Fiber! Show me your food diaries!

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2

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  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    edited February 2015
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    Sorry, double post.



  • hilbertraum
    hilbertraum Posts: 4 Member
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    OP, you may be one of the "lucky" few where it would be better to eat a low-fiber diet instead of high-fiber for this issue.

    Personally, I've been miserable over the past 3 months after upping my fiber to 30-35 grams per day, so now I'm going the other direction and trying to keep it between 15-20. Can't say if it is helped tremendously yet as it has only been a day or two, but at least I don't have the horrible cramping and bloating anymore!

    I can't vouch for this website, but this article about the problem made a lightbulb go off in my head:

    http://modernhealthmonk.com/low-fiber-diet/
  • illyich
    illyich Posts: 195 Member
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    My diary is open. 40g fiber yesterday. Gonna be a great day here in a few hours.
  • amyegillespie
    amyegillespie Posts: 18 Member
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    Have you ever tried Quest Bars? They're not exactly the "cleanest" snack, but they do have 20g. of fiber -- or so they say. But hey, even if it's half that, it helps!
  • suntomoon
    suntomoon Posts: 25
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    I grind up the flaxseed (otherwise it just comes out like it went in) so that you get the benefit of the oils. I change up my fibre every 3 days as the body gets used to whatever you are doing. So from the vitamin section: fibre clear, clear fibre, ground flaxmeal or flax seeds, grapefruit pectin, metamucil, etc. Many use psyillium but I recently read that its a clumping action (think kitty litter) so not quite as good as other sorts.

    I follow the PCFF (protein, carb((veg!!)), fat and fibre) for every meal so I am getting everything I need at each eating. The only exception is if I make some veggie smoothie in my blender - I have to add nuts and chia to balance it to PCFF.
  • PeachyCarol
    PeachyCarol Posts: 8,029 Member
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    My diary is open and I track fiber.

    OP, have you tried taking a magnesium complex supplement? I was chronically constipated for years thanks to a sluggish thyroid. My neurologist put me on magnesium for migraines (800 mg daily), and it made a big difference for me.
  • jadumz
    jadumz Posts: 80 Member
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    mamapeach910 wrote: »
    My diary is open and I track fiber.

    OP, have you tried taking a magnesium complex supplement? I was chronically constipated for years thanks to a sluggish thyroid. My neurologist put me on magnesium for migraines (800 mg daily), and it made a big difference for me.

    Oh that makes sense why my calcium tablets make me go! They had magnesium with them to help absorb the calcium!
  • livingleanlivingclean
    livingleanlivingclean Posts: 11,751 Member
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    I get 40-50g of fiber most days, mainly from vegies and fruit, some coconut flour, and nuts/nut butters plus a little grain.

    I used to have issues from too much fiber, so I often have to restrict the amount of vegies I eat to avoid getting too much.

    I find coffee (on its own or blended with coconut oil) works a treat, as does magnesium (taking more than suggested isn't a bad idea..), and getting enough fat as well as fiber. I personally wouldn't use quest bars for fiber (unless you just want to make your numbers look better)
  • gainer39911
    gainer39911 Posts: 125 Member
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    Some suggestions. Have the cereal with raspberries for breakfast, the spinach salad for lunch, and an apple and banana for snacks, and you've got your 30 g of fiber for the day:

    Kellogs Bran Buds: 20 g fiber/half-cup
    Navy/Kidney Beans: 18 g fiber/cup (cooked)
    Apples: 5 g fiber/ 200 g apple
    Green Peas: 7.5 g fiber/cup
    Avocado: 6.7 g fiber/average avocado (140 g)
    Raspberries: 4 g fiber/half cup
    Banana: 3 g fiber/avg banana
    Spinach Salad: 5 g fiber (65g Spinach, 65g Carrot, 25g Mushroom, 50 g Tomato, 35g Radish)
  • sparklyhippos
    sparklyhippos Posts: 38 Member
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    @Adowe, I didn't realize fat was an important part of staying regular. I'm now tracking it, and it seems like my days are very hit and miss so obviously I need to watch that.. So how should I be getting fat? Peanut butter and coconut oil and stuff like that?
    @Hilber, thank you for the article. I'm not having any pain at all from increasing my fiber so I think I'm okay but there is always that part of me that feels I should avoid grain like the plague.. Which to be honest, I think had I a lot to do with my problem in the first place.
    @gainer, thank you for the daily meal suggestion!!

