5 Underrated Causes of Bloating
Bloating is the worst. It’s uncomfortable, frustrating, and can make you feel like everything you’re doing is wrong—even when you’re eating well and working out. But here’s the thing: bloating isn’t random. Your body is always communicating with you, and if you take the time to listen, you can figure out why it’s happening and what to do about it.
That’s why in this episode of Embrace Your Real, Alright, I’m going to share the top five sneaky reasons you’re bloated and what you can do to fix it. Are you ready?! Let’s get it, let’s go…
What I discuss:
If you’re feeling bloated, take a step back and ask yourself:
Am I eating enough carbs?
Am I overexercising?
Am I eating foods my body doesn’t like?
Am I super stressed?
Am I drinking enough water?
Your body is always talking to you—it’s just a matter of listening! Instead of getting frustrated with bloating, use it as a sign to check in with yourself and make small changes.
If you loved this episode, you’ll also love episode 317: 5 Reasons to Love Carbohydrates when Building the Body You Want
If you want more from me, be sure to check out...
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Transcript:
Hey, hey, beautiful human. Can I steal five minutes of your time? I have something (0:04) super important to share with you, but I promise I'll be really quick. (0:08) You're listening to my weekly bonus episode of Embrace Your Real with me, Julie Labrador.(0:12) I'm about to give you a quick tip for building your confidence, honoring your body, and (0:17) unconditionally loving your authentic self. Stay tuned if you're ready to embrace your real. (0:22) Let's get in.Let's go. Hello, and welcome back to another bonus episode on the Embrace Your Real (0:36) podcast. If you've been feeling bloated lately, but you have no idea why, today's episode is for (0:41) you.Bloating, let's be honest, ladies, bloating is the worst. It's uncomfortable, it's frustrating, (0:46) it can make you feel like everything that you're doing is wrong. Even when you're eating well, (0:50) you're working out, you're staying consistent, you're doing all the things.But here's the thing, (0:54) bloating isn't random. Your body is always communicating with you, and if you actually (1:00) take the time to listen, you can actually figure out why it's happening and what to do about it. (1:04) But before we dive in, I wanted to share just quickly, if you guys could scooch over to Apple (1:09) podcasts and leave a rating interview, that would mean so, so much.These episodes are completely (1:14) free. I have no ads, no sponsors on this podcast. And so by you guys just tuning in and you guys (1:20) leaving rating interviews, that helps so much more than you know.So if you do have an Apple (1:25) device, whether it's an iPad, an iPhone, you can go to the podcast app. It's free on every device (1:30) and type in Embrace Your Real. First, make sure you're subscribed so that you never miss an episode.(1:34) They release on Mondays and Thursdays. And then once you're on that page, you can scroll all the (1:38) way down and leave a rating interview. That would mean so much.I would just love to hear how this (1:43) podcast is helping you. Maybe you left your view a while ago, but there's been a new episode or you (1:48) just have found this podcast in general helpful for you in this season of life. I would love to (1:52) hear it.So thank you in advance for doing that. Okay, let's break it down. Here are five sneaky (1:57) reasons you're bloated and what you can do to fix it.So number one, you're not eating enough carbs. (2:02) Yes, you heard that right. If you've been restricting carbs thinking it will help with (2:07) digestion or weight loss, it could actually be the reason that is causing bloating.And here's why. (2:12) Carbohydrates actually help your body to hold on water onto water in a good way. And so when you (2:18) don't eat enough, your body can struggle with digestion and your gut bacteria can get thrown (2:23) out of whack, which leads to bloating.So making sure that you're eating enough quality carbs like (2:29) oats, rice, potatoes, fruits, cutting out carbs isn't the answer. Your body actually needs them. (2:35) So just please, please, please hear me when I say cutting carbs is not the answer.And I talk about (2:40) this on so many different podcasts, but one in particular that I think you'll find really helpful (2:45) is episode 317, five reasons to love carbohydrates when building the body that you want. I will go (2:51) ahead and link that in the show notes below. But also if you aren't familiar or know how much your (2:57) body needs based on where you're at and what your goals are, I have my Macro Academy and Simple (3:01) Online Academy that is going to help you so much just learn how to properly feel your body so that (3:08) you can and will eat the carbs that your body needs, again, in the proper amounts.Because it's (3:14) really not about, yes, I want you to prioritize the quality carbs, but let's be real, you're going (3:19) to have pizza, you're going to have ice cream, you're going to have those foods, you know, whether (3:22) that is a few times a