This week Debbie talks to Laura Kunces, who is Director of Research at Exos. They discuss the importance of gut health and specific problems that can happen with athletes.

Before you go to the doctor for gut irritation, look at ways that you can isolate and identify the cause of your problem yourself. Laura talks about what she calls an “elimination diet.” This is the elimination of obvious offenders and others from your diet. Give it a couple of weeks, and then slowly start reintroducing these slowly, one at a time. This lets you identify the substance that is causing irritation, rather than immediately taking antibiotics, which may actually just make the situation worse.

Like many previous guests, Laura emphasizes the importance of real food. This is one thing that can particularly affect athletes since it is fashionable to workout with energy drinks or other simple sugars and carbohydrates, which are not substances that are good for the gut.

In addition, athletes are creatures of habit, and they may have gotten into a real rut with how they eat. We may be dedicated to eating a particular item before, during or after a workout. Laura also talks about the importance of keeping the gut “on its toes” so to speak by switching things up.

You can get in touch with Laura at [email protected] or through her LinkedIn profile. Find out more about Exos at www.exosfuel.com.