Our health relies on the ability to breakdown and absorb nutrients from our food while efficiently eliminating what the body has no use for. If you can’t absorb the nutrients the body requires, or if you can’t eliminate waste effectively, your overall health will suffer.

By optimizing digestion, you will be taking the right steps to ensure that you’re healthier on a cellular level. You can have the best diet on planet earth with organic, local and pasture raised foods, but if you can’t break down and use the nutrients from the food because of digestive dysfunction, you will lose many of the benefits from those foods.

Addressing digestive dysfunction in a north to south fashion can alleviate problems further downstream that would appear seemingly unrelated to higher up function. These tips will be covered in a way that addresses digestive dysfunction at each stage of the process.

Relax: Rest and Digest

We need to be in a parasympathetic state (rest and digest) for the body to get ready for food. This sets the stage for proper mechanical and chemical breakdown of foods in the stomach, and causes digestive fluids to be secreted in anticipation of food.

Most people don’t take the time to relax before eating. This causes digestive distress because the body is not in an optimal state to begin digesting a meal.

Take a moment and allow the brain to communicate and prime the digestive system for the food you are about to eat. Put away all electronics and move away from the TV. Smell, see and even touch your food before eating to allow the body to begin digestion with the brain.

Chew Your Food

The next stop in digestion after the brain is the mouth. Chewing is an often ignored part of our digestion that plays a fundamental role in the breakdown of foods on a mechanical and chemical level. The more you can break a food down in your mouth, the less of a burden is put on the stomach to make up for lack of chewing.

Enzymes in your saliva are responsible for the chemical breakdown of foods. The main enzyme in your saliva, amylase, is responsible for the breakdown of carbohydrates. The more you chew, the more predigested those starches will be.

Try chewing each bite 20-30 times. Your food should be closer to a liquid than a solid by the time you swallow it. You can also put your fork down as a reminder in between bites. Once you get started on this habit, you will realize how little you really chew your food.

Support Your Stomach Acid

When you are deficient in stomach acid, your ability to break down foods and trigger further digestion is hindered. Foods have to be at a certain acidity before they are allowed to pass from the stomach into the upper small intestine.

Stomach acid (hydrochloric acid) is responsible for creating the acidic environment necessary to unfold proteins into smaller molecules named amino acids. Amino acids are the raw materials for neurotransmitters, enzymes, hormones, muscle tissue and bone formation. Amino acids are required head to toe, but to get them from proteins, you need adequate stomach acid production.

When someone is lacking stomach acid, foods are only partially digested and sit in the stomach longer than normal. Rather than being digested, these foods begin to rot and form gas.

This gas from the rancid food in your gut is the reason for bloating, burping, heartburn, digestive pain and excessive gas. If any of this sounds familiar, you may need a hydrochloric acid supplement to get things moving along.

Hydrochloric acid is also the first line of defense against pathogens and bacteria you ingest. Without the proper acidity in your stomach, pathogenic microorganisms can survive the digestive process, enter your bloodstream and make you sick. The normal acidity of a healthy stomach helps prevent bacteria and parasites from spreading by killing and digesting them.

If you need to kickstart the production of stomach acid, drink 1-2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar or lemon juice in 4 ounces of warm water 15-20 minutes before a meal.

Digestive Enzymes

When food leaves the stomach, it enters the small intestine. 90% of all the nutrients will be absorbed here. Digestive enzymes secreted by the pancreas break food into molecules small enough that they pass through the walls of the small intestine and into the bloodstream. These food molecules are delivered to the area where they are needed.

Unfortunately many people do not produce enough of these digestive enzymes anymore because of inflammation, chronic stress, aging, insufficient stomach acid and food allergies.

By supplementing with digestive enzymes, you will be able to extract and use more nutrients from your foods. The discomfort that comes from incomplete breakdown of foods such as occasional gas and bloating can be avoided by supplementing with enzymes.

Make sure you are taking a full spectrum high quality digestive enzyme supplement such as DigesTech® with your meals to help you break down and absorb nutrients efficiently.

Consume Probiotic-Rich Foods

The intestine is home to over 100 trillion bacteria. There are roughly 4 pounds of bacteria living in your GI tract alone. On a cellular level, you are outnumbered by bacteria 10 to 1 in your own body.

While the roles of these bacteria are just beginning to be understood, it is very obvious they are vital to our health. These healthy gut flora help protect you from infection, assist gastrointestinal function, manage metabolism and help with immune system function.

But many aspects of the modern lifestyle are not conducive to keeping healthy gut flora. Some of the things that create problems are stress, infections, sugar and processed carbohydrates, and not eating enough fiber.

