If you need to have a bowel movement and your body isn’t cooperating, there are several things you can do right now to get things moving, plus longer-term habits that keep you regular. Some approaches work within minutes, others take hours, and a few need days of consistency before you’ll notice a difference.
Fastest Options: What Works in Minutes
Coffee is one of the quickest natural triggers. Compounds in coffee stimulate your stomach lining to release a hormone called gastrin, which ramps up muscle contractions throughout your digestive tract. If your colon is already loaded and just needs a push, you can be in the bathroom before you finish the cup. Caffeine adds to this effect by boosting circulation and muscle activity, but even decaf triggers gastrin release to some degree.
A warm beverage of any kind on an empty stomach can help, especially first thing in the morning. Warm water with lemon works for some people because the warmth relaxes the intestinal walls and the liquid adds volume. Pair it with a small meal or snack: eating activates your gastrocolic reflex, a built-in signal that tells your colon to make room for incoming food by moving things along.
Change Your Position on the Toilet
The way you sit matters more than most people realize. When you sit on a standard toilet with your thighs at a 90-degree angle, a sling-shaped muscle called the puborectalis wraps tightly around your rectum and kinks it, like a bent garden hose. This is great for holding things in throughout the day, but it works against you when you’re trying to go.
Raising your feet on a small stool (about 6 to 9 inches high) brings your knees above your hips and mimics a squatting posture. This relaxes the puborectalis muscle and opens the angle between your rectum and anal canal from roughly 90 degrees to about 126 degrees, creating a much straighter path. You’ll notice you need significantly less straining. Any sturdy box, stack of books, or purpose-built toilet stool works.
Try an Abdominal Massage
You can manually help move stool through your colon using a technique called the ILU massage (named for the letter shapes your hands trace). Lie on your back, apply a little lotion if you like, and follow these three strokes:
- “I” stroke: Starting just below your left rib cage, press gently straight down toward your left hip bone. Repeat 10 times.
- “L” stroke: Start below your right rib cage, move across to your left rib cage, then down to your left hip. Repeat 10 times.
- “U” stroke: Start at your right hip, move up to your right rib cage, across to your left rib cage, then down to your left hip. Repeat 10 times.
Finish with gentle clockwise circles around your belly button for a minute or two. The whole routine takes 5 to 15 minutes, and it’s most effective after a meal or with a warm drink. The pressure should be firm but comfortable. These strokes follow the natural path of your colon, physically nudging contents toward the exit.
Prunes and Other Natural Laxative Foods
Prunes are one of the most effective food-based remedies because they work through multiple mechanisms at once. They contain sorbitol, a sugar alcohol that pulls water into the intestines, plus pectin and polyphenols that stimulate gut activity. Research suggests that about 50 to 55 grams of prunes or prune juice daily (roughly 5 to 6 whole prunes) produces noticeable improvement, though results typically take a day or two rather than minutes.
Other foods with natural laxative effects include kiwifruit, figs, flaxseed, and chia seeds. Kiwi is especially effective because it holds water in the stool and adds bulk. Chia and flax seeds form a gel when they absorb liquid, which keeps stool soft and easier to pass. Soak them in water or add them to smoothies for the best effect.
Fiber: The Long-Term Fix
Most people don’t eat nearly enough fiber. Women need 25 to 30 grams a day and men need 30 to 38 grams, but the average intake in Western diets falls well short of that. Both types of fiber matter, and they do different jobs.
Soluble fiber dissolves in water and forms a gel that softens stool. Good sources include oatmeal, apples, bananas, cooked vegetables, and whole grains. Insoluble fiber doesn’t dissolve. It adds bulk and pushes things through your system faster. You’ll find it in fruit and vegetable skins, leafy greens, nuts, popcorn, and dried fruit.
If your current fiber intake is low, increase it gradually over a week or two. Adding too much too fast causes bloating and gas, which can make you feel worse before you feel better. Pair any increase in fiber with extra water, since fiber needs fluid to do its job properly.
Why Water Matters More Than You Think
Your colon’s main function is absorbing water from digested food. When you’re dehydrated, it pulls out even more, leaving stool hard, dry, and difficult to pass. Research shows a clear link between low water intake and harder stools, reduced frequency of bowel movements, and a higher chance of seeing blood from straining.
There’s no magic number that works for everyone, but aiming for 8 glasses a day is a reasonable starting point. You may need more if you’re active, live in a warm climate, or have recently increased your fiber intake. Warm liquids tend to be more immediately stimulating than cold ones.
Over-the-Counter Options
If diet and lifestyle changes aren’t enough, several types of laxatives are available without a prescription. They differ mainly in how fast they work.
Osmotic laxatives like magnesium citrate draw water into the intestines, softening stool and stimulating contractions. These typically work within 30 minutes to 6 hours. They’re effective for occasional use but can cause cramping and loose stools if you take too much.
Stimulant laxatives like senna and bisacodyl directly increase muscle contractions in your intestinal walls. Taken by mouth, they generally kick in within 6 to 12 hours, which is why many people take them at bedtime and have a bowel movement in the morning. Suppository forms of bisacodyl work much faster, usually within 10 to 15 minutes.
Stool softeners are the gentlest option. They add moisture to stool over 1 to 3 days and are better suited for prevention than immediate relief. Fiber supplements like psyllium husk work similarly to dietary fiber and are a good bridge while you adjust your eating habits.
Probiotics for Regularity
Certain probiotic strains can speed up the time it takes food to travel through your digestive system. A meta-analysis of 15 clinical trials found that probiotic supplementation produced a moderate but consistent improvement in gut transit time compared to placebo. Not all strains are equal, though. Two strains of Bifidobacterium lactis (sold under the names HN019 and DN-173 010) showed the strongest effects by a significant margin. Other commonly marketed strains, including Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG, showed negligible benefit for transit time specifically.
Look for these strains on the label if regularity is your goal. Probiotics take a few weeks of consistent use before you’ll notice a pattern change, so they’re more of a maintenance strategy than a quick fix.
When Constipation Signals Something Bigger
Occasional constipation is extremely common and usually resolves with the strategies above. But constipation that lasts longer than three weeks, comes with blood in your stool, or involves severe pain warrants a conversation with a healthcare provider. The same applies if your bowel habits have recently changed without an obvious reason, like a new medication, travel, or a shift in diet. These can be signs of conditions that need more targeted treatment.