week, whether that's in moderation every single day, whatever it is, (3:26) totally fine to do that, but you need to be eating the proper amount of carbs. And that's where I (3:31) think so many people get hung up. So I will link both of those, the Macro Academy and Simple Online (3:35) Academy and then episode 317 so that you can learn more about both of those things.Number two, (3:41) you're over exercising. So working out, yes, is amazing. I will always tell you to honor your (3:46) body with movement, but too much of anything, it can be negative, right? And so when you're (3:51) over training, your body actually releases more cortisol, which is the stress hormone, (3:56) which can actually mess with digestion.And that can actually be a leading cause of bloating. (4:01) Plus, these intense workouts can actually cause this temporary inflammation in your gut, (4:05) making you feel puffy and making you feel swollen. And that this is oftentimes what happens (4:11) when women are doing too much HIIT training.So high intense interval training, if that's the (4:16) only type of training that they're doing, maybe they're doing that, you know, five days a week or (4:20) four days a week, like that type of training is likely going to make you feel puffy and swollen. (4:25) So what to do? Well, you have to prioritize those rest days, your body needs time to recover. And (4:31) so if you've been doing all of the workouts, like you've been doing, you know, six or even seven (4:35) days a week of workouts, and you're still feeling bloated, I want you to maybe try less intense, (4:41) lower impact workouts, like resistance training over kind of those boot style boot camp style (4:47) workouts or that HIIT training.So I'm not telling you that you can't do those boot camp workouts (4:52) or the HIIT training. I think those are great in moderation, just like anything else, but just (4:57) try to prioritize those lower impact. That's why I'm a firm believer in dumbbell workouts.You guys, (5:02) like every single workout that I do has a low impact option. And I would say about 85 to 90% (5:09) of my workouts, just plain and simple, like without even the alternate exercise are low (5:14) impact workouts. The majority of the impact workouts come from my cardio and core day, (5:19) but I always, again, I always give a low impact alternate for every movement that (5:23) has sort of any impact.And so you're still able to use the dumbbells just in a low impact way. (5:29) And so if you have found yourself just feeling puffy, and you're like, man, I've been so (5:34) consistent with my workouts, and I still don't understand why I'm so puffy, and you have been (5:38) doing those high intense, those boot camp style workouts every single day, try to implement some (5:43) low impact workouts a few times a week and see how that helps. Number three, you're eating foods (5:49) that your body doesn't like.So just because a food is healthy, that doesn't always mean that (5:54) it's right for you. And this kind of was a game changer for me. So for example, cauliflower, (5:59) it's super nutritious.It's a veggie that, you know, is supposedly great. I literally hate it, (6:05) but my body literally hates it. And it could, I think the reason I hate it is because I've (6:11) associated it with just my body not loving it.Like every time I have it, whether it's cauliflower (6:17) crust on a pizza, it's cauliflower, whatever it is, whatever the new cauliflower trend is, (6:22) my body literally hates it. It makes me feel bloated. It makes me have a stomach ache every (6:27) single time.And so if you're dealing with bloating, I highly just recommend that you pay (6:31) attention to when it happens and what you ate around that time. So, you know, keeping a little (6:36) food journal that can help you spot patterns, like if it's dairy or gluten or certain veggies (6:41) that are triggering the bloat and just kind of start noticing how different foods are making (6:44) you feel. And if something consistently makes you feel bloated, it might be time to either cut back (6:50) or swap it out entirely for a different option.Sometimes eating less of it at one time that can (6:56) help, or just not as many times per week might be the answer. Another great example of this is (7:01) sweet potatoes. So for me, I literally love sweet potatoes so much, and I can eat sweet potatoes (7:05) every single night, but that does not make me feel great.So if I have one sweet potato, I'm good. (7:10) But if I have it multiple times a row in a week, that just does not make me feel great. And so I've (7:16) really cut down sweet potatoes to one or two times a week.And that has been like that sweet spot for (7:20) me where it is so good. It's like this delicious kind of treat almost because I don't have it every (7:26) single day. Not because I can't, but because I just know that it's not going to make me feel (7:30) my best.And so even just again, cutting it down per week, that can help instead of just completely (7:36) cutting it out. Number four, you're stressed out. Stress is a huge culprit when it comes to (7:41) bloating.And here's why. When you're stressed, your body really