On the way to ketoland...?
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Goooosfraba333
Posts: 51 Member
On day three of this...
What I wouldn't give for a sandwich with fluffy wheat bread. Or an ice cream cone. Or potatoes. Oh God...Must be dehydrated if I'm craving this bad,right?
Anyway, I know feeling under the weather is typical...does that mean that I'm on my way to ketosis? Or does the keto-flu happen even if your carbs are low, but still too high for ketosis?...if that makes sense. A little foggy today.
What I wouldn't give for a sandwich with fluffy wheat bread. Or an ice cream cone. Or potatoes. Oh God...Must be dehydrated if I'm craving this bad,right?
Anyway, I know feeling under the weather is typical...does that mean that I'm on my way to ketosis? Or does the keto-flu happen even if your carbs are low, but still too high for ketosis?...if that makes sense. A little foggy today.
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There is no set rule for the keto-flu. I've just read here that eating salt and supplementing with other minerals like potassium and magnesium help, probably because they are getting depleted with the water loss.
I find the craving pass very quickly, especially if I increase my fat intake. I've been known to eat a teaspoon of schmaltz and I just rendered some duck fat this afternoon
Good luck to you! You will do great.0 -
What are you eating?
Make sure your carbs are low enough. Doesn't make sense to endure initial symptoms and cravings if you aren't moving toward the promised land.
Next - EAT! Good low carb foods, of course, but eat! Initially is NOT the time to cut calories. Rib eyes got me through the first few days, and when I added the garlic butter to them.... awesome! Salads, avocado, mushrooms, and zuchinni or cabbage sauteed in butter and coconut oil are awesome and satisfying.
Eat to satiety - there is nothing spartan about a well formulated ketogenic diet.
Have a cup of boullion morning or evening.
Try bulletproof coffee.
The appetite suppressing goodness of ketones will soon kick in.0 -
I agree. Hang in there, If you are eating enough you'll feel fewer cravings soon.0
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Goooosfraba333 wrote: »On day three of this...
What I wouldn't give for a sandwich with fluffy wheat bread. Or an ice cream cone. Or potatoes. Oh God...Must be dehydrated if I'm craving this bad,right?
Anyway, I know feeling under the weather is typical...does that mean that I'm on my way to ketosis? Or does the keto-flu happen even if your carbs are low, but still too high for ketosis?...if that makes sense. A little foggy today.
You have to be under 40 grams carbs a day to get into Ketosis. Then you have to consistently do this without interruption for a minimum of two to six weeks. This will make you "Keto Adapted". Keto adapted will cause many of your hormones to change to adapt to the new fuel your body is using = fatty acids (Ketones).
Secondly, carbs are an addiction, you may be going through withdrawals. As a former carboholic, I still get some yearnings to go back. But I can't, I instantly gain weight and the cravings.
If you are drinking a lot of diet/zero calorie beverages, stop altogether. Start drinking tea & plain water. These things, excessively consumed, will cause cravings in most people. I say most, because there are some that can handle them on Keto, but many can't. I can have a small amount, (one or two packets of splenda a day) without too much difficulty.
You have to watch your electrolytes carefully when on this diet, or you will get the flu-like symptoms. When your liver changes over to producing ketone instead of glucose, AND the added water you should be drinking per day (8 cups min) - both of these together ~ will flush the electrolytes out of your body ~ and you will feel miserable and yucky.
Here is one link to this: (although there are many on Goggle)
"Keto-flu" and Sufficient Intake of Electrolytes
And some remedies:
Are You Having Charlie horse/leg cramps?
Need Potassium?
Since you have hypoglycemia, that could complicate things. Since the Keto diet corrects the "High" glucose side of the the metabolic syndromes (Diabetes), I'm not sure how it will do with the "Low" side of the metabolic disorders. I would certainly keep that orange juice or other high glycemic food around to mitigate the problem ~ if you should go low. (But you knew that already).
I was an insulin taking diabetic for years and years and I hated going low. It was one of the most horrible feelings a person could have. So be careful...
Your diary isn't public, so I am not certain how low on the carbs are you going and there is a difference between a "Low Carb" diet and a "Keto" diet. A Keto diet is much more rigorous and involves tracking carb counts with much more accuracy than a Low carb diet. Weight loss is greater on Keto diet than a low carb diet.
If you want to see the differences between the two, go here:
DittoDan's Keto Sub Groups Blog
I hope this helps,
Dan the Man from Michigan
Keto / IF / Sedentary
100 pounds down, 24 to go.
