Gut-Brain Axis: The benefits of yoga and breathwork in improving digestion.

Namaste, friends!

We are glad you came up a chair (or rolled out a mat) to discuss with you today.

Did you also experience a case of butterflies in your stomach during a big presentation? Or do you find that you have the same experience as me when stressed: your digestion simply stops? That’s not a coincidence. Your gut-brain axis on the go.

As yoga instructors at Maa Shakti Yog Bali, we see this gut–mind connection play out every single day. Students often come to us for flexibility, but stay because their digestion, sleep, and stress levels begin to shift. Yoga is not only stretching, which is what we tend to believe, but it is the most effective method of speaking to the digestive system. So, what about using yoga and breathwork to get a little serious belly relief?

What Does the Gut-Brain Axis Mean?

The ingestive gut-brain axis is like a hasty fiber-optic cable between your head and your abdomen. They keep on gossiping!

This communication occurs through the vagus nerve, which is the longest nerve in your body. It is similar to a two-way highway, transmitting a message from the brain to the gut and vice versa. When you feel stressed, your brain causes you to have the fight or flight response (the sympathetic nervous system), and so the blood that was originally in your stomach moves out to your limbs. This is the reason why stress causes bloating, indigestion, or IBS flare-ups.

In yoga, we switch to the parasympathetic nervous system—the rest and digest system. Relaxation of the mind informs the vagus nerve that it is safe to focus on digesting food and absorbing nutrients.

Yoga: 3 Steps to Improved Digestion.

You do not have to be a bendy pretzel to enjoy such benefits! The following are three easy poses that can be practiced by a beginner and that will physically encourage your digestive system:

1. Apanasana (Wind-Relieving Pose)

Also Read: Fasting and Yoga: Ancient Practices for Modern Health

• Instructions: Lie on your back. When you breathe out, wrap up your knees. Massaging your lower back in can be done by just softly rocking side to side or by making sure your knees make little circles.
• What makes it work: The name says it all! The pose gives a mild squeeze on the ascending and descending colon. It is the benchmark of getting trapped gas and getting rid of that heavy, bloated feeling after eating.

2. Ardha Matsyendrasana (Half Lord of the Fishes Seated Twist)

Also Read: Moon Salutations vs. Sun Salutations: Differences Explained

• The way to do it: Sit with long legs. Bend over with your right foot over your left knee. Use your right hand (but not so much as to support yourself) behind you and hug your right knee with your left arm as you slowly turn your torso.
• Why it works: Brainstorms are like wringing a wet towel. You are temporarily cutting off blood supply to the digestive organs; the instant you undo the knot, a new supply of oxygenated blood surges into the part of the body, cleaning out the cells and initiating the peristalsis (the muscular contractions that help to push through your gut).

3. Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward-Facing Dog)

Also Read: Finding Your Center: Understanding Samadhi Beyond the Asanas

• How to perform the step: On all fours, bend your toes and raise your hips to the ceiling, forming an inverted V. Continue with a slight bend in the knees in case the hamstring is tight.
• Why it works: It is a mild inversion. The role of gravity is to change the position of the abdominal organs by putting the hips above the head. Such a shift in pressure can assist in the passage of the waste through the intestines.

The Secret Sauce: Deep Body Breathing (Pranayama)

Breathwork is the medicine in case yoga is the movement. When we are busy, we tend to be chest breathers most of the time, and that keeps us in the condition of low-grade stress.

The most potent tool to use when it comes to gut health is diaphragmatic breathing. Your diaphragm (the muscle beneath your lungs) goes downward when you take a deep, expansive inhale. It is a movement that physically moves against your intestines and stomach and massages them rhythmically.

Try the 4-7-8 Technique:

• Breathe in via your nose in 4 seconds, and then feel your belly swell like a balloon.
• Hold that breath for 7 seconds.
• Slowly breathe out of your mouth for 8 seconds.
• This can be done only thrice, and your heart will instantly drop, and your gut will realize that it is time to go to work.

Small Lifestyle Secrets to a Happy Gut.

Outside of the mat, the following are some of the yoga-off-the-mat practices that will keep your gut-brain axis in balance:

• Eat mindfully: Eat without screens. Once you pay attention to the smell and taste of what you are eating, the brain begins to generate digestive enzymes before the food goes to any part of your stomach.
• Quench Thyself: Take warm water or ginger tea. The fire of digestion (Agni in Ayurveda) can be kept cool with cold water, which will cause your body to digest food more difficulty.
• Consistency is Concrete: You do not require a 90-minute session. Yoga to relieve bloating or morning stretches of even 10 minutes can have a dramatic impact on digestive regularity in the long run.

Final Thoughts

There is a reason why your gut is referred to as your second brain—it is extremely sensitive to your mood. When you begin to incorporate these yoga and breathwork methods in your everyday routine, what you are actually doing is not just stretching, but rather you are creating a path of communication between your mind and your body.

So it is important to listen to your body, and when it is screaming out of stress, to do something about it. Don’t be naive; be slow. Life is a journey and not a race that you have to win. To enjoy each and every moment with calmness and peace, you must listen to your body and mind and keep them both healthy and happy with the right amount of fuel, i.e., yoga.

We’d love to hear from you! Have you ever felt your digestion change when you are stressed or anxious? Post a comment below, and we will keep each other on this wellness track!