Good fiber for ridding gas / constipation

dancinkeys15

So my macros coach has me at a little over 1g protein per pound b/w. I'm having trouble with constipation and bad gas. Yuckola!
I've done 2 things that have helped mildly: 1) stopped tracking spinach, broccoli, and any other green and eating them a LOT. 2) adding 1 TBSP chia seeds per day.

However... Does anyone have experience with psyllium husk to make the gas stop and poo flow more freely??

rileysowner

dancinkeys15 wrote: »

So my macros coach has me at a little over 1g protein per pound b/w. I'm having trouble with constipation and bad gas. Yuckola!
I've done 2 things that have helped mildly: 1) stopped tracking spinach, broccoli, and any other green and eating them a LOT. 2) adding 1 TBSP chia seeds per day.

However... Does anyone have experience with psyllium husk to make the gas stop and poo flow more freely??

How much fiber are you getting now? Are you getting sufficient fat? Usually people think that it is only a fiber issue, but fiber and water won't do it alone, sufficient fat is needed as well.

bebeisfit

How's your water intake? Do you eat beans? Add them gradually and you won't have the gas so bad. Fruits? I find that if I eat a variety of fruit, vegetables and beans and water, everything works well. I aim for 27 grams of fiber a day.

Oh and i also agree on the fat..avocados has both fat and fiber.

dancinkeys15

I'm at 45g F, 165g C, 140g P.
Fiber is 25g or more. No less than 25 per day.

rebel_26

That's too much protein IMO. Why does he or she have you over 1g per lb? As a macro coach i would think he or she would know anything over .8 per lb is more so a waste and that .8 applies to elite athletes of which likely none of us are. What is comprising your fat portion of your diet? fiber seems adequate.

bgishn

I think you may be confused. The normal recommendation for protein is around 0.8-1g per KILOGRAM body weight. I can't imagine anyone needs 1g of protein per lb per day. Divide your weight in lbs by 2.2 and you will have kgs. For example, I eat 1g per kg (I'm training for a marathon), so 137/2.2=62g of protein per day. I'm even thinking of reducing the amount of protein I eat because I have been struggling with constipation as well (hence how I ended up reading this thread).

I haven't heard of psyllium husk, but I've been eating yogurt every day, chugging tons of water, lots of coffee, and having blended berries and greens as my breakfast every morning to try to get the flow going. It really sucks having only 1-2 BMs a week and being gassy. Laxatives in the pill form will end up making you more constipated if you use them regularly :-/ let me know if you find something that works!!

jolive7

beewaash wrote: »

I think you may be confused. The normal recommendation for protein is around 0.8-1g per KILOGRAM body weight. I can't imagine anyone needs 1g of protein per lb per day. Divide your weight in lbs by 2.2 and you will have kgs. For example, I eat 1g per kg (I'm training for a marathon), so 137/2.2=62g of protein per day. I'm even thinking of reducing the amount of protein I eat because I have been struggling with constipation as well (hence how I ended up reading this thread).

I haven't heard of psyllium husk, but I've been eating yogurt every day, chugging tons of water, lots of coffee, and having blended berries and greens as my breakfast every morning to try to get the flow going. It really sucks having only 1-2 BMs a week and being gassy. Laxatives in the pill form will end up making you more constipated if you use them regularly :-/ let me know if you find something that works!!

Neg it is per pound...

jolive7

rebel_26 wrote: »

That's too much protein IMO. Why does he or she have you over 1g per lb? As a macro coach i would think he or she would know anything over .8 per lb is more so a waste and that .8 applies to elite athletes of which likely none of us are. What is comprising your fat portion of your diet? fiber seems adequate.

.8 elite athletes?! Where did you get this information??

140 grams of protein is definitely fine

rileysowner

beewaash wrote: »

I think you may be confused. The normal recommendation for protein is around 0.8-1g per KILOGRAM body weight. I can't imagine anyone needs 1g of protein per lb per day. Divide your weight in lbs by 2.2 and you will have kgs. For example, I eat 1g per kg (I'm training for a marathon), so 137/2.2=62g of protein per day. I'm even thinking of reducing the amount of protein I eat because I have been struggling with constipation as well (hence how I ended up reading this thread).

I haven't heard of psyllium husk, but I've been eating yogurt every day, chugging tons of water, lots of coffee, and having blended berries and greens as my breakfast every morning to try to get the flow going. It really sucks having only 1-2 BMs a week and being gassy. Laxatives in the pill form will end up making you more constipated if you use them regularly :-/ let me know if you find something that works!!

The problem with those numbers for an average person, is they are insufficient for a person who is in a calorie deficit. 142g is a lot, but 62g is way too little.

HeidiCooksSupper

Eat more whole grains. It is not only good for your colon & associated activities. Whole grains will keep you alive and healthy. Consider these quotes from https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/whole-grains/:

"A meta-analysis combining results from studies conducted in the US, the United Kingdom, and Scandinavian countries (which included health information from over 786,000 individuals), found that people who ate 70 grams/day of whole grains—compared with those who ate little or no whole grains—had a 22 percent lower risk of total mortality, a 23 percent lower risk of cardiovascular disease mortality, and a 20 percent lower risk of cancer mortality."

"In the Harvard-based Nurses’ Health Study, women who ate 2 to 3 servings of whole-grain products each day were 30 percent less likely to have a heart attack or die from heart disease over a 10-year period than women who ate less than 1 serving per week."

"A meta-analysis of seven major studies showed that cardiovascular disease (heart attack, stroke, or the need for a procedure to bypass or open a clogged artery) was 21 percent less likely in people who ate 2.5 or more servings of whole-grain foods a day compared with those who ate less than 2 servings a week."

"In a study of more than 160,000 women whose health and dietary habits were followed for up to 18 years, those who averaged 2 to 3 servings of whole grains a day were 30 percent less likely to have developed type 2 diabetes than those who rarely ate whole grains. (4)When the researchers combined these results with those of several other large studies, they found that eating an extra 2 servings of whole grains a day decreased the risk of type 2 diabetes by 21 percent."

There are more at https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/whole-grains/

ahoy_m8

dancinkeys15 wrote: »

I'm at 45g F, 165g C, 140g P.
Fiber is 25g or more. No less than 25 per day.

I am not a macro coach. IMHO, your fiber looks fine, your fat looks low-ish and protein looks high-ish. Protein can definitely bind you up. What do you eat to get 140g protein per day?

There are many different protein guidelines depending on surplus(less) vs. deficit (more), BF% (more for leaner), goals (more for bulk), etc. It's confusing, but I think Lyle McDonald discusses it as clearly as anyone. Also personal preference (what makes you feel good vs. constipated, for example) plays a role. If what you are doing now isn't working for you, the "macro coach" should know. What does that person say about your constipation?

ETA: OP, do you know your LBM? I usually see the 1g/lb LBM (not total body weight) for muscle sparing while in a deficit.

nvmomketo

I found that reducing the foods with fibre helped. Fats keep things moving and there is very little gas