Myth Buster – Should we brisk after a meal?
One of the most common misconceptions is that brisk walking immediately after a meal helps burn calories.
If you try to apply logic without really understanding how our body actually works, it does make sense.
We believe that if we walk quickly just after our meal, it will help burn calories that we just accumulated. Unfortunately, our digestion process is a bit more complicated than that. For starters, the process for our food to get converted into calories is a really long process, and the process is called digestion.
So ask yourself, will you be able to burn calories if you don’t let the food get digested completely. I bet all of you agree that the answer is NO.
Let us clear it for once, and for all that brisk walking after a meal is a bad idea.
It can lead to acid reflux, indigestion,stomach upset, diarrhoea, nausea, gas, bloating, cardiovascular diseases ,etc
Science is very simple – after a meal, our digestion process is all set to get to work. During digestion, our body releases digestive juices into our stomach and intestines.
During this time, our stomach, liver, gallbladder, pancreas, and intestines require the maximum amount of blood supply to carry the digestion process smoothly. So, the concentration of blood supply needs to be solely directed towards our digestive tract ,related organs, and glands . Simultaneously Our brain, Cardiorespiratory system continuously works and needs continuous blood supply.
The parasympathetic nervous system is responsible for the body’s rest and digestion response when the body is relaxed, resting, or feeding.
It basically undoes the work of sympathetic division after a stressful situation. The parasympathetic nervous system decreases respiration and heart rate and increases digestion.
Between these processes, if we take part in any other vigorous activity as simple as walking, the blood circulation gets diverted, and it compromises the blood flow to your core area. This hampers the digestive process, thus leading to a variety of complications.
One more thing to completely avoid post dinner is working out. It not only affects our digestion but also postpones our sleep time. Working out leads to the release of endorphins in our body, which gets us highly elated and active, which tends to delay our sleep cycle.
Therefore, some restorative postures are an incredible way of helping to heal the whole body and mind. In activating the parasympathetic or relaxation response, it helps to balance the whole nervous system and sets up the whole body for deep healing, growth, and repair.
Specific sequences of restorative poses can be used to help with numerous issues, including cardiovascular system, digestive system, hormonal secretion,menstrual and menopausal symptoms, stress, anxiety and depression,insomnia, exhaustion, headaches and asthma etc.
Below is one of the best poses to do immediately after food. Very effective for digestive and cardiovascular systems, hence best for diabetics and cardiovascular diseases.
The parasympathetic nervous system decreases respiration and heart rate and increases digestion.
A physiological reaction in response to any physical activities or even mental stress is associated with an increase in heart and breathing rate, blood pressure, elevation of glucose levels in the blood, and redistribution of blood from the digestive tract to the muscles. This provides the body with a burst of energy so that it can respond to any perceived dangers. But in this process, both liver and kidney (both are vital engines) get less blood flow, along with an increased workload of other two engines, i.e., heart and lungs. Imagine the amount of wear and tear these organs go through on a day to day basis!!
So the best advice is you can do Jathar parivartan with proper guidance before your meal. It takes a lot of energy from our body and leaves it with ample room for the energy to be restored after a sumptuous meal. This drastically reduces the chances of our food getting converted into fat as the food we consume is used by the body for energy.
( Note – Mature any pose and reach at a deeper level within our body. We need conscious movement and the right direction of the flow of muscular architecture with regular and consistent efforts)
Today’s lifestyle our lives become ever busier, more hectic and stressful. There is a greater need than ever for us to take regular time to stop, slow down, release, and restore.
Modern-day life has us running around firing on all cylinders and in “fight or flight” mode (activated by the body’s sympathetic nervous system) most of the time. The effect of this is, it increases our blood pressure, speeds up our heart, raises blood sugar levels, elevates levels of stress hormones such as cortisol, causes problems with our digestion, redirects blood away from our internal organs .All this is making them function less effectively. This makes our breathing faster and shallower.
This doesn’t sound so great.
The problem is that the stress and relentless pace of modern life lead to people being in this state most of the time . That is when the problems with our body and mind start to happen.
Restorative postures can combat the effects of all of this running around at high speed by kick-starting our “rest and digest” or para-sympathetic nervous system and bringing our whole system back into more harmony.
This makes our body rest, recover, and regenerate itself.
Activation of the “rest and digest” or relaxation response helps to lower blood pressure, slow our heart rate, boost immune function, restore good digestion, reduce our anxiety and stress levels and improve our sleep.
Restorative yoga is an incredible way of helping to heal the whole body and mind. In activating the parasympathetic or relaxation response, it helps to balance the whole nervous system and sets up the whole body for deep healing, growth, and repair.
Specific sequences of restorative poses can be used to help with numerous issues, including cardiovascular system, digestive system, hormonal secretion,menstrual and menopausal symptoms, stress, anxiety and depression,insomnia, exhaustion, headaches and asthma etc.
The parasympathetic nervous system decreases respiration and heart rate and increases digestion.
A physiological reaction in response to any physical activities or even mental stress is associated with an increase in heart and breathing rate, blood pressure, elevation of glucose levels in the blood, and redistribution of blood from the digestive tract to the muscles. This provides the body with a burst of energy so that it can respond to any perceived dangers. But in this process, both liver and kidney (both vital engines) get less blood flow, along with an increased workload of other two engines, i.e., heart and lungs. Imagine the amount of wear and tear these organs go through on a day to day basis!!
The parasympathetic nervous system is responsible for the body’s rest and digestion response when the body is relaxed, resting, or feeding. It basically undoes the work of sympathetic division after a stressful situation. The parasympathetic nervous system decreases respiration and heart rate and increases digestion.
Most important organ in digestion is Liver.
Over 600 known metabolic functions happen via the liver, and virtually every nutrient, every hormone, every chemical must be biotransformed or made active by the liver. It consumes about 20% of the total body oxygen when at rest.
It is very important to be aware that blood flow supply to the liver is decreased during acute physical exercises. In fact, the blood flow can be reduced to as low as 20% of its resting value.
A physiological reaction in response to any physical activities or even mental stress is associated with an increase in heart and breathing rate, blood pressure, elevation of glucose levels in the blood, and redistribution of blood from the digestive tract to the muscles. This provides the body with a burst of energy so that it can respond to any perceived dangers. But in this process, both liver and kidney (both vital engines) get less blood flow, along with an increased workload of other two engines, i.e., heart and lungs. Imagine the amount of wear and tear these organs go through on a day to day basis!!
