Stomach pain.... digestion issues

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Melizabeth84
Melizabeth84 Posts: 128 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I started my high protein/fiber low fat and carb diet lifestyle about a month ago. 2 weeks ago I started having gas/stomach pains and now constipation (sorry for the personalness of this issue but ) I need to know if anyone else has faced these problems and if it subsides? Any advice on what to do. I started taking a probiotic and gas-x today. If this continues idk if I can keep up with this life style. I like the way I eat and the foods now and would like to continue this but the bloating and stomach cramps/constipation are deterring me from this diet.

ANY ADVICE?
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Replies

  • jadams1650
    jadams1650 Posts: 139 Member
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    Psyllium fiber. High protien and low carb diets are often too low in fiber...many people get these issues. Get some metamucil or other psyllium fiber. Take once or twice a day...may want to start slow to avoid gas issues. Should clear up the problem.
  • cleomouri
    cleomouri Posts: 51 Member
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    If it was a pretty major change in your diet maybe it could be your body getting use to the different quantities of foods?

    When in doubt, ask your Doctor.
  • mrydavis
    mrydavis Posts: 32 Member
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    I've always had digestion issues and something that helps with regulation is yogurt and coffee! I try and eat yogurt every day otherwise my digestive track hates me.
  • Melizabeth84
    Melizabeth84 Posts: 128 Member
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    The diet is also high fiber :(
  • Melizabeth84
    Melizabeth84 Posts: 128 Member
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    I eat and cook a lot w greek yogart (should I try a different kind?)
  • SergeiKay
    SergeiKay Posts: 90 Member
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    i've been on a super-high protein diet for a while, and it was what i would imagine childbirth is like on a toilet every time.
    It's a pretty effective approach, but at least for me it was not a sustainable choice. I had to bump up carbs (especially fiber) and healthy fats, and the stomach issues went away (not completely though, every once in a while my stomach bothers me).

    i feel like gas-x and the rest are fixing the symptoms, not the issue.

    And this is only one take on the potential issue here, too little information. You might've added something to your diet that's upsetting your digestive system, it might be a bug, you might not be drinking enough water, etc.
  • jadams1650
    jadams1650 Posts: 139 Member
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    Drinking enough water?
  • SergeiKay
    SergeiKay Posts: 90 Member
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    The diet is also high fiber :(

    oh, i'd lean towards "drink more water" then.
  • wiltl
    wiltl Posts: 188 Member
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    Are you getting enough fiber from food? The gas-x is a short term solution (one I use on occassion), but finding the right amount of fiber will help. Also, if you cut too much fat out, you aren't "greasing the gears" enough plus it doesn't equate to 100% unhealthy. I've added All Bran buds (30g) to my yogurt each morning and that has helped.

    ETA: You said its high fiber, so maybe not add the All Bran! Lots of water and maybe even reduce some of the fiber daily? I had a problem where I was getting too much each day and had horrible gas cramps to the point of getting the shakes so I reduced some and haven't had that type of issue in a couple of weeks.
  • Rado_SVK
    Rado_SVK Posts: 442 Member
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    If you are on high protein diet,I assume you are drinking shakes..now if you mix them with milk plus you drink more than average..you might be sensitive to lactose..when I started working out I drunk lot of milk on the side of mixing my shakes with it..I had horrible bloating and winds on daily basis..since I mix my shakes with water and reduced my milk intake,my digestion and winds problems are negligible.
  • abzzz3
    abzzz3 Posts: 5
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    I know exactly what you are talking about. I've had a bunch of diet problems, even when I'm not necessarily trying to LOSE weight. I remember this year, when I was doing cross country, I was eating mainly the same thing as you. I started eating almost ONLY proteins and then some fruits and it was all natural and you couldn't get any healthier than what I ate. Or so I thought... Turns out I was eating too little and wasn't getting all the nutrients I needed. But that's beside the point. I started getting similar digestion problems to you, and my doctor told me that I was doing multiple things wrong. She said that from only eating protein, my digestions would start to get slower. Protein can make this happen, but you usually cancel it out with the fiber. She then told me that cancelling out carbs (which I didn't intentionally do) was not a wise choice. She said that a lot of the foods that were relatively high in carbs were also a very good source of fiber. She told me that this would not help in cancelling out the protein, and carrying on the system. She said that carbs are the body's preferred source of energy, thus, being vital. This meant that I HAD to eat carbs. I didn't need to load up on them, and I could still have a low amount, but I needed more energy and fiber. My advice to you, from this experience, other experiences and other information is this:
    -Eat more fiber. You can look up all sorts of foods that are high or good sources of fiber, and you can find some that are relatively low in carbs, too. Depending on your level of activeness, BMI, weight, etc., you will need a different amount of fiber, but you can easily figure this out by contacting your doctor or looking it up, however it is usually somewhere around 25g.
    -Don't overdo the protein. Eat a lot of protein, but no more than 10-15g more than you need. You can also find out how much protein you need online.
    -Make sure you have good nutrition and a variety of foods. Don't eat only certain food groups. Make sure to get almost all of them in daily.
    -Don't eat too little. Your waste is the stuff that your body doesn't need, so that means that eating too healthy as I did will make you not poop as often, and especially with the protein mix, will not be that great. Make sure to eat a fair amount, as well so that it all passes through and you can get what you need.
    -As a last resort, and just to get things moving again, take a laxative. This will give you bowel movement and you can start on a more healthier diet because it won't be nice to have it all cooped up inside of you.
    Basically the problem is your diet. I hope this helps, and good luck!
  • peacemongernc
    peacemongernc Posts: 253 Member
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    I have a thought... could it be that you have a food sensitivity that is being made worse because you are eating a whole lot of that food? If your fiber is mostly coming from wheat, it could be a slight sensitivity to gluten that was never an issue when you were eating less of it.

