For those on low carb, do you get fatigue and brain fog?

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OneTwentyThree
OneTwentyThree Posts: 186 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi I am wondering, those that do low carb diet have you experienced fog or fatigue?

I am not on a low carb diet but sometimes unintentionally eat less carbs. I don't eat gluten which is why I end up undereating carbs but eat lots of veggies and fruits. Lately have been getting foggy/fatigue so trying to figure out if that might be the cause.
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  • Fernando618G
    Fernando618G Posts: 380 Member
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    I did. Carbs= gas for your body so when you cut then drastically your body can go through a kindov shock
  • OneTwentyThree
    OneTwentyThree Posts: 186 Member
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    Fernando618G wrote: »
    I did. Carbs= gas for your body so when you cut then drastically your body can go through a kindov shock

    Did it eventually stop happening? Or you had to add more carbs?
  • Chenoachem
    Chenoachem Posts: 1,758 Member
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    I did a diet of slow carbs. It skipped out on potatoes, rice and bread but replaced them with beans at every meal. Also, whenever I did over 20minutes of cardio exercises I added a carb to my next meal. I didn't have any problems with energy. Actually I had a lot of it. However, when I started training hard for a race I had to go back to adding carbs to every meal. If you are interested in this sort of thing, I would recommend Tim Ferris Slow Carb Diet.
  • nvmomketo
    nvmomketo Posts: 12,019 Member
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    It takes the brain a few days to weeks to get used to using fats for fuel some of the time. That can cause some fogginess.

    Also, if you dropped carbs it can throw your electrolytes out of balance and cause fatigue and brain fog. Consider upping your sodium to 3000-5000 mg per day, and maybe add potassium and magnesium citrate supplements.

    As a general rule, fogginess passes in a few days. I'm not sure how it would go if you are cycling in and out of low carb (low carb being below 150-100g of carbs per day).
  • Fernando618G
    Fernando618G Posts: 380 Member
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    OneTwentyThree wrote: »
    Fernando618G wrote: »
    I did. Carbs= gas for your body so when you cut then drastically your body can go through a kindov shock

    Did it eventually stop happening? Or you had to add more carbs?

    your body eventually adjusts just take a easy for a little bit till you get it down
  • annaleighrau
    annaleighrau Posts: 1 Member
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    My guess is that your body is trying to go into ketosis, this happened to me when I cut out all carbs. If you are consistent in your carb consumption (or decrease in consumption, rather) your body will adjust and he fogging feeling should dissipate. Try drinking a cup of chicken broth - that's a standard easy fix.
  • itsbasschick
    itsbasschick Posts: 1,584 Member
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    i'm allergic to wheat, so i eat lots of gluten-free foods. rice, potatoes, beans - all are gluten free and all are carbs. these days you can buy rice noodles, rice pizza crust or entire gluten free pizzas. baked potatoes, mashed potatoes, fries - gluten free. let's not forget corn chips, corn tortillas and crunchy taco shells.
  • troutlilly
    troutlilly Posts: 44 Member
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    I'm not sure why, but for some reason when I first started low carb I was able to think very clearly and didn't experience brain fog. I stopped for a while but recently went low carb again, and still haven't experienced these symptoms.

    Unfortunately for me eating a regular amount of carbs tends to make me feel lazy and fogged up. Not really sure what's up with that.
  • DeficitDuchess
    DeficitDuchess Posts: 3,099 Member
    edited April 2016
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    A Dietitian told me that at least 130 grams daily of carbohydrates, are required for brain function; you most likely aren't consuming enough of them. All of the macro-nutrients are a necessity, 1 can't consume too little and/or eliminate any of them. Even with preexisting medical conditions, that're affected by them; you must still consume the minimum. Health only dictates in what form and/or beyond the minimum.
  • Nifesie
    Nifesie Posts: 25 Member
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    I started last Monday and I honestly feel amazing! I stay under 15g net carbohydrates. I’ve honestly felt very energetic, alert, and on the go, which is great considering I’m a mother of three with a three month old as the youngest, haha!

    Have you been weighing your food and sticking to serving sizes to ensure you’re not consuming too many carbs?
  • nvmomketo
    nvmomketo Posts: 12,019 Member
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    FridayApril01st2016 wrote: »
    A Dietitian told me that at least 130 grams daily of carbohydrates, are required for brain function; you most likely aren't consuming enough of them. All of the macro-nutrients are a necessity, 1 can't consume too little and/or eliminate any of them. Even with preexisting medical conditions, that're affected by them; you must still consume the minimum. Health only dictates in what form and/or beyond the minimum.

    You actually need about 130g of glucose (less after you are fat adapted on a ketogenic diet) and not dietary carbs. The body can easily make all the glucose you need as long as you consume adequate protein. There is no essential minimum intake of carbohydrates.

    I've been eating about 20g of carbs per day for most of a year, and I feel better than I have in a good decade.
  • GaleHawkins
    GaleHawkins Posts: 8,160 Member
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    I heard the researcher behind how much glucose that was needed and he said it was actually 80 grams of glucose but after 130 grams of glucose got into the press they had no luck getting it corrected then so 130 grams of glucose.

    @FridayApril01st2016 did you pick up OK (what @nvmomketo replied) on the body requires no Carbs but does require some glucose.

    About half of protein gets converted by the body to glucose. I had the same confusion between carbs and glucose not long ago.

  • DeficitDuchess
    DeficitDuchess Posts: 3,099 Member
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    GaleHawkins wrote: »
    I heard the researcher behind how much glucose that was needed and he said it was actually 80 grams of glucose but after 130 grams of glucose got into the press they had no luck getting it corrected then so 130 grams of glucose.

