About Our Favorite F-Word: The Importance of Fiber & Practical Tips on How to Get More of It

You blow my mind I don't know if you know yet.

Hey, everybody. I'm Amy from BodyFit by Amy. And welcome to the Be where youe Are Today podcast, where we connect with professionals in the fitness and nutrition space to help you wherever you are in your journey. I'm so excited because today I am joined by Vivian Skeper. She is our registered dietitian, nutritionist in the Bodyfit Athletic Club and on staff here at BodyFit by Amy. She's one of my favorite people, and we in the Body Fit Athletic Club, we call her the Sassy professor because she gives us a lot of great knowledge in a really entertaining, sometimes sassy way. But I'm so excited that Vivian is here today. Thank you so much and thank you for coming to LA to hang out.

I know this is amazing. This is much fun. Yes.

So we thought we have a lot of work things that we're getting to this week while we're together, but we thought we should talk on a podcast. Why not? Because you're here in person. And we went through a lot of different topics of things that we get asked about a lot. Nutrition world. And something that is really having a moment right now. Fiber. So today we're talking about fiber. Get excited. I know it's everyone's favorite F word, right?

It's definitely my second favorite. I'll let you guess.

Exactly. Exactly. But I feel like we just. We're seeing it all over social media. We're certainly seeing it in the perimenopause and menopause world. Talked about a lot. And I feel like we grew up hearing a lot about carbs and protein. We're hearing a lot about protein now, but carbs, protein, fats, things like that, and not so much about fiber. So hopefully you can enlighten us a bit and it will be a little less confusing for all of us to navigate out there in the real world and the social media world, which is not the real world. So let's start with just the basics. What is fiber?

Great question. Love that question. So fiber is a type of carbohydrate that our bodies cannot digest. And I know a lot of people are like, oh, my gosh, what do you mean you cannot digest this? This is bad. This is actually a good thing. This is part of what makes fiber so, so cool and so interesting. So it's a type of carbohydrate that our bodies cannot digest because our bodies do not digest it. It kind of moves through all the way down through our digestive tract. And it does a lot of amazing things that I'm sure we're going to be diving into today. But yes, in short, quick, it's a type of a carbohydrate.

Okay. And one that we do not need to be afraid of.

One that we do not need to be afraid of.

Not that we ever need to be afraid of carbs, but especially this one. Yeah, that's a really helpful way to describe it because I think we don't often think of it that way. We can't digest it, therefore it moves through our system. Okay, so then why do we need it? What does it do?

In order to understand what fiber does for our bodies and for our health, I think it's important to understand the types of fiber that are there because we often hear fiber is really important. Yes, absolutely it is. But different types of fibers have different purposes and different benefits. So we start with insoluble fiber. So I like to think of this one as the broom. So this is the type of fiber that we consume and it's going to move down through our digestive tract, essentially brooming things. So, you know, there's, let's say, some food that's stuck somewhere down your digestive tract. Right. Fiber is helping to get things moving out and it's great. We love it. That's insoluble fiber, as you can probably hear. This type of fiber is really helpful for digestion, for making sure that things are not getting stuck in there, to make sure that we're not getting constipated. So it's keeping us nice and regular, this type of fiber, because we're not getting constipated, because it helps to move things down and out. This type of fiber is the one that's really important. Important in preventing the likelihood of us developing colorectal cancer. So really important type of fiber. This type of fiber can be found in beans, lentils, whole grains, nuts, seeds. So think flaxseeds, chia seeds, asparagus. So again you can start to hear, so your produce and your wholesome foods.

Okay, and then the other type of fiber is.

Yes, so that's insoluble fiber. The other type of fiber is soluble fiber.

Okay.

