It isn’t easy to make time for workouts in a hectic lifestyle. However, going for a walk after a meal is a tradition in many Indian families. As we believe, it helps to digest the food easily. But is it true?
Let’s see what research suggests.
This article will share a couple of benefits of walking after eating and how it could show some downsides.
After a meal, if your body gets to work, it breaks down the feed and absorbs nutrients. Hence, which portion of food digestion takes place in the small intestine. When you walk after a meal, food transit gets faster as it moves from the stomach to the small intestine.
Walking on the ideal middle ground between rest and excessive workouts promotes stimulation. In addition, it produces more gastric enzymes that digest food and reduces bloating, constipation, and other stomach-related problems.
After 30 minutes of a meal, blood sugar spikes, and so does the insulin level. However, when you walk after food, the glucose used by the body hence maintains the level of sugar and insulin. The complete process improves the sugar level and related diseases, such as diabetes.
Slow exercise, such as walking, regulates blood pressure as it reduces bad cholesterol and the risk of a stroke or heart attack. In addition, short walks after eating help maintain blood sugar and glucose in the upper section, bloating that ultimately improves sleep and boosts heart health.
Walking boosts metabolism, which improves the cycle of conversion into energy. Regularly, the body converts some part of food into energy and other fat. When you walk after a meal, the body feels its need and starts converting most of the amount into energy rather than stored fat. The entire process helps us burn belly fat, or should say, it stops the making of belly fat.
Walking after food also benefits your mental health and keeps you fit. It makes your mind relax and controls issues such as gastric bloating that might affect your sleep. Apart from that, walking releases feel-good hormones (endorphins) that help sleep better and stress-free.
With extensive walking after meal benefits, it may have few associated side effects experienced by some people, such as an upset stomach. However, they face similar symptoms like diarrhea, gas, and bloating. It takes place when recently eaten food moves and disturbs the ideal environment of digestion. However, wait for 10 to 15 minutes before walking if you face the same.
Leading to this, we come across one more important topic: what are those ideal conditions and times to walk?
The best time to walk is after a meal, as your digestive system is in the process, which makes the process easier to work.
It suggested that a person start with 10 minutes of walking and then increase it per toleration. A 10 minutes walk may prevent the downsides of walking while offering its benefits.
Walking after a meal is one of the trending health and fitness mantras. Above, it maintains many physical and mental issues such as digestion, blood sugar & pressure, heart health, fat, and sleep. It also fits in the goal of walking 10,000 steps a day that everyone should follow to maintain good health.
A small lifestyle change may lead to your overall fitness, so step out today.