing any symptoms.
Get started with the above exercises and make IBS hard to stay with you!!!
