lack of energy
1234usmc
Posts: 196 Member
I see posts like this occasionally and here is mine. I have been eating low carb for over a month and I have zero energy. My running has really regressed. I don't log or track. I don't think I have hit ketosis but that's a guess. I'm pretty sure my carbs are well under 50 most days. My weight hasn't changed either. My wife is all over me that I need some carbs for energy. I'm kind of scared to eat more fat since my weight isn't dropping already. Not sure what to do. I am sure I eat to much protein compared to fat. Will adding more fat truly help my energy if I am not in ketosis? If I greatly reduce my carbs compared to before but go back to eating a little fruit or bread or whatever, would I still gain the benefit of lower blood sugar. I know that's a lot, I am just frustrated. I am sick of salad, I know that☺☺I am getting my a1c checked in a few weeks, I am really hoping it is better. That would atleast give me some confidence that this is helping and worth the energy loss. Thx
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Extra fat will fix the energy level. Trust the process and give it time. I forget how long you've been at this, but it's not instantaneous weight loss. The extra fat keeps the energy and hormone levels at the right spot.0
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I see posts like this occasionally and here is mine. I have been eating low carb for over a month and I have zero energy. My running has really regressed. I don't log or track. I don't think I have hit ketosis but that's a guess. I'm pretty sure my carbs are well under 50 most days. My weight hasn't changed either. My wife is all over me that I need some carbs for energy. I'm kind of scared to eat more fat since my weight isn't dropping already. Not sure what to do. I am sure I eat to much protein compared to fat. Will adding more fat truly help my energy if I am not in ketosis? If I greatly reduce my carbs compared to before but go back to eating a little fruit or bread or whatever, would I still gain the benefit of lower blood sugar. I know that's a lot, I am just frustrated. I am sick of salad, I know that☺☺I am getting my a1c checked in a few weeks, I am really hoping it is better. That would atleast give me some confidence that this is helping and worth the energy loss. Thx
If I didn't log or track, I'd be at a loss to know what's going on. Waiting 3 months to get a report is a long time for me to be in the dark. Good records help with decisions, good or bad. YMMV
I didn't jump into LC, I eased into it. I dropped my macros 5 or 10% a week till I wound up at 5%, my bg#s kept getting better so I kept lowering the carbs, without logging I'm not sure I would have been as successful.
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If you're under 50g's of carb, then you're guaranteed to be in ketosis. Fat will increase the level of ketones, but how's your sodium intake? That'll be the biggest factor if you're feeling fatigued or light-headed, especially if you're exercising.0
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Opinion alert!
I would start logging your food. It can be a bit of a pain, but if you do not log you have no way to objectively measure or form an opinion on what is going on in your body.
You could be in ketosis and having a longer case of the keto flu - do you exercise a lot? It appears you are in the Marine Corp (thank you!), so PT is a way of life. PT can be difficult in ketosis until you are fully keto adapted.
You could be flirting on the edge of ketosis or not getting there at all because of what I call "creeping carbs" - eating more carbs than you realize. In that case PT would be hell!
You said "I am sick of salad". Eating massive salad is NOT a ketogenic diet! And if your wife thinks you need carbs for energy (which you DO if you aren't keto adapted) she is probably feeding you them!
Extra fat WILL NOT fix your energy level if you aren't in ketosis.
Being "pretty sure" your carbs are under 50 won't cut it. You will eventually give up on this way of eating and then conclude that it didn't work, when in actuality you never tried it.
Good luck, and don't give up without actually doing this!0 -
I would guess I am on that fence of not being in ketosis, so I am not getting energy from fat and I am not eating enough carbs. Trying to log will be tough because I travel most Weekes for work. Thats why so many salads. Out of the choices at a restaurant, that seems about the best. I just pick the crutons off and go light on the dressing. I admit most of my lack of logging is laziness, but part is not knowing what to log. I am basically eating no sugar, bread, pasta, potatoes or fruit. Mostly protein and salad. Lots of eggs. I wouldn't say I have keto flu, I don't feel horrible, just zero stamina or energy. Thanks for your input.0
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Thinking about what I have been eating and doing research, I think my carbs are low but my protein may be to high. How do I get more fat and still eat food?0
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Put butter on your food ! I put butter on everything, eggs, meat, veggies, and in my coffee. BPC gives me tons of energy and I can go all day without eating, then eat supper until I am full. Until I upped my fat intake, my energy level suffered and my weight loss stalled.0
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Thinking about what I have been eating and doing research, I think my carbs are low but my protein may be to high. How do I get more fat and still eat food?