    @FridayApril01st2016 did you pick up OK (what @nvmomketo replied) on the body requires no Carbs but does require some glucose.

    About half of protein gets converted by the body to glucose. I had the same confusion between carbs and glucose not long ago.

    I actually understand more, what you're saying but since we aren't experts, I'll email my Dietitian because I'd like to be sure.
  • troutlilly
    troutlilly Posts: 44 Member
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    nvmomketo wrote: »
    FridayApril01st2016 wrote: »
    A Dietitian told me that at least 130 grams daily of carbohydrates, are required for brain function; you most likely aren't consuming enough of them. All of the macro-nutrients are a necessity, 1 can't consume too little and/or eliminate any of them. Even with preexisting medical conditions, that're affected by them; you must still consume the minimum. Health only dictates in what form and/or beyond the minimum.

    You actually need about 130g of glucose (less after you are fat adapted on a ketogenic diet) and not dietary carbs. The body can easily make all the glucose you need as long as you consume adequate protein. There is no essential minimum intake of carbohydrates.

    I've been eating about 20g of carbs per day for most of a year, and I feel better than I have in a good decade.

    Could you tell that to all of the pro high-carbers, pretty please?
  • Bukawww
    Bukawww Posts: 159 Member
    edited April 2016
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    I eat fewer than 50g carbs a day and I have no brain fog or fatigue (actually, my long runs are about as easy as eating pie used to be lol).

    ETA: I don't intentionally eat low carb - I budget my calories and have just found that I get to eat more of the food I actually like when I stay away from the fillers and 'vehicles' of my favorite foods. I love tacos...tortillas/shells really don't taste all that great by themselves. By ditching the shell, I can eat more of the tasty fillings, feeling more full and satisfied.
  • Crisseyda
    Crisseyda Posts: 532 Member
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    When I initially get into ketosis, I can feel hypovolemic-- like I'll get a little dizzy if I stand up too quickly. At that point, I drink some salty broth and I feel back to normal in about 15 min or so. As far as brain fog, it's actually mental alertness and focus. I'm trying to remember if that happened in the very beginning and I was more carb-dependent... I've been in and out of ketosis (mostly in) for the last several years. I think I did feel the keto "flu" for a week or so. And part of that was coming off the addiction to certain carbohydrates and dealing with withdrawal.
  • perkymommy
    perkymommy Posts: 1,642 Member
    edited April 2016
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    Not sure about carbs doing that before but I know when I'm missing out on sugar or moreso chocolate. I've rarely had any chocolate for the last two months. I felt kind of off or odd the other day and finally realized it's because I really wanted some chocolate, the yuckiest sugary type of food I could find. I instead ate two of my 50 calorie snackwells devils food cookies and it curbed the feeling.
  • Crisseyda
    Crisseyda Posts: 532 Member
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    Bukawww wrote: »
    I eat fewer than 50g carbs a day and I have no brain fog or fatigue (actually, my long runs are about as easy as eating pie used to be lol).

    ETA: I don't intentionally eat low carb - I budget my calories and have just found that I get to eat more of the food I actually like when I stay away from the fillers and 'vehicles' of my favorite foods. I love tacos...tortillas/shells really don't taste all that great by themselves. By ditching the shell, I can eat more of the tasty fillings, feeling more full and satisfied.

    I totally agree with this. It not like I need that intense mental energy to push myself for the last few miles of a run. The energy is constant, steady, and it feels limitless. I'm not hungry, cranky, or fatigued after intense aerobic exercise... and the funny thing is that I didn't think I was before. Now I just have a new normal.
  • BoxerBrawler
    BoxerBrawler Posts: 2,032 Member
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    A while ago I gave up several different kind of carbs (bread/pasta/rice/cereal) and was extremely low-carb. I don't buy it when people say they are "no" carb. Everything has carbs. Anyway, it was the worst thing ever. I didn't feel fuzzy or tired or anything like that, no brain fog, but I developed a massive and intense craving for sweets. Which pissed me off because I had never been a sweets person. Anyway, it didn't promote any weight loss or changes in my body, it just made me want sweets and it made me angry. Today I eat around 120 to 130 g per day which is considered a low carb diet but since 90% of my diet consists of vegetables I am always full and satisfied. I do make sure to include slow carbs in my diet every day. They are critically important for athletic ability. (Lentils, beans, legumes), things like that. I have a *kitten*-load of energy and energy on demand.
  • ki4eld
    ki4eld Posts: 1,215 Member
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    OneTwentyThree wrote: »
    Hi I am wondering, those that do low carb diet have you experienced fog or fatigue?

    I am not on a low carb diet but sometimes unintentionally eat less carbs. I don't eat gluten which is why I end up undereating carbs but eat lots of veggies and fruits. Lately have been getting foggy/fatigue so trying to figure out if that might be the cause.

    If my sodium is too low, I get foggy. I now take 1g sodium tablets twice a day and the fog is gone. Electrolytes out of balance is usually the first thing that comes to mind when someone talks about dropping their carbs.

    Depending on what your "undereating carbs" looks like, you could be bumping into and out of ketosis, which can cause some fog when crossing back and forth over that line. Avoiding crossing the line is why most of us in keto eat well under our carb limit.

    You can up your carbs and keep them above your keto line and you'll be fine. You can lower your carbs and keep them below your keto line and you'll be fine. I suspect jumping across that line is rarely going to work out well.

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