"Trust your gut."
I hear people say this all the time.
But when your gut is like mine, the last thing you want to do is trust it.
For the past few months (can I blame the pandemic?) my gut has actually been the most unreliable part in my body. The fact that a whopping 80% of your immune system is located there, and medical researchers consider it the area at the very core of our health and wellbeing, I've been wondering lately how my dodgy gut may be impacting me.
While some of this I only just learned, what I definitely was sure of was this:
My stomach was bloating so much that, at times, has looked like a balloon, or as if I was carrying my third child (which for reference, I am not).
And I was irregular. Enough said.
I drink above the average amount of water, exercise daily and other than a few cheeky extra pieces of chocolate, I eat pretty well. But this bloat and its clingy buddies have been a constant frustration and annoyance.
Firstly, they are uncomfortable and secondly, appearance wise, well, while I liked my baby belly when I was pregnant, when there is no actual human inside, I can’t say I am a fan.
So, simply put, I’d had a gutful (I just HAD to say this) and decided that instead of just putting up with it, I was going to try and deflate the situation (I've gotten the gut puns out of my system now).
Which brings me here, to the road test of a product which promised to help my gut health (and the bloating), GUT Performance.
So how did it go? Well, I owe it to my gut (and yours) to tell you. Here's how it went, day by day.
Day 1:
Now I must say, generally, I am not a fan of powdery mixtures that come in tubs or sachets. Usually because (for me at least) they are a sign that I am at bloating desperation point (mentally at least). Also, I'm always a little unsure on what I'm actually consuming: in my head, some random collection of ingredients that I can’t pronounce that I’d rather not taste in order to assist my number two (literally) problem on the list.
But even before I tasted GUT Performance, I knew that this experience wouldn’t be the same, and my worries could subside.
This one is a prebiotic gut health supplement that's actually made from real food. And real food is something I definitely like the sound of.
The 100% natural food includes an active prebiotic to create a healthy environment for your gut’s microbiome. It's got in it beetroot for both gut and muscle performance/recovery, antioxidants to help with inflammation, and it actually counts as 12 % of your recommended daily intake of dietary fibre. So thankfully, that’s a lot of ticks.
It is also very importantly free from artificial colours, flavours or preservatives, plus gluten-free, vegan, FODMAP friendly and hypoallergenic, so definitely suitable for a wide range of people.
I found that it also smells great and like the real food it's made from (hello sweet blackcurrants and raspberries). In fact, as soon as you tear open the sachet or twist open that lid, the fruity sweetness hits you.
And thankfully (praise the gut gods) it tastes as good as it smells.
While it took me a while to decide on whether to go with the raspberry or blackcurrant flavours (because yum and yum) my first choice was a blackcurrant sachet, mixed with water.
The verdict – it was pretty easy to drink. It didn’t taste like it was something scientifically developed to reduce bloat, plus it was simple to prepare (literally just 200mls of water and mix) and it tasted delicious.
Day 2:
Today I tried the original, raspberry flavour in the same way. You only need one sachet or scoop a day.
Again, tasty.
And I must say (in case you're wondering) I was definitely noticing some improvement in the regularity front already. Pretty impressed with that as early as day 2.
Day 3:
Today I popped a scoop of the original GUT Performance into my breakfast go-to, muesli with berries. The mix of the raspberry flavour with my blueberries and strawberries was berry heavenly (technically not a gut pun, so surely that's allowed?).
Day 4:
While GUT Performance helps with plenty of issues from IBS, weight management and other gut issues (and also just being a prebiotic superfood mix helping give a general immunity boost) for me, it had very obvious benefits – and quickly too.
In fact, when I woke up on day 4, I noticed straight away an improvement in my tummy. It felt and looked flatter (the bloat had decreased) and my bowels were already as regular as clockwork.
With these positive results, I kept going and today I mixed it up (literally) by creating a fruit smoothie with one scoop of the goodness filled prebiotic for a little lockdown afternoon pick me up.
The verdict:
I've still kept using GUT Performance once a day to nourish my gut, and it has honestly been a real winner for me. It's now an addition to my morning routine that I'll keep at, as I'm quite surprised at the difference it's made to my gut health and the symptoms I was seeing. It's been awhile since I've actually been on track in that department.
For anyone who is much more culinary inclined (basically if you can cook, unlike me) outside of drinking the supplement, or adding it to shakes and smoothies, you can literally transform your health from the inside out by adding the essential micronutrients, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and fibre to your baking as well.
I might actually attempt this on the weekend – but how good is that though? Such a versatile product.
You can't see me, but promise I'm raising my shake with a GUT Performance scoop in it, and cheersing you to healthy gut!
One small change to your daily routine can make a big difference to your general wellbeing. Learn more about GUT Performance, your daily gut health workout made from real food.