Any diabetics around? I stopped losing weight. :(

KetoGirl83

It's been more than a week without losing any weight and today I even added a pound!

I don't know what I am doing wrong but maybe it has something to do with my blood sugar levels? LCHF works wonderfully to control blood sugar during the day, almost a miracle actually. But I can't get my fasting numbers to go below 128mg/dL and that means 10 to 12 hours a day with excess sugar in the blood.

My ketostix reads between small and moderate and I also don't seem to be able to increase results.

I'm trying to follow my macros and eating below calorie target (sometimes way below). I have so much weight to lose I feel that if I'm not, at this point, I must be doing stuff wrong.

Any ideas?

dorlic

I am in the same boat. The advise I have been given is stick with it. Even if you don't lose for a while at least you are giving your body a break and helping with insulin resistance. If you got another couple of weeks with no results, you may trying throttling down the "HF" part of LCHF. :-)

Also, use a tape measure, I haven't lost weight... but I nearly lost my wedding ring when washing my hands this weekend. good luck!

KetoGirl83

Thank you dorlic.

radiii

How long have you been doing keto? And had you gotten your fasting blood sugars below that and they've risen back up, or have they gotten down to that level and just stopped going lower so far?

KetoGirl83

radiii wrote: »

How long have you been doing keto? And had you gotten your fasting blood sugars below that and they've risen back up, or have they gotten down to that level and just stopped going lower so far?

Thank you radiii. Just two weeks. 128 is the lowest ever. Since starting LCHF my fasting value has been between 128 and 135, but doesn't go below that. Yet during the day my numbers are stellar.

My breakfast has been mostly coffee and coconut oil and I was not taking the value after breakfast, I just assumed it would go down because of the fat. But I have now a couple of days evidence that the level keeps climbing until I *eat*, which most days has been not before lunch.

Does this make sense radiii?

aeb09

A stall is pretty common after the first week or so on keto. It's just your body adjusting to the foods you are eating and your lifestyle change. Don't make changes yet - give it another week or two for your hormones to even out and for your body to understand what's going on. If at that point you're still in a stall, there are things called "fat fasts" which bump the fat % to 80-90 in order to push through the stall. But seriously, give it some time on its own and don't panic yet.

I really don't know anything about the fasting blood glucose, I apologize.

KetoGirl83

Thank you aeb09.

I'm doing this against the opinion of my doctor so I stress a bit (ok, a lot), lol. I would like to have perfect numbers for next appt. to justify my 'weird and dangerous' diet choices. After all I declined her suggestion to keep my blood sugar stable by eating a piece of fruit and 2 crackers every 3 hours (and take medication, ofc)! Seriously, I have this 'good practice' in writing.

I think I'll keep using my ticker, it motivates me.

aeb09

Don't set yourself up for failure by hoping for "perfect" anything. It takes a while to reverse the damage we've done to ourselves. We didn't get fat in a day, right? So we're not going to get healthy in a day either.

There is absolutely nothing weird or dangerous about keto. Here is some good info with scientific sources to back it up. http://authoritynutrition.com/10-benefits-of-low-carb-ketogenic-diets/ http://authoritynutrition.com/it-aint-the-fat-people/ http://authoritynutrition.com/6-reasons-why-a-calorie-is-not-a-calorie/

Do as much research as you can before the next appointment to impress her with your knowledge.

KetoGirl83

Doctors always believe they know a lot more than they actually do. And, in my experience, don't take kindly to be questioned. But good numbers may at least make her stop criticizing (so much). And I mean mostly the diabetes numbers, the weight will follow.

Thank you for the links, I've bookmarked them all.

DittoDan

Hi Ketogirl,

On my blog, I did a three day fast. I took Blood glucose results twice a day. Look at my results here:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/DittoDan/view/blog-9-fasting-diabetic-glucose-sugar-levels-698389

I wouldn't worry too much. If you like most diabetics on a LCHF diet, your numbers will be higher when you are eating anything. But as you lose weight (like +25 lbs, they will get lower and lower.) I still take metformin, because its supposed to help make the cell less insulin resistant. I stop injections, Glipizide , Solastar because they all put more insulin in you (insulin is the fat hormone).

I hope this helps,

Dan the Man from Michigan

radiii

aeb09 wrote: »

A stall is pretty common after the first week or so on keto.

Definitely this! I personally lost a lot in my first 2 1/2 weeks and stalled for a full 2 1/2-3 weeks after that, I was logging all my food perfectly and weighing all my food and avoiding anything that could be considered problematic in any way. Most people don't stall for that long, but its very common to stall at the exact point you're at.

I assume your blood sugar numbers are nicely down, so I wouldn't worry about it. Just searching through reddit's keto forums for "fasting blood sugar" I see mentions from people who said it took a few months for their numbers to completely get to where they wanted them. My situation was a little different there as well, I am diabetic but was already "diet controlled" (ie off meds) by suffering through a standard diet with carbs before I found keto. I would, at least for a little while, probably continue to check 1-2 hours after your main meals, even if your fasting sugar is slower to drop below 100, I bet your spikes are meals are infinitely smaller now than they were a few weeks ago

If you have 130 blood sugars in the morning but then 100 blood sugars the rest of the day then maybe look into the Dawn Phenomenon. I'm not sure what you do about it, but I know its a thing. But really the main thing at this point is to look to the things that have improved in a very short time for you and to be patient.

Don't worry about the doctor You're on the right path. I've stressed about that too, my doctor isn't "against" keto but the best I get from him is "well yeah some people do well on Atkins I guess." There's been a little conflict around cholesterol but he's been my doctor for a very long time and that's not quite enough to make me find a new one.

nill4me

I stopped losing weight after my first week of water dump, so I feel your pain.

I have issues with fasting glucose also. I was 198 the other day I was so proud to be off my T2 meds, but I had to call my endo monday and get back on metformin for a while until they even out. I have a lot of other health issues though, and a lot of stress at work too. i've been keto since mid august, so going back on the meds after that long and trying so hard makes me sad. But, I'd rather do that while I figure out whats going on than have that sugar and subsequent insulin rush. I've read that BG around 120 is when your body starts pumping insulin, so if you are not below 120, the extra insulin could be *helping* you hold fat...making you stall out. Not sure if you are an evening snacker of any sort, but I've had recommendations of eating a small protein snack right before bed to try and help with fasting numbers and potential middle of the night rebounding issues. Eating nut butters right before bed may not take away the sting of going back on my meds....but it does make me smile a little bit

Hopefully a little more time will help you even things out. Good Luck!

wonderfullymadebyhim

I'm in the middle of a stall myself after 3.5 weeks of losses. I'm trying on clothing that suddenly fits me that didn't before to remind me that it really is working even if I can't see it on the scale today.

JennyToy

I stalled after my first 2 weeks not realizing it was pretty normal. (I am only talking of weight loss since I don't watch my blood sugar). I kept with it and then found out stalling after the first 2 weeks is VERY common. Don't give up, I promise things will keep on going.

KetoGirl83

Thank you everyone!

It just feels a bit weird to have higher fasting blood sugar levels than I do after meals! But I guess I should be happy that the meals are balanced enough to avoid spikes, that IS amazing!

Everything else will sort itself, I'm sure. I feel so much better that I have to keep reminding myself that the body takes time to heal and I can't want the damage of 20 years all reversed in two weeks!