So you’re thinking a lot about your maximum heart rate, your muscular endurance, and your macros. But one thing you may not have given much thought to is your microbiome — specifically, how it can help or hinder your athletic performance.

In other words, your microbiome is the combination of bacteria, fungi, protozoa, and viruses that live in and on your body. And the microbiome — the mix of flora that lives inside your colon, intestines, and stomach — may be responsible for more than just your digestion.

While more research is needed, study has shown a potential promising link between your body’s gut health and how well you can expect to perform.

“When your gut is healthy, you have more energy, your hormones work better, and your body is able to assimilate the nutrients you eat,” says Laura Londonboard-certified health counselor (AADP) and fitness specialist. “That, in turn, can give you more energy, stamina, endurance, and focus.”

How Does the Microbiome Affect Fitness?

Here are some ways that taking care of your gut can help during your time under the bar, on the track, or in the gym.

1. Metabolic functions

Gut microbes help absorb essential nutrients your body needs to function properly. When you exercise, the increased metabolic activity puts more demand on your body, meaning it needs more energy (from nutrients) to meet that demand.

A healthy gut that contains the right balance of microorganisms can help your body metabolize and absorb nutrients more efficiently and lead to better performance.

2. Solid sleep

Most exercisers know that a good night’s sleep can significantly affect performance. And smart exercisers know that gut health is the first line of defense against these great energy thieves: insomnia and poor sleep quality.

Although these two factors are important enough to make a big difference for most active people, researchers are hard at work, looking for links to other systems and functions. Bottom line: If performance is important to you, you can’t afford to ignore your gut health.

How Can You Improve Gut Health?

So how is a healthy gut achieved? It might help to start with what you have don’t like — that is, an imbalance of gut flora, such as an overgrowth of fungus or “bad” bacteria. Those imbalances have been linked to poor digestion and absorption of nutrients, decreased immune function, decreased ability to recover after exercise, decreased energy in general, and even joint and bone pain.

Diets high in sugar and processed foods and low in minerals and healthy fats have been linked to out-of-whack guts. Over-prescribing antibiotics doesn’t help either — they tend to wipe out the “good” bacteria along with the bad, leaving your intestines and colon vulnerable to an imbalance of the wrong “bugs.”

1. Exercise

Yes, a healthy gut leads to better athletic performance, but the opposite is also true. Studies suggest that people who exercise may exhibit a healthier microbiome, even those without previous athletic routines.

Here’s the catch: exercise must be regular and continuous. Once the participants stopped exercising, their gut health returned to its previous (less healthy) state.

2. Consider supplements

Probiotics, prebiotics, and digestive enzymes help to improve the health of your gut by promoting the growth of beneficial bacteria in your gut (the role of prebiotics), actually putting them there ( the role of probiotics), or helping your body break down food to allow greater absorption of nutrients (the role of digestive enzymes.)

3. Rev up your diet

Reducing processed and high-sugar foods while increasing fiber intake and adding in fermented foods (such as kimchi, sauerkraut, and yogurt) has been shown to improve the microbiome and create an environment where healthy that microorganisms can thrive.

If controlling your digestion or performance proves difficult with modest nutritional changes, you may want to consider a more restrictive regimen such as the gut and psychology syndrome (GAPS) diet. The GAPS diet is based on the understanding that your gut can influence your physical and mental health. Consult and work with a qualified professional (GI doctor, dietitian) who specializes in the GAPS diet.

Regardless of your fitness level, one thing’s for sure: It always feels better to finish a workout feeling relaxed and energized than tight and tired. Next time you’re thinking about how to get over a plateau or you’re just getting back into it, pay attention to your gut health. Your colon and intestines will thank — and reward — you.

4 Week Gut Protocol

If you want to experience the benefits of a healthier microbiome, The 4 Week Gut Protocol is a comprehensive program with a three-pronged approach to help promote gut health:

• Nutrition: Over the course of four weeks, BODi Super Trainer Autumn Calabrese will help isolate the seven most common foods and ingredients that can cause gastric distress and damage your overall well-being.
• Supplements: Two supplements are included in the program. Revive is a powerful combination of prebiotics and probiotics that support beneficial flora in the digestive tract. Optimize includes digestive enzymes to help support nutrient absorption and bioavailability.
• Training: Designed to follow a nutrition program, 4 Weeks for Every Body is a low-impact program that makes consistency and results achievable for anyone. You will perform a total of 16 exercises – four exercises per week for four weeks – all under 30 minutes.