[quote]atg410 wrote:
I don’t have any experience with … Beta Alanine to comment on those[/quote]
Beta Alanine has been shown to have a 2.5% increase in muscular endurance. Well worth the money!
as for the colon cleanse, I can’t really see any benefit that you couldn’t get from a 24 hour fast. At least with the fast you won’t be pissing out your arse for two days…
While I understand wanting to do a colon cleanse for the blank slate, it’s not like you are really resetting yourself. Your colon is only the last little bit of the GI tract, just the large intestine. You’d have to look into liver cleanses as well to help dump stuff out of there and work on improving the small intestine. I wish it was that easy of a fix…
C1. Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Diagnostic criterion*
Recurrent abdominal pain or discomfort** at least days/month in the last
months associated with two or more of the following:
. Improvement with defecation
. Onset associated with a change in frequency of stool
. Onset associated with a change in form (appearance) of stool
- Criterion fulfilled for the last months with symptom onset
at least months prior to diagnosis
** ?Discomfort? means an uncomfortable sensation not described as pain.
In pathophysiology research and clinical trials, a pain/discomfort frequency of at least
days a week during screening evaluation is recommended for subject eligibility.
[quote]rds63799 wrote:
well, I’ve had a bit of a breakthrough.
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.
How’s everyone else getting on?[/quote]
Hold up for sec, rds.
While psyllium can be a godsend (and for those psyllium non-responders, methylcellulose products like Citrucel work well) as far as convenience goes, they don’t indicate better/adequate digestion.
Basically, they’re the ‘hammer approach’ to clearing everything out of the tract. Not a bad thing, but certainly NOT indicative of optimal digestion/absorption of nutrients neither.
In general - this seems to be a highly individualized, trial-and-error thing.
For me personally, I’ve had MUCH better success with probiotics from whole foods (greek yogurt/kraut/kimchi/kefir prior to 1st feeding) as opposed to any capsule-formulated blend and while I still use psyllium 2-3x/wk, I consider that for convenience more than anything.
And don’t get me wrong, I was hooked on nightly/post-protein-shake psyllium for years, but the “sweet spot” with probiotics is a different experience altogether.
(and again, one’s mileage may vary, no substitute for trial-and-error etc)
I thought this would be relevant to the discussion. I am considering trying this nutraceutix brand with their new BIO-TRACT technology which is suppose to protect probiotics from stomach acid to ensure it reaches the small intestine. Anyone have any experience with this? Is there legit science behind this or just a marketing ploy?
[quote]chillain wrote:
For me personally, I’ve had MUCH better success with probiotics from whole foods (greek yogurt/kraut/kimchi/kefir prior to 1st feeding) as opposed to any capsule-formulated blend and while I still use psyllium 2-3x/wk, I consider that for convenience more than anything.
[/quote]
I have been eating some greek yogurt as the last thing before bed and taking my probiotic with it for the most part. So far no real improvement. Did you find doing it at the start of the day was better than at the tail end?
[quote]schanz_05 wrote:
I thought this would be relevant to the discussion. I am considering trying this nutraceutix brand with their new BIO-TRACT technology which is suppose to protect probiotics from stomach acid to ensure it reaches the small intestine. Anyone have any experience with this? Is there legit science behind this or just a marketing ploy?[/quote]
I checked it out right before the link was removed. It sounds interesting but I find it odd they say no special handling is required- refrigeration should be critical.
I’m surprised no one has invented like a suppository style probiotic at this point. What better way to avoid the harsh stomach environment, right? The issue is then how do the little monsters make it to the small intestine and specifically the illeum where I believe most of the problem lies…
[quote]chillain wrote:
[quote]rds63799 wrote:
well, I’ve had a bit of a breakthrough.
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.
How’s everyone else getting on?[/quote]
Hold up for sec, rds.
While psyllium can be a godsend (and for those psyllium non-responders, methylcellulose products like Citrucel work well) as far as convenience goes, they don’t indicate better/adequate digestion.
Basically, they’re the ‘hammer approach’ to clearing everything out of the tract. Not a bad thing, but certainly NOT indicative of optimal digestion/absorption of nutrients neither.