This one, I like to think of it like a sponge. So this is the one that likes to suck things up. And one of the things that it loves to sponge up is cholesterol molecules. Particularly, let's say that we have a little bit of high cholesterol. For whatever reason, when we consume soluble fiber, the soluble fiber molecules attract Cholesterol molecules. And these cholesterol molecules like to attach themselves to the soluble fiber molecules. So I like to think of there's some really interesting chemistry that's happening between these two. So these cholesterol molecules are getting attracted. They're like, oh, hey, soluble fiber, I want to go with you. And this is good. This is a great thing because then these molecules are getting attached to that soluble fiber. Now, remember, we don't digest fiber. So. So these cholesterol molecules are now attached to soluble fiber. And then that soluble fiber is going to move down the digestive tract and out, meaning that we are literally removing that cholesterol out of the body thanks to soluble fiber. Wow. So really amazing. This is one of the most amazing ways that fiber can work to support cardiovascular health, to reduce the likelihood of developing a heart attack or a stroke.

Wow, that is fascinating. I love a good visual. So I love the visual of the broom and the sponge of just two different types of fiber. Two different jobs, essentially, just working our way, working their way through our system. Doing a lot of good work, apparently.

Doing a lot of good cleaning. Wow. Cleaning house in there?

Yes, Yes. I love it. Okay, so those are our types of fibers. And you mentioned cardiovascular health, obviously, cholesterol, things like that. What are the other benefits of just getting enough fiber in our diet?

This is a really great segue because people often ask, is one fiber more important than the other? And the answer is both. We talked about how soluble fiber can be really helpful for cardiovascular health. Reducing our cholesterol, reducing our likelihood of developing heart disease. Then we have insoluble fiber, which we know it's really good at, reducing the likelihood of us being constipated, which can lead to other complications, which eventually can then lead to colorectal cancer. So already we're hearing both of these things are pretty important. And we want to try to do whatever we can to prevent the likelihood of developing these diseases. In addition to this, both soluble and insoluble fiber, when we consume high fiber foods, it adds volume to our gut. So that means satiety, which means that when we have a high fiber meal, ideally high fiber, high protein meal, then we can have a nice meal that holds us over for say, four hours versus one hour. So then for many people, this helps them stay fuller for longer. They're less likely to overeat. It can help them with weight maintenance, if that's a goal, or weight loss, if that's a goal. But. But overall it can help you feel really good satiated and like I had enough food and I'm feeling good and I'm ready for the day. The other thing is blood sugar balance, because fiber is bulky, right? And it's not digestible. It's taking up space. And when we think about. I like to picture our stomachs, right? And then we have ideally some protein in there too. So we have fiber, we have protein. We have a lot of really complicated structures that are just floating around in our stomachs. We'll say, right? Because these structures are so complex, it takes time for us to break them down. The fact that it takes time is a good thing because it slows everything down. So as we are, let's say, breaking up some of these fiber and protein molecules, we release a little bit into the bloodstream for energy, and then the body's going to use that up and then the stomach is back to. All right, now let me work on this other molecule. Release a little bit and off it goes. And then back and then release a little bit and then it goes. Versus, let's say I just had something like, let's say a soda, for example, pretty simple carbohydrate, no fiber, no protein, which means that my body would absorb that very quickly and all of it would get released into the bloodstream very quickly, causing a pretty big sugar spike. On the other hand, because we are having something like a fiber protein situation like what I was discussing describing, then it doesn't happen that fast. These are not simple carbohydrates. They're not easy to break down. They take time and effort. And so then we see that little release of energy, little release of energy, little release of energy. So we see more of a steady and a gentle increase in our blood sugars, which is what we want. That's not a bad thing. Some increases in blood sugars are healthy and normal, and we need that for energy. But what we don't really love to see is these huge spikes, which then leads to these huge crashes. And when we have fiber with our meals, ideally a nice combination of fiber, protein, healthy fats, all the things, right? But even just fiber alone helps to slow everything down. And this is a really important component in reducing our likelihood of developing type 2 diabetes because it can be so helpful. With that slowing everything down, we prevent those sort of big cycles, spikes in our blood sugar.

Oh, my gosh. This is why I love talking to you, because you explain things in a way that remind me, like, I know this with my background, and I think all of us know this to a degree. The body is amazing. Like the human body and what our organs can do and what our muscles can do. I just love that reminder. When you talk about, like, it's really complex about what is happening inside our body, and there's a lot of things working together and the different ways that our nutrition supports that. Amazing. I'm sorry. I get really excited about that also.

