Not pooping regularly since diet change? HELP!

FishFishEverywhere

Hello! I've always been a healthy eater but for the past month I've switched to eat a lot healthier: mainly fruits, vegetables, and lean meats, with the occasional rice/rice or corn cereal/corn tortillas/piece of chocolate. So quite low carb and low sugar. I drink lots of water and 1-3 mugs of green tea a day.

Fruits and vegetables are meant to be extremely high in fibre, so why aren't I pooping everyday like I used to? I feel like I need to "go" but nothing happens! And when I do go every three or four days it's not very healthy and very small. Sometimes I need to take a laxative, which doesn't even really work sometimes.

I'm getting a bit worried as this doesn't seem healthy. What's wrong? What can I do?

Thanks!

TeaBea

How's your fat intake? Low fat diets can wreak havoc on your digestive system.

Also, there are soluble & insoluble fibers. "Bulk" comes from insoluble fiber....

Exercise .... moving helps things .... well, keep moving

iquiltoo

Like Teabea said, fats for one, don't cut that down too much. I take a dose of Metamucil Free and Clear (I think that's what it's called) every day too. I don't think I get enough fibre (working on that) and I have not had any problems. There's other ones that are flavoured too but this one is tasteless. Wal-Mart is least expensive. But if it goes on too long, see your doctor.

denezy

You're not eating enough fat.

Driving_Miss_Daisy

Eat more insoluble fiber with a lot of water, that always gets me going. I eat about 40g of fiber a day, mostly soluble, and I don't even go everyday.

healthygreek

Try prune juice in the morning (about 4 oz) and follow 10 minutes later with 2 large glasses of water and 2 cups of coffee or tea.
Eat lots of leafy greens, broccoli, broccoli rabe, escarole, etc.
Plenty of berries (high fiber and super healthful)!
Lentil or bean soup.
Salads
Nuts
Olive oil
I have a tendency towards constipation but I eat like this everyday and never have a problem.
Oh too much meat and poultry can constipate.
Exercise helps too and
Lots of water

Toddahlie

I think that you're not eating enough

AlyssaJoJo

I had that problem until I upped my water. And then it was smooth sailing!

ethompso0105

I noticed that you commented on another person's board with what you typically eat during the day. It looks like there' not nearly enough fat or protein. These are both needed for your body to function correctly. You may actually have too much fiber, too (hard to believe, I know). Try upping your fat/oil intake and see what happens!

♥ChUbByCoyLe♥

A can of sugar free energy juice will move those bowels :explode:

meadow_sage

OH! Been there and it is no fun. Lots of water and fiber of course. I figured out I was eating too much raw spinach.

DaughterOfTheMostHighKing

I drink dieters green tea. tea itself will make you pee, but not poo. if a laxitive isn't helping check with your doctor and make sure you are eating healthy and getting a balanced amount of food and nutrients. doctors don't have all the answers tho. too much fiber and not enough liquids can cause blockage too... a nutritionist might be a good investment for you...

Curleycue0314

Okay so gonna sound gross, but if its like little pebbels sounds like you need more fiber and fat in your diet. If just hard and firm then you still need more fat in your diet. Make it a healthy fat like olive oil or avacodos still get the neutients you need, but tastes great too!

cleback

I noticed that you commented on another person's board with what you typically eat during the day. It looks like there' not nearly enough fat or protein. These are both needed for your body to function correctly. You may actually have too much fiber, too (hard to believe, I know). Try upping your fat/oil intake and see what happens!

This ^^^^ My bet is this since you said you try to eat "lean" (ie no fat). Everyone needs a little fat!

Etienne54

Like many said, it's probably you don't consume enough fat.

Olive oil and Fish oil capsules should balance things out for you.

tomcornhole

Thanks for this post. Having the same issue. Will up my fat and fiber and see what happens. I will not report back with pics.

christied829

I'm glad you asked this question. I'm having the same problem, I go like once a week. I'm going to try to increase my fat and see what happens.

allshebe

Increasing fiber too quickly can cause constipation. Cut back on your fiber for now and increase it by no more than a few grams per day once a week or so (or live with it until your body adjusts)

ldrosophila

did you add a multivitamin sometimes those are notorious for pluggin ya up. I dont have much luck with anything else but over the counter laxatives, sadly.

AZKristi

I am always more frequent when I'm getting plenty of fiber. You might try increasing beans and legumes.

girlfromOklahoma

I eat Activia yogurt almost everyday. Ever since I started doing that my bowl movements are very regular.

Scott_2025

I am going to throw something out here. Not scientific, just based on many years of pooping... So, i guess that makes me somewhat of an expert.... just not a scientist....

I believe the human body is an amazing machine... When you overeat, your body decides not to work very hard at digesting since you seem to be living in a wonderland of nutrition..... So, more of what you eat ends up leaving your body as excrement, rather than being converted to fat or burned as energy.... There have been times in my life where I would eat 5 or 6000 calories a day for a long period of time... Based on BMR TDEE and all those things I should have gained 30 pounds in a month... However your body says I don't need to store more fat... So you only gain 2 - 5 pounds instead of the calculated 30.... I consider this phenomenon the opposite of your body going into starvation mode....

Now that you are in a deficit calorie intake your body is saying, lets not send anything out the other end until we get all the nutrients out... Hence, less poop..... Since I have started eating more healthy, I have found that any time my body tells me to visit the restroom, I go.... It seems if i decide to hold it until a more opportune time... Like at home instead of work, it seems to take more effort....

My father told stories about WW2 prisoners of war on the Bataan death march... He is not a WW2 vet, just a history buff.... Some POWs were so worried that they were not pooping they were going to extremes to try to poop. I won't go into details of the story as it was related to me... It was a bit gross for here.... But the bottom line was, they were getting nearly no nutrition and burning many calories so nothing was down there to come out....

Just my two cents worth...

Scott

FishFishEverywhere

Great comments, thanks guys! I'll look at how I can add fats and fibers into my diet

hottspot

i have the same issue,but it dont bother me,i think being fat and eating unhealthy my whole lfe ive pooed enough.
ive lost 65 lbs in one hundred days. 25 more to reach my goal.
unless someone tells me its unhealthy to only go every 3 days ill keep it.
stay fit all,keep up the good work

mommy22alyns

Thank you for asking this, I have the same problem!