In general - this seems to be a highly individualized, trial-and-error thing.
For me personally, I’ve had MUCH better success with probiotics from whole foods (greek yogurt/kraut/kimchi/kefir prior to 1st feeding) as opposed to any capsule-formulated blend and while I still use psyllium 2-3x/wk, I consider that for convenience more than anything.
And don’t get me wrong, I was hooked on nightly/post-protein-shake psyllium for years, but the “sweet spot” with probiotics is a different experience altogether.
(and again, one’s mileage may vary, no substitute for trial-and-error etc)
[/quote]
hey Chillain, that’s a good post, and I totally get what you are saying.
I still think that the psyllium is worth doing, as it has alleviated my only symptom. I never have any real bloating or pain or anything, it’s just stool quality, so I think that it’s probably ok.
I do agree that just pounding down loads of fibre could mask the problem, and were my symptoms as serious as some of the other dudes in the thread then I would be a bit more methodical.
As it stands, I am going to continue to supplement with the probiotics, inulin, glutamine and psyllium. Whether or not the psyllium really benefits me all that much, maybe, maybe not, but it definitely improves my quality of life so I will keep using it.
Thanks for the advice though, much appreciated.
[quote]coolnatedawg wrote:
I have been eating some greek yogurt as the last thing before bed and taking my probiotic with it for the most part. So far no real improvement. Did you find doing it at the start of the day was better than at the tail end?[/quote]
Absolutely. I rarely eat more than 2-3x daily and I’ve found that greek yogurt at the front end of the feeding window seems to make a noticeable difference. Anywhere from 2-3 tbsp to a cup, and then I’ll fit in the kraut/kimchi whenever.
[quote]rds63799 wrote:
As it stands, I am going to continue to supplement with the probiotics, inulin, glutamine and psyllium. Whether or not the psyllium really benefits me all that much, maybe, maybe not, but it definitely improves my quality of life so I will keep using it.[/quote]
Exactly, I think of it as convenience/quality-of-life type supp that I’ll happily continue using.
But it’s basically everything else (great thread btw) if we’re talking optimal digestion, absorption of nutrients etc.
[quote]chillain wrote:
[quote]coolnatedawg wrote:
I have been eating some greek yogurt as the last thing before bed and taking my probiotic with it for the most part. So far no real improvement. Did you find doing it at the start of the day was better than at the tail end?[/quote]
Absolutely. I rarely eat more than 2-3x daily and I’ve found that greek yogurt at the front end of the feeding window seems to make a noticeable difference. Anywhere from 2-3 tbsp to a cup, and then I’ll fit in the kraut/kimchi whenever.[/quote]
ah… are you doing that 16/8 intermittent fasting stuff? I eat within 30 min of waking so I can’t imagine I’d have that much benefit. I don’t really think I can switch things around to make it work out any better so I’ll have to stick to the evening.
I am using a gluten free protein shake but I think I’m gonna have to cut it out as I noticed my stool have been poor. What I thought was just too much Vit C seems to be related to the protein powder. Been a little bit gassy too. It’s really the only thing I’ve changed at around the same time I started to have problems.
[quote]coolnatedawg wrote:
I am using a gluten free protein shake but I think I’m gonna have to cut it out as I noticed my stool have been poor. What I thought was just too much Vit C seems to be related to the protein powder. Been a little bit gassy too. It’s really the only thing I’ve changed at around the same time I started to have problems.
[/quote]
Protein powder is something I’ve always had a love/hate relationship with. A lot of them have caused me major GI distress, a few haven’t. Probably my all time favorite, in that it has caused me literally zero GI issues has been Grow! from this site.
I’m currently trying to avoid dairy entirely at the moment, so I’m using a vegan blend from another site, and that is good to a point - but more than a couple servings a day is making me noticeably gassy and bloated. If I can eventually rule out dairy as a problem in other regards I will go back to Grow!.
Casein blends are hands down the worst for me, I might as well cancel my plans and make sure I have some good reading for my frequent trips to the can if I mess with them. Never tried egg, but I figure I eat enough whole eggs as is that I shouldn’t push it with a powder.
