Last update and review: Novermber 9, 2020.
A Short Summary.
Postprandial workouts may be a useful way to alleviate postprandial discomfort.
Several remarks about eating habits of humans.
Postprandial discomfort.
Suboptimal digestive health or compulsive eating are often associated with postprandial discomfort and bad mood. After an evening meal, postprandial discomfort may last well into the night and interfere with sleep.
Postprandial workouts.
Postprandial workouts may be a way to alleviate postprandial discomfort. There are also a lot of other potential benefits of this mode of exercise.
In this article we propose to explore slow yoga-like push-ups as a form of postprandial workout. Other exercises can also be used.
We found several images around the web that give an idea of how your postprandial push-ups may look like. Do your postprandial push-ups slowly, rest between push-ups in one of the static positions. Alternate the position of your hands.
Remarks about eating habits of humans.
Compulsive eating is a common behavior among hunter-gatherer tribesmen and other isolated primitive cultures.
Any type of compulsive eating may be loosely classified as an “eating disorder”. First of all, do not think that episodes of overindulgence or compulsive eating are a disease that requires medications. Unhealthy compulsive eating is a common behavior in isolated primitive tribesmen. Below, there are several citations to illustrate that.
Vilhjalmur Stefansson spent 18 years exploring Arctic in the early 1900s. He describes multiples tribes and many smaller family groups in his book “Friendly Arctic”. Here is a passage on the eating habits of Eskimo:
“Just before going to sleep we would have a cold snack of fish that had been left over from dinner”.
William H. Gilder, traveled to the Arctic with the expedition of Frederic Schwatka. Gilder wrote an excellent book “Schwatka’s Search”. The book was published in 1881. Here is how he describes eating habits of Eskimo:
The men all dine together in one igloo, no women being allowed to be present, and generally demolish the whole of a carcass of reindeer at a meal.
This may be called their dinner, but when they have plenty of food on hand they eat nearly all the time. In the morning, before getting out of bed, they eat; and at night, after getting into bed, or “sin-nek-pig,” as they call it, they eat.
Joffe et al., 1971, on the eating habits of Kalahary Bushmen:
…an overnight fast would probably have been broken owing to the almost continuous eating pattern of the Bushmen when food is available.
Eating disorders according to the published literature and mainstream medical associations.
Below, there are some definitions of eating disorders. However, do not assign any label to your own eating habits. As we just described above, overindulgence and other “bad” eating patterns are common in humans.
Rikani et al., 2013:
Eating disorders are defined by disturbance in eating habits that may be either excessive or insufficient food intake. Bulimia nervosa, anorexia nervosa, and binge eating are the most common forms of eating disorder based on diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (DSM-IV).
The definition of bulimia is interesting. It includes exercise. Rikani et al., 2013:
$DSM-IV also defines bulimia nervosa as recurrent binge eating episodes followed by recurrent purging, excessive exercise, or prolonged fasting at least two times per week for three months. Excessive concern about weight or shape is also very common in bulimia nervosaDSM-IV also defines bulimia nervosa as recurrent binge eating episodes followed by recurrent purging, excessive exercise, or prolonged fasting at least two times per week for three months. Excessive concern about weight or shape is also very common in bulimia nervosa.
Binge-eating. Rikani et al., 2013:
Another type of eating disorders is binge-eating disorder that is characterized with recurrent binge eating without purging, excessive exercise, or fasting.
Exercise is associated with eating disorders.
It is of interest that exercise is included in many definitions of human eating disorders. In mammals in generals, exercise is for some reason involved in abnormal eating behavior.
Rats that don’t eat enough and have access to a running wheel become addicted to running, become anorexic, and eventually die.
The New Neander’s Medical on December 10, 2019:
Endurance athletes and rats. The masses: “Everybody is different.” Analysis: Rats that don’t eat enough and have access to a running wheel become addicted to running (runner’s high), get constipated (as endurance athletes). Different? P.S.: Undereating endurance “rat-letes” eventually die.