Me too.

Sidebar. If you join us in the BodyFit Athletic Club, you may see Vivian wearing a vest. I think I've talked about this before. With the organs Velcroed on, she will tell you all about your stomach and your liver and your kidneys. It's really fun.

So fun. Joy now.

Thank you for that. So, science lesson, because that was really helpful. But it seems like obviously we've always needed fiber. But right now, online, on social media, especially when we're talking, which a lot of us are, about perimenopause, menopause, we're talking a lot about fiber, how much we need and how we all need more. What is different in that stage of life? Or why do you think we're seeing a big surge in talking about fiber?

Yeah, it's so freaking important, and for so long, it's had this sort of boring reputation. You picture this sort of sad, stale piece of brown bread that has fiber and it's healthy, but it's so sad and gross. And I love to see that we are reframing the conversation, and actually we're making fiber sexy, which I'm into. I'm loving this, and it should be. It's pretty freaking sexy. Okay. It can help with so many things. And especially as we enter our 40s, as we enter into our 40s, even upper 30s, really, truly any stage of life, but especially as we start to think about perimenopause, we know that the risk of cancers just goes up as we age. We know that the risk for developing heart disease and diabetes, it goes up as we age. And I just talked about how making sure we're getting enough fiber can really help to decrease the likelihood of that. I think that's really important also, for many women in perimenopause, they tend to see this shift in body composition where some of the body fat starts to shift towards the abdominal area, which can feel really frustrating. And that type of fat, visceral fat, is not always super responsive to just a regular diet, calorie restriction. So many times I'm working with women who are like, I used to just cut calories a little bit and the weight would come off. And now I'm Doing the exact same thing, and it's not working. And it's because we have to think differently, because in this stage of life, things are changing, hormones are funky, and we just have to think about things differently. Is calorie restriction sometimes an option, too? And the answer, yes, absolutely. I'm not completely ruling that out, but sometimes we need to think about something more. And fiber is one of those things that we need to think about because it can help so much with satiety and again, with just reducing the likelihood of other conditions like heart disease, diabetes. All of it can be helpful, metabolically speaking, to keep you healthy, which can help reduce that visceral fat that tends to be pretty stubborn and likes to accumulate in middle age.

Yeah, that's really helpful. Yeah, I think, because you and I both have gotten a lot of women, and then I'm about to turn 44. Like, I'm feeling a lot of those changes coming on. But we have talked to so many women over the years who are like, oh, I. I started to gain the weight around my midsection, or things started to look and feel different. So I'm cutting calories, and I'm getting excessive amounts of cardio. And we know that is not the answer. And what an exciting time in nutrition. I'm glad we're finally getting there. Slowly. I think for so long, people were just afraid to add more things. We were taught to take away. We were taught to restrict. We were taught that it was all about eating less, when really it's eating more and it's eating more fiber. Same thing of how we're talking about protein. But that's really helpful to know that it's not about restricting calories or how many calories we can burn. It's about the other changes that we're making. Okay, so now that we've talked about that, what is the recommendation for how many grams of fiber do we all need?

Yes.

Magic question.

Yeah. Do you want to take a guess?

I know the answer, so I'll let you just tell us. Well, I know for women. I actually don't know. I know for women because I. I am a woman, and I primarily work with women. It's 25 to 30 grams, correct?

Yes.

Which is harder than you think to get. It feels low. But when you start thinking, oh, I eat a lot of things with fiber, and then you're like, oh, I'm not getting enough. Yeah, what is it for men?

Yeah, it is 38 grams for men. So it is higher. Yes, I know.

Sorry. Sorry, guys.

Yes. Yes. But really, Important to try to increase your fiber if you're nowhere near it. Do you want to take a guess on how much fiber the average American eats right now?

Oh, I'm sure it's much lower. Maybe 10 grams.

10 grams is a good guess. So the answer is 15. About 15 grams. Yeah. And that's on average. So, yeah, I would say when I'm working with clients, I'm probably seeing people average in the 8 to 15 range.

Yeah.