Blog #10 Keto: Abbreviations, Acronyms & Terminology Used on the LCD & Keto Discussion Groups Updated
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The first two days my total carbs we're in the 50's. That's because I ended up eating a Kind Almond protein bar that had 15 carbs...yesterday I felt comfortable cutting that out, and my total carbs were 38 for the day I believe. I have been eating bacon and eggs daily. Other than that, I eat relatively normal...I have just replaced higher Carb sides for lower Carb veggies instead. Yesterday I had a little cucumber, tomato, mini sweet pepper, mushrooms, and brocolli. Love my veggies. I have been measuring everything by the gram though to stay as accurate as I can. Other than those, it's meat and cheese. Maybe eventually some nuts.taking Also want to try chia pudding maybe.
I feel a lot better this time around compared to the first. I'm taking fish oil, magnesium with sodium and potassium in it, a multivitamin and I have broth if I need it. I've also been fasting for 16 or more hours daily and avoiding fat bombs. I've never been a fan of zero calorie, sweetened stuff...too sketchy for me. I'm much more satisfied and surprisingly my blood sugars stay mid to low 80's at the lowest. I made sure to acclimate to the fasting before coming back to low Carb though.
I'm going to put my diary to public, and keep on going. Maybe I'll try to keep my carbs in the 30's from now on. I'm pretty active so doesn't that make a different I.e. I get a slight amount of Carb wiggle room?0 -
Just looked at some of my blood work results from yesterday...been in and out of hospital for semi non-related issues...and my blood sugar was 70 and I wasn't fasting at that point. But I mean, I would've never guessed because I felt fine. So back to checking more consistently for a while.0
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Goooosfraba… you may notice cravings and other oddities the longer you are in LC..some people are rewarded with never wanting carbs again by eating more fat….( even our Moderators admit to eating candy and 'forbidden carbs')
I found 6 months into LCHF that i DO still have cravings now and then…if I eat more fat I am also adding lots more calories…and find it got harder to stick to 1400 calories. the "eat til full" dont count calories is obviously not for me
What I think happens ( each of us different) is my body is now fighting to stay at the weight I was for years..it LIKES this weight..kinda comfy there…..so it makes me "more hungry" than ever before.. the last week has been a fight to stay under even 1800 calories!!! and I lost the battle several times.. NOT eating candy, or bread, or lots of carbs or cake, etc…just telling me "I am hungry, dang it..now go eat!"
Trying to stay <30 carbs was easy the first 4 months, then in month 5 I got a horrible flu, wound up in the ER, and haven't been the same since.
So it may be a combo of things that occur…hopefully not to you! but be prepared, and stick to the plan.
I like this WOE for life..so I am just "observing" this behavior..and going to let it all work out. the worst is that I don't lose for a while..fine by me…eventually something will change,
Letting my body TRUST this lifestyle.0 -
KETOGENICGURL wrote: »I like this WOE for life..so I am just "observing" this behavior..and going to let it all work out. the worst is that I don't lose for a while..fine by me…eventually something will change,
Letting my body TRUST this lifestyle.
This is why I'm doing this. It just makes the most sense to me and is something I believe I could easily do long term. So far, the cravings I've had have been tough, but I've gotten through them...which is a minor miracle. I'm trying to listen to my body and eat what I need...usually averaging 1800-1900 give or take on some days...which is a decent deficit for me. I'm hoping as my body adjusts more, it'll be even easier and I won't have to even count calories. I actually don't even find myself limiting calories as it is, but I like to be safe.
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As a major carb abuser for 40 years I had to leave them cold turkey because I could not taper off of carbs. The first two weeks were hellish but after two weeks the craving started fading fast. After 30 days my pain level dropped like a rock. Weight loss did not start for 45 days. IBS started to resolve about day 120 and was gone by 180 days.
If you can get pass the addiction like feelings you may be home free at last. Hang in there.0 -
Oh goodness! I am so glad that this can and most likely will help my IBS! Thats been a huge concern, because so many people say eat this much fiber, with this much oatmeal/quinoa/wholegrain bread cereal whatever. A majority of that stuff still makes my blood sugar crash. For the moment though, IBS is literally the worst it's ever been in my entire life...ugh. Trying to stick it out and let my body do what it's got to do.0
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Fee free to exercise a bit, doing cardio as you are able, to burn that sugar out of your system.
Your body will use up the glycogen in it as you eat less carbs to replenish it
You can also just burn it up as fuel.