As cited by The New Neander’s Medical on December 10, 2019:
Chronic exercise or activity-based anorexia (ABA): a paradoxical phenomenon that occurs in animals housed with free access to a running wheel and food restriction. These animals become hyperactive and increase running activity, leading to weight reductions and ultimately death.
Dietary restrictions and fasting may lead to eating disorders.
The New Neander’s Medical on February 19, 2020:
Note that mice on FMD develop an “eating disorder”: they overeat all the time when they are not calorie-restricted.
The New Neander’s Medical on May 19, 2020:
“Yo-Yo fasting” and any “fasting” may lead to eating disorders.
The New Neander’s Medical on May 14, 2020:
There are signs of an eating disorder in yet another health personality, Ted Naiman. Ted apparently craves and eats carbs in a “cheating mode”. His satiety hormones are dysregulated. E.g., Ted’s insulin (=1mIU/L), of which he is so proud, is one.
An overweight person does not lose fat on chronic 1600kCal a day.
The New Neander’s Medical on November 18, 2019:
The person does not lose weight. Chronically on 1600kCal, the person may be losing muscle mass, bone calcium (given alcohol consumption and almost inevitable hypertension). It is possible that fat is maintained by (inevitable?) occasional binge eating.
Possible consequences of an inadvertent prolonged caloric restriction.
From another post on this website:
The changes that Keys observed and described in their study of prolonged semi-starvation(1) are similar to what is observed today in many people who went on the currently popular restrictive diets and entered a state of prolonged caloric restriction.
Learn to enjoy a fed state.
The New Neander’s Medical on November 19, 2019:
Consulting practice: After having enjoyed a fasted state (which is easy), learn to enjoy a fed state and having a full stomach (which is difficult). It is very important for longevity. It is useful to combat eating disorders. It is useful to counter hypogonadism.
The New Neander’s Medical on November 21, 2019:
Consulting practice. Eating disorders, including undereating: Another thing that you need to learn to enjoy is characteristic mild feedback from your digestive system. Many convinced themselves that peristaltic movements, other mild feedback are negative signs. Reprogram yourself.
The New Neander’s Medical on November 21, 2019:
Consulting practice: Is eating enough a “skill”? It probably is.
In the podcasts: To prevent sarcopenia, Dr. Mercola puts an accent on exercise. Without eating enough, the exercise alone won’t do.
Anthropology: Brain shrinks in aging people. Hypothesis: Partially, due to a chronic undereating for many years.
The New Neander’s Medical on November 16, 2019:
Anthropology, Physiological Literacy: An ageing modern female has a brain much smaller than Homo Erectus. Homo Erectus: 1300cm3, 76-80 years old female: 1190cm3 on average. Brain shrinks in aging people. Hypothesis: Partially, due to a chronic undereating for many years.
Anthropology: (modern) humans are notoriously bad at eating intuitively.
The New Neander’s Medical on November 10, 2019:
“The rule of eating when hungry” is another popular idea that makes so much sense intuitively. However, fixing people who used to eat “intuitively” is an important part of our consulting practice. Anthropology: (modern) humans are notoriously bad at eating intuitively.
Conclusions.
Try slow push-ups or other exercise after a meal. Let us know if you feel good during and after a postprandial workout.
A Collaborative Working Groups on Eating disorders, Digestive Health, Weight Loss.
If you are a medical practitioner, a coach, a consultant, or a person interested in optimizing your own health, you can participate in our Collaborative Working Groups. In our Collaborative Working Groups, we share our ideas, try different ideas, and recommend competent practitioners to those who need help.
People interested in health topic listed above may also be interested in our Consulting Programs.
Selected references:
1. Rikani AA, Choudhry Z, Choudhry AM, et al. Ann Neurosci. 2013;20(4):157-161.
1 Comment