[quote]A-rod wrote:
How did I ever overlook this thread.
I feel like I am in the same position. I am willing to bet my gut health is in serious turmoil right now and has been for a while. I am perpetually bloated despite my dairy intake being minimal. I suspect a food allergy I am unaware of. My bms are horrible and far from ideal. I am like a hot air balloon releasing a toxic gas all day long. Its horrible and it really ruins my physique because I am not fat at all but my bloat can sometimes give the illusion of a gut. If I fast for like two days straight there is an obvious improvement. It is literally a shitty problem to have.[/quote]
welcome to the brotherhood of Gut Health (BOGH)!
Are you doing anything to try and remedy your problems? Any supps or anything?
Well asides from cutting out dairy no I have not. I notice when I stop shoveling my face with food there is a relief to my symptoms but it comes with a consequence. Primarily that is weight/strength loss but who wants that. So I endure the pain and continue shoving food down my gullet. I am hoping the doctor can provide some professional insight.
There was a point in time where I did not even want to go out because I knew I would be needing to use the bathroom two to three times.
It has provided the circumstances for some funny stories though. I went to a club right outside the University of Maryland once only to have that foretelling rumbling of the bowels upon entering the club. Needless to say those clubs are not the ideal places to drop your trousers and do your business. So I vacate the premises and run across the street post hate to the pizza joint to relieve myself in the private confines of their single stalled unisex bathroom. I return to the club and quickly try to eye up the sluttiest drunkest college freshman I can find because I am a creep and also have low self esteem. I catch eyes with this pretty little thing and just as I begin to approach her to proposition her for lousy unprotected sex I get the rumbling bowel sensations again. Once again I make way towards the exit post haste but this time I have a dilemma. I cannot return to the same pizza place. That would be awkward after I blew up their bathroom already. Luckily for me there was a chipotle next door that stayed open until after the club closed. To my relief they too had single stalled bathrooms. And to cut the story short I went back to the club to have this happen to me a third time. SO I literally in the span of like 40-50minutes shit in three different restaurants surrounding the club. It was a very shitty night. And that was when I decided I should cut my whey protein consumption in half and perhaps abstain from the whey protein shake prior to a night out on the town. Seriously man you cannot make this shit up. After that third shit my spirit was broken and I just went home.
[quote]A-rod wrote:
And that was when I decided I should cut my whey protein consumption in half and perhaps abstain from the whey protein shake prior to a night out on the town.
[/quote]
You tried using any lactase pills like Lactaid?
I don’t have any problems with dairy normally and could do GOMAD just fine, but a shake I’ve been making that uses powdered milk + whole milk + ice cream was just too much for my stomach. Lactaid made that all better.
[quote]A-rod wrote:
Well asides from cutting out dairy no I have not. I notice when I stop shoveling my face with food there is a relief to my symptoms but it comes with a consequence. Primarily that is weight/strength loss but who wants that. So I endure the pain and continue shoving food down my gullet. I am hoping the doctor can provide some professional insight.
[/quote]
Shitty college club story aside - a doctor is going to tell you to stop force feeding yourself, and unless they are very good will prescribe you an anti-diarrheal like lomotil and send you on your way.
If you want to get resolution to your symptoms and continue eating for strength/size you are going to have to do your own detective work. Do you have any symptoms other than frequent shitting when you eat a lot?
At a start you should look in to upping your fiber consumption and getting on a good probiotic. You should also evaluate the rest of your diet - what do you actually eat? Veggies and brown rice tend to take a lot longer to evacuate the system than simple carbs - for some people, certain protein sources are more easily digested than others, etc.
Well I do no believe I force feed myself anymore. Although it has been my contention recently that my appetite has been permanently altered by my extended period of over eating.
But yeah frequent bms are pretty much the only symptom. Although somewhat less frequently there is discomfort with the bms and stool composition is less then favorable. I sometimes eat 3-4 chobani greek yogurts a day and thought that may be a factor.
I have some of those pro fiber pills that have inulin in them. I was thinking of supplementing with them. But as far as doing my own detective work goes. I just can’t figure out what it could be. I eat clean and I eat with plenty of variety.
I thought about a colon cleanse thinking that perhaps a good cleanse good in a sense bring my guts back to what could be considered a blank slate but perhaps my logic in that is flawed I do not know.
