Have a problem with beans. . .and not the obvious one

willowma

I make a super healthy chili. ground turkey, chili powder, drained and rinsed black and kidney beans, a whole red pepper, mushrooms, crushed tomatoes and tomato paste. Nothing artificial or processed.
I make a huge pot and pretty much eat it until it's gone.It's healthy and under 200 cal per serving, and every time I eat it I gain weight.
I gained 3 lbs since yesterday. My guess is it's the beans causing me to retain water. But i have no idea for sure. Anyone else have this problem?

auntied

YIKES i was goiing to make chili tonight might rethink it as tomorrow is my weigh in!

KimDoberman

If the weight gain is "temporary" like a water retention, then I would not worry about it. Make sure to drink enough water to flush out your system.

lorihalsted

Quite possibly the sodium. I make a white chicken chili and the sodium count is out of this world but the calories are GREAT! Drink tons of water and it will all even out. Good luck!

gipperakh

if you think it's water retention, how about you drink more water? = )

poustotah

If you're using canned beans, then the problem is most likely the sodium. Canned beans have tons of sodium in them. Busch's makes a low sodium black bean and there are low sodium kidney beans too. Unless you want to make your own and I have no idea how to do that. :-)

MB_Positif

hmmm...maybe try using dried beans to eliminate most of the sodium.

juliapurpletoes

me too - and it drives me insane! for me it is most likely to much at once....beans are great but I tend to overeat them in chili. If I could eat just a normal 1/2 cup serving, it's fine....but a big bowl of chili although low in cals and great for you, has probably too much fiber for one sitting

even the low sodium and dried beans soaked overnight which have no sodium still do that to me!

oh well......

My1985Freckles

If you're using canned beans, then the problem is most likely the sodium. Canned beans have tons of sodium in them. Busch's makes a low sodium black bean and there are low sodium kidney beans too. Unless you want to make your own and I have no idea how to do that. :-)

You soak them in water over night. SUPER easy as long as you know a day in advance that you are going to need them. :-)

shedoos

And depending on the brand, the canned tomatoes can also contain a ton of sodium...

dawn_eichert

Yep sounds like a sodium issue. when I make it, I buy the low sodium ones and then I rinse them really good in a strainer before putting in the pot. Helps get as much excess sodium used in canning off. Drink extra water that day and the next to flush out your system.

GaiaGirl1992

what kind of spices do you use? some of those may have salt, and beans can sometimes have sugar in them too!

Haz89

I think beans have lots of fiber. When you eat fiber you need to drink lots of water with it.

Pangui

I eat meals like you described almost every day and I manage to lose 1-2 pounds a week. I agree with a previous poster that it just may be sodium if the beans are canned. When I am trying to lose weight, I try and keep my bean servings under 1/2 cup per meal. Beans can be a bit high on the calorie-density scale. That's why it's really good to mix them with lots of healthy veggies like you did.

Buddhaboy

That's happened to me too
Sometimes I get a shocking weight gain in just a few days from eating
Chill or bean soups over a couple of days
I'm talking close to 2-4 pounds!
But it goes away in a week or so...I know that sounds weird...but it's true

Grokette

I make a super healthy chili. ground turkey, chili powder, drained and rinsed black and kidney beans, a whole red pepper, mushrooms, crushed tomatoes and tomato paste. Nothing artificial or processed.
I make a huge pot and pretty much eat it until it's gone.It's healthy and under 200 cal per serving, and every time I eat it I gain weight.
I gained 3 lbs since yesterday. My guess is it's the beans causing me to retain water. But i have no idea for sure. Anyone else have this problem?

Those beans were in a can - therefore a processed food. Too much sodium or your body is intolerant to legumes and the water retention is the form of inflammation it is displaying.

poustotah

If you're using canned beans, then the problem is most likely the sodium. Canned beans have tons of sodium in them. Busch's makes a low sodium black bean and there are low sodium kidney beans too. Unless you want to make your own and I have no idea how to do that. :-)

You soak them in water over night. SUPER easy as long as you know a day in advance that you are going to need them. :-)

OMG are you serious!? I'm going to start making them myself. That's crazy simple!

My1985Freckles

If you're using canned beans, then the problem is most likely the sodium. Canned beans have tons of sodium in them. Busch's makes a low sodium black bean and there are low sodium kidney beans too. Unless you want to make your own and I have no idea how to do that. :-)

You soak them in water over night. SUPER easy as long as you know a day in advance that you are going to need them. :-)

OMG are you serious!? I'm going to start making them myself. That's crazy simple!

Yep, just put them in a bowl. You'll want at least 24 hours to soak. I just used black beans for a Sante Fe Chicken Casserole I make. It saves LOADS of sodium. The beans naturally only have like 20mg per serving vs. 460 in the can.

wolfchild59

You said you drained and rinsed your beans. Then you mentioned both crushed tomatoes and tomato paste instead of fresh tomatoes.

Those are three processed foods, that, unless you're buying no salt added versions of them are dropping tons and tons of sodium into that chili. Also, chili powder has salt in it as well, so maybe you can try your own seasoning blend using cayenne, cumin, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, etc. that way you get all the flavor without the salt.

Then, once you've eliminated all of the pre-added salt, use some sea salt to salt the chili to taste, paying attention to how much you add.