How much fiber do you consume? How can I add fiber, without the calories??

Hi,

I've been working hard at eating better so I can drop a few unwanted pounds, build some muscle (through body toning classes) and just being healthier.

I am 5'1" and currently weigh 110 (my goal is 106). My average daily calorie consumption is about 1475.

I have been doing some research on recommended daily values (DRV) and I seem to be staying below the daily requirements:

• >65 g fat
• >20 g sat. fat
• >300 mg cholesterol
• >300 g carbs
• 25 g fiber
• >2300-2400 mg sodium
• 3500 mg potassium
• 50 g protein

One thing that I was surprised to discover, was that women need to consume 25+ grams of fiber per day. Wow! That seems like a lot. I have been tracking my food intake for a few weeks and I seem to average about 14 grams. I have made changes - like switching to whole grain bread (with 4 grams of fiber per slice) and using whole grain pasta, but the change is apparently not significant enough).

I am very "regular" so I don't need to take Metamucil (or some other supplement). I guess if I chose to take a supplement, just to be calorie-conscious, the supplements still only add 3-4 grams of fiber. I wonder if that is worth drinking for so few grams of fiber...since I need to make up a difference of 11 grams every day.

I understand the benefits of adding more fiber and have found lists of foods that are classified as "high fiber", but I have also found that many of those "high fiber" foods (like fruits and veggies) only provide on average 3-6 grams of fiber per serving (with all the extra calories to go with it). There are some very high fiber foods, like beans and Fiber One cereal, but I don't want to eat beans everyday.

I also understand that I could add more exercise to compensate for the extra calories, but I am already maxed out on the time I can spend working out.

O.K, sorry to be so long-winded, but here are my questions.

1. Do I really need to increase my fiber (from 14 grams to the recommended 25 grams)?
2. Will increasing my fiber help with weight loss?
3. How can I increase my fiber intake without adding a bunch of calories?
4. What is your daily fiber intake? If it is high, how many calories are you consuming to get there?

I appreciate any and all input and commentary. Thanks!

 

I try to choose items with added fiber, there are lots out there. Let's see... I eat rye crackers that have added fiber... and I put some Fiber 1 cereal in with my Kashi Go Lean. Or sometimes I make a parfait with Fiber 1, berries, and yogurt.

I don't know the answer to whether or not eating more fiber will help you with weight loss. It's definitely been shown to have many health benefits though.

There are also fiber pills that I've heard about, but if you take those, make sure you get enough water with them, or they can really gum up the works!

I get my 25 grams and then some. My high fiber foods include; Grape Nuts, whole grain bread, nuts, beans.

I recently started Metamucil (pysillium husk) as a supplement. I have seemingly hyperactive bowels and one of my weight loss buddies here suggested it for regularity. It's working! But it's also just fiber for 20-25 calories. I get store-brand for cheap. All of the other fiber supplements are really expensive and don't have a lot of fiber for the dosage amount.

 

PS One reason fiber helps with weight loss is that it helps you feel fuller.  You do need fiber to help with keeping you regular (keep your bowels healthy). 

1. The reason you need fiber is because it effects the way your digestive system works.

2. I don't know why it helps with weight loss, but it does. Weight watchers works well and all the "points" are figured based off of fat, calories and fiber. Maybe it helps keep you from getting backed up, you can carry a few pounds of waste around.

3. I eat about 20 g fiber per day on average and that is consuming 1100-1200 cal a day. I eat mostly fuits and veggies, typical servings are not as much as you think. If you actually measure out a serving of say green beans, there will be less there than if you eyeball it. I weight or measure everything and when I log the veggies and fruit I consumed I usually have to add 2 servings. I also like the fiber 1 granola bars. Oh and peanut butter, I usually have that with carrots or apples or celarey. It is possible to eat way more than 25 g per day if you are eating properly from the food guid pyramid. If you consume all the recomended servings per day you will achieve this. Eating more than 1 veggie at a meal is ok, weird at first, growing up we only had corn or green beans, who knew that it was ok to have asparugus and carrots.

