Having a hard time getting into ketosis, any ideas why?

jerryellis63012
jerryellis63012 Posts: 105 Member
edited November 16 in Social Groups
I bought a blood ketone reader and it is showing 0.4 and 0.7 the 2 times I've checked. I'm eating pretty close to zero carbs a day, but still struggling to get into ketosis? Not losing weight, not losing inches, and getting pretty frustrated :(

Replies

  • Twibbly
    Twibbly Posts: 1,065 Member
    edited April 2015
    Things I noticed from looking at your diary:

    1) I hate to say it man, but whiskey has carbs, or at least is metabolized similarly. Some people flat out can't get into ketosis if they're drinking alcohol or it stalls their weight loss.

    2) Are you eating enough for your height & weight?

    3) Are you drinking enough water?

    Other things that can affect it are sleep, stress, health complications (ie, diabetes or insulin resistance), or, for some people, dairy.
  • jerryellis63012
    jerryellis63012 Posts: 105 Member
    edited April 2015
    Twibbly wrote: »
    Things I noticed from looking at your diary:

    1) I hate to say it man, but whiskey has carbs, or at least is metabolized similarly. Some people flat out can't get into ketosis if they're drinking alcohol or it stalls their weight loss.

    2) Are you eating enough for your height & weight?

    3) Are you drinking enough water?

    Other things that can affect it are sleep, stress, health complications (ie, diabetes or insulin resistance), or, for some people, dairy.

    I can definitely give up the whiskey, 2 and 3 are valid points, I think I'm eating enough but not positive, and definitely did not drink enough water, at least yesterday...I guess I will just keep experimenting until I find out what gets me there. I also am type 2 diabetic and most surely insulin resistant. But, give up dairy, ouch lol!
  • Twibbly
    Twibbly Posts: 1,065 Member
    A lot of us use this to determine approximately how much we should be eating: http://keto-calculator.ankerl.com/

    There's a good contingent here who just eat until they're full and don't worry about calories as long as the carbs are down and the protein is high enough.

    The general "rule" on water seems to be 100 oz/day or half your weight in pounds in ounces (I weigh 180 pounds, so I'd drink at least 90 ounces).
  • jerryellis63012
    jerryellis63012 Posts: 105 Member
    Twibbly wrote: »
    A lot of us use this to determine approximately how much we should be eating: http://keto-calculator.ankerl.com/

    There's a good contingent here who just eat until they're full and don't worry about calories as long as the carbs are down and the protein is high enough.

    The general "rule" on water seems to be 100 oz/day or half your weight in pounds in ounces (I weigh 180 pounds, so I'd drink at least 90 ounces).

    I do use the calculator, that's how I got the figures to use in MFP, and have been tracking calories as well.

    But, I am sure I haven't been drinking enough water, I will keep a closer eye on that for sure! Thank you!
  • kuranda10
    kuranda10 Posts: 593 Member
    Twibbly wrote: »
    Things I noticed from looking at your diary:

    1) I hate to say it man, but whiskey has carbs, or at least is metabolized similarly. Some people flat out can't get into ketosis if they're drinking alcohol or it stalls their weight loss.
    The base liquors do not have carbs, but your body does burn the alcohol first, then moves on to the other macros

    http://www.shapefit.com/alcohol-calories.html
  • Twibbly
    Twibbly Posts: 1,065 Member
    Thanks, Kuranda. I never quite figured out the science behind it, just that it was a bad idea for some people. :smile:
  • sljohnson1207
    sljohnson1207 Posts: 818 Member
    Twibbly wrote: »
    A lot of us use this to determine approximately how much we should be eating: http://keto-calculator.ankerl.com/

    There's a good contingent here who just eat until they're full and don't worry about calories as long as the carbs are down and the protein is high enough.

    The general "rule" on water seems to be 100 oz/day or half your weight in pounds in ounces (I weigh 180 pounds, so I'd drink at least 90 ounces).

    I do use the calculator, that's how I got the figures to use in MFP, and have been tracking calories as well.

    But, I am sure I haven't been drinking enough water, I will keep a closer eye on that for sure! Thank you!

    Why have your goal numbers changed so frequently? Are you setting them different on different days? The one glaring thing I noticed is all the processed meats, which often contain sugars and starches, and even though the labels are low carb, some of us are just very, very sensitive to those ingredients. I would probably look there before dairy because you really don't seem to eat that much dairy to me.

    Other things that can be culprits. Alcohol, as already stated, artificial sweeteners, too much protein, and starchy veggies (but I don't really see where you eat veggies).

    I understand it works for some folks, but why zero carb goal? You are eating some anyway. Why not ease up on that a bit for a few weeks and see how it goes. Maybe you are eating too much protein????

    What are your stats? Height, weight, activity level?
  • GaleHawkins
    GaleHawkins Posts: 8,159 Member
    I cheated and used (still do) heavy with coconut oil. About 62% of the oils in coconut oil gets converted into ketone bodies. :) This is one reason some think coconut oil helps Alzheimers' patients regain function often starting in a day or two because they then have ketones for insulin resistant brains to use to energy.
This discussion has been closed.