Thanks KD - your funny 

And yes watermelon is wonderful for needing to get things moving again  

Just a side note - it was back when i read "fiber menace" that got me really rethinking my very plant "fiberous" raw food diet,=.  Of course i would lower my fiber intake and the BM's stopped moving (dang fiber done me wrong all these years!).  Now i am looking at foods that the body can take in without having much waste product to irritate the colon, yet still move when it needs too. 

 

KLOWCARB-

I have been ZC for 2 years. I'm 5'4", 108 lbs., 15% bodyfat (for a woman). I'm very lean. I count calories. It is fun. I do not EVER trust appetite, and I have zero interest in listening to my body. Try using fitday.

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What does your daily food intake look like? 
what do you eat, how much, calories etc...
sense you count your cal's 
I have been easing my way into this and have gained weight in the past on more of a cooked version of this diet - i felt and looked terrible.  i am 5'2, but still pretty close to your size.

 

He prescribed Glycolax for me. I knew that was powerful stuff that cleaned people out before undergoing colonoscopies, so I asked him, "Is this stuff really safe to take every day?" and he said yes and assured me that there were "no side effects" with it.

Yup, mine gave me Lactulose - awful cramping and the runs.. 

sell the exact same ingredients as a cheap laxative but just give it a fancy name and a lot of advertising and convince people there's something special about it. Instead of calling what comes out shit, you call it "toxins" or "poisons", so people feel like they're getting their money's worth instead of getting reamed. When I compared the ingredients list on cheap, generic products and saw that they were nearly or even exactly the same as some of the fancy-sounding expensive products, I realized that these marketers are brilliant. Completely lacking in ethics, but brilliant.

HAHA 
Yes I agree with everything in that quote. 
Wanting to rebuild and gain intestinal health may not be happening on cleanses, it just helps you "move some things out."   The colon therapist i saw did recommend to me "intestinal Soothe and build" from  Natures Sunshine. 

You know if you don't feel/notice a difference using a product THEN it's not working!  However i don't think i mentioned this on the board - i have used 2 products that i believe come from reputable companies.  I noticed it working within a day or two. " ALoe Life ALoe Vera Gold".  Body Ecology "Vitality Greens" I was and still am pretty sold on Body Ecology Products, i use to moderate there yahoo group 

Hmm, not sure how fair or sporting it is to expect other people to do the work of providing you with info if you're not willing to put much time into your own searching or reciprocate, and what about the saying "The more you give, the more you will receive"? On the other hand, it's good not to sit too long, as exercise can help the bowels some.

No worries I defiantly do my work and will put in what i can, I'm still learning this lifestyle which i need to be part of.   i just have not been there with this diet/lifestyle yet (still trying to figure somethings out on it).   What i was thinking is this site has so much info and interaction, i could not keep up.  To someone who was a veagn most of her life - i would have to sit at the computer till on end reading all that is here, which is a very good thing I just can't do ti with having little ones at home.  It is a great group and I am really excited about being part of it. 

OK, my best guess is he doesn't want you to be dependent on sennoside laxatives.

Have you done any cleanses (like renew life's, garden of life,  etc...) before you dove into this diet or when you were already on this diet?  I ask b/c I really would like to have a good terrain when i start this "completely" -i have been soooo dependent on fiber 
I bet my intestines are so stretched it will take awhile to get back to the right size. 
*I may start this as a topic in the discussion board if you or anyone does not have any advise on this one.  I would really like to see what has worked for people and b/c you also have redundant colon you know sensitivity to products.

I hadn't heard this claim before. What colonic did you use and how is it supposed to improve the colon muscle tone?

