Poop Part Deux…
Poop Part deux
Okay…so by now, you have started to study your poop and maybe track it. If you haven’t, I highly suggest you do so. Much like women track their Menstruation cycle, you should also track your poop and pooping habits. So if you haven’t before, now is the time to start! WELCOME TO 2021!
Now down to business!
What should poop look like and what should we typically expect to see?
*Despite what everyone has probably seen or read, whether the poop sinks or floats does not matter as much as the frequency, colour, smell and texture!
*To have a soft (not to soft) consistency -think of toothpaste consistency!
*Shaped like a sausage or small banana.
*Not long and not short- medium
*Healthy poop will not smell horrible, it will smell more like over ripe fruit that will go away rather quickly.
*Not much to wipe after
*Will be a nice brown colour and not have chunks of undigested matter
*Will not hurt coming out.
*Will have a feeling of emptying afterwards
*Elimination x1-3 times a day
Ways that can encourage good pooping habits
*Examine your diet! What are you eating? How are you eating? These questions are so simple, but have such a big impact on your digestion and output literally!
One of the best way to determine things is to track your food, water and movement for 5-7 days. It may seem silly, but I request my clients to do this before we meet. So give it a try, the answers can sometimes be this paperwork!
*Look at your lifestyle!! How late do you eat? Do you eat all day (snacking)? How much water do you consume in a day typically? From a professional standpoint, we as humans consume entirely way too much food all the time!! When we snack all day our digestion is hit hard and our body literally spends the entire day AND night trying to keep up. This takes away from the other “jobs” that they are responsible for. Expect to see some things like sleep issues, digestive issues, organ sluggishness, skin related issues and finally yes..POOPing issues.
*Taking the time. We have to program our bodies when they are out of whack to know when to go! This includes within 5 min of waking up and drinking a class of water, within 20 minutes after a meal, after a workout of strenuous activity. Even if you don’t go, it is important to sit and reprogram the body. Taking the time also includes not sitting to long, you should know within a few minutes if you are going to use the bathroom. It also includes using a stool or squatty potty as some people are using. A regular stool will do just fine. putting your knees up higher than your hips with help the intestines relax and get into optimum position.
*Drinking hot water or water in the morning upon rising is a great way to stimulate the colon after all its hard work at night. The digestive system works extremely hard at night to process and eliminate for the morning. When given the opportunity, it will reward you by removing toxins and impurities from the body.
*What supplements are you taking? Sometimes we are bombarding our bodies with too many things! The reverse of course is sometimes our bodies are in desperate need of essential minerals and we are not aware. Talk to a Health practitioner or trusted Health advisor to ensure your body is getting exactly what it needs. We will talk more about this and what is TYPICALLY recommended….
*BUILD YOUR BLOOD! I speak about this often to clients. Without proper blood in our bodies, our bodies are literally unable to perform their duties. This includes menstruation, energy, sleeping and yes POOPING among other things. In TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) there are many different underlying reasons for concerns with bowel movements. They take into consideration your individual constitution, eating and movement habits, your current state, hormones, emotions, unmanaged stress etc. For more specific crossover with TCM and your current constitution, please reach out to a health practitioner or TCM. We will talk about how to properly build blood…….
Looking at the crossovers between the information our bodies provide and the symptoms we may be experiencing can prove to be valuable. When we start here, we can often gain insight to the important connection between our physical self and emotional self. Take the time to connect and explore what is happening in your life if you are struggling with constipation or bowel issues.
If you want further information or insight, please reach out!