4. I have read that increasing your fiber intake will decrease your likely hood for colon cancer.

I try to get everything with higher fiber content. I eat fiber one cereal (it really does taste good) and fiber one bars, flax seed whole or ground, high fiber oatmeal, double fiber bread or english muffins. Not all in one day and some things affect me in different ways (curse you fiber one bars!). I do like flax seed for all it's health benefits, but I find that I can't handle more than a tablespoon a day and I usually have to grind it up or I get stomach aches. But I'm just weird like that!

I get 40ish, somtimes as low 30's, sometimes as high as 50.   i'm a vegetarian.

 

high fiber, low cal = fruits/veggies.  & kashi bars and cereal, which i use for protein.

also, added fiber items aren't what we need 25g of!!!!!!!  the point of fiber in this context is:

 

fill you up.  this is done through volume, low dens cal.  it doesn't matter how much "fiber" is in that cracker.  it's still a 5g cracker that tastes and weighs like any other cracker.  what you need is an apple.

cleanse your system.  additives aren't going to do this, only the real, natural, whole (word chosen to describe natural food for a reason) foods... apples, lettuce, beans, nuts, ezekiel bread, whole grains, tomatoes, apricots... don't run away from them!  they're what it all comes down to, no matter how hard we look.

fiberone chewy bars have 9g of fiber in one little bar. 140 cals. for super low, high fiber snacks, broccoli and raspberries. surprisingly raspberries have about a billion g of fiber (ok not that much, but lots of fiber packed into those tiny things)

Hi there! :] I have to eat a lot of fibre as I have stomach trouble (see: chronic constipation and pains if I don't keep my intake high :[) - I'm talking about 60-70g daily! Obviously, you don't need quite that much especially if you're regular, but I can still help you with a list of high fibre foods~

The important thing is to get a balance of soluble and insoluble fibre. Insoluble fibre creates bulk and regulates our gut PH levels, while soluble fibre binds the fatty acids, helping to lower things like cholesterol, and regulates blood sugar levels. Fibre also generally helps keep you fuller and satisfied for longer. :]

Insoluble fibre foods include:
 -- Whole-wheat pastas, breads, etc
 -- Quinoa
 -- Brown rice
 -- Bran products
 -- Fruit and vegetable skins, such as potato skins, tomato skins, plum/prune skins, apple skins, pear skins
 -- Nuts and seeds, particularly flax, almonds, brazil nuts and walnuts

Soluble fibre foods include:
 -- Oats
 -- Rye
 -- Barley
 -- Potatoes of all varieties
 -- Psyillium husks
 -- Legumes and pulses, especially lentils, garbanzo beans (chickpeas), kidney beans, pinto beans and soybeans

Fruit and vegetables are varying sources of both of these, good sources being plums, prunes, bananas, apples, pears, raspberries, blackberries, dried fruits - dates, apricots, raisins, figs (and prunes again) - broccoli, cauliflower, artichokes, asparagus, green beans and peas, dark leafy greens like spinach and kale - even the Christmas staple of brussels sprouts. Yum. x3 A lot of these can be double-whammies, too: fruits with a skin often contain both kinds of fibres as you get one kind in their skins and the other in their pulp.

All in all, it's very easy to vary up your diet to have more fibre content while still keeping to your calorie count - and not just eating beans every day P: Try making ratitouille to go with your dinner, or having a warm bowl of oatmeal with some dried fruits and seeds, or whatever your heart desires!~ :] I personally swear by oats, prunes/plums, and chickpeas as my favourites out of all those. All to a person's tastes, though!

Here > http://www.chpnyc.org/healthinfo/dietaryfiber /fibercontentchart.html < is a very good list if you want even more ideas. I hope this is handy :D

OH! And, importantly: if you're upping your fibre, even a little, drink more fluids to compensate! Fibre introduced suddenly can cause (or worsen) constipation, and you don't want that. ;<

Here is my breakdown for today thru lunch.  I pack my breakfast, snacks and lunch and eat every 2-3 hours.   As you will see I already have 32 gr of fiber and that is only thru lunch.  I will eat steamed green vegetables and some protien when I get home and then have a 500 calorie dinner.  I average 1600 calories a day and usually consume 60-80gr of fiber.  The only breads I eat are Thomas' multigrain light english muffins (8gr fiber) and Village Hearth buns (8gr fiber).   Hope this helps.

