Everyone poops. . . .

Bluskyleilu

Hi, First let me apologize for bringing up poop on a Sunday morning. But I sure would like to have one. That being said, I am a 34 year old female, 5'10" and currently 186 lbs. I started out the New Year with resolutions that I have been able to maintain to date. I quit smoking, started watching my calorie intake(1200+ excercise calories), drinking more water(8-10cups/daily), and working out 3x a week with C25K. Now, with all of that change, I totally understand that my body and chemistry are going to change. However, with all that is changing, I have noticed that my bowel movements are fewer and further between. I am not in constipation pain but, I do wonder if this is normal? if anyone else has experienced such a thing? and if so, what did you do to overcome it? Any suggestions about intestinal health and encouraging healthy flow would be appreciated. Thank you for your suggestions.

turtleball

Not enough fiber? MFP says 25g of fiber for women a day..



Yeah I learned this the hard way..

sunfirelynn

I had to up my fiber, that helped a lot !

yogacat13

Magnesium supplements, 300mg a day. Keeps hormones balanced and the plumbing moving.

JG762

Hi, First let me apologize for bringing up poop on a Sunday morning. But I sure would like to have one. That being said, I am a 34 year old female, 5'10" and currently 186 lbs. I started out the New Year with resolutions that I have been able to maintain to date. I quit smoking, started watching my calorie intake(1200+ excercise calories), drinking more water(8-10cups/daily), and working out 3x a week with C25K. Now, with all of that change, I totally understand that my body and chemistry are going to change. However, with all that is changing, I have noticed that my bowel movements are fewer and further between. I am not in constipation pain but, I do wonder if this is normal? if anyone else has experienced such a thing? and if so, what did you do to overcome it? Any suggestions about intestinal health and encouraging healthy flow would be appreciated. Thank you for your suggestions.

Preach it Sister...

Phaedra2014

Yes increase your fiber intake. A serving of All Bran every day would do you good. If you don't eat gluten then a cup of pumpkin puree is great as well as yam with the skin on. All the leafy greens (kale, collard, mustard, spinach) also work well. Eat lentils, fruits with the skin on (apples, pears).

ebayaddict0127

Fiber. Add salads to your meals. Snack on some carrots. Eat some fruit. When I did Weight Watchers which required 5-7 servings of fruit/veggies a day, I was never lacking in the #2 dept.

I wouldn't recommend any of those high fiber foods (FiberOne, etc.). They just made me sick.

Blue801

I'm encountering this, but I think mine is super simple. Less food shoved in my mouth means less coming out the other end. ????

ponycyndi

I noticed the frequency and volume decreased with the decrease in calories of my diet. However, two things keep me moving, inside and out: coffee, black; and fiber along with staying hydrated.

usmcmp

Fiber, lots of water and some good fats.

I know you didn't ask for this advice, but your calories are very low for your height and weight. You also aren't getting much protein. One day you only got 18 grams. I'm 5'9" and at 160 pounds I lose weight on 1800 calories a day (I only workout 3-4 days a week with little to no cardio).

ebayaddict0127

I noticed the frequency and volume decreased with the decrease in calories of my diet. However, two things keep me moving, inside and out: coffee, black; and fiber along with staying hydrated.

Agreed on the coffee. Always does the trick for me too.

Xiaolongbao

If you do a bit of googling about bowel habits you'll find that normal can be defined as anything from 2 times a day through to about every 2nd or 3rd day (which would freak me out).

If you don't feel any discomfort either inbetween or when pooing then I'd say leave well enough alone. More high fibre food certainly isn't a bad thing but if your body is happy with what's happening right now then don't make any radical changes.

And well done on all the healthy choices you're making.

KristinaB83

I noticed the frequency and volume decreased with the decrease in calories of my diet. However, two things keep me moving, inside and out: coffee, black; and fiber along with staying hydrated.

Agreed on the coffee. Always does the trick for me too.

COFFEE!!!!!!!!!

AEROBICVIC

yes you will notice a diff in you movements with every type of change you make to your dieting. As you said we all do it, but no one really likes to talk about it but it is very important to track. It's a natural part of being human. The more you notice how much, how often, color, texture and ect the more you will know about your body and the foods you are taking in. This is a great accomplishment to your taking control of your health. It's not a pretty subject but very important. Make your private notes and keep track of urine color and ect, the more you know about your body the better. Makes it easier for you and your doctor to be in tune for any future questions or concerns. Urine color also is a great tool to determine you water intake, dehydration, hydration. Keep tracking all your body changes, you're doing a great job!

bumblebeez86

I have had the same problem but I have been in severe pain too - didn't realise how much constipation hurts !!! The longer I have left it the worse it has got I thought to increase my fibre etc but when I spoke to the pharmacist she said that is the worse thing to do if you are still blocked up but to do so after you have returned to normal. I expect things to change with diet etc but this has been really bad for me. On laxatives and IBS tablets now until I return to normal I am learning the hard way.

kgeyser

Increasing your fiber will help. You probably noticed the change from quitting smoking. Like coffee, nicotine provides, shall we say, stimulating properties to the bowels.

