I’m gonna go ahead and guess that if you are reading this, you probably need to eat more fiber.
Because holy sh*t only 3% of Americans get the recommended dose of fiber every day!!!
THREE!!! PERCENT!!!
OK, wait. Let’s back up a sec and give a little background on why fiber is important in the first place.
If you’ve been following me for a while, most likely you know all about eating PHFF. I probably mention it in every blog post?
I’m a little obsessed.
But, eating PHFF (ps if you don’t know what is it, definitely check out this post first then come back) is sooooooo important for keeping your body in fat burning mode AND just feeling your best all day long.
PHFF stands for Protein, Healthy Fat, and Fiber. But I feel like I don’t talk enough about fiber? I’ve chatted about protein a ton, and I feel like I’m constantly harping on the benefits of eating lots of good fats, but fiber just doesn’t seem SEXY, ya know?
Fiber just gets kind of neglected.
Fiber is found in veggies, seeds (like chia and flax), nuts, fruit, beans, lentils, edamame, and whole grains.
But let me tell you something – fiber IS sexy. IT’S SO SEXY. It’s almost as sexy as blood sugar. For real. And I’m gonna convince you.
Fiber MAJORLY slows down the release of sugar into your blood. If you are eating sugar (not just sugar as in candy, but sugar as in bread, pasta, rice, etc), the more fiber you have with your meal, the less of a blood sugar spike you’ll have. The less of a blood sugar spike you have, the less insulin (a fat storing hormone!) you’ll release.
Fiber “fills” your stomach, making you more full, more quickly, and for a longer period of time.
Pooping is SO GREAT ISN’T IT. The more you poop regularly, the flatter stomach you’ll have. (this is really the only thing you’d have to tell me to convince me to eat more fiber)
Fiber is a carbohydrate, but you don’t “absorb” the carbs or calories in fiber. So they’re kind of like a free food that makes you full. OH AND ALSO…
…because you don’t digest fiber, but you’re still consuming it, your body works hard to move it through your digestion system. The act of doing this actually revs up your metabolism, so you burn fat by eating fiber. NICE. (protein does this, too)
And this just goes back to having steady blood sugar levels. Steady blood sugar = better energy.
Love this one. Fiber is actually a prebiotic, and prebiotics feed probiotics. So, in other words, it’s like food for the good bacteria in your gut.
Fiber is like a sponge. Its job is really just to travel through your digestive system and soak up crap like bad cholesterol and toxins. And when fiber absorbs the “crap” floating through your body, it DOESN’T come out through your skin. Win.
High fiber foods are prreeeettty much all filled with other nutrients like vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients, and antioxidants. So a focus on fiber is a focus on long-term health.
That’s a lot, but it was a really easy list to put together because really, fiber is just that good.
I recommend shooting for AT LEAST 8g of fiber at each meal. I say at least, because you should be getting 25g of fiber each day at an absolute minimum.
Tbh though, sometimes it’s easier to load up and eat more fiber in just one or two meals. Like, use 2 Tbsp of chia seeds + some nut butter + a high fiber protein powder (like Designer or F-Factor) and suddenly you’ve got a breakfast with 15 g fiber. Then, you have more wiggle room later in the day.
Check out ALL my fav fiber sources to get your 25g in every day HERE.
xxMegan