[quote]atg410 wrote:
[quote]A-rod wrote:
Well asides from cutting out dairy no I have not. I notice when I stop shoveling my face with food there is a relief to my symptoms but it comes with a consequence. Primarily that is weight/strength loss but who wants that. So I endure the pain and continue shoving food down my gullet. I am hoping the doctor can provide some professional insight.
[/quote]
Shitty college club story aside - a doctor is going to tell you to stop force feeding yourself, and unless they are very good will prescribe you an anti-diarrheal like lomotil and send you on your way.
If you want to get resolution to your symptoms and continue eating for strength/size you are going to have to do your own detective work. Do you have any symptoms other than frequent shitting when you eat a lot?
At a start you should look in to upping your fiber consumption and getting on a good probiotic. You should also evaluate the rest of your diet - what do you actually eat? Veggies and brown rice tend to take a lot longer to evacuate the system than simple carbs - for some people, certain protein sources are more easily digested than others, etc.[/quote]
I really just don’t like to consume milk all that much. It doesn’t really affect me negatively all that much I just personally prefer to avoid it.
[quote]LoRez wrote:
[quote]A-rod wrote:
And that was when I decided I should cut my whey protein consumption in half and perhaps abstain from the whey protein shake prior to a night out on the town.
[/quote]
You tried using any lactase pills like Lactaid?
I don’t have any problems with dairy normally and could do GOMAD just fine, but a shake I’ve been making that uses powdered milk + whole milk + ice cream was just too much for my stomach. Lactaid made that all better.[/quote]
For over a year I had pain, bloating, diarhrea. The pain was the worst. I tried a lot of things and the only thing that worked for me were pharmaceuticals. I started with dicyclomine and had very limited success with that. Afterwards I tried amitryptaline which is actually a tricyclic antidepressant and it did the trick. It did cause a lot drowsiness and foggy thinking and I had to eat like a bird to not gain excessive amounts of fat. After a while I decided to wean myself off of it over 3-4 months (it’s a really bad idea to stop this one cold turkey) and all my stomach ailments are gone and now without the side effects of my medicine.
Doctors told me this sometimes happens but couldn’t tell me why. If anyone’s curious I was never actually diagnosed with anything, just told I have nervous stomach syndrome.
[quote]A-rod wrote:
BTW where about MD are you from atg? I love this place man. You have everything in this state you could want.[/quote]
Currently living in central VA, but normally live in Baltimore - back there again in July.
So what would a typical day’s eating look like for you? Do you know how many grams of fiber you get? How much sugar/simple carbs? Have you tried cutting out all dairy including the greek yogurt? I have more trouble with casein (protein in cheese and yogurt) than anything else
[quote]Fletch1986 wrote:
For over a year I had pain, bloating, diarhrea. The pain was the worst. I tried a lot of things and the only thing that worked for me were pharmaceuticals. I started with dicyclomine and had very limited success with that. Afterwards I tried amitryptaline which is actually a tricyclic antidepressant and it did the trick. It did cause a lot drowsiness and foggy thinking and I had to eat like a bird to not gain excessive amounts of fat. After a while I decided to wean myself off of it over 3-4 months (it’s a really bad idea to stop this one cold turkey) and all my stomach ailments are gone and now without the side effects of my medicine.
Doctors told me this sometimes happens but couldn’t tell me why. If anyone’s curious I was never actually diagnosed with anything, just told I have nervous stomach syndrome. [/quote]
This is really interesting - and in some ways makes me think of A-rod’s nightclub story: he has low self esteem, he’s in a potentially stressful situation (trying to hit on girls despite low self esteem). I could see how that could lead to digestive stress. I’ve heard people talk about the digestive system as a “second brain”. It’s loaded with nerve endings, it responds to stress, it responds to and plays a role in the creation of hormones etc. If an anti depressant can help with bloating and diarrhea, I wonder how many people with fucked up GI issues are also dealing with unresolved stress/anxiety issues?
[quote]Fletch1986 wrote:
For over a year I had pain, bloating, diarhrea. The pain was the worst. I tried a lot of things and the only thing that worked for me were pharmaceuticals. I started with dicyclomine and had very limited success with that. Afterwards I tried amitryptaline which is actually a tricyclic antidepressant and it did the trick. It did cause a lot drowsiness and foggy thinking and I had to eat like a bird to not gain excessive amounts of fat. After a while I decided to wean myself off of it over 3-4 months (it’s a really bad idea to stop this one cold turkey) and all my stomach ailments are gone and now without the side effects of my medicine.