To help give these beneficial bacteria a boost, you can consume fermented, probiotic-rich foods such as; sauerkraut, kimchi, kombucha, kefir and beet kvass. You can also take a high quality multi strain probiotic supplement.

Digestion Requires Water

Diuretic beverages are drinks that pull water from the body such as fruit juice, coffee and soda. When you combine diuretic beverages with a severe lack of water consumption, it is a recipe for dehydration and a sluggish digestive system.

Digestion is an energy and fluid-intensive process that requires liters of fluid just to digest a single meal. The body will pull that water to the digestive system from other areas because it is crucial to function properly. This becomes a problem when you no longer have enough water to support proper digestive function and your bowels become sluggish and less frequent – preventing your body from eliminating waste.

It is amazing how many clients I have seen that suffered from chronic constipation that was resolved by consistently drinking more water and reducing diuretic beverage consumption.

Start by taking your body weight in pounds, divide that in half and drink that many ounces of water daily as a baseline. Remember to sip water instead of chugging to let your body absorb it.

Bone Broth Heals the Gut

There are a number of ways that bone broth nourishes your body, but a key one is that it provides exceptional support to your gut. The gelatin that is extracted during making bone broth is helpful for healing and sealing the digestive tract.

Glycine is an amino acid found in bone broth that helps to stimulate the production of stomach acid to break foods down. Glycine is also a crucial ingredient in bile acids, which are responsible for the breakdown of fats into their usable form.

Glutamine provides fuel for the cells in the intestinal walls to regrow and repair damaged areas of your gut. Glutamine also supports the immune system, which is predominantly located in the digestive system.

Bone broth has a ton of gut healing nutrients, and can be made easily (recipe below). If you have any kind of digestive issues, try having at least 4-8 ounces of bone broth a day to support overall digestion and gut health.

Gut Check Recap

Here is a quick recap of the habits you can begin doing today to improve your digestion:

● Relax and take a few moments to ready for the body for digestion. Experience your food through sight, smell and touch before eating.

● Put your fork down and chew 20-30 times between bites. Turn your solids into a liquid before swallowing.

● Drink 1-2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar or lemon juice in 4 ounces of warm water 15-20 minutes before a meal to support stomach acid production. You can also take a hydrochloric acid supplement with meals.

● Use a broad spectrum, high quality digestive enzyme to breakdown and absorb more nutrients from your food.

● Consume fermented probiotic-rich foods such as; sauerkraut, kimchi, kombucha, kefir and beet kvass on a daily basis.

● Drink half your bodyweight in ounces of water a day. Sip, don’t chug!

● Add 4-8 ounces of bone broth twice a day to your routine.

Bone Broth Recipe

Ingredients:

● 3-4 pounds of bones (from pasture raised, grass-fed animals)
● 1 gallon of water
● 2-3 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar
● Any spices or vegetables you want to add for flavor

Instructions:

● Put all the ingredients in a large crock pot
● Cook on low for 24-72 hours
● Cool the broth when done cooking
● Strain and place into a container
● Store in refrigerator or freezer
● Enjoy better digestion!

The post Upgrade Your Digestion & Upgrade Your Health appeared first on Onnit Academy.

How do you know how much fluid to drink? And what are athletes missing when they only drink water?

A good rule to follow is to drink half your bodyweight in ounces of water every day. Most of us are familiar with this estimate.

However, athletes who demand more of their body require more hydration on a daily basis and athletes truly pushing their limits require more than just water to perform at their best.

During training or a race, drinking 16­-20 ounces of water per hour of activity will ensure you have enough fluid coming in. Adequate hydration goes beyond just water consumption though.

Factors to consider in terms of hydration and athletic performance are: how much you sweat, the temperature outside, humidity, the altitude you are training at and electrolyte replenishment.

Generally speaking, if your pee is pale yellow, you’re well hydrated. Dark yellow means you’re not drinking enough water and peeing clear means you’ve had too much.

There is a lot of awareness about dehydration, but this article focuses on the dangers of overhydration and how to prevent it. There are a minority of athletes who can take hydration to the extreme and drink too much water.

Are You Drinking Too Much Water?

When you over hydrate, it can lead to a damaging and potentially fatal condition known as hyponatremia as a result of extremely low blood sodium levels. Without electrolytes, the extra fluid places an extreme burden on the kidneys and disrupts the cellular fluid balance.

Hyponatremia causes the body to flush all the electrolytes making it difficult for tissues to retain the right ratio of water to electrolytes. Endurance athletes who train longer than normal outside in the heat are at a much higher risk of overhydration.

