How Digestion Affects Training and Recovery

Gut health is a piece of the nutrition puzzle that is often overlooked. We tend to focus on performance, body composition changes, and overall wellness before thinking about other systems.

Your digestive system is a complex group of organs that are primarily responsible for digesting nutrients, breaking down food, managing inflammation, and regulating your body’s energy balance.

Nutrient Absorption equals Fuel Efficiency

When your gut functions well, it will absorb the macro and micro nutrients in our food. These nutrients are the fuel for all our daily activities, including building muscle and producing power. However, if your digestion is “off”, think bloating, diarrhea, constipation, etcetera… you’re likely not getting the full benefit of the foods you’re eating. A great example of this is protein intake. Daily protein intake is a vital part of building and repairing lean mass. Just as important is how well your gut can break down the protein you’re consuming. Some people find they can only tolerate a single portion at a time and eat 3-5 smaller meals to hit their targets, while others can eat a large amount of protein at one time, and their gut is a-ok.

Gut Health and Inflammation

Training hard will typically create inflammation in the body. This inflammatory response is partially responsible for the body’s adaptation as we get stronger. If the gut is disrupted or stressed, it can become “leaky,” allowing inflammation to circulate in the body. Common causes for excess inflammation are stress, overtraining, and a diet high in processed foods. All of the added inflammation can make recovery slower and increase the risk of injury.

Aim to support your gut by eating fiber, prebiotics and a wide variety of whole foods!

The Gut-Brain Axis

Your gut communicates directly to other parts of your body, including your brain through something call the gut-brain axis. A disrupted gut can present itself in several ways, including brain fog, low motivation or inconsistent energy. Foods rich in probiotics like yogurt, kefir and sauerkraut as well as prebiotics like bananas, oats and beans will help foster a healthy and balanced microbiome.

Immune Function and Training Consistency

Around 70% of your immune system lives in our gut. Those who tend to get colds often or be sidelined by illness often have underlying digestive imbalances. A strong microbiome and positive gut health will help boost your immune system and protect agains illness.

Tips To Support Digestion

• Eat a variety of foods: Aim to have color on your plate with different veggies, grains, and legumes to diversify your gut bacteria.

• Prioritize protein quality: Try to avoid having a large amount of your protein come from a single source (ie, chicken, or eggs). Add in animal proteins, plant based proteins as well as fermented options like yogurt

• Stay hydrated: Digestion requires water. Dehydration often leads to a slower digestion and a delay in nutrient transport.

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• Time your fiber: In this case, there can be too much of a good thing. Fiber is great for regulating our bowels, and helping us stay full, however if you overdo it you might find yourself constipated and bloated.

• Manage Stress: Stress impacts the gut more than most of us realize. Be sure to practice healthy de-stressing activities like deep breathing, mobility work, meditation or even journaling.

Your gut is more than just your stomach and intestines, it’s directly linked to our brain and overall wellness. A healthy gut supports muscle building, energy regularity, mental focus and immunity. If you’re looking to optimize your body composition or performance in the gym, gut health should be on your radar!