• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Breaking Muscle

Breaking Muscle

Breaking Muscle

  • Fitness
  • Workouts
    • Best Shoulder Workouts
    • Best Chest Workouts
    • Best Leg Workouts
    • Best Leg Exercises
    • Best Biceps Exercises
    • Best Kettlebell Exercises
    • Best Back Workouts
    • Best HIIT Workouts
    • Best Triceps Exercises
    • Best Arm Workouts
  • Reviews
    • Supplements
      • Best Pre-Workout
      • Best BCAAs
      • Best Testosterone Boosters
      • Best Bodybuilding Supplements
      • Best Creatine
      • Best Supplements for Weight Loss
      • Best Multivitamins
      • Best Collagen Supplement
      • Best Probiotic
      • Best Non-Stim Pre-Workout
      • Best Greens Powder
      • Best Magnesium Supplements
    • Protein
      • Best Protein Powder
      • Best Whey Protein
      • Best Protein Powders for Muscle Gain
      • Best Tasting Protein Powder
      • Best Vegan Protein
      • Best Mass Gainer
      • Best Protein Shakes
      • Best Organic Protein Powder
      • Best Pea Protein Powder
      • Best Protein Bars
    • Strength Equipment
      • Best Home Gym Equipment
      • Best Squat Racks
      • Best Barbells
      • Best Weightlifting Belts
      • Best Weight Benches
      • Best Functional Trainers
      • Best Dumbbells
      • Best Adjustable Dumbbells
      • Best Kettlebells
      • Best Resistance Bands
      • Best Trap Bars
    • Cardio Equipment
      • Best Cardio Machines
      • Best Rowing Machines
      • Best Treadmills
      • Best Weighted Vests
      • Concept2 RowErg Review
      • Hydrow Wave Review
      • Best Jump Ropes
  • News
  • Exercise Guides
    • Legs
      • Back Squat
      • Bulgarian Split Squat
      • Goblet Squat
      • Zercher Squat
      • Standing Calf Raise
      • Hack Squat
    • Chest
      • Bench Press
      • Dumbbell Bench Press
      • Close-Grip Bench Press
      • Incline Bench Press
    • Shoulders
      • Overhead Dumbbell Press
      • Lateral Raise
    • Arms
      • Chin-Up
      • Weighted Pull-Up
      • Triceps Pushdown
    • Back
      • Deadlift
      • Trap Bar Deadlift
      • Lat Pulldown
      • Inverted Row
      • Bent-Over Barbell Row
      • Single-Arm Dumbbell Row
      • Pendlay Row
Fitness

Everybody Poops, Part 1: When the Going Gets Tough

Everybody poops. It’s true. I poop. Hopefully, you poop. But sometimes the act goes smoother than others. Here are some tips on how to get things moving again.

Traver H. Boehm

Written by Traver H. Boehm Last updated on Nov 22, 2021

Everybody poops. It’s true. I poop. Hopefully, you poop. Show me someone who doesn’t poop and I’ll show you someone who’s going to be sick very soon. Men poop. This much is obvious to anyone who has ever had to live with us. Women poop, too. This is an oft-confused fact. My future wife is the most beautiful, articulate, emotionally intelligent, kind, caring woman I’ve ever met. She also craps like a trucker. You can forget the whole “they only poop out little pink ribbons” deal too fellas, it’s complete hogwash.

Everybody poops. It’s true. I poop. Hopefully, you poop. Show me someone who doesn’t poop and I’ll show you someone who’s going to be sick very soon. Men poop. This much is obvious to anyone who has ever had to live with us. Women poop, too. This is an oft-confused fact. My future wife is the most beautiful, articulate, emotionally intelligent, kind, caring woman I’ve ever met. She also craps like a trucker. You can forget the whole “they only poop out little pink ribbons” deal too fellas, it’s complete hogwash.

Fantastic, now that we’ve all gotten our fecal focus front and center, let’s talk about one of the more taboo subjects in polite society – our bowel movements. Since what goes in must inevitably come out, the condition of your poop upon departure can be telling.

For the sake of this article we’re going to break things down into two categories and tackle constipation, hard stools, and difficulty going to the bathroom this week, while next week we look at the other, looser, more frequent, waterier side of the coin. Fair?

According to WebMd.com, you are considered constipated if you have two or more of the following for at least three months:

  • Straining during a bowel movement more than 25% of the time
  • Hard stools more than 25% of the time
  • Incomplete evacuation more than 25% of the time
  • Two or fewer bowel movements in a week

However, ask anyone who has not had a bowel movement for two days or more if they think their symptoms will be relevant in three months and they’ll answer with discomfort. In my professional opinion not having at least one bowel movement per day (given normal eating habits and minus any extraordinary personal circumstances or travel) is a warning to take a look at your diet and lifestyle.