It may be a bit early on if you are feeling crappy. But burning it out speeds the clearing of sugar from your system
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I used to take probiotics for IBS and that helped me a lot. I didn't stop taking them until about a month or so into keto.0
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I was too sick yesterday and the day before to exercise due to IBS issues, but got 10k steps today! That should also help keep things moving. I suppose it's time I go back on probiotics for a while so I don't end up in the hospital again like this weekend...are fiber supplements okay too? I'm assuming so.0
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Not sure about fiber supplements. I guess you could just log them. If they help, I'd say go for it.
I found relief with just probiotics myself.0 -
Or make flax crackers. They are so easy and with their crunch I'm amazed more ppl don't use them! They are five carbs a serving a whole four of those carbs are straight fiber, making them only one net carb a serving (5 Wheat Thin sized crackers). And they make a terrific vehicle for all those things chips and crackers used to be used for - high fat dips!0
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For fiber I use unsweetened coconut flakes. 15g (2 tablespoons) give 4g of carbs and 4 grams of dietary fiber with a total of 105 calories which 90 are from fat. This fits my macro very well.
When the IBS started to clear up I had the opposite problem and the coconut flakes was my solution. Traveling without IBS is much more fun for sure.
I have yet to learn one downside health wise to LCHF personally. Actually I can make do with coconut flakes/almonds/water if traveling or keto eating is hard to find on the road.0 -
GaleHawkins wrote: »For fiber I use unsweetened coconut flakes. 15g (2 tablespoons) give 4g of carbs and 4 grams of dietary fiber with a total of 105 calories which 90 are from fat. This fits my macro very well.
When the IBS started to clear up I had the opposite problem and the coconut flakes was my solution. Traveling without IBS is much more fun for sure.
I have yet to learn one downside health wise to LCHF personally. Actually I can make do with coconut flakes/almonds/water if traveling or keto eating is hard to find on the road.
Question: Don't laugh, do the coconut flakes taste like coconut? Breakfast & Dinner are working fine for me Lunch is giving me trouble. I'm looking to make a smoothie, and a few veggies to munch on. I would gladly trade mayo for the flakes.
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KenSmith108 wrote: »Question: Don't laugh, do the coconut flakes taste like coconut? Breakfast & Dinner are working fine for me Lunch is giving me trouble. I'm looking to make a smoothie, and a few veggies to munch on. I would gladly trade mayo for the flakes.
Yes, esp. if you toast them. If you don't like coconut flavor, try making the flax crackers or those cheese melt "crackers" for snacking. Or nuts? judiciously, because high cals.0 -
Goooosfraba333 wrote: »I was too sick yesterday and the day before to exercise due to IBS issues, but got 10k steps today! That should also help keep things moving. I suppose it's time I go back on probiotics for a while so I don't end up in the hospital again like this weekend...are fiber supplements okay too? I'm assuming so.
@Goooosfraba333 it's a week later. How are you feeling?
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KenSmith108 wrote: »GaleHawkins wrote: »For fiber I use unsweetened coconut flakes. 15g (2 tablespoons) give 4g of carbs and 4 grams of dietary fiber with a total of 105 calories which 90 are from fat. This fits my macro very well.
When the IBS started to clear up I had the opposite problem and the coconut flakes was my solution. Traveling without IBS is much more fun for sure.
I have yet to learn one downside health wise to LCHF personally. Actually I can make do with coconut flakes/almonds/water if traveling or keto eating is hard to find on the road.
Question: Don't laugh, do the coconut flakes taste like coconut? Breakfast & Dinner are working fine for me Lunch is giving me trouble. I'm looking to make a smoothie, and a few veggies to munch on. I would gladly trade mayo for the flakes.
@KenSmith108 yes other than being dry they taste like fresh cracked coconut to me. The wife gets them at Wal-Mart I am sure. Wild Oats Organic unsweetened flake Coconut is on the front of the bag I am eating out of as I type. 15 grams (2 tablespoons) have 10 grams of fat, 4 grams of carbs, 4 grams of dietary fiber, 1 gram of sugar and <1 gram of protein for 105 calories with 90 calories being from fat. They will keep well in most any environment.
The wife and both of our 17 year old kids are on the look out for things that I can eat and stay very low carb. The daughter is always finding new zero/very low carb food items for me to try. No sure about the son but I know the daughter and wife are toying with low carb foods.
My weight loss and health recovery for an old man on the edge is really awesome in the eyes of those who really care about me. More obese people are asking me questions that knew me when my BMI was 35.
I will try to answer any questions asked about my life changes due to changing my diet. It is really very simple. I just stopped eating/drinking more than 50 grams of carbs daily. The sad part it took me 40 years of suffering before I understood and acted on that understanding.
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