This post is written by Marty Ryan, LMP. Marty is the owner of Love Your Guts Seminars located in Seattle Washington.
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7 Goals for a Happy Belly
1. Decrease tension in the belly wall – a chronically hard belly wall challenges posture, spinal support, and the proper mechanics of breathing. The hard belly wall – a strange cultural goal to say the least – is a sign of anxiety, fear, stress, inflammation, and decreased abdominal organ function.
2. Easy penetration through the layers of belly organs – one should be able to move through the belly wall to all of the organs and front of the spine with little or no discomfort. Pain upon palpation at various layers of the abdomen is a sign of tension, emotional or energetic holding patterns, adhesion from inflammation or surgery, and dysfunction on some level.
3. Decreased pain in the abdominal organs – both upon touch and walking around in your life.
4. Decreased cramping – both after meals and during the entire day.
5. Easy and efficient transit time and bowel movements –food should move along the gut tube at a pace that does not create cramping, bloating, or gas and allows for 2 -3 easy bowel movements per day – usually after meals.
6. Reproductive system ease –
For females this means:
• regular and predictable menstrual cycles
• minimal abdominal cramping, breast tenderness, or headache with ovulation or menses
• minimal or no PMS / menopausal symptoms
• no cysts, masses, endometriosis, or fibroids in the pelvis
• easy access to sexual energy
For males this means:
• no prostate swelling or nocturnal urination
• easy erections without pain or premature ejaculation
• easy access to sexual energy
1. Ease and grace with your own belly – instead of hating or fearing your belly, you enjoy feeding it, looking at it, massaging it, hugging it, and knowing that it serves you well. This is the broadest and most encompassing of all the goals here and subsumes all of the above.
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If you want help achieving these goals, you can make an appointment with Marty by calling 206-729-6211.
Marty has taught belly massage and palpatory anatomy seminars across the US since 1998. Marty also served on the faculty of the Seattle Massage School and the Northwest Institute of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine.
Thanks for reading, PJ Harris, LMP