If you are not sick of bloat talk read on...

I work from 8:30am - 5:00pm. I eat lunch around 12, 12:15ish and before working this lifestyle I would get the mid-day bloat beginning at about 3:30/4:00. By 5:00 I was wishing so bad that I could just snap my fingers and my sweatpants would be on because all of a sudden my pants were 2 sizes too small. Since I have been eating differently and staying active I have not had nearly as many problems but I still get the bloating from time to time. Sometimes I think my stomach has been permanently damaged but I don't see myself giving up anytime soon because I am a lot better than I was.

So my new thing: the after lunch walk. A group of ladies and I go for a 15-20 minute walk around the block after lunch. Now I know the excuses "I have too much work to do, I have to make a phone call, I don't have my walking shoes" but this has been a big help for me to cut down on the mid-day bloating.

I have accepted that sometimes my stomach will bloat and sometimes I may not understand why. I am ok with that. My first reaction now is to relax, then figure out what to do to not be in pain and uncomfortable. So yesterday, when I was feeling pain and all pregnanty after work I went for a walk for about 45 minutes. I came home, put the candles on and made dinner. I am reading that cayenne pepper is good for digestion and so I'm trying that out. I put about 2 tsps in a batch of pasta I made last night. Now 2 tsps is not for the faint of heart. My mouth was totally on fire. I followed up with lots of water, an apple and then my nice walk (in perfect 60 degree weather). I have been cooking with cayenne pepper a lot (but not nearly that large of an amount) so if you are not used to spicy foods try out just a sprinkle at first. Sometimes spicy food can irritate the stomach and digestive process (as many of you know) and I think black pepper and chili pepper does it for me so I stay away from that. So far no trouble with the cayenne pepper. Right now I am feeling great! It is only 1:23pm but I have a very good feeling about today.

Namaste everyone! The weather is warm :) At least where I am....