  KELLOGG'S Complete Wheat Bran Flakes A- 29 92 Fiber One A 15 30 Strawberries A 152 49 Blueberries A 50 29 Milk, Lowfat, Fluid, 1% Milkfat - With Added Vitamin A A- 122 51 Cottage Cheese, Lowfat, 1% Milkfat B 113 81 Peaches A 157 61   Lunch village hearth buns 46 80 Special Select - Honey Ham - Lunch Meat 62 70   Snacks weight watchers black cherry yogurt A 170 100

Fiber One

Total Calories Consumed 673

A 15 30

Fat - 9.3% (8 grams)
Protein - 24.1% (47 grams)
Carbohydrates - 66.6% (129 grams)
Alcohol - 0.0%
Other - 0.0%

Daily Sodium Intake - 1,927 mg
Daily Sugar Intake - 59 grams
Daily Cholesterol Intake - 46 mg
Daily Saturated Fat Intake - 3 grams
Daily Fiber Intake - 32 gram

Fiber One is wonderful stuff... both the bars and the cereal have tons of fiber and taste good.

hmmmm, I get on average 80 grams a day!  Dang....maybe I'm over doing it!  I love to munch on fiber one as 60 calorie snacks, and Kellogg's Special K protien plus as 100 calorie snacks.  Lots of fiber in those!  I also eat tons of beans and veggies and fruit.  All my breads are 100%WW with high fiber too.  I'm never really hungry I just love to eat.  recently I had to up my calorie intake, so now I'm eating around 2,000 calories a day as it averages out to, but I zig zag my daily intakes.

Actually the guideline is 14 grams of fiber a day per 1000 calories consumed, the 25+ for women is based on the average number of calories most women need, if your eating about 1500 calories a day then 20 grams of fiber should be your minimum.

lalabanana, don't diss on my daily beans!   They're good for your heart!

just two small tips from me: i sometimes add bran to yogurt and such. also i eat grapefruits - they have a lot of fiber and are delicious and low cal:)

Hi Smassucci:

I have been tracking my calories/nutrition since June 15th. (I am 5' 159; started at 170).

I was very surprised to learn that I was only consuming 13-14 grams of fiber on average. I have gotten that number up to 45 grams on average.

I usually start my day with a bowl of GoLean (love that stuff) and All Bran (about 40 grams GoLean and 12 grams All Bran); the bowl is about 160 cals and 13 grams fiber. At least I start my day off with what I used to average :)

Other high fiber items that I try to eat daily include red kidney beans mixed with garbanzo beans and a dash of low-sodium tamari (soy) sauce. I go heavier on the red kidney beans as they are higher in fiber than the garbanzos (you can get organic/no salt in a can if you don't want to deal with the soaking/preparation).

I also try to have a good serving of strawberries (surprisingly high in fiber), as well as an apple - berries are low in sugar but apples are high; if you have a restriction on sugar that might be a concern.

I've become a teensy bit obsessed with CC and, in particular, my fiber count. It really is challenging to keep the fiber intake high, but I think that it is worth the effort as fiber rich foods tend to be all around "rich" foods in terms of nutrition.

Good luck with your program!

onmywayto120

 

mrsdagle: I'm not dissing! The OP just mentioned she didn't want to eat beans every day~ P: I eat beans very regularly in my diet, but then I lovelovelovelovelove beans. Hahaha.

Lalabana - Although I am not a poster on this subject I wanted to say thank you for your post.  It was very informative and I really appreciate the time you took to really go into detail.  I am a new member to this site and I am just getting started. 

Unfortunately, I have not been very knowledgeable in the dietary department, and so now that I am in my 30's I am beginning to learn.  Your break down of soluble fiber and insoluble fiber was great! 

I hope to read more of your posts, and look forward to getting into a healthier lifestyle. 