I also tend to go for pure protein powders and not mess with stuff with added fats/carbs/fiber for the same reasons - I’ll add in oat flour or whatever if I need to ‘bulk’ a powder up in terms of calories/macros.
[quote]chillain wrote:
[quote]rds63799 wrote:
As it stands, I am going to continue to supplement with the probiotics, inulin, glutamine and psyllium. Whether or not the psyllium really benefits me all that much, maybe, maybe not, but it definitely improves my quality of life so I will keep using it.[/quote]
Exactly, I think of it as convenience/quality-of-life type supp that I’ll happily continue using.
But it’s basically everything else (great thread btw) if we’re talking optimal digestion, absorption of nutrients etc.
[/quote]
Chillain have you had to overcome gut health problems in the past? If so, what were they and how did you do it?
[quote]atg410 wrote:
Protein powder is something I’ve always had a love/hate relationship with.[/quote]
protein powder is mashed up Satan in a tub. I hate to think of all the money I literally crapped away on that stuff.
If I could think of other things to use periworkout and throughout the day to get high protein snacks in that don’t break the bank I wouldn’t use protein powders. This is a new to me powder so it may just be an issue on this specific one. I can’t remember if I had run out of the previous kind before I started to really dive into all this so I don’t know how that affected me.
[quote]coolnatedawg wrote:
ah… are you doing that 16/8 intermittent fasting stuff? I eat within 30 min of waking so I can’t imagine I’d have that much benefit. I don’t really think I can switch things around to make it work out any better so I’ll have to stick to the evening.[/quote]
More or less. Some days I eat right away (ie. leg days) and on others I extend the fast.
I still say, go for it on the front-end and observe. I don’t know if the whole “adding fertilizer to the lawn beforehand” analogy is a good one, but it does seem that way in my experience.
[quote]rds63799 wrote:
Chillain have you had to overcome gut health problems in the past? If so, what were they and how did you do it?[/quote]
Nah I’ve been lucky in that respect.
During my 165-215lb journey, I learned that my daily meal(s)-from-the-blender & most cheeses would basically require a psyllium-serving chaser (again, for convenience) and got used to that.
Eventually, I tried capsulated probiotic formula but found it was hit/miss (and later learned from one of these threads that I may have been taking it “wrong”) and that whole-food sources were consistently effective.
Eventually, I experimented with dropping the daily psyllium and when I still had no issues, I decided that probiotics > supplemental fiber
[quote]coolnatedawg wrote:
If I could think of other things to use periworkout and throughout the day to get high protein snacks in that don’t break the bank I wouldn’t use protein powders. This is a new to me powder so it may just be an issue on this specific one. I can’t remember if I had run out of the previous kind before I started to really dive into all this so I don’t know how that affected me.[/quote]
BCAAs dawg
[quote]chillain wrote:
[quote]rds63799 wrote:
Chillain have you had to overcome gut health problems in the past? If so, what were they and how did you do it?[/quote]
Nah I’ve been lucky in that respect.
During my 165-215lb journey, I learned that my daily meal(s)-from-the-blender & most cheeses would basically require a psyllium-serving chaser (again, for convenience) and got used to that.
Eventually, I tried capsulated probiotic formula but found it was hit/miss (and later learned from one of these threads that I may have been taking it “wrong”) and that whole-food sources were consistently effective.
Eventually, I experimented with dropping the daily psyllium and when I still had no issues, I decided that probiotics > supplemental fiber
[/quote]
what do you mean you were taking it “wrong”? I have been taking mine first thing in the morning on an empty stomach with glutamine and inulin…
^^
[quote]Jeffrey of Troy wrote:
Two issues w/ pro-biotics:
-
before the industrial revolution, nobody ate artificial ingredients or took antibiotics (kill good bacteria as well as bad, like carpet bombing), so whole food sources were enough to maintain
-
you need to get the good bacteria through the stomach - where stomach acid will kill them - and into the intestine. The calcium of yogurt, for example, neutralizes stomach acid for a while; however, if you eat a bunch of other food before or along with it, you slow the gastric emptying, giving the acid time to kill the probiotics. If taking a pill, take it on an empty stomach, and wait a while before eating. Even yogurt would be best first thing in the a.m. for this reason. [/quote]