And a lot of the foods that they're consuming that they're getting the fiber from tend to be from foods that have it added to them. Not necessarily naturally occurring fiber.

Okay. That is actually a question I do have. So we do see in the grocery store and online a lot of things that are like 15 grams of fiber or 10 grams of fiber or added fiber. It's fortified with extra fiber. Right. Are those good options? Like, I. There's a wrap that I really like because I initially got it because it had more protein, but noticed it had a lot of fiber as well. And as someone who's trying to increase my fiber, I think, oh, that's great. If I can get 15 grams, I'm like halfway there for the.

The day.

What about all of these products that have added fiber?

That's a really great question. I love that question. I don't hate these products. They're totally fine. They are. I don't love when people are getting fiber predominantly or only from products like this. Okay. The reason for that is because most of these products, whether it's wraps or even sodas and stays.

Right.

So these products that have fiber in them. Right. They're going to have one type of fiber only. So it's an isolated fiber. Most commonly, you're going to see chicory roots, you're going to see inulin. Fine. Those are fine sources of fiber. But if we think about the foods that we're consuming and all the types of fibers that we would be getting if we're eating beans. So let's just take beans, for example. You're getting insoluble fiber, you're getting soluble fiber. Some of that soluble fiber is also fermentable, which is amazing for our gut health. So you're really getting everything there. When you are consuming a product like a wrap that has only chicory root, you're only getting one type of fiber. Is it still fiber? Yes. Is it still good? Absolutely. But I love the idea and the intention of, sure, this can help me out and getting some fiber and helping me keep full. If I need a Little something more satiating right now. But I still want to think about real wholesome food sources of fiber. Can I add some beans into that wrap? Can I add some kale? Can I add some avocado? Can I add a bean spread in there? So how can I also add variety, some of these wholesome sources of fiber to make sure you're getting the full spectrum?

I love that. And I think that's especially good for someone like me, as I'm a creature of habit when it comes to what. What I eat in a day. I find things that I like and I stick with them because they're easy and delicious and they've got the things that I'm looking for. But it is. I need those reminders about variety. So I guess along the same lines, we see a lot of fiber supplements on the market. Is there a time and a place that someone might need a fiber supplement?

Absolutely. Definitely a time and a place for it. Right. Circumstances are different for everyone, Right. If somebody has pretty limited access to a variety of different foods, or if they don't have access or simply can't tolerate a lot of fruits and vegetables, then a fiber supplement can be helpful to keep you regular or to help you out with your cholesterol. Is it ideal? No, of course not. But sometimes, based on the circumstances, that is going to be ideal for a certain or specific type of person.

Right.

So supplements, I like them and they are there to supplement whatever you cannot get from real food. However, my philosophy always stands, food first, supplement second. So that supplement is meant to fill the gaps that you are unable to fill with food. But first, let's see if we can get close those gaps with just food alone. Yeah.

And again, I think that's exciting to think about what we always talk about this. You always say nutrition by addiction, addition. What more can we add to our diet, which, you know is fun. Oh, we can think of all these other things.

Another thing that I wanted to add too is with fiber supplements, sometimes people are just told, go get a fiber supplement.

Yeah.

There are a lot of different options and it is really important to know the difference. So sometimes people will say, I have high cholesterol and my doctor told me to go find a fiber supplement. Something like metabucil is not going to help you out because that type of fiber is insoluble. So that's going to be helpful for keeping you regular to again, reduce the risk of colorectal cancer. So that's going to be that broom effect, which we love, but it's not Going to be the fiber that you necessarily need for lowering cholesterol. What you need then is a soluble fiber supplement, something like a psyllium husk supplement. That's going to be the one that's going to be helpful to bring down your cholesterol. And for some clients, it may be. For some clients, clients that I see, it may be a combination of both to make sure that they're getting both. If they're unable to get them from other food sources.

Good reminders. Okay, so when I think of fiber, I think of grains, I think of leafy vegetables, leafy greens, and I think of beans. What are some other great sources of fiber? I think stuff that we could just get at the grocery store. Stuff that the average person has access to too.