"Colon Irrigation" of warm water for about one hour.  it really works your muscles, I have been sore in the tummy like i had a great ab workout! 
You really just lay there and let your body allow the water in and when it feels it needs to release your muscles will contract and push it out (on its own - no straining  )
I mainly noticed that after i did sessions of colonics i did not have to strain (until i ate bad foods or hard to digest fibers again and they just clogged me back up over time).  I personally should do it 2 times a year with my colon issues but it would be much more beneficial to get it done 1 time every couple of months.  The therapist told me it will help loosen the kinks/twist in the colon even though the MD said this was how my colon formed in the womb and only surgery will correct this. 
Yeah, a gastroenterologist asked me if I eat a lot of veggies because he said that can cause redundant colon (as can long-term chronic constipation).
REALLY!!!!!  Man i wish i would have known this or had a doctor like yours! 
But cooked veggies get absorbed right? 
I read that fiber is so broken down with cooked veggies you don't have to worry about BM's, not sure if that is true though 

I rarely promote a single brand of anything, but the only raw fermented honey I know of is at http://www.reallyrawhoney.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=RRH&Category_Code=FRRH.

Out of stock but i will watch the site for more, does that help with the colon too?  I don't do honey b/c of sugar, i use stevia but if this fermented honey will help colon issues i am going to give it a try!

There's not a lot on it. This forum is probably the second best source after AV's rather eccentric books. BTW, I don't endorse everything that AV or any other guru says and advise folks to think, research, investigate and experiment themselves.
You mentioned having the redundant colon so i pay attention when i see your name on topics that address this but i just don't have the time to read much either - don't like sitting down long enough.

alycia

Wow, that is great you already have many of  the resources i know of working for you and some that don't so much, I'm sorry.  At least you have the diet that works, that's the main thing.

I'm bummed that N.C. probiotic did not work for you, it was the best i have used thus far but i know there are much better ones available somewhere, just not sure what they are yet.  

About the villi -it was blackened and according to the doctor it was directly related to the stimulant laxative. having damaged the villi also lead to malabsorption of nutrients in the intestines.  All around not good and not worth being regular if it was killing the villi and not absorbing the nutrients from the food and supplements i put so much into.  

Yes i do sometimes have problems with vit. C - gives you the runs if you have too much.  Cal/Mag -  I always take more magnesium than calcium to prevent constipation effects of calcium.  If that was all i needed to do i would not be searching for more info on this  
 
Fats - raw vegan world and my own experience (but I was also eating cooked meats on my low carb/high fat days)  I have never cut out veggies to the degree many do here so this is something i am working on.  But if it will help with the bowels I will cut out veg really soon  

Please keep me posted on any thing that works for you, you seem to be way ahead of me on making headway in this department!!

Alycia

Thank you guys, this does help me get a better idea. 

Paleo Phil - I will check out that site :-) Thank you!
So if I get this right, it's the "softness" of the food (even cooked veg?) and easy "digestibility/food combing" that is key on AV's diet to have a regularity?

 Also i got the idea it's really about fat more so than protein and fruits for reguarlity?    I know he is not a proponent of veg unless juiced ( i have his recipe book  ).

How about raw dairy, like cheese?  I always thought it constipated me but maybe putting it on raw veggies was not the best way to eat it.

Just some info that may be helpful -
Phil - After using cascara sengrada in the past (that gave me my first regular BM's EVER) i developed "melanosis Coli"  that is also when i  was diagnosed with "Torturous Redundant Colon" in that colonscopy.  I am just sharing that with you b/c the doctor warned me that senna will do the same thing to the colon
What i have found to be very helpful, in a way to avoid laxatives, was to take Vitamin C or Cal/Mag.   

I also read a book online called "Fiber Menace"
http://www.fibermenace.com/fibermenace/about_fm.html
and it really got me to lower fiber foods (even though they gave me better BM's  )
In that book he notes how 1 pound of beef equals to 5 grams of stool, that's refreshing b/c i would think after consuming that weight of food you would have more waste product but apparently it all gets absorbed.  Most stool should be bacteria anyways from what i read, so i have been making kefir water and coconut kefir (not sure if it helps though ).