Food & Fitness Friday – 5 Things I’ve Done this Week to Reduce Bloating 

So the big day is finally *almost* upon us. I’m going wedding dress shopping tomorrow, and it’s something I’ve been building myself up for as I’m still not body confident following the birth of my third child back in October. I can’t put it off any longer though, with less than six months to go until the big day, I’m not leaving myself much time to find a dress!

So, on Monday, suddenly finding myself with less than a week to go until having to stand in my underwear in front of a total stranger to try on dresses, I started making some little changes to try and beat the bloat*

Lemon in my Water 

This is something I’ve been meaning to do for so long. In fact, I keep buying bloody lemons and then letting them go off in the fridge when I forget to use them. The key is to drink your water first thing in the morning, before eating anything. Some people believe it helps boost your metabolism, but even if it doesn’t, it can’t do any harm to increase your water intake, and by adding lemon you’re also upping your daily intake of vitamin c – win, win!

Eating Little and Often 

There is conflicting advice about this one, but generally I tend to graze a lot throughout the day. If I get too hungry between my three main meals I have been known to end up gorging on all the ‘bad’ foods and then feeling so rubbish I’ve skipped dinner to make up for it. This is really damaging behaviour. This week, to combat this, I’ve been eating smaller meals more often, which has meant I’ve managed to avoid my mid morning and mid afternoon hunger pangs. My favourite snack food at the moment are cherry tomatoes – I can eat them like sweets.

Cutting Out Starchy Carbs 

We’ve had a carb free diet in the past and I definitely lost weight on it, but I don’t feel I can cut out my morning toast these days, instead I’ve been avoiding the carbs which play havoc with my tummy the most. By cutting out heavy starchy carbs like potato, rice and pasta, I’ve felt so much better, and my tummy is looking trimmer too.

Not Eating after 8pm 

This is something Ed and I are so guilty of doing. We will head to bed early so that Benjamin can go to bed, but then we will hit the snacks so we are eating the worst food at the worst time. Whether it’s ice cream, crisps or cheese and crackers, it’s not good news for my belly so this week I imposed a ban on food after 8pm and, despite a few tummy grumbles, we stuck to it and I definitely felt better the next morning.

No Alcohol

Now to be fair, this one is a no-brainer really, and a lot of people won’t usually drink in the week. I tend to have a glass of wine when I’ve had a stressful day to unwind. This wasn’t a problem, until I started getting stressed almost every day and reaching for the wine bottle more often than I care to remember. This week I have found alternative ways to de-stress after a long day, and my waistline is definitely thanking me for it. A nice long hot bath or a brisk walk around the park can give the same happy kick I was getting from a glass of wine, without the sore head the next morning or the added calories.

*None of these are long term solutions to weight loss, nor am I medically trained in any way so please seek advice from a health professional before copying what I have done. As far as I know none of them are harmful but it’s always better to be safe than sorry.