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I have pretty mild IBS symptoms, but I concur - exercising at the very least has helped regulate my gut. At least to the extent that I can live a normal life wi

I have pretty mild IBS symptoms, but I concur - exercising at the very least has helped regulate my gut. At least to the extent that I can live a normal life without having to be constantly aware of the nearest bathroom. Can’t recommend regular exercise enough to those experiencing similar issues. Running would be my recommendation. I wonder if the rhythm of exercise is partially responsible.

dcx 9y ago
Can I ask for more details on how you are exercising - frequency, duration, any special tips? I have mild IBS-D but find that running sometimes seems to exacerbate my symptoms. I've found research pointing both ways on this.
- lwansbrough 9y ago
  Every other day approximately. Not too much running - 15 mins maybe. Then an hour of weight training. The most important thing has been regulation. I stay away from foods I’ve recognized as being triggers. I was taking probiotics for a while. I was stressed, anxious. All contributing factors. Learning control has been a key for me.
  - dcx 9y ago
    Very interesting, thank you! For a while I was running in the 30-60 minute range and my gut was getting more and more irritable over time. Your experience lines up with the research I found - that intense, prolonged or overly frequent exercise can worsen leaky gut / intestinal permeability symptoms, but regular exercise at a relatively low intensity may improve it. This makes me want to try reintroducing running into my routine. Also very interesting that weight training doesn't trigger any symptoms. Can I ask - how hard do you push during weight training? Are you on a program like StrongLifts 5x5? I was running and then doing weights back-to-back and stopped both after I realised it was making things worse. I have the same experience as you in terms of biggest improvements - spotting and cutting out trigger foods has been a huge help. I miss a lot of foods, but I like having a stable gut much more than I miss the foods...
nxc18 9y ago
I don’t know if I have IBS, but I’ve noticed that lately if I push it too much with spicy foods I’m being punished in the form of unusually unpleasant and urgent BMs later. This is particularly annoying as I really, really like spicy food. I started doing intense (for me) cardio every morning and without significant diet changes I’m already seeing the symptoms disappear. I sort of came to the same conclusion the article did from personal experience. I wish the study did more frequent samples so we could see how long it took for the changes to happen as I fully recognize that my own experience could be coincidental.
fillskills 9y ago
I have IBS too. I highly recommend taking probiotic regularly. This one specially helped me: Ultimate Flora Critical Care. Just make sure you buy them from a place that keeps them refrigerated. Also try to eat lots of non processed food like salads etc. They add to the bacterial layer.

dcx 9y ago

Can I ask for more details on how you are exercising - frequency, duration, any special tips? I have mild IBS-D but find that running sometimes seems to exacerbate my symptoms. I've found research pointing both ways on this.

lwansbrough 9y ago
Every other day approximately. Not too much running - 15 mins maybe. Then an hour of weight training. The most important thing has been regulation. I stay away from foods I’ve recognized as being triggers. I was taking probiotics for a while. I was stressed, anxious. All contributing factors. Learning control has been a key for me.
- dcx 9y ago
  Very interesting, thank you! For a while I was running in the 30-60 minute range and my gut was getting more and more irritable over time. Your experience lines up with the research I found - that intense, prolonged or overly frequent exercise can worsen leaky gut / intestinal permeability symptoms, but regular exercise at a relatively low intensity may improve it. This makes me want to try reintroducing running into my routine. Also very interesting that weight training doesn't trigger any symptoms. Can I ask - how hard do you push during weight training? Are you on a program like StrongLifts 5x5? I was running and then doing weights back-to-back and stopped both after I realised it was making things worse. I have the same experience as you in terms of biggest improvements - spotting and cutting out trigger foods has been a huge help. I miss a lot of foods, but I like having a stable gut much more than I miss the foods...

nxc18 9y ago

I don’t know if I have IBS, but I’ve noticed that lately if I push it too much with spicy foods I’m being punished in the form of unusually unpleasant and urgent BMs later. This is particularly annoying as I really, really like spicy food. I started doing intense (for me) cardio every morning and without significant diet changes I’m already seeing the symptoms disappear. I sort of came to the same conclusion the article did from personal experience. I wish the study did more frequent samples so we could see how long it took for the changes to happen as I fully recognize that my own experience could be coincidental.

fillskills 9y ago

I have IBS too. I highly recommend taking probiotic regularly. This one specially helped me: Ultimate Flora Critical Care. Just make sure you buy them from a place that keeps them refrigerated. Also try to eat lots of non processed food like salads etc. They add to the bacterial layer.