does go into that fight or flight (7:45) mode, which means that digestion is going to slow down because your body is focused on survival (7:50) instead of breaking down food properly. And this can lead to bloating, stomach pain, sluggish (7:55) digestion.So find ways to actively de-stress, whether it's walking, deep breaths, stretching, (8:00) or just setting those better boundaries, your gut will thank you. Stress management is just as (8:06) important as nutrition when it comes to bloating. So if you didn't prioritize reducing stress for (8:12) your mental health, maybe you'll be motivated to do it for your actual gut health.And last but not (8:17) least, number five, you need to drink more water. So dehydration, I've talked about this on the (8:21) podcast so many times, but it is another sneaky cause of bloating. So when your body doesn't (8:27) get enough water, it actually holds on to whatever it does have, which can cause that swollen, (8:32) puffy feeling.Plus water actually helps keep your digestion moving. So if you're not drinking (8:37) enough, things can slow down, if you know what I mean, and that's going to lead to that bloating (8:41) and discomfort. So make sure that you're drinking enough water throughout the day.A good rule of (8:46) thumb at the very least is at least half of your body weight in ounces. And if you're sweating a (8:51) lot or drinking caffeine, you might even want a little bit more. So for me, I measure it in hydro.(8:56) I have the HydroJug, which is the 40 ouncer, and I measure it in HydroJug. So I typically try to get (9:01) at least three. So that is, you know, if I'm doing 40 ounces at a time, that's about 120 ounces a day.(9:09) I tend to do three, you know, because I'm breastfeeding, I sometimes, you know, do three (9:14) and a half or four. But that's a great kind of rule of thumb if you don't want to measure it entirely. (9:19) I mean, you're kind of measuring it if you have a HydroJug or Stanley or whatever.I personally, (9:24) this is not sponsored by any means. I just, and I know, I think Stanley did come out with like the (9:30) spill proof cap, but I am just a big believer in the spill proof, especially when you have a baby (9:35) that's mobile or you have kids or you're just on the go a lot. That's why I love my HydroJug (9:40) so much.Like I fell into the hype about a year, a year, year and a half ago. And man, I'm just so (9:48) grateful that I have, I have multiple HydroJugs. My husband like finds them all over the house.(9:52) He's like, really? You got another one? I'm like, yes, they're so good. They're so good (9:56) because they don't spill and they hold 40 ounces of water. And literally I just measure my water (10:01) in HydroJug.So if this is your sign to treat yourself with a HydroJug, just to drink more (10:06) water than do it, find a pretty color that you love and do it. Okay. Let me quickly recap what (10:11) I talked about in today's episode.So if you're bloated, take a step back and ask yourself the (10:15) following, am I eating enough carbs? Am I over-exercising or is my exercise that I'm doing (10:20) all very HIIT style bootcamp style workouts? Am I eating foods that my body doesn't like? (10:27) Am I super stressed? Am I drinking enough water? Remember again, your body's always talking to (10:32) you. It's just a matter of listening to it. So instead of getting frustrated with bloating, (10:36) use this as a sign to kind of check in with yourself and make those small changes.(10:40) If you have a friend or a coworker or a sister or someone in your life that has been struggling (10:45) with bloating, send this episode their way. Hopefully this will help them. If you've been (10:50) struggling with bloating, hopefully this helped you.And also don't forget to check out episode (10:55) 317, five reasons to love carbohydrates when building the body that you want. I will go (11:00) ahead and link that in the show notes below so that you can tune into that. But that is all that (11:06) I have for today's episode.I hope that you found this helpful. I love connecting with you guys. (11:10) Be sure to screenshot this and post it up on your Instagram story.Also be sure to tag me (11:15) so that I can see it, but I love you so dang much. I mean it, and I'll talk to you in the next one. (11:27) All right, sister, that's all I got for you today, but I have two things that I need you to do.(11:34) First thing, if you are not already following me on the gram, be sure to do so. Julie A. (11:38) Ledbetter, yes, it's with an A in the middle, for that daily post-workout real talk, healthy (11:44) tips and tricks, and honest accountability to keep your mind and heart in check. The second (11:48) thing, be sure to subscribe to Apple Podcasts to never miss an episode.Thank you so much for (11:55) joining me. It means the absolute world, and I'm going to leave you with one last thought. (12:00) The most beautiful women that I have met in my life are the ones who are completely confident (12:05) and secure in being authentically themselves.Remember that beauty goes so much deeper than (12:12) the surface, so go out there and embrace your real, because you're worth it.