How many grams per day?

autumnsquirrel · March 2014

Just wondering how many grams per day to start up that wonderful weight loss that I had these first 2 weeks of low carb living. The scale stopped; it is making me nervous. I have more weight to lose. This is frustrating. I read somewhere about 50 maximum; I will shoot for that and see what happens. Lots of conflicting information out there:/

17JayR · March 2014

You might find this helpful , http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/684525-why-the-rapid-weight-loss-on-low-carb-induction-stops

Citrislazer · March 2014

^^^This! Read it if you haven't yet. Stay under 50g, stay within your calorie range, watch your fiber count, drink lots of water, remember to get enough sodium in your diet. No worries, you'll keep burning fat.

autumnsquirrel · March 2014

Thank you both so much. I was on another site where many people say "it works; I have done this lots of times"---THAT is what I don't want to have to do. go on this 'lots of times'. If it works, why would they go off and off and on? Eek. I just want to be sure I am doing the right thing for my health and for my goal---and to be able to stay on it to maintain that goal.

autumnsquirrel · March 2014

^^^This! Read it if you haven't yet. Stay under 50g, stay within your calorie range, watch your fiber count, drink lots of water, remember to get enough sodium in your diet. No worries, you'll keep burning fat.

My husband said I need more sodium--I felt tired around lunch--could have been because I was busy cleaning all morning, but I 'bonked', as he calls it. Says I need electrolytes and sodium. I used to love drinking Gatorade G2, only 7 carbs, but that would have put me over my 50 today and I don't think it's worth it. Do low carbers get a cheat day, or does alot of the weight come back if you have a slice of cake? Silly question, but I gotta ask.

ALNoog · March 2014

I am for 25 or less a day ...

I had great success on it before and lost 89 pounds and the ONLY reason i stopped was because I was put on a medication while STILL doing Atkins and gained over 30lbs in 2 months.... Fought and fought with my doctor and finally just stopped it and soon thereafter my fiancé at the time left me for a 17 year he worked with...... He left me and took everything while I was at work and left me behind on bills and rent I could afford for the fancy apartment he HAD to have...at the end of the month I had about 20-30 dollars for all my food for all my meals for a month..... Cereal and Ramen are cheap... And when people are feeding you out of pity because you can't feed yourself you can't really tell them what you can or can't eat.....

I am back on track now and still aiming for 25 or less a day.

kristafb · March 2014

I finally went & read the other post about why weight loss slows down and I'm so glad I did! I'm 17 days in and have lost 11lbs,which is great, but for the last 2 days I've been about the same and even went up a little (less than a pound) so I was reexamining my food diary trying to figure out what I was doing wrong. Most days my carbs are between 10-20 so I couldn't figure it out. The last few days I have started making stuff with almond meal, like a mug cake, and I was wondering if that would make a difference?

I still feel 100 % better so I'll keep doing this.

ALNoog · March 2014

I finally went & read the other post about why weight loss slows down and I'm so glad I did! I'm 17 days in and have lost 11lbs,which is great, but for the last 2 days I've been about the same and even went up a little (less than a pound) so I was reexamining my food diary trying to figure out what I was doing wrong. Most days my carbs are between 10-20 so I couldn't figure it out. The last few days I have started making stuff with almond meal, like a mug cake, and I was wondering if that would make a difference?

I still feel 100 % better so I'll keep doing this.

I would just experiment a little and see what makes a difference... I know for me personally I have to watch my cheese intake sometimes because it causes me to not lose... And I can't eat any of the bars or Atkins products or I don't lose... As well as any sugar free or bread substitutes. I have to be super careful with creams and intricate recipes and I have to be absolutely sure I drink a ton of water too.

Maybe when I get up to Maintenance levels I will be fine but since I have quite a bit of weight to lose I am going to stay near induction levels for quite some time.

albertabeefy · March 2014

My husband said I need more sodium--I felt tired around lunch--could have been because I was busy cleaning all morning, but I 'bonked', as he calls it. Says I need electrolytes and sodium. I used to love drinking Gatorade G2, only 7 carbs, but that would have put me over my 50 today and I don't think it's worth it.

Your husband sounds like a smart cookie. When you enter ketosis, and your glycogen stores are reduced, many people lose as much as 5-10 lbs of water weight (some even more)... Which means you have LESS capacity for storing electrolytes.

Most people on a ketogenic diet can INCREASE sodium (and other electrolyte) intake with no health issues whatsoever - and it's sometimes recommended to do so, especially if you're a serious exerciser.

Do low carbers get a cheat day, or does alot of the weight come back if you have a slice of cake? Silly question, but I gotta ask.

If it's enough to knock you out of ketosis (depending on your tolerance, that could be as little as 100g total in a day), all the water weight will come back AND you'll have to work to get keto-adapted again. It's not normally worth it.

That being said, I sometimes EARN something like that by doing hardcore exercise both BEFORE (ensuring my glycogen stores are well-depleted) and AFTER the treat. but I do mean hardcore ... I've been known to ride my bike at 20 mph average for two hours to go eat a cinnamon bun ... enjoy it, wait about 20 minutes for digestion to start, then ride 20mph for two hours BACK ... This keeps me in ketosis AND ensures my blood glucose levels don't rise.

It's a pretty hardcore way to have your treat, but it IS do-able if you're willing. If you don't have the willpower and/or fitness-level to do something that crazy, don't eat it