My scale won't budge.

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Hi all! I'm new to keto but my hubby has been doing it for over a month with good results. My scale isn't budging and I'm gonna go crazy. It's been a full week of low carb eating. I've stuck to a pretty good fat/protein balance, I've only had a little bit of artificial sweetener to help take the (unexpectedly strong:) edge off the carb cravings....I am not tracking my water very well on here but have gone from terrible water intake to at least 4 or 5 16 ounce bottles a day (plus coffee which doesn't really count I know).
Has it taken this long for other women to show any benefit?
Also, I had a hysterectomy 2 months ago, but still have 1 ovary so still have hormonal cycles even if I don't have monthlies...and am probably a bit off wack hormonally from it? I live in WI and my activity level hasn't been the greatest for the last few weeks since it's been -30 degrees out. I'm going to increase that to a more normal activity level, but my hubby started losing weight like crazy with no added activity.
Oh, and I have plenty to lose and should be in the "dropping it off" club- I have a goal of losing 125 pounds. I'm fortunate that although I am overweight, I don't have any other health problems. - ie. no high blood pressure, no diabetes, etc.
Any friends, suggestions, or advice (encouragement?!?) would be awesome. If my hubby keeps dropping weight while the scale stays the same for me, I'm gonna get really frustrated.

Replies

  • fruttibiscotti
    fruttibiscotti Posts: 987 Member
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    Can you open your food diary so that we can take a look and help you? If you don't want to open your diary to entire public, send me a friend invite and have it open to friends so that I can look at it. Hope I can help.
  • djgreen1968
    djgreen1968 Posts: 35 Member
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    My scale won't budge either. I started LCHF diet on December 30, 2013, and have been in keto from Jan 2nd on. I am staying around 20 carbs or less a day, and at first I was taking in more protein than fat, but I quickly figured it out. I have only lost 4 pounds in 19 days. I am currently at 196 pounds, I am 5'6", and 45 years old. This is really bothering me, as I don't seems to be losing size either? I did gain all my weight from steroids that were given to me for a broken neck back in 2004, but I would think that was out of my system. I have a Dr. Appt. on Jan 24th, should I ask them to test for anything in particular? Typical intake of food per day. 2 egg omlette with bacon, cheese, and green onion, cooked in butter. Half an avocado. Snack- cup of cottage cheese with small tomato. Dinner- 4oz. ribeye, stalk of celery, 2 oz cheese. Plenty of water. 1 cup coffee in morning with HWC. Any suggestions? Oh, I can't figure out the food diary so I haven't logged anything. LOL
  • fruttibiscotti
    fruttibiscotti Posts: 987 Member
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    I'm a believer that at the beginning you have to log your food, and also measure weigh everything to avoid inaccurate eyeball estimates. It's ok if you go over your calorie or carb targets, as long as you log it. By measuring and recording, you have a means to improve. If you don't record anything, you don't have any data to draw a conclusion from. And when you make adjustments, you can't gauge which were successful or not. The diary is not a hard thing to figure out, and you need to make a commitment to filling it out each day.

    Also, you mentioned that you lost 4 lbs in 19 days. Not sure that that is a bad thing. Be careful not to set yourself up for unrealistic expectations. If you are losing about a pound per week, hat is a good thing!!

    Also, without recording you food, your calorie count may be too high. Another is that you may have protein intake at one or more meals too high, along with fat not being high enough. So, I urge you to start recording the food you eat.

    Good luck.
  • djgreen1968
    djgreen1968 Posts: 35 Member
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    Ok, thank you. I think after reading all these stories of people losing 20 pounds in 3 weeks, ect.... that I did have my goals set poorly. Can you tell me, the best way to track this stuff? Do I need to get a food scale? Will that help me? I have made sure my fat intake is more than protein, but I am doing it overall during the day, not each meal. Maybe there is something I can tweak. Thanks very much for your help. It is appreciated. :happy:
  • fruttibiscotti
    fruttibiscotti Posts: 987 Member
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    The best way to measure is by weighing with a kitchen scale, so for example the calories from one avocado is pretty inaccurate, versus calories from 75 grams of avocado being more bang on. By measuring your food accurately, you will learn what your portion sizes should really look like, so when you are not in your kitchen, like at a restaurant, you will be able to make better choices and gauge more accurately.

    Try to keep your fat calories as the highest in all your meals, not just an overall daily average. This is to keep your body in ketosis, not providing it with any excuse to flip into glucose metabolism regime. Excess protein can lead to gluconeogenesis, which is a biochemical process that converts the excess protein into glucose (sugar) which completely defeats the purpose of eating low carb. Depending on your level of activity, you need 1.3 gram to 1.9 grams of protein per kg of lean body mass. A sedentary person needs less, while an active person needs more. An athlete, or someone who does a lot of exercise may need more than 1.9 grams per kg. If you get too little, your muscles whither away as there isn't enough protein for maintenance, while too much protein results in gluconeogenesis. Here's a calculator you can use to get started with figuring out your carb, protein and fat calories needs for the day: http://keto-calculator.ankerl.com