Some years ago I was attending Weight Watchers with a friend and seemed to be having more success than she was. She inquired how that I would seem to always show more weight loss per week.
Well, my secret wasn’t hours of killer exercise, (as a matter of fact I exercised way too little), nor did I cut back on foods that I loved. As a matter of fact, I added a certain food to my diet! That food helped to boost my success in more ways than one. And that certain food was FIBER!
How Did Fiber Boost My Weight Loss?
For those that have done the Weight Watchers point system, you know that grams of fiber in your foodlowers the number of points. Foods that are high in fiber are generally lower in points and that don’t take a lot of figuring out. But if you still love pasta and just don’t want to go around munching on raw veggies all day, (YUCK), then there may be a simple solution for you! (As long as you use common sense that is).
The answer is fiber supplements! There are many choices in fiber supplements that will begin melting away the pounds.
- There’s the sprinkle it on your food kind (Benefiber)
- Fiber capsules
- The stir it up and drink kind(Metamucil)
- And other choices in your local pharmacy!
You can use a combination of the different kinds or may find that one product works best for you. Personally, the stir it up and drink kind (without sugar) worked best for me and is what I used to boost my weight loss.
IMPORTANT! No matter which fiber product you use, you MUST drink LOTS of water for it to work correctly! It is best to drink 2 or 3 times more than what is recommended on the product package.
IMPORTANT! Start slow and work your way up in dosage. If you start big, you’ll have big bloating and your weight loss may look like weight gain until you have that first giant bowel movement! (Sorry).
The fiber works by:
- Lowering the number of points in your food
- Absorbing fat
- Cleansing buildup from your colon
- Making you feel fuller by providing bulk to your diet
So whether your on the Weight Watchers plan on have another plan that you use, fiber is beneficial to most diets. Also, in reality, fiber is a must for a healthy lifestyle. So if you can’t seem to get enough through your daily diet, it would be wise to begin using a fiber supplement.
How Fiber Can Bring You Better Health
Not only is fiber good for weight loss, but it also has numerous health benefits. The benefits of fiber include:
- A cleaner colon for better absorption of nutrients. When your essential nutrients get into your system better, the result is better health!
- Lowers cholesterol thus preventing heart disease! (Who would have thought)?
- Helps to maintain blood sugar levels which in turn helps to control diabetes.
- Prevents constipation and is good for many other colon issues including diverticulitis.
- Moves toxins more quickly from your system.
- May reduce your risk of colon cancer.
How Much Fiber Should I Have?
Most experts would agree that to maintain a healthy lifestyle and properly functioning colon, a person should get at least 25 to 35 grams of fiber in their diets on a daily basis. So this means if you’re wanting to lose weight, then you should get even more grams of fiber daily than the average healthy person is required. If we are honest with ourselves, many of us don’t even get close to the amount of the 25 to 35 required. Let alone more.
So, let’s stock up one the fiber and get moving (pun intended) in the right direction!
Happy Weight Loss! (And even happier health to you all)!