Gut Reset method – IBS nutrition support

This post gives you an overview of what you might expect in the Gut Reset programme and how I use my cogs model for IBS. 

Have you ever started out trying to fix your IBS with a laser sharp focus on one particular area like taking a probiotic, or deciding to go to the gym 3 times a week?

Well, that probably got you some improvement, but when you only look at one aspect of your health it’s hard to make real lasting impact on a chronic condition like IBS or SIBO 

Firstly, let me explain a bit about my programme. 

What is the Gut Reset?

I call my programme for 1:1 nutrition clients the Gut Reset. It’s not a faddy quick fix, or any kind of strange gut detox / juice diet / supplement plan.

I’m a registered Nutritional Therapist and my Gut Reset is all about helping you resolve your digestive symptoms, with tailored advice, and my clinical experience.

Cogs Model for Gut Reset

There are various approaches to make changes in our health. You could start going to the gym, you could take up meditation, you could start eating green vegetables. 

I like see all these different elements of health like cogs. Each one will influence the next in the intricate machine of our health.

Irritable Bowel Syndrome is a complex condition, there is rarely one cause. You can push on one area, like diet, all you like. However, if you’re completely sedentary, or not sleeping you will only get limited gains from the changes in your food. 

My Gut Reset cogs model help me investigate where you could make changes, and how to prioritize your actions for the best results.

It’s also about being holistic, taking in your whole person. It’s more than just a diet change. 

The four main cogs are:

1. Digestion – what’s the capacity for you to breakdown your food, how and when are you eating and what could that mean for energy intake and IBS
2. Gut Health – what’s the role of your gut microbes in your digestive symptoms, and how do they affect weight gain?  
3. Diet – how can you identify your dietary triggers, and how can you carry out an elimination diet.
4. Lifestyle – What impact does the role of sleep, exercise and stress have on your capacity for better digestion.

I explain a bit more about these further down the page.

When you’re part of the Gut Reset you get access to my video portal, where I give back up education on each section, so we can use our 1:1 calls for tailoring the information to your situation.

1. Better digestion can help reset your gut

The first area I encourage you to work on is improving HOW you eat, and WHEN you eat. This involves properly understanding how digestion works, and implementing some simple changes.

Sometimes clients see improvements without even changing their diet.

In this section you will explore the following areas:

Mindful eating

Did you know changing your approach to eating can make a big difference, even if you don’t change the food you eat. You will learn about HOW to eat to improve IBS symptoms.

Meal timing

Maybe you skip meals, or snack all day long, and these can all have a big impact on your digestion. Maybe you’re cramming all your FODMAPS, protein and calories into a very short eating window to avoid symptoms, or maybe you fear large meals so you nibble all day long. What’s right for you will be addressed as part of this section.  

Tuning in to hunger & appetite for gut reset

Many people who experience IBS, can find it hard to tap into their feelings of hunger, or fullness. In this section we’ll look at how to regulate your appetite to help you eat in a way that reduces digestive symptoms, and can help you maintain a healthy weight. 

2. Building gut health

Living inside our gut are trillions of microbes and these have a huge impact on how we digest our food. It’s not just about taking a probiotic, but understanding which microbes could be influencing your symptoms.

The gut microbiome – resetting the balance

Sometimes you might have an overgrowth of bacteria in the small intestine, or not enough bacteria in the large intestine. With some people I may run specific teststo investigate, but I always try to work with food and lifestyle first. 

Gut microbes can affect how we react to food, the speed of our gut motility, our immune system, and other symptoms such as gas production.

The Vegus nerve – the gut brain connection

Becoming conscious of the impact of your emotions on your digestion can be a huge step in improving IBS symptoms. We now have a strong body of evidence about the role of the gut-brain connection. In the Gut Reset you’ll learn how to implement this science into your life to create a strong foundation for your digestion, and mental wellbeing.

Diet variety – aim for 30

This aspect of the Gut Reset often comes near the end, when digestive symptoms have improved. Diet diversity is the thing I love to leave people focussing on.

We know that eating a wide variety of foods is good for your gut health, and aiming for 30 different plant based foods can be a good place to start. I have a mini course called Aim for 30 on this aspect if you’re someone ready to dive in there with gut health. 

3. IBS diet for gut reset

There is a perfect diet for everyone, but it’s not the same one! IBS is a complex set of symptoms and triggers, so the treatment needs to be individual. 

We all have different health conditions, symptoms, gut microbiomes, genetics, history, eating habits, caring responsibilities and work patterns. These all affect our diet, and what works well for one won’t always work for everyone.

What is a balanced diet?

There is no one-size-fits-all diet. But most people can do well to…

•         increase their protein
•         increase their fibre intake
•         eat a more varied diet
•         eat more fruit

Even if you work hard to eat a healthy balanced diet, your IBS can make things tricky because

•         Fat can lead to diarrhoea and reflux.
•         Protein can sit heavy in your stomach.
•         Carbohydrates can cause gas and bloating.

IBS Elimination diets to reset the gut

In the Gut Reset we’ll look at elimination diets and what foods could help you when you have IBS.

Many of my clients go through the low FODMAP diet, because this is a tried and tested method for reducing digestive symptoms, but it doesn’t work for everyone.

We may also look at low histamine, high fibre, low sulphur, or other specific diets. 

4. IBS lifestyle

How you’re living, and the impact of your lifestyle is not to be underestimated. Trying to reset your gut by focussing only on gut microbes, or food just won’t work.

Sleep

Did you know sleep is very important for digestion? It’s not just about feeling tired the next day, but actually a lack of sleep may change our cravings for food. Regulating our wake-sleep cycle is also very important for brain health, as well as maintaining a healthy weight. 

Stress reset can help digestion

The vegus nerve connection between your brain and gut is a superhighway of information flowing backwards and forwards. How can we use this pathway to improve digestion? Stress has been linked to weight gain as well, so let’s look at the science of how and what you can do to reduce stress.

Movement can improve IBS

You probably already know exercise is good for weight loss, but how does it affect your digestion? As part of the Gut Reset we’ll cover which types of exercise help the most, and how to avoid making your IBS worse through exercise.

And more….

Whilst this is a model I use with my 1:1 IBS nutrition clients, there may be other areas we focus on during our 3 months together. I hope this has given you an idea of how comprehensive my Gut Reset package is, and how it might help you if you have digestive issues.

If you’d like to find IBS freedom from painful, unpredictable gut symptoms then just contact me to set up a free discovery call. In the call I’ll ask you about what you need help with, and you can ask me about the programme.