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Working out Keto - Not Losing

jsand74
jsand74 Posts: 4 Member
edited December 21 in Social Groups
I have been keto for the last year and half. I have lost 81 pounds. I still have about 50 pounds to go. Up until about 4 weeks ago, I was not exercising. I started at a gym doing a 6 week challenge. This challenge includes nutritional counseling from my trainer. I explained my lifestyle and they have worked with me to try to keep my macros in line with my LC way of life. But they have insisted that I needed to up my carbs a little bit, at least before a workout. I played along since it didn't really put me up too much, trying to reserve my carb intake to a preworkout snack or meal. Now, 4 weeks in, I'm stronger, my stamina is better and my clothes are a tiny bit different, but I am not seeing ANY weight loss and very very little in terms of inches. I am very frustrated because I feel like I am doing all the right things, but not really getting any validation that I am on the right path. Has anyone experienced this? This is the first time since I have started this journey that I am doubting myself and have thought about just giving up.

Replies

  • tcunbeliever
    tcunbeliever Posts: 8,219 Member
    There's actually a lot of water retention that comes with working out, particularly if working out is a new thing for your body, so I wouldn't stress the scale too much. Also, an increase in carbs is going to cause water retention as well. The inches though, you should be able to see a solid 1% change in body fat each week if you are working out hard and adhering to food goals. Do you know what your projected loss was supposed to be based on what they gave you for goals? Is it possible that your calorie intake is too high, or that you are estimating more generously due to more appetite? You don't have your diary open, so I'm just guessing at this point.
  • Sunny_Bunny_
    Sunny_Bunny_ Posts: 7,140 Member
    You don’t need the carbs for working out or a pre workout snack.
    If you want it, I guess go for it, but it’s not necessary.
    Definitely take a good dose of electrolytes prior though and I don’t mean Gatorade. I mean sodium mostly but if you want to make ketoade or snake juice or sole water or whatever thing people are doing now, then do that.
    Also, it’s almost a certainty that people gain weight when they start working out. You retain water.
    Also, you can lose fat without losing scale weight.
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  • Violet_Flux
    Violet_Flux Posts: 481 Member
    Ditto what the others said about water retention. Especially when new to doing the workouts.

    Also keep in mind muscle weighs more than fat, so you may be seeing losses in fat and gains in muscle - especialy as you said, you're stronger, got bettter stamina and clothes are fitting different.

    FWIW we do all our workouts fasted. No need for a carb boost before or after. We do IF and our cardio first thing in the morning, so when we start the workout we're already like about 14 hours fasted.
  • cstehansen
    cstehansen Posts: 1,984 Member
    I have been working out since I was a teenager. When I went keto, I did notice a slight drop in performance. Carbs were not the answer. Increased protein is what helped me. From a weight loss standpoint, protein is more satiating which helps control overall food intake. From the muscle building standpoint, nothing is better than protein. Protein is also able to be converted to glucose by your body IF NEEDED.

    There are 2 primary reasons for pushing carbs ahead of a work out. The first is for the energy with the thought that you need the glucose to fuel the activity. When looking at this logically, it doesn't make sense - especially if you are trying to lose weight.

    You have 2000-2500 calories worth of glucose stored in your muscles and liver in the form of glycogen. Unless you are running a marathon, you are not going to burn through all of that in a single workout. Therefore, you have enough glucose supply to fuel the level of activity you are likely doing.

    That activity will deplete some of that glycogen. Over the next few hours, your body will replace it. This will be done, if you are keto, through gluconeogenesis (the creation of glucose from either protein or fat). Assuming you are fat adapted, each time you are burning fat, the glycerol backbone of the triglycerides being burned is one source being used for this process. This is what you want to have happen. Burn the existing glucose stored in your body and replace it with fat pulled from your body. It is like eating what is in your fridge and replacing it with what is stored in the freezer. Keep doing this without replacing what is in the freezer, and eventually that freezer will be empty.

    The second reason is because carbs spike insulin and insulin, in addition to helping store fat, helps to stimulate muscle growth. However, protein also raises insulin, although not nearly as much. It does raise it enough to stimulate muscle growth, so there is no reason to spike it further with carbs unless you are looking to become a competitive body builder.

    There is also more than enough evidence in the scientific literature (look up Jeff Volek's work as an example) showing exercise in a fasted state is as good or better than in a fed state. I personally have been doing morning work outs in a fasted state for years with above average results. Here is a fairly short video giving some of this evidence if you are interested:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6d0DZklfCEo

    People can respond differently, so I always encourage self-experimentation. In this case, it sounds as though you have been doing a self-experiment which is not working, so maybe it is time to change it up.
  • canadjineh
    canadjineh Posts: 5,396 Member
    FWIW, when I taught fitness classes I was usually in a fasted state (unless it was the evening Athlete-Fit). There was never a problem with energy & that was for 25 years of teaching. Water and electrolytes, though - those are necessary!
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