A bloated belly can make you feel downright awful and there’s no cohort of folks that hates the feeling of bloat more than the fashion scene. While bloating has many causes, one of the main culprits is is carbonated drinks such as champagne. So, it’s no surprise that after a night of partying, you wake up to a bloated belly. So, how do you get rid of that heavy bloat when you’ve got a bloat emergency (Sunday brunch date anyone)?
We asked that very question to insanely fit former gymnast turned yoga guru for Core Power Yoga, Christine Fronterotta. Christine tells us that the best weapons to alleviate bloat is yoga. While Fronterotta recommends heated yoga as the quickest way to help reduce excess water weight and cut down on the bloat, if you can’t find the time to get to a yoga session, there are a few poses you can do at home that can help get rid of belly bloat. Luckily for you, Fronterotta has formulated a great, all-levels sequence that you can do at home for removing bloat though your abs, center and waist. This sequence is one of the best to do if you’re pressed for time, traveling, you have a special event, hitting the beach or you just need a quick workout for targeting bloat.
Ahead, Fronterotta’s de-bloat fast yoga sequence, sure to have you looking and feeling like your pretty self again in no time!
Child’s Pose
The first pose to start the sequence is child’s pose. This pose is commonly known as a place of rest in yoga and will help relax and ground you. This pose also helps to promote breathing, which is particularly great for to calm the nervous system alleviating bloat. Drop your knees to the floor with your big toes touching, and separate your knees to align with your hips, sinking your hips toward your heels. Stretch your arms in front of you and let your forehead rest on the earth. Breathe here deeply to relax and ground yourself. Make sure to breathe deeply to create space between the abdominal region and the floor, this will help energize you if you are feeling sluggish by activating your pranayama and stretching out the abdominal region.
Cat to Cow
Cat to cow will help energize the spine and create energy. Come slowly out of child’s pose and rest with your hands and knees planted on the ground, back flat. Inhale, drop the belly, lift the buttocks, and look up to stretch the neck upward. Exhale, round your back upwards, pulling up your spine. Inhale and release your back, drop your stomach down, and stretch the neck upwards. Repeat a few times breathing slowly.
Standing Forward Fold
Standing forward fold helps increase circulation to the bowels by compressing them. More blood flow to the area will cause more action to help eliminate bloating. Following cat to cow pose, sit down with your legs stretched out in front of you, spine straight. Lift your arms straight into the air and from your hips, fold your torso down and reach for your toes. If you can, tuck your head down to your legs for a full fold. Don’t forget to breathe.
Half Lord of the Fishes Pose
Lift your torso back up from forward fold, keeping your legs outstretched. Step the right foot over the left leg, planting it firmly on the outside of your right hip. Twist your body to the right. Keep the right hand on the floor behind the buttock and press your left bicep against the outside of the right, bent knee, allowing for a full spine twist. Do the reverse to stretch the other side.
Wind Removing Pose
Release your body from half lord of the fishes, allowing both legs to lay flat in front of you. Lie down flat on your back, inhale deeply and hug one knee into your chest. Stretch your neck, trying to touch your forehead to the knee. Breathe deeply.
Supine Twist
Supine twist will rinse out your bowels after the wind removing pose. While still in wind removing pose, release your arms and stretch your bent knee across the opposite, stretched out leg. Use the opposite hand to press down lightly on the bent knee. Press shoulders firmly into the ground, outstretch the opposite hand and look at it to stretch the neck. Come back up from supine twist and sit cross legged. Allow yourself to realign, and rock side to side to massage your kidneys and release toxins from the body. Repeat wind removing and supine twist,, stretching the opposite side of the body. Still feeling bloated?
Fronterotta recommends drinking at least 8-12 oz. of water following this sequence. For an extra anti-bloat, she swears by Urban Moonshine’s Organic Digestive Bitters, an ancient remedy to ease digestion, regulate appetite and build vitality.
