Raise The Rouf Health Why Post Meal Walks Can Chance Your Health
Introduction
Feeling sluggish or bloated after meals? Do you hit a wall or crash in the hours following meals, the urge for a nap always just nagging at you! Try implementing some walking into your daily routine following meals! Even walks as short as 5 minutes can make a difference in your overall energy and digestion!
The problem is that a lot of people don’t think twice about moving after their meals. Whether it be not allowing enough time, needing to get back to work, or getting caught in “doom scrolling,” these all contribute to this tiny habit being overlooked!
Now, it’s going to require change in your daily routine, and it’s going to be challenging at first. But I promise that this is an incredible habit to make a part of your daily lifestyle. It doesn’t require a huge time commitment, but it does require prioritization!
What Is a Post-Meal Walk?
It is just what it sounds like! A low intensity, light walk shortly after you get done eating a meal. While the 15-30 minute range gives you the most bang for your buck, even just 5 minutes can make a difference in your day! Again, this is a nice, light intensity only. It should feel nice and comfortable for you.
Why Walk After Meal
1). One of the biggest benefits of these walks is keeping your blood sugar levels stable. Following meals, our glucose (blood sugar level) spikes and insulin is released. Insulin’s job is to remove the sugar from the blood.
- Without Walking: When we go right back to work, or sit on the couch following a meal, insulin has to take care of all the sugar in the blood. Furthermore, we release a TON of insulin, leading to loads of glucose being driven out of the blood. This is what commonly leads to that mid-day crash many people experience!
- With Walking: When we engage in light walking, insulin doesn’t have to deal with all the incoming glucose alone! Now that we’re walking, our muscles are now active and help to take in some of that glucose. With the help of these active muscles, we now don’t require as much insulin to return our blood sugar levels to normal! Our energy levels now remain much more stable, rather than crashing, allowing us to perform and be at our best in all aspects of life!
2). Another key benefit you’ll gain from these walks is improved digestion!
- Without Walking: Without a post-meal walk, we go right back to sitting and being stationary. In doing so, the muscles of our stomach, intestines, and the overall path our food moves through are much less active, and the food takes longer to move through our body. This can lead to bloating, gas, and just an overall “heavy” feeling following meals.
- With Walking: With a quick walk after our meal, we’re now stimulating the muscles that push our food through the body much more, allowing it to pass into the stomach and intestines much quicker. The light activity simply helps to keep everything moving along and helps us digest our food and absorb it’s nutrients much more efficiently!
3). Lastly, not only do these walks improve the processes inside our body, but they can help put us in a better mood too!
- Without Walking: With no walk, we go right back to the TV, computer screen, or our phone, to which we already spend countless hours looking at on a daily basis.
- With Walking: If we get outside for a quick walk, not only are we getting a break from screens and work in general, but we are also getting fresh air! This helps to put us in a more positive headspace and bring us back to the present moment! (see previous post, “Present Moment Thinking – The Sunrise”)
Making it a Habit
Here are a few tips you can utilize to make this a sustainable change in your life!
1). Start small and build up
- As with any behavior change, start small, and work your way up from there. Start with 5 minute walks after dinner only. Then, progress as you become more comfortable! If you really aren’t able to get a walk in after every single meal, don’t sweat it! Any time you can get out is time that your body will thank you for! If you only have one meal that works for you to walk, dinner is probably your best option, as then you’ll be improving your body’s digestion efficiency so that you can focus on recovery when you sleep!
2). Walk with someone
- It’s always easier when you have someone else to hold you accountable. Use it as an opportunity to take your dog for a walk. Reach out to a friend and ask if they’d like to meetup and walk around town on a regular basis. Turn it into a “family walk.” When you have someone alongside you, it not only makes the habit more likely to stick, but it also is more enjoyable!
3). Be flexible
- Have backup options available to you. If the weather isn’t the greatest, walk around your house or on the treadmill for a little bit! If walking isn’t an option for you, try doing a few bodyweight squats or sit to stands on the couch! Squats are another great route for managing blood sugar after meals and can be performed rather quickly if you don’t have time for a full walk!
Wrapping Up
Walking after meals is a habit that I’ve been doing for a couple years now, and I truly notice the difference in how I feel when I get my walk in compared to when I don’t. Do I always get them in? No! Life isn’t perfect, but I do my best to set aside time when I am able, and I encourage you to do the same! Give post-meal walks a try throughout this week, and see how you feel throughout the day! As always, this is just one more tool you can cement into your lifestyle you work towards a better you and raise the rouf on your health!
If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out! I am more than happy to discuss more! Also, feel free to comment on your experience after giving this habit a try!