    Since my initial post, I have started on a magnesium citrate capsule once a day, I've always taken fish oils and a multivitamin daily, and if I'm now getting >25g of fiber from my diet (occasionally adding flax seed). A lot of people are mentioning psyillium husk, "fiber clear", "Metamucil", etc.. But my question is, do I need these things now if I stick to these changes?
  • cebreisch
    cebreisch Posts: 1,340 Member
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    Here you go!!! I had a conversation with my dietician once where I told her it wasn't like I wasn't eating reasonably healthy, but was still very hungry. She told me to increase my fiber.

    What I did was - somehow - I found these Chocolite protein bars (www.healthsmartfoods.com) that have about 10g protein, 10g fiber, are about 100 calories, and are sugar free/gluten free.

    I also get the "Chocolate Crispy Caramel": a 2-pack has 60 calories and 12 g fiber.

    Have 1-2 of each a day as a snack, and you'll get there. There are coupons at www.retailmenot.com also.
  • JenD1066
    JenD1066 Posts: 298 Member
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    I don't normally track fiber, but I just added it, and it looks like i get about 40g a day. My diary is open.
  • Hollywood_Porky
    Hollywood_Porky Posts: 491 Member
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    Mine is public - I track it as well. Feel free to browse et al. :)
  • hesn92
    hesn92 Posts: 5,967 Member
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    Ugh... I feel your pain. I recently bought magnesium citrate supplements. I've been taking them for a few days now... Plus I've been taking probiotics for several weeks.Haven't really noticed a difference, still going once every 3 days or so. I'm planning on doing a meal prep this Sunday and making a big batch of something that involves a LOT of beans and eating that for lunch every day. One day I ate ham and beans soup for lunch (with the great northern beans) and I got 40ish g of fiber. And had a huge poop the next day.
  • flailx
    flailx Posts: 14 Member
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    After my Type 2 Diabetes diagnosis I had to make a lifestyle change and I did. I lost 60 lbs, got off the diabetes meds and felt wonderful in many ways - except I developed constipation. I had been extremely regular - 2-3 times a day, no prob but now I found it often difficult to go. I began to pay very close attention to my fiber intake and that has helped.

    With breakfast, I usually use chia seeds. They don't really affect the dish flavor-wise but a tbsp adds about 2g of protein and 6g of fiber. I usually have strawberries and bluberries with my cereal or oatmeal as well. That consistently gets me about 12g of fiber in the morn.

    I often snack on almonds which are high in fiber (and protein)

    It can still be a bit of a struggle to get the 38g of fiber that MFP recommends but I usually come close.

    A completely non-scientific observation: I seldom eat fried foods any more but occasionally I will indulge and I've found that I have a much easier time after eating greasy/fatty foods, for what it's worth.

    My diary is public.
  • coueswhitetail
    coueswhitetail Posts: 309 Member
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    My diary is public. I eat a lot of beans everyday and lots of vegetables. I am generally over 25 gr fiber and often am over 50 grams, sometimes as high as 75 grams. Nuts, seeds, fruits, beans, veggies are all high fiber and provide excellent nutrition.
  • hesn92
    hesn92 Posts: 5,967 Member
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    I bought fiber one cereal, the plain bran one that looks gross. It has 28 g of fiber for a cup, 120 calories. I figure if it's not that good I can sprinkle some sugar on it, maybe slice up a banana...
  • jgnatca
    jgnatca Posts: 14,464 Member
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    WebMD warns that magnesium citrate should not be used habitually, as users can lose the ability to go on their own.

    My diet has been all over the map this past week, but I think I am pretty good at getting my fiber in. Have you discovered the two types of fiber, and are you getting both?

    Flax seed is good. Try cooking it with your oatmeal, another fine mover.

    Walking helps too.

    Fats and oils also have a marvelous lubricating effect, but is rarely talked about. You can get flax oil, too. I use it where I might use EVOO.
  • joneallen
    joneallen Posts: 217 Member
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    I get close to 50g of fiber a day. My diary is open.
  • 20yearsyounger
    20yearsyounger Posts: 1,643 Member
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    Feel free to take a look at my diary. I don't use supplements for my fiber. Mostly apples, raisins, whole wheat bread, nuts, kasha go lean products.

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