Anyone feeling grumpy with low carb diet?

vdeepu17

Hi Iam new here and trying to follow low carb diet to loose 40lbs. Iam 52 and weigh 178lbs with PCOS. I noticed that Iam very irritable and grumpy since starting low carb. Showed my irritation on my 4 yr old daughter ( poor thing) and I feel very bad for being mean to her. Is this common and when will it pass? Did anyone experience this? How to overcome this?

tmumma88

Yes this is common. Your brain's main source of fuel are carbohydrates so your body is wondering where its main fuel is! If your body does not get enough carbs for the brain it will break down protein first to make carbs so that the brain has it's primary energy source.

That being said, I would make sure you eat at least 45g of carbs per day, just try to make it from healthier choices, such as fruit, low fat milk, and vegetables.

If you would still like to follow a lower carb diet that is fine but you will be grumpy for a few weeks. It would get better in about 3 weeks. I wish you the best!

Lissa_Kaye

I would suggest eating whole grain carbs. Quinoa, millet, whole wheat, oats. Have them in the morning for breakfast and see how you feel through out the day. That way you have a better chance of blood sugar being stable all day. Also try and either take some supplements and eat a good amount of veggies.

ellieco

How long have you been low carb? I know the other posters disagree with me but I think that low carb can be very beneficial if done properly. You will go through an initial period of feeling like rubbish where your body is adapting to using fat for fuel (ketosis) instead of carbs (glycosis). Yes the body will convert some protein into glucose for your brain but you'll be eating plenty of extra protein anyway, so no problems there.

I've been following low carb for 2.5 months now. Although my diet is high in saturated fats, my cholesterol levels are great. I lost a lot of water weight initially (about 3-4lbs) and am now steadily losing 1lb or so a week and a cm/week or so in my measurements. I am no longer really tired after lunch (no blood sugar spike and dip) and I am no longer craving carby snacks all the time. Even cauliflower tastes sweet because I have reset my tastebuds, and my hair and nails are really healthy because of all the fats, protein and green leafy veggies in my diet. I am also still making small gains at the gym despite losing weight.

Use this http://keto-calculator.ankerl.com/ to work out your macros. Unless you are a contruction worker or athlete, set your activity to sedentary. To combate keto-flu (when your body is adapting to low carb), drink tons of water and make sure you are getting lots of electrolytes (sodium, potassium, magnesium), and sleep. Please feel free to ask me anything and I will try to help as best as I can.

ellieco

Also add that the right food choices in a low carb diet are different from those in a low fat diet. Whole grains are out (apart from very high fibre like chia seeds and pumpkin seeds), low fat milk is out (it has a lot of natural sugar in it), fruit and some vegetables like peas and corn are out (but eat lots of leafy greens, cauliflower and cabbage and you won't miss out. See keto food lists like this for more info http://www.ruled.me/ketogenic-diet-food-list.

vdeepu17

Thank you so much for your replies. Iam on Low carb from a week. Looks like i doing something wrong and not taking enough veggies and protein. I will try to increase the protein and see if it's better . Thank you all