If you’re like most people, you plop down on the couch or in the recliner after dinner to enjoy some television. Experts say you should actually take a “fart walk.” A fart walk is a walk that you take after a meal, and it gets its name for the obvious reason. After a meal, your intestines start moving things around, which can sometimes feel like an uncomfortable level of bloating. Exercise — like walking — helps to relieve that feeling, while also bringing some benefits to your metabolic health and adding to your daily exercise quota. Research has shown that “mild physical activity enhances intestinal gas clearance and reduces symptoms in patients complaining of abdominal bloating.” Fart walks also help glucose control. After we eat, our digestive system releases glucose (blood sugar) into our bloodstream. The hormone insulin is then supposed to signal the cells of our body to store and use that blood sugar. Exercise helps with glucose control and has long been recommended to prevent diabetes and manage symptoms if you already have it. So, take a walk after dinner and start a new routine. It isn’t a brisk walk for the purpose of raising your heart rate; it's about taking in the sights and enjoying the quiet time while helping your digestive system sort things out. You don’t even have to tell anyone you think of it as your fart walk.
