Sad Belly = Sad Run

Its true. I have a very temperamental belly. It doesnt like long runs or coffee or tea or wine or dairy or spicy or smoked meats or legumes or flax or .... you get the picture. Luckily, not everyones gut is like mine, but it is still quite common for people to get 'runner's diarrhoea' and an array of other tummy troubles when we are trying to perform at our best. Saturday I set off with the intention of doing an 8km trail run at 5.10-5.20km/hr pace. A mixture of dehydration from the previous days and cramping meant that I only got 5km out and it was HARD WORK! I walked the last 3km back to the car, which all you runners out there will know, gives you a whole other kind of fire in your belly (the mad kind!). When I got home it was time to get serious...these days of bad belly had to stop. I whipped up a beautiful gut healing shake, added a few supps and hey-presto, within hours my belly began to settle.

The all important ingredients - Aloe Vera Juice, Probiotics and Glutamine

My Gut-Love Shake
Serves 1

200mls Almond milk
100mls Water
2tsp Glutamine powder
1sml Banana
Handful of Ice

Before you start to make your shake, take 15mls of Aloe Vera Juice and 1-2 probiotics, depending on the strength they are (I try to get at least 20billion good bacteria).
Blend all ingredients until smooth, pour into a glass and enjoy.

All of the supplements for this can be bought from your health food store, and the great thing about them is that they store well, so you can use them all up until they are gone or you can keep them in the cupboard/fridge until you need them again. They also have an array of other uses;

Glutamine - Muscle recovery, gut repair, immune support
Probiotics - Immunity, bloating, after anti-biotics, constipation, IBS, diarrhoea
Aloe Vera - Immunity, bloating, IBS

Another key part of trying to settle an upset belly is to keep it simple. Bananas, brown rice, grated apple etc are all known for their binding effect. I try to eat a mixture of slow cooked carrot, leek and brown rice with some organic vegetable stock for most of my meals that day.

Happy running, riding and swimming!

NB This information is not medical advice and indicates what I do for myself only.