I have been having 2x Huel a day (with forzen fruit) and a normal healthy meal. I try to stay within 1500 calories. However when on the huel I find I can go 4-5 days without going to the bathroom and start to feel very full and uncomfortable. Ive experimented by doing 1500 calories switching off huel and I don’t have the issue. I want to stick with the huel as I always feel better and its easy to measure, quick to make etc. Any suggestions on what to add or change to make things more urrm regular?
If it matters I normally exercise 6 times a week also, aiming to burn atleast 500 calories a day (tracked using a garmin smart watch with a heart rate monitor).
I’ve lost about 40KG using this, have about 12KG to go then will hit a “healthy BMI” with the aim to increase the huel in the other meals to put me at BMR.
We are all different and some people do excrete only once or twice a week, there is no norm. If it is getting uncomfortable then we should try and sort it out though.
I think that constipation can be caused by either too little fibre or too much fibre. Fibre is like a sponge so can take all the water out of your stools and make them difficult to pass. So experiment with more or less fibre.
Drink some more water too. There are lots of other tips on NHS - http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Constipation/Pages/Treatment.aspx - Resting feet on a stool whilst sitting on the toiler may help too. I actually find that coffee helps a lot, but don’t really know why.
Congratulations on all your weight loss, that is incredible. How long did this take?
Thanks I think your right re water, Im always slightly yellow, foot on a stool while delivery a stool is a new one but willing to try it. Hadn’t considered to much fibre might be having the effect. Its just interesting without huel I’m once a day, with every 4-5.
Weight loss wise I started just under 12 months ago, majority was lost in the first 9 months. Xmas I gave training and huel a break, added 7KG back on in 4 weeks, decided now no breaks its a lifestyle not a fad.
Coffee stimulates peristalsis; I assume it’s the caffeine content that does this. If constipation isn’t too severe it will help shift it & some laxatives act using this principle, however it can also result in pain if there’s a significant blockage which is why most laxatives take a more gentle approach.
Drink a sufficient amount of water. If you choose to add fiber, I recommend inulin as soluble fiber and psyllium husk as insoluble fiber. Might want to get some probiotics as well.
It sounds like in this case it’s probably too much. Isn’t Huel already pretty high in fibre? With the addition of fruit, which could itself contain even more sounds like a case of too much already.
There are many inexpensive, readily-available, convenient, portable and tasty sources of fibre that you can add to your diet without adding significant calories. Apples. Celery. Carrots. Pickles, sweet or dill. Turnips! A nice turnip in one hand, shaker of salt in the other, is a cheap snack you could carry in a backpack. Dried prunes, dried apricots, available in bags at the grocers’ you pass on the way to work. A couple of these items each day, maybe while watching TV should make a difference.
If you are looking for a cheap source for soluble fiber I would recommend Potato Starch (not flour), combined with the psyllium husk. Just don’t heat the Potato starch up as it will make the insoluble fiber break apart into sugar.
I see that Inulin & Psyllium are both recommended above. I think both of those are soluble fibre that can be added easily in powder form, so wondered if someone had a similar recommendation for an insoluble powder source?