Yeah. So beans for sure. And nowadays you can get boxed beans, you can get canned beans, you can get beans in a pouch. Really great, easy, convenient option. And 100 recommend that one easy, affordable, shelf, stable, great beans all the way. Oats are going to be another really great option if you like them. And again, they're easy to blend. If you want to make pancakes with oats, with oat flour or oatmeal, of course. Pretty traditional. There are so many creative ways that we can prepare oats these days, which I think is really fantastic. The other one, apples, for instance. Apples actually are a really great source of both soluble and insoluble fiber.

Good to know.

So maybe that whole thing of the one apple away, one apple a day, keeps the doctor away. Not a bad thing to do for sure. So definitely apples have a nice combination, combination of both fibers. Fantastic. And then your nuts and your seeds also going to be nice sources of fiber. Both soluble, insoluble, also a lot of these fibers. So thinking of that soluble fiber in apples, that soluble fiber in beans is also fermentable. And this fiber. So honestly, I could just keep going about the benefits. Pretty amazing, really. But this type of fermentable fiber, what that means is that you've probably heard lots about the microbiome and the healthy gut bacteria, right? So this is the bacteria that lives in our large intestine. This is the good type of bacteria. We want it there, we want it to thrive, we want it to just replicate, and we want to have lots of different bacteria in our large intestine. Fermentable fibers are the fibers that these bacteria like to eat. And so if they're eating, they're thriving. So we want to make sure we're consuming this soluble fiber, because then also the bacteria in our large intestine can ferment it. So then they're eating, they're happy, they're replicating, and we love that. So yet another plug for why variety. Making sure we're getting a nice amount of different types of fibers can be so important and helpful. And not to mention, nowadays, there's a lot of conversations about our gut microbiome. These healthy bacteria in our large intestine may play a much bigger role than we never thought. Yeah. And it's amazing even now in the research around anxiety, depression, mental health, brain and cognitive health. So, you know, too long didn't read get your fiber. Yeah.

If you learned one thing today, get your fiber. Fiber. That's what we're talking about.

And on that note, very important, because I know everybody's going to be really excited after this podcast and you're going to be like, yes, let's go. Fiber. Yay. Hold on. Calm down. I love the excitement, but take it slow. If you're not consuming a lot of fiber, if you go from 10 grams to 40 grams, you may not feel so good in. If you go too quickly with fiber, you can have issues like bloating, diarrhea, just some stomach cramping. So it does take some time to get used to. It's okay. You don't need to go from 0 to 100, just work your way up. But maybe adding in 5 grams each week until you reach that target goal. So 25 to 30 grams for women, 38 grams for men. So work your way up. And the other really important thing with fiber, we don't digest it. Remember the broom? It's causing. It's making some bulk, which is good. We like it. We need it to come out. We need it to come out. We need to make sure we're well hydrated so that we can move that down and out.

Yes, eat your fiber and drink your water. No, I think that's so helpful to remember because, yes, we do get on kicks and we see it with protein, too, where people then end up constipated. Like, on the other end of the spectrum for people are like, okay, I'm going to. I'm really excited about this. I get to eat, eat more. I'm gonna get my. Get my numbers up, and then it's too much at once. So just like everything else we talk about, like, exercise, work your way up. And don't be discouraged, too. I think that's the other thing. Like, some days I'm like, oh, wow, I didn't really eat enough plants today. And guess what? That's okay, because tomorrow's coming. And reminding ourselves that we don't have to be perfect every day. We just. It's important to think about these things and do what we can.

Yes.

But having that reminder of nuts, seeds, beans. I think you introduced us to pastas like chickpea pasta or different pastas that have.

That are made for lentil pasta.

Yeah, yeah. So many different ways beyond what we think of. Oh, I guess I have to have a salad because I gotta get.

Yes, exactly. And contrary to popular belief, a lot of vegetables don't actually have a ton of fiber. Yeah. So something like a cucumber, for instance, maybe one gram at most. Yeah. So really, your beans, your legumes, your lentils, your nuts, your seeds, and more of the dark, leafy vegetables. Of course, fruits and vegetables are great source fiber as well, but not all of them are. And so this is, I think, also a really nice plug for. You don't need to be afraid of those whole grains of the oats. The beans. They are wonderful and incredibly helpful. And we have decades and decades upon decades of research supporting the benefits of fiber.

