The first few days of low carb / keto

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francesca_grey
francesca_grey Posts: 96 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I have been eating this way off and on for over 15 years and whenever I go back after a period of eating high carb the first few days are always so rough! I'm not craving any food but the hunger is there and the brain fog and other "flu" symptoms are the worst, I haven't been able to get any work done for 2 days and have been trolling the internet nonstop.

I've loaded up on water, magnesium and salt. Today is a scheduled rest day but I worked out 3 days (my normal amount) earlier this week. I've had some fat but not a lot because I am cutting and just don't want to :smile: Anything else I am forgetting? Should I eat more fat? How have you gotten through the first week of adapting?

At the very least I will report back to this thread when my symptoms subside. I know this rough short period will be worth it in the smooth long run.

Replies

  • Johnmacmil
    Johnmacmil Posts: 1 Member
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    I’m surprised you are using this App on Keto.
    I have tried it and love it for its excercises but it doesn’t seem very well geared to us Low Carb High Fat eaters.
  • maureenkhilde
    maureenkhilde Posts: 850 Member
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    There is a lower Carb Forum group, that has a number of posts, and some activity that covers much of what you are asking.
    There are lots of people on MFP using low carb and or keto.
    Just not always lots of information on the main message boards.
  • francesca_grey
    francesca_grey Posts: 96 Member
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    @maureenkhilde thank you! I did not know about the groups when I posted this, I figured the LCers were hanging around somewhere.
  • francesca_grey
    francesca_grey Posts: 96 Member
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    After I posted this I doubled the amount of salt I was already having and felt much better. Ate more salt before I went to the gym and had one of the best workouts I've had in months. Still dealing with brain fog but I don't feel awful anymore. Lesson learned and leaving this here in case it helps anyone else.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,897 Member
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    Johnmacmil wrote: »
    I’m surprised you are using this App on Keto.
    I have tried it and love it for its excercises but it doesn’t seem very well geared to us Low Carb High Fat eaters.

    You can change your macros here: https://www.myfitnesspal.com/account/my_goals/daily_nutrition_goals
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,897 Member
    edited December 2019
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    The Low Carber Daily group is an active group with lots of info about Keto: https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/394-low-carber-daily-forum

    There's also a keto specific group but I believe it is less active.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,389 MFP Moderator
    edited December 2019
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    chickencereal wrote: »
    After I posted this I doubled the amount of salt I was already having and felt much better. Ate more salt before I went to the gym and had one of the best workouts I've had in months. Still dealing with brain fog but I don't feel awful anymore. Lesson learned and leaving this here in case it helps anyone else.

    You can look at keto-aid if you have brain fog. Overall, you probably want to aim for 3500-5000mg of sodium a day. So salt everything. I would recommend a higher quality salt (something with iodine). Additionally, ensure you are consuming foods high in potassium.

    What are your calories looking like? What about your macros?
  • nytrifisoul
    nytrifisoul Posts: 500 Member
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    Man, this diet sounds rough. And i thought my 20/4 fasting diet was rough for most people.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,389 MFP Moderator
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    nytrifisoul wrote: »
    Man, this diet sounds rough. And i thought my 20/4 fasting diet was rough for most people.

    It's all relative. I find it very easy and aligns nicely to my natural way of eating which tends to be very meat & fish focused. My wife needs a bit more carbs and enjoy's low carb.
  • ewlf84
    ewlf84 Posts: 5 Member
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    I am interested in doing both Keto and intermittent fasting together, but should I start both at the same time?
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,389 MFP Moderator
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    ewlf84 wrote: »
    I am interested in doing both Keto and intermittent fasting together, but should I start both at the same time?

    Depends on the extent of your knowledge base. If you haven't run keto before, I would chose one (probably fasting) until you can fully educate yourself. There are a few nuances with Keto (electrolytes) that you should be aware of and be ready to address so you don't run into issues.
  • nytrifisoul
    nytrifisoul Posts: 500 Member
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    psuLemon wrote: »
    nytrifisoul wrote: »
    Man, this diet sounds rough. And i thought my 20/4 fasting diet was rough for most people.

    It's all relative. I find it very easy and aligns nicely to my natural way of eating which tends to be very meat & fish focused. My wife needs a bit more carbs and enjoy's low carb.

    The thing is, I am not even a bread/pasta person. But a lot of my fruits and vegetables put me way over the maximum carbs for ketosis. Thats about all i researched Keto before i came to the conclusion Keto is not for me.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,389 MFP Moderator
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    nytrifisoul wrote: »
    psuLemon wrote: »
    nytrifisoul wrote: »
    Man, this diet sounds rough. And i thought my 20/4 fasting diet was rough for most people.

    It's all relative. I find it very easy and aligns nicely to my natural way of eating which tends to be very meat & fish focused. My wife needs a bit more carbs and enjoy's low carb.

    The thing is, I am not even a bread/pasta person. But a lot of my fruits and vegetables put me way over the maximum carbs for ketosis. Thats about all i researched Keto before i came to the conclusion Keto is not for me.

    That is certainly fair. For me, it started as an experiment to help my wife. But while she transitioned to LC, I stayed keto. Overall, there is a high probably, that I will cycle with the seasons. During the summer, I am more likely to be lower carb so I can consume more fruit and winter will be keto. There could also be variation when I decide to bulk after I finish with this cut. I don't have a lot of confidence in keto bulking as a solid approach.
  • francesca_grey
    francesca_grey Posts: 96 Member
    edited December 2019
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    psuLemon wrote: »
    You can look at keto-aid if you have brain fog. Overall, you probably want to aim for 3500-5000mg of sodium a day. So salt everything. I would recommend a higher quality salt (something with iodine). Additionally, ensure you are consuming foods high in potassium.

    Thank you! I am eating 70-75% of my TDEE and aiming for 50-60g carbs a day. I have a medical condition that messes with my electrolytes and cardiovascular system so my doc wants me to consume about 4000-5000mg of sodium daily but that wasn’t enough. I was eating way more carbs than usual because of Thanksgiving and I just finished a long recomping/bulking period. I guess that sudden loss of water while staying consistent with my training schedule messed with me pretty bad.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,389 MFP Moderator
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    chickencereal wrote: »
    psuLemon wrote: »
    You can look at keto-aid if you have brain fog. Overall, you probably want to aim for 3500-5000mg of sodium a day. So salt everything. I would recommend a higher quality salt (something with iodine). Additionally, ensure you are consuming foods high in potassium.

    Thank you! I am eating 70-75% of my TDEE and aiming for 50-60g carbs a day. I have a medical condition that messes with my electrolytes and cardiovascular system so my doc wants me to consume about 4000-5000mg of sodium daily but that wasn’t enough. I was eating way more carbs than usual because of Thanksgiving and I just finished a long recomping/bulking period. I guess that sudden loss of water while staying consistent with my training schedule messed with me pretty bad.

    Do you have POTS or something similar? My wife has that and aim for 6000mg +. She salts everything.

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