Many of the symptoms of overhydration are identical to dehydration, and can lead folks to make a bad situation worse. Typically people will experience fatigue, nausea, cramps, headaches and vomiting. Thinking the answer is more water only digs a deeper hole.

Electrolytes are important because they help regulate the fluid inside our cells and maintain the pH of our blood. Nerve, muscle and heart function all depend on having an ample amount of these electrolytes in the body.

Electrolytes are lost primarily through sweat, and replaced by the fluids you drink, and food you eat.

The more you sweat from training or a race, the more important it becomes to balance the electrolytes with fluids. In the absence of these electrolytes, your cells will not adequately retain the water you are drinking and your athletic performance will suffer as a result.

Most athletes will go for sports drinks in an attempt to get electrolytes during races, and while they do provide potassium and sodium, they are missing other crucial electrolytes in the form of calcium, magnesium and chloride. Some sports drinks can actually be dehydrating because of their sugar content.

Calcium, magnesium and potassium are especially important for cramps, a common problem for endurance athletes. If you want to optimize health and athletic performance, there are far better options than sports drinks.

It takes some smart planning on your part, but how important is your health and athletic performance to you?

Alternative Hydration Options

Below are some hydration options that provide what’s lacking in water without the added sugar and other potentially negative ingredients of many sports drinks. Just like with all other aspects of nutrition, it will take some experimenting to see what works best for you personally.

The middle of a race isn’t the best time to try out a new hydration method. Experiment during training so on race day you are dialed in and ready to set personal records!

Salt

You want to make sure you are using mineral-rich salt which contains 84 trace minerals and electrolytes that need to be replenished. ½­-1 Tsp. of Himalayan sea salt in 16-­20 ounces of water is a good starting place and adjust as needed.

Use a small container to attach Himalayan salt to your race belt, or better yet, grab the Onnit Salt Packets for convenience.

Salt Lick Tablets

These tablets contain minerals and electrolytes that are highly bioavailable, and are absorbed by your muscles quickly to restore balance. Salt Lick tablets were invented for triathletes by an organic chemist who is a triathlete as well.

This is a great option if you are looking to get your electrolyte boost separate from your liquids. They would be easy to addition to your race belt or put in your race bag for a checkpoint.

Coconut Water

Coconut water has proven to be as effective as sports drinks at hydrating during and after workouts. However, both coconut water and sports drinks lack the sodium required by an athlete exercising longer than three hours.

To remedy that, you can add Himalayan salt to coconut water or combine Salt Lick Tablets with coconut water to make an electrolyte-­rich cocktail.

Liquid Trace Minerals

This is an easy way to get a concentrated shot of minerals quickly. With minerals in liquid form, they can be easily be stored in a dropper on a race belt and added to your drink of choice.

Because the minerals and electrolytes are in liquid form they will be easily ingested and absorbed during a race or training. I am a fan of the brand Natural Vitality, and their product Natural Life Minerals.

Mineral/ Electrolyte Enhanced Water

This option flies under the radar because of how simple it is, but by substituting this enhanced water you can provide the body with some of its depleted minerals.

Because these waters alone do not contain the electrolyte content required by endurance athletes, you should add Himalayan salt or mix half coconut water, half mineral enriched water with ½­-1 Tsp of Himalayan salt.

Kelp

This may seem fringe to recommend, but kelp is a legit super food that is packed with a ton of the minerals we are missing in our modern diet. Plus, it has a very favorable sodium chloride profile (salt).

Kelp can be popped in the capsule form or you can open the capsule into your drink and slam it. This option is more about the health benefits, not the taste.

Lemon Juice + Honey + Coconut Water + Chia Seeds + Himalayan Salt

This concoction is a great homemade drink packed with electrolytes, natural sugars and a little fat to help fuel activity and rehydrate efficiently. I recommend playing with the recipe to see what tastes and fuels your needs the best.

I have clients start with 12 ounces of coconut water, 4 ounces of water or electrolyte enhanced water, juice from ½­-1 lemon , 1­2 Tbsp honey, ½-1 tsp. sea salt and 2 Tbsp chia seeds.

For endurance athletes, I would recommend the using more honey and more salt to meet their specific needs.

Being an endurance athlete who is looking to refuel and rehydrate doesn’t mean that you have to sacrifice health for performance, or vice versa. As I have listed in this article, there are many healthy options to boost performance, and improve health while setting personal bests.

The post Going Clear: Hyperhydration & The Prison of Belief appeared first on Onnit Academy.