Sounds like a lot of guesswork. You are logging, right? You don't need any extra fat in your diet unless your calories are so low as to cause fatigue -- unlikely IMHO.
If your carbs are consistently below 150g or so, you are making ketones. Period. On the days when you exercise and/or further restrict carbs, you are making a LOT of ketones. If you are making a lot of ketones, you need a lot of sodium.0 -
I try to workout 5 days a week. I probably do need sodium, I don't salt anything unless it comes in it. Just got off of BP meds so I'm used to no salt. Started trying to drink powered zero to get some electrolytes. It is guess work, you are all right. I am sure my carbs are low enough, my protein is apparently way to high. I need to replace some low fat protein with some fat I think.0
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Thinking about what I have been eating and doing research, I think my carbs are low but my protein may be to high. How do I get more fat and still eat food?
I don't know how many times I've said: "Is this really a diet????"
I get butter heavy cream olive oil full fat salad dressing
and my food cooked in bacon fat lemon butter sauce
don't have to trim fat off meat
Not to mention I get to have all my favorite veggies with butter on them
I can go to the diner and have a great meal and easily stay LCHF.
To think I was firmly in the ADA camp, what a great WOE change.
If you need ideas take a look at my diary, you'll see just how easy this WOE is.
As a bonus check out my diabetes log, that's the most important part to me.
Oh yeah, I almost forgot, I lost 58 lbs so far.
"Is this really a diet?" "I don't know"
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I would guess I am on that fence of not being in ketosis, so I am not getting energy from fat and I am not eating enough carbs. Trying to log will be tough because I travel most Weekes for work. Thats why so many salads. Out of the choices at a restaurant, that seems about the best. I just pick the crutons off and go light on the dressing. I admit most of my lack of logging is laziness, but part is not knowing what to log. I am basically eating no sugar, bread, pasta, potatoes or fruit. Mostly protein and salad. Lots of eggs. I wouldn't say I have keto flu, I don't feel horrible, just zero stamina or energy. Thanks for your input.
I keep my carbs very low (well below 50g) so if I had a salad it would be a side order, and I would go heavy on the dressing. The other day I had 1 cup of broccoli slaw, and I used about 1.5 tablespoons of (sugar-free) dressing. I ate it along with a big piece of meat.
I agree that logging may help. Do you have the app on your phone? That would make it easier to log if you are away. Otherwise, logging during the week will give you a better idea of where you stand.
BTW, I eased into ketosis too, and I sort of wished I hadn't. I had about two weeks of eating low-ish carbs before I consistently stayed below 50g and stayed in ketosis. After that, my energy came up fast, within 5 days.... That and a glass of salt water in the morning.0 -
As someone that eats salad quite a lot, I make sure to add meat to it and I use a lot of full fat dressing to get enough fat.
My favorite is a buffalo chicken salad. Buffalo sauce is just butter and hot sauce, so there's some good healthy fat right there. The chicken gives me a good amount of protein and then with about 2 cups of lettuce and about 3-4 Tbs blue cheese dressing and maybe even a little cheese too, it can definitely fit a keto diet.0 -
That's what I usually get, buffalo chicken0
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I agree with wabmester, sodium is probably the key here for more energy. When I'm doing low carb around 50g or below a day, if I'm feeling weak or tired, I pour some lite salt with potassium in my water bottle. After a couple bottles of that I start to perk up. I too drink powerade zero but it doesn't have a ton of sodium, not as compared to bone broth, so it might not be helping as much as you need0
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More ELECTROLYTES! salt, salt, salt. Easiest troubleshoot. If that doesn't work, maybe your deficit is too high. If so more fats. (but keep a deficit).
You're an active person? Then salads probably aren't kicking you out of NK. I'd start weighing if you wanna know what you're actually eating, though
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