The process of elimination

When I was a much younger person, I used to giggle at how obsessed “old people” seemed to be with their bowels. Their regularity, or the lack thereof, seemed to dictate whether they would have a good day or (are you ready?) a crappy one.

I think I’ve officially become an old person.

When you are dieting, the change in eating habits can really slow down your system. Well, mine anyway. In the early days, I was plagued with constipation. I was bloated and miserable. By day four or five of these “hostage crises”, the scale would jump up, leaving me frustrated and convinced that all my good work during the week was going straight down the toilet.

Then I discovered fiber.

The recommended dietary fiber intake for adults falls in the range of 20-35g per day, though the average American consumes far less, only 12-15g each day. I found 20-35g to be super simple. Fourteen grams from my morning Fiber One and another 14 from a LaTortilla Factory tortilla at lunch. Add in the pile of raw vegetables I ate in the afternoon and I was sitting pretty.

What a joy it was to put all that food in and have it reliably coming back out the next morning. If I didn’t drink enough water, though, the fiber would sit like a brick in my stomach and then I would be headachy and cranky and in a generally poopy mood.

I don’t know why I’m telling you this. I guess I’m just feeling really happy today and that makes me want to share inappropriate things nobody wants to hear about. Better go drink some more water so I can continue this most excellent mood through tomorrow.

See? Old person.