I think we covered it. So my last question, because we do this as we do this with all of our guests, because you've been a guest a few times. So where are you today? So I guess with this. Where are you today with your fiber? What are some things that you eat often or things that you find helpful to get your fiber goals for, for the day?

Love this question. I love fiber. That helps. I grew up in Central America, so a huge staple of my diet, without trying, was fiber, particularly from black beans, all beans, white beans, black beans, kidney beans, red beans, all the beans, and lots of lentils. I also was very fortunate that we had just so much access to abundant, delicious produce growing up there.

Amazing.

And I got fiber that way very naturally as I moved to the United States and suddenly don't have access to a lot of these cultural foods that I was eating all the time, like rice and beans and an avocado every day, for instance. Then I started to think about, oh, I wonder if my fiber intake has probably changed. Of course, becoming a dietitian naturally keeps me aware of my fiber intake and I will say probably the number one source of fiber for me, beans and avocados, which I know. I think Kurt and I are totally on the same page with that.

Kurt eats beans, like, almost every meal, certainly every day. Yes.

It's amazing. Yeah. So I love lentils. I love beans. And on that note, because I have been a perfectionist. I have struggled with all or nothing thinking. I have gone on my pre becoming a dietitian. I'm on a kick to be healthy, so I need to hit perfect fiber goals. And I'm a dietitian now. Fiber is super important. I don't hit my fiber goals every single day. 95% of the time, I do. But there's going to be a day where if I'm traveling, running through the airport, and the little pack of nuts is $17.

Yeah.

We're just not gonna get fiber today. And that's okay. And that's okay. Yes. So definitely. Always where I'm at and where I encourage my clients to be. What can you add? And instead of thinking of fiber as this daunting task of. Now I gotta figure this out. Make it fun. Have fun with it. What can you add? What are some of the foods that you like? There's lots of nuts, lots of seeds, lots of grains, oats. How do you want to play around with it? Get creative. Have fun.

Yeah.

And do it that way.

Oh, great reminders.

And speaking of fiber, very important note here. There's apparently an exclusive Bean Club out there that I'm just like, I totally want to be a part of this.

You encourage to be in the Bean Club?

Yes. I think it's called Rancho Gordo.

Okay.

And it is like this exclusive bean Club, apparently. And there's a super long wait list. I think I have to wait eight months to get in. What?

There's a wait list for the Bean.

Club, but let it be known. All right.

We should start our own.

That's one wait list I am all about. And really, like, you're a part of the Bean Club, and then you just get all of these different varieties bean.

Oh, so it's like shipments to you.

Yes, I know.

Oh, that sounds really fun.

I know. Yes. So that's where I'm at today with fiber. I'm trying to join. I'm trying to get into the Bean Club.

Oh, my goodness.

Yes.

What was it called? Rancho.

Rancho Gordo. Yes.

Okay, if you're watching, if you're listening, please reach out. Please sponsor us. Sponsor this podcast. Oh, my gosh. All right, now I know what I'm getting Kurt for Christmas. Maybe if I join now, he'll.

Maybe. Yep. Yes.

So fun. Always great talking to you, Vivian. I always have so much fun with you. And this is our Body Fit Athletic Club members always talk about. They love when we're together, whether we're together virtually on a live stream. Or in person. Obviously we love both, but we love to be in the same room. We have so much fun talking about these topics and I think you and I both get really excited about digging into the science, but in a digestible way, pun intended.

So love it.

Never fear, Vivian will be back. We're trying to have her every view podcast just so we can tackle some of these topics that are all over the news or all over your social feed and that we are passionate about. So thank you so much Vivian.

Thank you for being here.

Thank you for having me.

This was so much fun.

Just a reminder to all of you all that you can watch this podcast and all of my other podcasts on my YouTube channel, YouTube.com bodyfit by Amy as well as Spotify, Apple, wherever you get your podcasts, I'm Amy reminding you to show up, keep moving and be.

Where you are today.