Life
9 Ways To Debloat Overnight & Feel Better
When people talk about quick fixes, my initial instinct is to question whether the fixes are valid or not. I never seem to trust them. However, when it comes to our bodies, sometimes quick fixes are practical. In this article we’ll go over ways to debloat overnight that are truly valid (I swear!). They’re so easy to do and can show results very quickly, so I’d pretty much call that a win-win.
Bloating is the worst; it can really be so, so uncomfortable. Whether it’s induced by our menstrual cycle, or a wild night of drinking, or by what we’ve just eaten, it can feel just plain horrible. That gassiness aspect is something I can definitely do without for the rest of my life. Sometimes that bloated sensation might feel like it’s never going to end, so when it goes away you feel like a completely new woman.
For anyone out there who is sitting at their desk right now reading this and nodding their head as they deal with a current state of bloating, I’m here to help. There are a lot of things that contribute to bloating, but here we’re going to talk about ways to diminish it. What’s more, you can do these tricks as soon as tonight in order to see results by the morning. As you’ll see, much of it has to do with what you do (and don’t) consume, so you'll have to find yourself paying close attention to what you’re ingesting. There is light at the end of the tunnel — let’s get to it. Here are nine simple ways to debloat overnight.
1. Skip The Bread
Kimberly Snyder, a Los Angeles nutritionist, spoke to Harper’s Bazaar noting complex carbohydrates cause the body to hold water, in turn leading to bloating. While I’m all for the everything in moderation notion and would never suggest cutting up carbs forever, if you're feeling especially terrible and need something to help you feel better fast, your best bet is probably to stay away from the bread.
2. Also, Hands Off That Salt Shaker
Is it just me, or does anyone else feel like their body almost immediately swells up after eating Chinese food? You want to know why? Much of it is packed with sodium. According to LIVESTRONG, sodium increases water retention in the body and therefore contributes to bloating and puffiness. In an effort to debloat, stop yourself before adding salt to your dinner, and read labels to ensure whatever you do end up eating isn’t already rich in sodium.
3. Don’t Chew Gum For The Time Being
I love fresh breath as much as the next person, but when we’re in debloating-mode, cut it out. This is really interesting — according to POPSUGAR, chewing gum leads to bloat for two reasons: It causes you to swallow more air and many gums contain sugar alcohol (an ingredient that leads to bloat). If you’re in need an instant fresh breath, pop a sugar-free mint instead.
4. Drink As Much Water As Possible
You were likely expecting this one to pop up on the list sooner or later. Drink some water, girl! According to R.D. Keri Gans, people often feel bloated when they’re constipated, and drinking enough water can help prevent this. She told Redbook it’ll also prevent you from dehydration — another trigger of bloating. Redbook suggested drinking a 16-ounce glass of water before you eat.
5. Say “No Thank You” To Happy Hour
According to Self, alcohol is one of the things you should steer clear of when trying to debloat. This is because alcohol can slow the stomach and intestines from emptying (basically the opposite of what the water is doing for us). Take a rain check on that happy hour plan and get back to your tumbler of water.
6. Grab A Slice Of Watermelon
Remember how we want to stay hydrated to prevent bloat? Well, consider watermelon you hydration BFF. According to Marie Claire, watermelon is an excellent choice of food for flushing our systems. The outlet noted watermelon is almost all water — 92 percent to be precise! So, eat up. If watermelon is harder to come by at the moment, go for an orange, which is about 80 to 90 percent water.
7. Avoid Certain Fruits
It pains me to say this, but certain fruits will actually work against our efforts to debloat. Such fruits, according to Self, include cherries, peaches, grapes, and mangoes. According to R.D. Abby Langer, “These fruits are healthy, but they naturally have a lot of sugar or sugar alcohols.” According to WebMD, certain sugars like this are hard for our bodies to digest, and therefore can result in that unwanted bloating and gassiness. While it sucks to think, “Now I have to even avoid fruits, too!” remember that there are still plenty of other fruits you can (and should) go for — like that yummy and refreshing watermelon.
8. Break Out Your Yoga Mat
Great news for all the yoga lovers out there — yoga can help support digestion and can help rid your body of toxins, therefore helping to debloat the body, according to POPSUGAR. The outlet suggested this yoga detox sequence that can help with debloating. Try it tonight after you’ve digested your dinner, and then move onto our last awesome step.
9. Take An Epsom Salt Bath
This one I think is my personal favorite. According to New York dermatologist Francesca Fusco, try taking a bath with Epsom salt. She told Harper’s Bazaar, “It will draw water out of your cells—kind of like reverse osmosis.” All you have to do is add one cup of the Epsom salts into the bath and relax in there for 15 minutes, and voila! Relaxing and effective.
Now bestowed with these tips, never again will you feel up a stream without a paddle as you're trying to debloat quickly. The best part is all of these tips are very simple — now, excuse me while I go take a nice bath.