    Also, as some mentioned, the more fiber you eat, the more water you need. If your fiber is coming from unprocessed foods, that won't be as big of an issue because the foods with fiber often have water in them. But if you are eating cereals and things like that, you'll need to drink even more water than you do to quench thirst.

    I have digestive problems when I eat lots of protein AND I take birth control pills. I can do one or the other, but if I do both, I have to take some days off on the protein sometimes, and I don't take the iron pills that come with my BCPs so I have a week off from the pills without any constipating iron.

    Caffeine and simple sugars, preferably after a workout so you are more sensitive to insulin and the sugar gets used more efficiently, can often get things moving.
  • Melizabeth84
    Melizabeth84 Posts: 128 Member
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    The diet is also high fiber :(

    oh, i'd lean towards "drink more water" then.
  • Melizabeth84
    Melizabeth84 Posts: 128 Member
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    I drink about 5 16oz waters a day (80oz)
    The diet is also high fiber :(

    oh, i'd lean towards "drink more water" then.
  • Paul_in_NJ
    Paul_in_NJ Posts: 3
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    Both of the other replies are good, plus this: drink PLENTY of water.
  • cpsoroff
    cpsoroff Posts: 22 Member
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    I have IBS and what works for me is a tablespoon of ground flax seed mixed with warm water. I take this in the evening and my bowels work well in the morning. Hope this helps.
  • servilia
    servilia Posts: 3,452 Member
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    When u increase protein u need to increase water as well.
  • tacticalhippie
    tacticalhippie Posts: 596 Member
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    After eating a high protein diet for a while, I developed some sensitivities to other foods.
    Are you eating a lot of low carb bars?
    Maybe it's the sugar alcohol?

    After I had my daughter, I developed IBS and pretty much the only thing that helps me are probiotics and digestive enzymes... and staying away from foods that hurt my belly.
  • letym
    letym Posts: 3
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    I've been doing a shot of apple cider vinegar w/ warm water first thing in the morning and at night time. I've read that its good to do that 15mins or so before each meal and its worked great for me. Lemon w/warm water also works.
  • Melizabeth84
    Melizabeth84 Posts: 128 Member
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    Here is an example of my daily dairy : According to my fitness pal I eat under 1200 cal (i try to eat that but i can never reach it) fat 22g sat fat 6g fiber 16 g protein 72 carbs 121g
    I know exactly what you are talking about. I've had a bunch of diet problems, even when I'm not necessarily trying to LOSE weight. I remember this year, when I was doing cross country, I was eating mainly the same thing as you. I started eating almost ONLY proteins and then some fruits and it was all natural and you couldn't get any healthier than what I ate. Or so I thought... Turns out I was eating too little and wasn't getting all the nutrients I needed. But that's beside the point. I started getting similar digestion problems to you, and my doctor told me that I was doing multiple things wrong. She said that from only eating protein, my digestions would start to get slower. Protein can make this happen, but you usually cancel it out with the fiber. She then told me that cancelling out carbs (which I didn't intentionally do) was not a wise choice. She said that a lot of the foods that were relatively high in carbs were also a very good source of fiber. She told me that this would not help in cancelling out the protein, and carrying on the system. She said that carbs are the body's preferred source of energy, thus, being vital. This meant that I HAD to eat carbs. I didn't need to load up on them, and I could still have a low amount, but I needed more energy and fiber. My advice to you, from this experience, other experiences and other information is this:
    -Eat more fiber. You can look up all sorts of foods that are high or good sources of fiber, and you can find some that are relatively low in carbs, too. Depending on your level of activeness, BMI, weight, etc., you will need a different amount of fiber, but you can easily figure this out by contacting your doctor or looking it up, however it is usually somewhere around 25g.
    -Don't overdo the protein. Eat a lot of protein, but no more than 10-15g more than you need. You can also find out how much protein you need online.
    -Make sure you have good nutrition and a variety of foods. Don't eat only certain food groups. Make sure to get almost all of them in daily.
    -Don't eat too little. Your waste is the stuff that your body doesn't need, so that means that eating too healthy as I did will make you not poop as often, and especially with the protein mix, will not be that great. Make sure to eat a fair amount, as well so that it all passes through and you can get what you need.
    -As a last resort, and just to get things moving again, take a laxative. This will give you bowel movement and you can start on a more healthier diet because it won't be nice to have it all cooped up inside of you.
    Basically the problem is your diet. I hope this helps, and good luck!

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