Delayed bowel movements, hard stools, and incomplete evacuations (not pooping to your heart’s content) can all be caused by a number of factors, but more often than not, they’re a mix of the ingredients going into your mouth coupled with your own genetic predisposition.

digestive health, poop, constipation, fecal matter, traditional chinese medicine

One of the most common causes for constipation and hard stools is dehydration. During the journey through your small intestine, the last stop before blast off, your body will reabsorb necessary liquids from your stool back into your system. After this process, if there is not enough fluid left in your stool, passing it will be difficult.

If constipation is an issue for you, the first step in amelioration is increasing your water intake and decreasing any dehydrating factors such as alcohol, caffeine, and excessive exercise.

In addition to minimizing dehydration, adding the following will help increase the moisture level and maneuverability of your stool:

  • Increasing your fat intake with nuts, seeds, and avocado
  • Increasing your fiber intake
  • Drinking liquid aloe vera

Fiber will not only add bulk to your stool, but is also capable of absorbing five times its weight in water, thus creates an easier to pass stool.

Often times it’s not the hardness or dryness of the stool that’s causing issue, it just seems like there isn’t enough “push” to get everything out in one sitting. Traditional Chinese Medicine refers to this as a lack of Qi, or simply not having enough energy to facilitate a proper elimination.

All of your body functions take energy, from breathing to thinking to walking to eliminating. Peristalsis, the motion your colon goes through to pass stool also takes energy. Some ways to increase peristalsis are:

  • Light exercise (ask anyone in the Marine Corps about their morning runs)
  • Eating dried fruit
  • Massaging in small circles clockwise around the navel
  • Drinking tea made from the Chinese Herb Da Huang or Rhubarb Root is a sure fire way to promote a bowel movement (contraindicated in pregnancy or nursing)

By managing your water intake and dietary choices, constipation can become a seldom-experienced issue, allowing you to spend more time out in the world and less time in the bathroom.

Stay tuned next week for the next exciting chapter of Everybody Poops: Part Two, where we look at constipation’s evil stepsister – loose stools.

Traver H. Boehm

About Traver H. Boehm

Traver Boehm is an author, speaker, and transformational coach who consult with clients from around the globe, assisting them in vastly improving the quality of their human experience through One Day Stronger, Inc.

With a background high level Executive Protection, Traditional Chinese Medicine, and professional athletics, his approaches to using pain and trauma as catalysts for positive change are groundbreaking.

When not speaking, teaching, or chasing waves, Traver can be found chewing on his thumbnail while staring at his computer obsessing over a word choice. For more onTraver, check connect with him on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.

View All Articles

Related Posts

Fergus Crawley 5K Run Tips Photo
Fergus Crawley Shares 5 Tips For Running a Better 5K
Actor Chris Hemsworth in gym performing dumbbell row
Chris Hemsworth Diagrams a Killer Upper Body Workout Fit For an Action Star
Hugh Jackman Deadpool 3 Workouts Spring:Winter 2023
Hugh Jackman Returns to Wolverine Condition in Workouts for “Deadpool 3”
Method Man Incline Dumbbell Presses December 2022
Check Out Rapper Method Man Cruising Through 120-Pound Incline Dumbbell Presses for 10 Reps

Primary Sidebar

Latest Articles

New Year’s Fitness Sales (2025)

XWERKS Motion BCAA Review (2025): A Registered Dietitian’s Honest Thoughts

Assault Fitness AssaultBike Pro X Review (2025): Assault’s Best Bike Yet?

13 Best Exercise Bikes for Home Gyms (2025)

Transparent Labs BCAA Glutamine Review (2025): The Key to Post-Workout Recovery?

Latest Reviews

Element 26 Hybrid Leather Weightlifting Belt

Element 26 Hybrid Leather Weightlifting Belt Review (2025)

Omre NMN + Resveratrol, Lifeforce Peak NMN, and partiQlar NMN on a red background

Best NMN Supplement: Fountain of Youth in a Bottle? (2025)

The Titan Series Adjustable Bench on a red background

Titan Series Adjustable Bench Review (2025)

A photo of the NordicTrack Select-a-Weight Dumbbells on a red background

NordicTrack Adjustable Dumbbell Review (2025): Are These Value Dumbbells Worth It?

woman lifting barbell

Be the smartest person in your gym

The Breaking Muscle newsletter is everything you need to know about strength in a 3 minute read.

I WANT IN!

Breaking Muscle is the fitness world’s preeminent destination for timely, high-quality information on exercise, fitness, health, and nutrition. Our audience encompasses the entire spectrum of the fitness community: consumers, aficionados, fitness professionals, and business owners. We seek to inform, educate and advocate for this community.

  • Reviews
  • Healthy Eating
  • Workouts
  • Fitness
  • News

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS Feed

© 2025 · Breaking Muscle · Terms of Use · Privacy Policy · Affiliate Disclaimer · Accessibility · About