"Carb Flu" ?? Feelling Horrible

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bubingadrummer
bubingadrummer Posts: 33
in Motivation and Support
Does anybody know about this topic? Today has been a real hard day. I am having major crash and feel terrible. I have not been able to eat but half a salad today. Headache, fatigued, shaky, flush, anxious, and just out of it. I think it may be what they call a "carb flu" because today is day 8 with lowering my carb intake to only 50 grams a day. If you look through my diary you can see that I am also on a calorie deficit diet as well. Do you guys think skipping the gym tonight would be a copout or because of the lack of energy and calorie intake I would probably wind up feeling even worse justifying the miss and making it up another day? I would appreciate any help. Also, what do you guys think about protein shakes being on a low carb diet at night after the gym to replace dinner? Thanks!!
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  • marypatmccue
    marypatmccue Posts: 521 Member
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    Uhm... So, no, I've never heard of the "carb flu" but, may I ask why you're not eating more than 50g of carbs daily? And, ...... why on earth are you eating that little??

    Taso, Steel, Dan... HELP THIS MAN OUT! He's gonna get hangry....
  • KatieJane83
    KatieJane83 Posts: 2,002 Member
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    I, also, have no idea what a "carb flu" is, and am also wondering why you're going so low in your carbs.

    What i notice though, is that you are seriously undereating. I didn't see a single day where you hit your calorie goal and most days you were under by close to, if not over, 1,000 calories!!

    My advice: EAT MORE
  • psych0kitty
    psych0kitty Posts: 313
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    You probably feel terrible because you're missing like 700-1000 calories daily. =/
  • mwaid
    mwaid Posts: 19
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    You are a brave soul to take down your carbs. I tried it for two weeks when I was in my teens and just about died. Since carbs can have an effect on your blood glucose level, you may be cutting down too low. Especially if you do a lot of cardio exercise. So all the symptoms may just be withdraw pangs. Be super careful. I would speak with a nutritionist if it doesn't get better. Good luck!
  • marypatmccue
    marypatmccue Posts: 521 Member
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    I, also, have no idea what a "carb flu" is, and am also wondering why you're going so low in your carbs.

    What i notice though, is that you are seriously undereating. I didn't see a single day where you hit your calorie goal and most days you were under by close to, if not over, 1,000 calories!!

    My advice: EAT MORE

    See... I'm a genius. But seriously, look at my friends list, reach out to SideSteel, Taso, HeyBales, or HelloitsDan... You'll be glad you did.

    *hands you a cupcake*
    I think this should make you feel better!
  • concordancia
    concordancia Posts: 5,320 Member
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    You probably feel terrible because you're missing like 700-1000 calories daily. =/

    This sounds like the most likely explanation. By day 8, you would be adjusted to lower carbs if you were ever going to adjust. However, few people adjust well to starvation.
  • awonin
    awonin Posts: 10 Member
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    If you feel terrible and can't work out then eat. You may be getting the real flu it is everywhere right now anyway. I have decided I am eating a reasonable amount and exercising instead of starving. It is working much better than what I did in the past and I have more energy not less. I have lost 5 lbs as well and am in it for the long haul.:smile:
  • dangerxbadger
    dangerxbadger Posts: 396 Member
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    "Eat more carbs" isn't the answer, but EAT MORE most certainly is. I, too, took a look at your diary. You can't keep having huge 500-600 calorie burns and not eat all of that back, ESPECIALLY if you're on a LCHF diet. If I don't hit my calorie goals within 100 AT LEAST, I feel like crap. Eat moar baconz. ;)
  • bubingadrummer
    bubingadrummer Posts: 33
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    Thanks everybody. I think you are all right. My calorie deficit is huge but I though you needed a deficit of at least 500 to loose weight. I think Im going to start bumpijg my calorie intake. I really cant stand this feeling.
  • RMNPHike
    RMNPHike Posts: 89 Member
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    You're just setting yourself up to gain it all back and then some. If you feel terrible, you are doing something wrong and your body is warning you, but you are not listening. You do NOT have to cut carbs to 50g per day to get to and maintain a normal weight, and you definitely do not need to cut your calories so low. I'm assuming you are a guy, that means you could probably lose weight on 2000 calories a day (as a petite, 5'2' woman, I can do it on 1200 - 1400). Stop starving yourself. You need carbs to function properly. Just make sure they are good ones. Stop trying to lose a lot of weight fast and do something you can actually stand to do indefinitely, not for a few weeks just to lose weight quick. We are too impatient with this stuff and it doesn't work that way.
  • dangerxbadger
    dangerxbadger Posts: 396 Member
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    Also, you need to be subtracting your fiber from your carbs. Example: If your goal is 50/day, but you eat 20g of fiber, then you've only net 30. This could also help the crashy feeling. But yeah. Seriously. Eat more, increase your fat (that is the cornerstone of any paleo/LCHF diet) and drink at least a gallon of water a day. I'm not joking. EDITED TO ADD: Have you figured out your TDEE/BMR? That 500 number you threw out seems a little generic and flippant. Check this link out to figure out exactly what you should be doing:
    http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/
  • ambervaldez79
    ambervaldez79 Posts: 210 Member
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    I had something similar when I temporarily cut out grains, bread, pasta, etc. I felt like death for about 4 days and then the fog lifted.
  • concordancia
    concordancia Posts: 5,320 Member
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    Also, you need to be subtracting your fiber from your carbs. Example: If your goal is 50/day, but you eat 20g of fiber, then you've only net 30. This could also help the crashy feeling. But yeah. Seriously. Eat more, increase your fat (that is the cornerstone of any paleo/LCHF diet) and drink at least a gallon of water a day. I'm not joking.

