Easy ways to add more fiber to your diet; start by taking the fiber challenge

Do you end up falling short on daily fiber and need more ideas for adding it to your diet? You are not alone! Most Americans get half the recommended fiber each day. Add more of this important nutrient by taking the two-week fiber challenge.

Add more fiber to your diet with whole foods

Fiber is a part of plant foods that we cannot absorb or digest though it boasts numerous health benefits. Fiber exists in the skins and peels of vegetables and fruits. In addition, whole grains, nuts, seeds, and legumes are also rich sources of fiber. For a list of fiber-rich foods, click here.

How much fiber do I need each day?

The Institute of Medicine (guidelines followed by MyNetDiary) recommends 14 grams of fiber per 1000 calories consumed. You can otherwise follow this basic rule of thumb: 25 grams of fiber per day for women, 38 grams of fiber per day for men.

Start your fiber challenge with an online tracker

Gone are the days of keeping a paper food journal to record calories and fiber grams. Now, apps like MyNetDiary make tracking straightforward and efficient. To begin your fiber challenge, carefully track everything you eat and drink for a few days without making any changes. Pay attention to your fiber totals first, then modify your choices.

Tracking and viewing fiber is easy with MyNetDiary

Select fiber as a nutrient to track

From the app, select the Coach tab, then tap My Plan, then Nutrient Targets. To learn more about setting nutrient targets in the app, click here.

View fiber totals on your dashboard (see example below).

After tracking your fiber intake for a few days, slowly ramp up

Add more fiber to your diet slowly to ensure you feel good and don't have stomach troubles such as gas and bloating. Strive to increase your daily fiber intake by about 3 to 5 grams of fiber each week for a total of two weeks.

Because fiber absorbs water, you'll also need to increase your fluid intake as you increase fiber intake. Water and herbal teas keep you hydrated, soften your stools, reducing discomfort during a bowel movement.

All-star fiber-rich foods

• Fruits and vegetables: About 3 grams of fiber per portion size (fruit the size of a tennis ball).
• Legumes/beans: About 5-7 grams of fiber in a half cup of cooked beans.
• Whole-grain bread: If a bread contains 3 or more grams per serving, you are doing well. Read the label and focus on fiber (located under carbohydrates).
• Breakfast cereals: Look at the label for at least 3 grams of fiber per serving.
• Chia and flax seeds: Pump up the fiber by adding these seeds to yogurt, smoothies, oatmeal, etc. One tablespoon contains between 2 to 4 grams of fiber.

Tips to add more fiber to your diet

• Add diced fruit to your breakfast cereal.
• Choose a breakfast cereal with more fiber. Try mixing your current cereal with a high-fiber cereal. Your body can slowly adapt to more fiber, and you can finish your old breakfast cereals.
• Pack a snack of raw veggies and hummus.
• Enhance your salad by adding garbanzo beans.
• Eat sandwiches on whole grain or high-fiber bread.
• Prepare our Barley Lentil Soup containing 5g of fiber per serving.

As you add more fiber to your diet, you can feel full longer, lose weight, decrease cholesterol, and maintain blood sugar. Cheers to improved health through tracking!

Closing America's fiber gap
Did you know fiber lowers cholesterol?
Carbohydrates: Sugar, starch, and fiber

Original contributions by Martha M. Henze MPH, MS, RDN

Still new to MyNetDiary? Learn more today by downloading the app for FREE.

Nutrients->"Carbs: Fiber, Starch, & Sugar"