A study published in PLoS One in May 2020 found that the more steps people with IBS took each day, the less severe their symptoms were. The authors found that, in subjects with severe symptoms, increasing the daily step count from 4,000 steps to 9,500 halved the severity of symptoms.
This same study recommended that people with IBS exercise every day for at least 30 minutes. Another small study from January 2019 shows that women who spent 30 minutes on a treadmill just three times a week enjoyed milder IBS symptoms and improved quality of life.
And it’s not enough to exercise for a few weeks or months if you want the effects to continue. Research shows you need to increase and maintain your physical activity over time.
One long-term follow-up study published in the World Journal of Gastroenterology measured the impact of increased and maintained physical activity five years after an initial 12-week intervention. It found a consistent, moderate exercise regime had long-term positive effects on IBS symptoms, quality of life, fatigue, anxiety, and depression.
Other studies reinforce that, once a fitness program ends, its effects on IBS symptoms decline over time, and markers of inflammation, oxidative stress, and antioxidants return to normal eight weeks after training.
It’s best then to choose an exercise that you enjoy so you can stick with it long-term. And try to set realistic goals. Aiming to run for an hour every day, then beating yourself up when you quit after a week, will only increase your stress and anxiety levels⸺making your symptoms worse.
Which exercise is worst for IBS?
All forms of exercise can help lower your stress and boost your mood, but it’s important to keep an eye on the intensity and length of your workouts. Placing too much physical stress on your body can be an IBS trigger.
When you exercise, your body directs blood away from your digestive tract to your limbs so you can flee danger faster. And pushing your body to extremes through, for example, running a marathon, can cause diarrhea through something called “localised ischemic colitis”, or a stressed colon.
If you have IBS, moderation is vital for working out. The study published in Cytokine showed that low-to-moderate intensity aerobic workouts are far more effective in managing IBS symptoms than either resting or exercising vigorously.
Practise self-care by paying attention to changes in your IBS symptoms and adjusting your exercise regime to suit. During a flare-up, you may want to choose ultra-soothing forms of exercise such as tai chi or yoga. And in times of remission, you could experiment with a more intense activity such as cycling.
Mixing up your routine will allow you to stay physically active and manage your symptoms while placing the least stress on your body.
The Wrap Up
Exercise can be an effective IBS symptom management tool. Used in moderation, it has been shown to reduce stress triggers of flare-ups and improve overall health. Exercise has the benefit of being free, easily accessible, and be able to be tailored to your current state of wellbeing. You may want to explore yoga or tai chi during times of flare-up and more intense exercise during remission. Talk to your doctor before embarking on a new exercise program, too, particularly if your IBS symptoms have kept you from exercising in the past.
References
Aune, D., Norat, T., Leitzmann, M., Tonstad, S., and Vatten L.J., 2015. Physical activity and the risk of type 2 diabetes: a systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis. European Journal of Epidemiology, 30(7), pp.529-542. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26092138/
Aylett, E., Small, N., and Bower, P., 2018. Exercise in the treatment of clinical anxiety in general practice – a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC Health Services Research, 18(1), p.559. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12913-018-3313-5
Bennett EJ, Tennant CC, Piesse C, et alLevel of chronic life stress predicts clinical outcome in irritable bowel syndrome Gut 1998;43:256-261.
Fani, M., Mostamand, J., Fani, M., Chitsaz, N., and Feizi, A., 2019. The effect of aerobic exercises among women with mild and moderate irritable bowel syndrome: a pilot study. Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies, 23(1), pp. 161-165. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S136085921830069X
Faress, A., Masood, S., and Mian, A., 2017. ‘Runs’ from a run: a case of exercise induced ischemic colitis. World Journal of Emergency Medicine, 8(4), pp.302-304. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5675973
Gronek, P., Wielinski, D., Cyganski, P., Rynkiewicz, A., Zając, A., Maszczyk, A., Gronek, J., Podstawski, R., Czarny, W., Balko, S., Ct Clark, C., and Celka, R., 2020. A review of exercise as medicine in cardiovascular disease: pathology and mechanism.