    He is counting net carbs.
  • RMNPHike
    RMNPHike Posts: 89 Member
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    P.S. You might want to check your cholesterol before hitting the bacon real heavy. I know this high fat idea is all the rage, but it matters what kind of fat, too. I thought the cholesterol going out the roof due to a high animal fat diet was just a "girl thing" (I made the mistake of trying Atkins 7 years ago), but then I talked to a guy friend who had the same thing happen to him on Atkins.
  • dangerxbadger
    dangerxbadger Posts: 396 Member
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    Also, you need to be subtracting your fiber from your carbs. Example: If your goal is 50/day, but you eat 20g of fiber, then you've only net 30. This could also help the crashy feeling. But yeah. Seriously. Eat more, increase your fat (that is the cornerstone of any paleo/LCHF diet) and drink at least a gallon of water a day. I'm not joking.

    He is counting net carbs.


    No. He isn't. If his target is 50(as the original post says) and yesterday he hit 52, but his fiber was 21, 52-21=31.
  • bubingadrummer
    bubingadrummer Posts: 33
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    All right, Im goin to try to up my calorie intake. I didn't know you could loose weight while almost meeting your calorie goal. I DO NOT want to burn out and quit.
  • dangerxbadger
    dangerxbadger Posts: 396 Member
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    All right, Im goin to try to up my calorie intake. I didn't know you could loose weight while almost meeting your calorie goal. I DO NOT want to burn out and quit.

    God. yes. Yes you can. MFP underestimates nearly EVERYONE's caloric needs, which is why I recommended Scooby's calculator to figure out what you can eat and still lose. BUT. If you use the TDEE calculation, don't plan on eating your exercise calories back.
  • KatieJane83
    KatieJane83 Posts: 2,002 Member
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    All right, Im goin to try to up my calorie intake. I didn't know you could loose weight while almost meeting your calorie goal. I DO NOT want to burn out and quit.

    The calorie goal that MFP gives you ALREADY has the deficit built into it. That's why, when you plug in your exercise calories, MFP gives them back to you to eat.

    Not sure what weight loss/week goal you put into MFP but with the target it gave you of 1,750 calories, that's probably already a 500-1,000 cal deficit. Any calories you burn during exercise are only increasing that deficit even more.
  • Willowana
    Willowana Posts: 493 Member
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    I was eating 1200. I felt like crap and stopped losing weight. I bumped up to 1400, started losing, but slooooowly. Bumped up to 1600, and I'm losing like a boss. Sometimes, if I work out a lot, I might even go up to 1700-1800.

    Personally (and before I get my *kitten* flamed, this is my opinion) I don't subscribe to the theory that carbs are bad. Or that carbs stop your weightloss. I lost 75 lbs on Weight Watchers four years ago. I ate as many carbs as I wanted. Granted, most of the carbs came from fruits/veggies, but i love my whole grain bread. Especially the sprouted kind from the whole foods store.

    The MOST trouble I get into is:

    1) I'm not eating enough
    or
    2) I'm eating too much

    I haven't seen enough validated research that says carbs are going to kill me. All my blood tests are in the perfectly healthy range, and I lost a substantial amount of weight in previous times without paying any attention to my carbs.....at all.
  • sindikumva
    sindikumva Posts: 66
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    eat something substantial and go to the gym

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