5 Top Tips To Get Rid Of Belly Bloating

We’ve all been there—feeling uncomfortable, sluggish, and like our favorite jeans shrank overnight. 

Belly bloating can sneak up on you when you least expect it (and usually in the worst possible moments, like before a wedding!), leaving you feeling heavy and frumpy.

While bloating is a common problem, it doesn’t have to be your reality. Reclaiming your flat stomach all starts with understanding the hidden triggers of bloating, which I’m here to help with.

In this article, I’m sharing my top 5 bloat-busting strategies to help you feel lighter, more energized, and back to your best self in no time!

1. Adjust Your Diet

What we eat plays a massive role in bloating. Certain foods are notorious for making us feel bloated, such as:

• Beans
• Carbonated drinks
• Dairy
• Salty snacks

If you’re prone to bloating and often consume these things, try cutting back on them for a week or two and see how your body responds. 

Along with avoiding certain foods, some foods help to counteract bloating by soothing the digestive system. These are things like:

• Ginger
• Cucumbers
• Bananas
• Yogurt

If you have an upcoming vacation or important event where you want to look and feel your best, remember these foods when preparing your meals in the week leading up to it. 

I recommend avoiding all the bloat-causing foods for one week before the event and consuming plenty of these digestion-boosting ingredients instead.

For further guidance on eating for a healthy gut, download my free Healthy Gut Food Checklist. Here, you will find a complete list of foods that nourish your gut, along with those that impede digestion.

2. Take Probiotics

Bloating is usually a sign of a digestive issue, such as poor digestion or constipation. So, one thing you can do to keep bloating at bay is take probiotics.

Probiotics are beneficial bacteria that live in your gut and play a key role in digestive health by:

• Maintaining a healthy gut environment
• Reducing inflammation
• Keeping your bowels regular

Probiotics can also help to reduce existing bloating as they restore the natural balance of bacteria in your gut, which improves digestion and reduces gas production.

You can get probiotics from fermented foods like yogurt, kefir, sauerkraut, and kimchi, or you can take a probiotic supplement. Opt for Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus strains, as these are particularly effective for reducing bloating and improving gut health.

However, note that probiotics need time to work. They won’t banish your bloating overnight, but you should see improvement after a few weeks of taking a daily probiotic.

3. Stay Hydrated

Did you know that your bloating could be due to dehydration? This is especially likely if you try to avoid drinking too much water because you think it will make your bloating worse.

When dehydrated, our bodies retain water, making us feel puffy and swollen. 

Water reduces this puffiness, flushes out excess sodium (which can cause bloating), and keeps your digestive system on track. 

In addition to water, herbal teas like peppermint or ginger are great for calming your digestive system and reducing bloating. 

So, if you’re struggling with bloating, start your day with a big glass of water and sip on herbal teas throughout the day. Just avoid sparkling water, which is carbonated.

4. Eat Mindfully

Here’s another hidden cause of bloating that you may not know about – eating too quickly.

Here is another hidden cause of bloating you might not know about—eating too quickly.

When you eat too fast or don’t chew your food thoroughly, you can swallow excess air, which leads to—you guessed it—bloating.

Luckily, there is an easy fix for this cause – slow down.

Firstly, chew your food until it’s small and soft enough to swallow easily.

Secondly, practice mindful eating – savor your food by paying complete attention to the eating process. Avoid distractions like your phone or TV while eating, and focus on the food’s texture, taste, and smell. 

Research also suggests that slow eating is linked to a lower risk of obesity because it improves appetite control. This is because you get full quicker when you chew more and eat slower.

Another strategy to reduce bloating is to eat smaller, more frequent meals rather than large ones that can overwhelm your system, leading to slower digestion and gas buildup.

5. Get Moving

I know when you’re bloated and sluggish, the last thing you want to do is exercise. And bloating can be so uncomfortable that you just want to flop on the couch.

Well, my final tip is to avoid this urge and get some light exercise instead. 

Notice that I said light exercise. I’m not suggesting you go for a run after a heavy meal, but a short walk or a few yoga stretches can do wonders for reducing bloating.

This is because gentle movement helps your digestive system process food more efficiently and can relieve trapped gas.

Certain yoga poses are particularly effective for reducing bloating by improving digestion, such as the ‘wind-relieving pose.‘ As its name suggests, the posture massages the intestines to help to release trapped gas.

Another helpful yoga pose is the ‘child’s pose,’ which gently compresses the abdomen to relieve tension in the stomach area.

Post-meal walks are just as beneficial. In our family, we often try to get up after dinner and walk around the neighborhood. 

We noticed many people do this in Europe, especially in Italy and France, so we’ve tried to adopt this into our lifestyle too, and honestly, it’s making a huge difference.

Final Thoughts

In this week’s YouTube video episode, I explain these tips in more detail and share a special bonus tip for beating bloating for good.

Here’s where you can watch: 

Now, I’d love to hear from you – Is bloating something you struggle with? Do you have a favorite bloat-busting tip that I didn’t mention here?

Leave a comment below to share it with me and the community!

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