Doctors told me this sometimes happens but couldn’t tell me why. If anyone’s curious I was never actually diagnosed with anything, just told I have nervous stomach syndrome. [/quote]
This is really interesting - and in some ways makes me think of A-rod’s nightclub story: he has low self esteem, he’s in a potentially stressful situation (trying to hit on girls despite low self esteem). I could see how that could lead to digestive stress. I’ve heard people talk about the digestive system as a “second brain”. It’s loaded with nerve endings, it responds to stress, it responds to and plays a role in the creation of hormones etc. If an anti depressant can help with bloating and diarrhea, I wonder how many people with fucked up GI issues are also dealing with unresolved stress/anxiety issues?[/quote]
I’ve done a little light personal research on the subject and I learned that the GI has more serotonin receptors than the brain!
The tricyclics aren’t usually used for depression much because of the side effects but the side effects are what make them beneficial for things like IBS and Chrohn’s.
Hey guys, I’m in, doing the same thing. Seems like forever I’ve had this little bloated belly, at least since I was 17 and leaned down (28 now), which is shit - not being fat but with a distended lower abdomen is not cool.
I’ve tried all sorts, not sure if anything has really worked. I find going NO CARB for days at a time seems to help, maybe, but then my muscles are flat as a pancake so…
Symptoms are: Bloating (always), often constipation.
I have tried using psyllium husk, in addition to lots of water (I drink 8-9l water daily) and if I’m honest I think this excess fiber makes the bloating WORSE.
I feel like spinach is a semi-miraculous laxative, if eaten in very large amounts.
Currently I’m taking 60g glutamine in 15g doses, trying to eat natural digestive bitters around meals (chewing raw ginger before, chewing fennel after meals). I just got Swedish bitters and Betaine HCL tabs yesterday.
So yesterday, after having bitters as well, for a 35g C, 100g P, 15g F meal I took 8x648mg Betaine HCL tabs…don’t ‘think’ I felt anything. I had a sort of burning in my aesophagus, I guessed due to a tab getting stuck there??
A few questions for you guys:
For those who have definitely felt ‘THE BURN’ from Beatine HCL, could you describe its sensation, and location pls? So I know what to look for.
Has anyone had success (even for a while) eliminating the bloating symptom by following a VLCD? Or by fasting? Or by an elimination diet?
WRT to fasting, that does seem to maybe help. Certainly makes sense that if there’s something you don’t want in your gut, pause shoving stuff in your gut…Blue-sky thinking people
[quote]Fletch1986 wrote:
Try this out. If you want to get amped up for something like a workout you plan on setting a PR place an ice pack on your belly.
If you’re trying to chill out and calm yourself put a heating pad there.
Damn this seems like it is going to be a much more difficult problem to approach and deal with. With any symptom being attributed to a myriad of problems.
Ok so lets say you have someone ignorant in the ways of gut health such as myself but they want to identify and remedy their intestinal dilemma. What would be the first plan of action. I kinda want to make like a flow chart of do this and based on your response do either this or that etc etc.
BTW ATG my reference to being a creep and having low self esteem was my attempt at self deprecating humor. Although I did notice several times when I used to go to parties in college park I would immediately have to take go to the bathroom and this is prior to my weight/diet changes. So it is my suspicion that in that specific case perhaps social anxiety was causing me to have to shit.
psyllium husk?? I just googled that and it sounds great. My discomfort is not soo extreme so perhaps some herbal remedy is just what I need. I am going to buy some today. Thanks ROIDS!
[quote]A-rod wrote:
Damn this seems like it is going to be a much more difficult problem to approach and deal with. With any symptom being attributed to a myriad of problems.
Ok so lets say you have someone ignorant in the ways of gut health such as myself but they want to identify and remedy their intestinal dilemma. What would be the first plan of action. I kinda want to make like a flow chart of do this and based on your response do either this or that etc etc.
BTW ATG my reference to being a creep and having low self esteem was my attempt at self deprecating humor. Although I did notice several times when I used to go to parties in college park I would immediately have to take go to the bathroom and this is prior to my weight/diet changes. So it is my suspicion that in that specific case perhaps social anxiety was causing me to have to shit.
psyllium husk?? I just googled that and it sounds great. My discomfort is not soo extreme so perhaps some herbal remedy is just what I need. I am going to buy some today. Thanks ROIDS![/quote]
So, there are a couple of basics to get started on dealing with these problems
if you’re not already tracking what you eat every meal of every day, do so
start observing patterns about your issues - when do you have the shits? when do you have bloating? are you ever constipated, if so when? etc.
