Joyfull Living – June 2016

Our gut is our biggest immune system organ and contributes to our overall well-being. Some health professionals are now linking digestive issues like indigestion, constipation, diarrhea, acid reflux, and even weight gain, to “leaky gut.” “Leaky gut syndrome” causes symptoms like bloating, gas, cramps, food sensitivities, and aches and pains. They suspect that it’s caused when the tight junctions in the gut, which control what passes through the lining of the small intestine, don’t work properly. This could let substances leak into the bloodstream. Over-consumption of certain foods like gluten, dairy, sugars, caffeine, and alcohol are believed to be the cause. Of course, stress always plays a big part in a happy gut. Though this term is not recognized by all medical doctors and might be a fad, the fact is that many people claim feeling considerable improvement after making the recommended dietary and lifestyle changes.

I never really considered leaky gut for myself until I experienced major digestive distress towards the end of my recent journey to Italy’s southeastern tip known as Puglia. Traveling anywhere is stressful and can often cause us to experience disruption with our digestion and elimination. I was there to play and work and managed to balance it all fairly well until the last part of my trip.

1st issue: My daily gastronomical journey started with the traditional Italian breakfast (colazione) that always consists of delightful sweets, breads and cappuccino. Forget the protein green drink! Looking out at the hills of poppies and wheat dancing in the morning light, it all seemed “tutto bene!” Of course olive oil, pasta, cheese, espresso and amazing wines, are all part of just about every meal. The pizzas are beyond words and the bread—oh my! The region (especially Altamura) is famous for it. I have no words to describe how this bread can feel and taste like absolute perfection in your mouth. They even managed to create a bread salad: “panzanella,” absolutely delicious. In the joy and beauty of this culinary magical place, towards the end of my trip, I began to experience some serious digestive issues! As I was getting ready to return home and working on a new program, interestingly enough about supporting our gut and digestion, it occurred to me that maybe I was experiencing “leaky gut.”

2nd Issue: I realized that it wasn’t just the excess of food that was out of balance. I had been managing my digestion pretty well in the first part of my trip, even though I was doing the colazione more frequently than in the later part. I realized that though I was consistent with my daily meditation practice, (I shared some beautiful Sound Healing work in some gorgeous retreat centers) my JoyFull yoga practice in the last part was completely neglected. As soon as I started to practice some of my “happy gut yoga,” I noticed that I immediately felt better. The diet plays a huge part in our happy gut AND the yoga helps to create a supportive and healing environment. The magic happens when they come together.

3rd Issue: Other things missing for me during my trip that I no longer take for granted were my JoyFull Kombucha and my cultured veggies which give me a great food source of probiotics, which are crucial for a happy gut. Other supportive foods include miso soup and Bone Broth (from the Farm Kitchen at JoyFull Yoga.)

I have so much more information that I will share with you in a special class: Yoga of the Happy Gut: Balancing Foods, Moods and Grooves.

Visit www.Foundation4yourLIFE.com or www.Joyfull-yoga.com for more info.

Things I won’t forget on my next trip (suggestions for you):

Practice “happy gut yoga.” Deep belly breaths help digestion. (See Digestive Breathing in the online article.)

Get digestive enzymes that contain Lipase, Amylase, Bromelain and chew after each meal.

Eat or take Probiotics daily. (L. acidophilus, B. longum, or B.bifidum)