Gut health and constipation! Oh my! 😐

#21

I’ll give this a try! All but the sprints :wink:

(Todd Allen) #22

Sprints are what works best for my dog. If she just lays around the house she can be a bit gassy though not as bad as when we fed her commercial kibble. Take her for a walk on the leash and she often poops but it can take a long time. Take her somewhere I can let her dash off leash and boom, big poop 1 minute later without fail and she’ll be poop and gas free for many hours. I wish I could dash like she does…

(Scott) #23

Early in keto due to the change it kind of feels like constipation. As you settle in you realize that you just aren’t needing to go as much.

(Cindy) #24

I struggled with keto constipation for a whole year too, and had to use “cleansing” supplements to get through it. But now have it totally licked. I still do tons of fiber, dairy, cheese, etc. without a problem. Here’s what worked for me:

Apple Cider Vinegar supps before each meal, larger dose at bedtime
2-4 tablespoons per day of coconut oil
Magnesium citrate supps - 2 per day
Potassium supp 1-2 times per week

I also used:
Turkey rhubarb 1-2 times per day.
It became too much for me, but it works if you need it, plus is really good for the kidneys. I accidentally discovered it when I had a problem with my kidneys and needed a good kidney supp.

(bulkbiker) #25

Are you really constipated or simply going less?
Is it painful to poo with hard stools?

#26

This is very helpful thank you! Yes plus I’m bloated all the time! I have been unable to lose any weight and stuck at 195 despite all the dietary changes I have made, intermittent fasting for 16 hours a day.

I’m really frustrated because no matter what I do the scale isn’t moving.

I just started to exercise this week. Walking 30-1 hour a day. I will add weights 2-3 times a week and see how that goes; hopefully this will increase my water intake.

I don’t know what is going on with my body but I do know that most people would have been down 40 lbs by now. I’ve been on keto since Jan 1. I’ve lost 20 lbs but all of it was in the first 2-3 weeks. Nothing since. I’m always bloated too. I’m not really sure why and what is going on with my body. Maybe your tips are essential to making my body healthier and maybe the problem stems from poor gut health and digestive issues caused over the years. Not sure. Magnesium though has helped me to go the bathroom better but no change on the scale for two months. I would have been happy with a 3 lb weight loss just anything.

#27

Have you tried adding fermented foods to your meals (pickles, kimchi, saurkraut? Not the kind you find on the shelves, but in the refrigerated section of the grocery store? There is good stuff there which I have heard helps grow good gut bacteria.

Also, if you aren’t already taking one, try a probiotic.

I’ve read somewhere that when we change what we eat it can cause a die off of old gut flora and we might need to encourage or even introduce new types that will thrive on what we eat on keto. I don’t know where I read this, so I’m sorry about that.

#28

I drink this fermented pickle juice but inneed yo take my probiotic more regularly!!

(Helen Taylor) #29

All constipation can be helped if you drink plenty of water - try a litre and a half a day, in glasses five or six times. Take your saliva in your mouth, try to blow a bubble on your lips. If it’s easy, you’re constipated. Your saliva should be so soft and loose it’s like water. Not glue. Water can’t make bubbles!

I have a good sized forkful of kimchi with every meal. This has fibre, spice and is just good.

(J) #30

This is not true. Some constipation can be treated with hydration, but certainly not all. Plenty of people with IBS-C, Thyroid dysfunction, or a host of other issues who drink copious amounts of water are still constipated. Just piping in that blanket statements don’t help anyone, and can make a person feel that they are doing something wrong, even if they are not. If constipation is not relieved by traditional measures like increasing hydration, dietary measures, etc, a check-in with your trusted medical provider may be in order.

(Jennifer) #31

True. I have IBS-C, and I drink between 3 - 5 liters a day. I have more fiber. Lots of beans. Vegan. Gluten Free… The only thing that starts to help (not cured, completely, mind you) is low carb with low dairy. I also did okay when I did a Daniel Fast once (NOT keto, but I was basically vegan and grain free during that time… The veggie/legume fiber seemed to be okay whereas the grain fiber is no bueno).

(traci simpson) #32

Are you eating a lot of protein? In my experience, too much protein causes ME to be constipated. Can you add more veggies and more water?

(traci simpson) #33

Make sure you’re at home when you take it!! lol

(traci simpson) #34

This is funny to me at my age! The last time I did short hard sprint, I pulled a hamstring! LOLOLOL.
I totally get what you’re saying though. Just sucks that my sprints are more like a fast jog!

(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #35

Try to get between 10 and 15 grams daily of table salt (sodium chloride), which is the healthy range for sodium intake, according to studies that came out a few years ago (one of them was the PURE study, out of McMaster University, don’t remember the others, but they all came up with similar results). (The 10-15 g includes salt already present in your food, btw.)

I find that constipation and migraine headaches are my signals that I am not getting enough salt. And when I get too much—well, let’s just say I get really not constipated, if you know what I mean.

(Helen Taylor) #36

I’ve had chronic constipation all my life, and can’t have caffeine or dark chocolate because both make it totally worse, but since being on this diet I’m completely the opposite and am loving it to bits! Plus i now get the space for proper 95% dark chocolate, which I love, as the theobromine in it can’t dent my new happy innards!

I’ve always noticed that a high fat meal would make me loose, even when I was a carb head.