T Nation

Fiber Products, Carb Counts, Diet

Supplements and Nutrition
#1 
 I have recently started to get my diet back in order as a prelude to starting to lift/kick box again... first things first & the 80/20 principle at work I guess.  In the past, I had decent results with the Zone diet, but when I was on it I was never concerned about adding a lot of muscle. 

 At any rate, a few years later and a lack of excersise and horrible diet...well, you get the picture 6'3, 295lb when I should be sitting around 200/210lb for no more muscle mass than I have on my frame at this point I know that my main concerns at this point is getting enough protein and I actually have a gym lined up to start weight training again. The place actually has a heavy bag, so I can get my cardio through my muay Thai training. So far so good. The only problem is, my experiments with diets that approach 200g protein...well, I tend to have horrible problems with constipation. Like: "wow, I probably shouldn't have bleeding hemorroids" horrible.

I also drink at least 1.5 gallons of water per day plus several cups of romaine/spinach, and I still dread my daily constitutional.
Since I’m not actively weight training I am trying to keep my carbs in the 30-40g/day range and I’m finding it really hard to get enough fiber. My question is two fold:1. Can adding products like Fibersure powder to recipies that contain fruits and veggies actually ‘reduce’ the impact carbs of a recipe. Aka: I like to make stews using a slow cooker, but will adding inulin products actually negate the impact of the naturally occuring sugars in a couple cans of tomatoes for example? And 2: are their any other foods/tips products that you guys and gals can recommend to alleviate this oh so painful situation?

Once I start lifting in a week or so I plan on following the T-Dawg 2.0 diet and I don’t want to fall off of the diet because I am afraid of a bloody brick coming out of my ass. Sorry about the graphic description, but I’m really tired of being this fat and out of shape and I don’t want to lose the ‘fire in the gut’ because of my guts hating me…
Any advice would be helpful. Thanks in advance.

#2

You should supplement with 6-10 servings of fruits or vegetables per day.

#3

[quote]godshammer wrote:
And 2: are their any other foods/tips products that you guys and gals can recommend to alleviate this oh so painful situation?
[/quote]

Try Flax seeds. If you can, grind them yourself, or add them whole to meals. Or buy them pre-ground.

#4

It’s not going to make the carbs go away, and I doubt it will lower the GI of the meal. But veggies added to a stew isn’t going to raise the GI all that much anyway unless you have crazy amounts in there.

Chug as much fiber powder or tablets as you need, just make sure it’s pure fiber and not “candy with some fiber in it”. Most people don’t count carbs from fiber (in green veggies etc) into their carb allowance.

#5

[quote]SonnabenD wrote:
You should supplement with 6-10 servings of fruits or vegetables per day.[/quote]

I hope that was a joke. 10 servings of fruit would be hundreds of grams of carbs.

#6

[quote]okaz wrote:
I hope that was a joke. 10 servings of fruit would be hundreds of grams of carbs. [/quote]

He obviously just finished reading www.mypyramid.gov! :wink: Don’t forget your 15 servings of pasta, bread, and white rice too…just before bed.

#7

How DARE you mock the nutritional authority that is the USDA!

Not but I was serious. 6-10 servings of fruit or vegetables is not a lot, especially for a bigger dude. One to one and a half servings (approx 3-5 ounces) of veggies per meal with the occasional fruit instead such as times morning or PWO is what is recommended by most of the top sports nutrition experts such as Berardi and the Precision Nutrition team.

Oh and don’t forget your foods from the “Calcium Rich Foods” catergory [/sarcasm]

#8

Fruits are healthy and all that, but did you miss the part where he’s staying under 40g of carbs? Even half a large apple is more than that, and not a lot of it is deductable fiber.

#9

[quote]okaz wrote:
Fruits are healthy and all that, but did you miss the part where he’s staying under 40g of carbs? Even half a large apple is more than that, and not a lot of it is deductable fiber. [/quote]

Although I did miss that part, what I said above still holds true. There are more fibrous and lower carb fruits out there. Papayas, for example, are only 2.7g carbs per ounce, with 20% of those carbs in the form of fiber. Blueberries, raspberries, and other similar fruits are also decently low in carbs with a portion coming from fiber as well.

As far as vegetables go, you can pretty much eat spinach, kale, collard greens, cabbage, and other leafy greans until you can’t stomach anymore, as the majority of the few carbs in these veggies is pure fiber.

Even if you don’t deduct fiber, it’s very easy to eat a ton of veggies with a bit of fruit and still stay below 40g per day. Deducting fiber, you’d probably end up with <15g of real carbs per day.

Why supplement with fiber when there is readily available fiber in the form of vegetables and fruits with added antioxidants and phytonutrients?

#10

I agree about the veggies, I was just pointing out that he shouldn’t be having “a ton” of fruit due to the carbs and low fiber. But if you eat your fibrous veggies and still need a little help with the you-know-what then go ahead and take a pure fiber supplement.