It’s the day after Thanksgiving and I can see, feel and hear the sluggish behaviors in people today. All the starchy foods, carbs, and holiday madness has everything out of place. Digestion is most likely taking a hard hit with binding foods and over eating.

I have a few types on how to better ones digestion, depending on the specialist you follow they may say that raw foods are the worst out there for digestion since it’s cold and hasn’t been broken down. While a raw foodist will explain that this foods are better for digestion because they are filled with living nutrients, enzymes and hasn’t been tempered with.

Most fruits, vegetables and herbs have a cleaning effect on the body since they take less time to digest meaning more time to send some love and healing to our organs, blood, brain and body.

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Living Foods & Habits For Better Digestion

1. Cold-Pressed Juice or a smoothie: With juices fiber is removed, this help tend to healing the body, balancing out ones pH balance (acid levels), and typically they help stimulate a bowel movement. Depending on your currently lifestyle and eating habits, smoothies may be a better and easier route. Smoothies have the fiber still in take, this causes the body to do a little more work to break down the food/digest but it helps those who feel like they could always eat.

2. Fermented Foods: Fermented foods like kim chi, sauerkraut, kombucha, homemade yogurts or kefir (I recommend coconut), raw pickled foods, probiotic rich foods where may be you have added a probiotic to a dressing you have created or so on.

Kim chi is dishes as a side or may be in a salad. Sauerkraut usually has more of a tang, while kim chi is spicy. Kraut is delicious in salads, as a side dish and works well with avocados, tomatoes, greens. Kefir is extremely tangy and thick, it’s a great alternative to milk and has a half way texture of milk and yogurt. 

3. Mindful Eat: Eat without the TV or music on. People more careful of those you choose to eat meals with, notice if they cause you to eat in an angry manner causing you to eat very fast yet still feel hungry. Chew every bite until it’s complete mush and has almost no taste left then go for another fork full of food. Concentrate on your food, your meal, being grateful, calm, try to find every spice or ingredient while you chew. This can be a rather mindful or meditative experience if you allow it to be ❤ I also recommend eating with a smaller fork, spoon, using your hands or chopsticks as often as possible. I love eating with chopsticks since I end up eating smaller amounts at once, it also slows down my eating process and I have a chance to truly look at my food.

4. Exercise: Running, yoga, twists, stretches, walking, everything that gets the body moving and especially any twist like motions are excellent for digestion.

5. Adding citrus juice to foods (lemon for example): Citrus is amazingly beneficial with breaking down foods, especially if you are new to raw foods and things like kale salads feel to tough while chewing and being digested.

6. Eat Simple. If you are really into digestion and how to make things easier for your stomach eat simple. Try to create a clean, food combination for digestion friendly meal. Everything digests at a different rate. So for example melon should not be consumed with other fruits since it digests far more quickly. This can cause gas, bloating, constipation, and overall discomfort. For more tips on how to prepare foods easier for digestion please feel free to read my previous posts where I discuss this topic.

7. Drink plenty of water: Now this doesn’t mean drink loads of tea and coffee, since these can actually make one more thirsty and not actually hydrate the body.

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Here’s a list of actual foods that have been amazing for me personally with digestion and I have them in order of what works best for me…

Beets (this is the most effective food for me)

Lemon Water in the morning instead of coffee or before going to sleep

Dark Leafy Greens

Pears

Apples

Berries

Adding a hot pepper like a habanero to a juice or meal

Oils like flax oil, chia seed oil, sesame seed oil, olive oil, and etc

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Today I made this little concoction that is delicious and aids in improving digestion ❤ A little citrus sunshine on “Black Friday” 😉

1 grapefruit

1 navel orange or your preferred orange

1 medium to large carrot peeled, makes the juice a bit smoother

1-inch or your preferred amount of ginger

A small amount of your favorite hot pepper (I like habanero)

Turmeric according to your taste buds and of course it’s optional

Juice and enjoy 😀

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Thank you for taking the time to stop by my site today and read my post about digestion. I hope you all had a wonderful holiday and are surrounded by the ones you love. It’s a day to clean, get organized and start planning for December madness at my home. Much love ❤ and raw power 😉

Jess