SLLRunner

Hi, First let me apologize for bringing up poop on a Sunday morning. But I sure would like to have one. That being said, I am a 34 year old female, 5'10" and currently 186 lbs. I started out the New Year with resolutions that I have been able to maintain to date. I quit smoking, started watching my calorie intake(1200+ excercise calories), drinking more water(8-10cups/daily), and working out 3x a week with C25K. Now, with all of that change, I totally understand that my body and chemistry are going to change. However, with all that is changing, I have noticed that my bowel movements are fewer and further between. I am not in constipation pain but, I do wonder if this is normal? if anyone else has experienced such a thing? and if so, what did you do to overcome it? Any suggestions about intestinal health and encouraging healthy flow would be appreciated. Thank you for your suggestions.

You have lost 19 pounds since the New Year, thus approximately five pounds pounds per week. Your are exercising like crazy, but you are eating UNDER (caps used for emphasis only) 1,200 calories and some days NOT eating much of your exercise calories back. At least that that is what your diary reflects. All this, and you are 5 ft. 10 and in your early thirties.

The above is why you can't poop. First of all, you are eating WAY TOO FEW calories, and you are losing weight WAY TOO FAST. Granted, at first the weight seems to come off pretty fast, but it should have slowed down by now. I'll be surprised if you are not pretty low on energy by now.

You need to up those base calories because, due to your height and weight, I doubt that MFP set you up at 1,200 calories a day even if you wanted to lose 2 pounds a week. You also need to start eating more of those exercise calories back. You need to eat more foods with fiber. Heck, you need to start eating more period and slow that weight loss down.

Also, how much water are you drinking?

cristapp

The first couple weeks on my new year's diet, I had the same issue. For me, the most important ways to correct it are to keep moving (exercising) and drink a good amount of water, and get a bit more fibre in my diet. (I don't like to overdo the water and fibre though. I think that can screw me up with the scale.)

player30

The other part of the info you gave was that you quit smoking. As a former smoker, I know that quitting affects pooping. And that could be an issue for two months while your body adjusts to not having cigarettes as a stimulator.

lizzyclatworthy

If I don't exercise everything stops. I resorted to black coffee and a cigarette one day (always used to work when I was a smoker)
Prunes are good and a bran, walnut and banana muffin recipie I found on google too!
But regular exercise keeps me 'going'

JuliaLee67

i'm in agreement with the 'add more fiber' people. i also suggest a probiotic, like yogurt or kefir.

TX_Rhon

Another vote for upping fiber. I also take pro-biotics and aloe vero juice to keep my tummy in line as I do have some issues. Good luck. Been there, done (well, or couldn't) do that. Good luck :flowerforyou:

lmhbuss

Coffee. Also, oddly, Kiwi fruit. Constipation is a common ailment during pregnancy and kiwi fruit saved me a lot of pain.

QuietBloom

I don't see where you are eating any fruits or vegetables in your diary. That would be the problem. :flowerforyou:

TravelDog14

As a fellow 5' 10" female I noticed that when I started on MFP and was down to around 1500 calories a day the frequency of BMs dropped off.
And why wouldn't it considering I'd been easily consuming double that amount of calories per day for years before.

When I cut my food intake by more than half of course my "output" should also decrease.

Continue drinking lots of water and you'll get into a new rhythm.

nxd10

First off, some people don't poop that often - like every 3-7 days. :blushing:

Second, when you are eating healthier, your body my consolidate and digest food more efficiently and you get fewer, more solid poops. Let's just say I know someone in my family who had this change occur when he lost a lot of weight.

Third, high fiber will cause that change as well. There are lots of natural sources. Because my husband has diverticulitis, we both also use metamucil, which you can just take in a glass of water every day. It's a plant based digestive fiber and keeps all that plumbing working particularly well. Any drug store sells it. It is not a laxative or an anti-diarheal. It's just the kind of fiber you'd get if you ate a lot of apples.

---

You just quit smoking - that changes everything in your body, including how your guts move food. And congratulations! That is AWESOME!

Bluskyleilu

Thank you everyone for all the suggestions! I will definitely do what I can. My weight ticker is inaccurate, I need to update it. I have only lost 8 pounds since the new year. But it seems to be a consensus that I need to be eating more. I will certainly try that. Along with more fruits and veggies. Thank you for your comments. May you all be healthy, safe, happy and at peace!! Have a great rest of your weeknd

evileen99

I'm encountering this, but I think mine is super simple. Less food shoved in my mouth means less coming out the other end. ????

Ditto. Eat less, poop less.

KateK8LoseW8

I poop less often and with less volume now that I don't eat as much, and I think for me that is purely a matter of less in = less out. I eat 50+g fiber most days, have a very well balanced diet full of vegetables, and I still experience this. My old normal was 2-3x a day and my new normal is once every other day. Might be the same for you!

akoorn1982

For some odd reason I read this thread title with 'Everybody hurts...' playing through my head...:bigsmile:

mistyladidah

Some great advice has been said here. Eat more calories, more fermentable fiber, maybe up your water even more. At 5'6" and 167, set to lose .5 a week mfp gives me 1850. When I was pregnant I felt effects of dehydration if I drank less than 12 cups a day... 14 was my rarely achieved goal. My research has found that a good goal is half your weight in oz. And give yourself some time. It's great that you quit smoking! Now your body is learning how to poo without nicotine. I'm having issues too, I suspect it's because of not enough water or fiber. Things have been wonky since I had my baby. Before that I was a 1-2 times a day regular. Now I feel lucky if it's every other day.