As far as actually remedying the situation, there are also some basic approaches that help a lot of people
cut out foods that are known to be inflammatory to the gut for many - dairy, wheat, oats, sweet potatoes, nuts, eggs, onions, sugar, alcohol (not saying that everyone has problems with all or any of these, but many do). Eliminate things one at a time for at least a few days to a week each, observe your symptoms keeping everything else the same
add more fiber, preferably soluble fiber - this should come first from veggies like lettuce, cooked greens, green beans, cucumbers, celery, and then from fruit like apples, blueberries/raspberries/blackberries, mangoes, pineapple - a fiber supplement, like any other supplement should be in addition to your already covered bases, so if you aren’t going heavy on the fibrous veg, don’t worry about psillium or inulin or whatever
add a high quality probiotic
Until you’ve done the above I wouldn’t recommend worrying about anything else. If those observations and changes don’t bring about results, there are a number of different things to consider - but in most cases I feel like you would see improvement from that stuff.
Wow thanks for that. That is great advice. That is still almost and overwhelming task and those steps right there seem like just the tip of the iceberg.
I literally eat all of those things. Wheat onions eggs sweet potatoes and I eat them all in huge amounts. I mean I eat like 5-6 eggs for breakfast alone. That is going to be tedious.
I seriously have my work cut out for me. I suppose I will start with cutting wheat out for a weak.
[quote]atg410 wrote:
[quote]A-rod wrote:
Damn this seems like it is going to be a much more difficult problem to approach and deal with. With any symptom being attributed to a myriad of problems.
Ok so lets say you have someone ignorant in the ways of gut health such as myself but they want to identify and remedy their intestinal dilemma. What would be the first plan of action. I kinda want to make like a flow chart of do this and based on your response do either this or that etc etc.
BTW ATG my reference to being a creep and having low self esteem was my attempt at self deprecating humor. Although I did notice several times when I used to go to parties in college park I would immediately have to take go to the bathroom and this is prior to my weight/diet changes. So it is my suspicion that in that specific case perhaps social anxiety was causing me to have to shit.
psyllium husk?? I just googled that and it sounds great. My discomfort is not soo extreme so perhaps some herbal remedy is just what I need. I am going to buy some today. Thanks ROIDS![/quote]
So, there are a couple of basics to get started on dealing with these problems
if you’re not already tracking what you eat every meal of every day, do so
start observing patterns about your issues - when do you have the shits? when do you have bloating? are you ever constipated, if so when? etc.
As far as actually remedying the situation, there are also some basic approaches that help a lot of people
cut out foods that are known to be inflammatory to the gut for many - dairy, wheat, oats, sweet potatoes, nuts, eggs, onions, sugar, alcohol (not saying that everyone has problems with all or any of these, but many do). Eliminate things one at a time for at least a few days to a week each, observe your symptoms keeping everything else the same
add more fiber, preferably soluble fiber - this should come first from veggies like lettuce, cooked greens, green beans, cucumbers, celery, and then from fruit like apples, blueberries/raspberries/blackberries, mangoes, pineapple - a fiber supplement, like any other supplement should be in addition to your already covered bases, so if you aren’t going heavy on the fibrous veg, don’t worry about psillium or inulin or whatever
add a high quality probiotic
Until you’ve done the above I wouldn’t recommend worrying about anything else. If those observations and changes don’t bring about results, there are a number of different things to consider - but in most cases I feel like you would see improvement from that stuff.
It seems that psyllium husk fibre at 2 tbsp a day has done more for stool quality than all the digestive enzymes, betaine HCL, FOS, glutamine and probiotics combined.
Little bit annoying tbh. I mean, obviously it’s good that I seem to be improving, but could it really be that simple? That I just needed more insoluble fibre?
I guess it’s possible. I eat a TON of veggies but as I understand it they mostly provide soluble fibre, so I guess it could still be possible that I needed more insoluble fibre…
I dunno. I’m going to continue on with probiotics, glutamine and inulin, as well as the psyllium. Not going to bother with the HCL because frankly it’s a pile of wank.