Thank you,

Faith8412

 

Original Post by lalabanana:

Hi there! :] I have to eat a lot of fibre as I have stomach trouble (see: chronic constipation and pains if I don't keep my intake high :[) - I'm talking about 60-70g daily! Obviously, you don't need quite that much especially if you're regular, but I can still help you with a list of high fibre foods~

The important thing is to get a balance of soluble and insoluble fibre. Insoluble fibre creates bulk and regulates our gut PH levels, while soluble fibre binds the fatty acids, helping to lower things like cholesterol, and regulates blood sugar levels. Fibre also generally helps keep you fuller and satisfied for longer. :]

Insoluble fibre foods include:
 -- Whole-wheat pastas, breads, etc
 -- Quinoa
 -- Brown rice
 -- Bran products
 -- Fruit and vegetable skins, such as potato skins, tomato skins, plum/prune skins, apple skins, pear skins
 -- Nuts and seeds, particularly flax, almonds, brazil nuts and walnuts

Soluble fibre foods include:
 -- Oats
 -- Rye
 -- Barley
 -- Potatoes of all varieties
 -- Psyillium husks
 -- Legumes and pulses, especially lentils, garbanzo beans (chickpeas), kidney beans, pinto beans and soybeans

Fruit and vegetables are varying sources of both of these, good sources being plums, prunes, bananas, apples, pears, raspberries, blackberries, dried fruits - dates, apricots, raisins, figs (and prunes again) - broccoli, cauliflower, artichokes, asparagus, green beans and peas, dark leafy greens like spinach and kale - even the Christmas staple of brussels sprouts. Yum. x3 A lot of these can be double-whammies, too: fruits with a skin often contain both kinds of fibres as you get one kind in their skins and the other in their pulp.

All in all, it's very easy to vary up your diet to have more fibre content while still keeping to your calorie count - and not just eating beans every day P: Try making ratitouille to go with your dinner, or having a warm bowl of oatmeal with some dried fruits and seeds, or whatever your heart desires!~ :] I personally swear by oats, prunes/plums, and chickpeas as my favourites out of all those. All to a person's tastes, though!

Here > http://www.chpnyc.org/healthinfo/dietaryfiber /fibercontentchart.html < is a very good list if you want even more ideas. I hope this is handy :D

OH! And, importantly: if you're upping your fibre, even a little, drink more fluids to compensate! Fibre introduced suddenly can cause (or worsen) constipation, and you don't want that. ;<

 

I love the new fiber one cereal -- the carmel delight one.  It tastes a lot like cinnamon toast crunch cereal and has lots of fiber.  I also eat fiber one bars to help get my fiber up.  I also take metamucil to help me get there.  The sugar free is only 20 calories and gets me another 3 grams of fiber.

I am trying to get my fiber to help with regularity but it is also helpful to get more fiber if you have high cholesterol.  High fiber items also tend to help you to feel full longer.

I try to consume 35 to 40 grams of fiber a day and I Zig zag my calories but I average 1800 or so Calories for the most part.  You specifically said that you do not want to eat beans every day but I try and eat at least a cup of Black beans a day.  I also only eat whole grain bread and consume plenty of apples, bananas and Green beans. 

I just noticed this weekend that the 8" mission carb conscious tortillas (130 calories each) have 11 grams of Fiber in each one.  I was shocked to find that one out.  So a quarter cup of no salt black beans (57 calories, 4.5 grams of fiber) and two tablespoons of Safeway three bean medium salsa ( 15 calories, 2 grams of Fiber) make an excellent burrito and has 17.4 grams of fiber, has a reasonable amount of fat, and has only 202 calories.  For that amount of calories in that thing you have a filling and fiber rich snack or soild part of a meal. Throw in a half cup of 1% cottage cheese and a half cup of Green beans with no salt and you have an excellent high fiber, high protein dinner for right around 350 calories.

lalabanana - thank you so much for your informative response!

Thanks to everyone else too, it is all very insightful. I had Fiber One cereal yesterday morning and was able to increase my fiber to 30 grams. Last night I felt the aftermath and it is, um..."dissipating" today (lol).

I felt so full all day today and I am just now (36 hours later) starting to feel normal. But I gained weight from yesterday, even though my calories were on target.  I'm not sure if I can do this everyday, but I will work more fiber into my meals to gradually increase it over time. Maybe 1/2 a bowl of cereal or fiber cereal sprinkled onto yogurt might help.

Thanks again everyone!