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Keto Flu,,,does everyone get it?

snlhaggerty
snlhaggerty Posts: 12 Member
in Social Groups
HI all ,
I have been reading so many great posts and I keep hearing about keto flu. I have been 4 days eating less than 20 gm carbs and high fat. I feel fine. My question is this. Is keto flu something that happens to everyone? If you don't experience it does it mean I am not in keto?
Thanks

Replies

  • sammyliftsandeats
    sammyliftsandeats Posts: 2,421 Member
    Not everyone gets it. It is an electrolyte imbalance. It is not indicative of being in ketosis.

    Even seasoned LCers can experience it if they let their electrolytes fall out of place.

    Read the electrolyte stickie on the Launch Pad for more information.
  • snlhaggerty
    snlhaggerty Posts: 12 Member
    okay I will ty
  • MyriiStorm
    MyriiStorm Posts: 609 Member
    You may not get it, or you may get it further down the road. It all depends on your electrolytes. I was about 3 weeks in before I started getting symptoms. Keto-ade fixed it right up.
  • maggiepz
    maggiepz Posts: 141 Member
    I always get it every time but this time I gradually decreased my carbs over two weeks and I did not.
  • lodro
    lodro Posts: 982 Member
    snlhaggerty wrote: »
    HI all ,
    I have been reading so many great posts and I keep hearing about keto flu. I have been 4 days eating less than 20 gm carbs and high fat. I feel fine. My question is this. Is keto flu something that happens to everyone? If you don't experience it does it mean I am not in keto?
    Thanks

    I think there is a lot of unconscious conditioning going on in the reporting of keto flu. I didn't notice it much, but I wasn't warned I would get it, so I wasn't focusing on it either.
  • Sunny_Bunny_
    Sunny_Bunny_ Posts: 7,140 Member
    Get 4000mg (maybe more) sodium a day and you may never experience the symptoms of low sodium that is commonly called "keto flu".
  • andrederosier
    andrederosier Posts: 121 Member
    Never, I transition in and out of ketosis a bit. Had about 5 bad meals since August and got back in within a day or two. Got some ketosticks for curiosity since I don't have flu. Cravings going away is usually telltale sign for me.
  • bjwoodzy
    bjwoodzy Posts: 593 Member
    Sunny_Bunny_ wrote: »
    Get 4000mg (maybe more) sodium a day and you may never experience the symptoms of low sodium that is commonly called "keto flu".

    This. I felt a bit achy and strange one day, a few weeks in, and had a cup of hot salty broth. Cured me right up. Now I know when I need more salt, it's in my logs and especially on days I drink more water than usual, I notice it creeping up on me and I fix it with pickles, broth, adding salt to my next meal, etc.
  • idocdlw
    idocdlw Posts: 208 Member
    I drink 32 oz of water mixed with Ultima every day. Dosage says to mix with 16 oz...but I always go bigger to dilute the taste. Works wonders to combat keto flu and general dehydration. I am a dedicated wine drinker, weight lifter, kayaker, bike rider...so it is imperative that I do something to re-establish my hydration levels on a daily basis.
  • Cadori
    Cadori Posts: 4,810 Member
    samanthaluangphixay wrote: »
    Not everyone gets it. It is an electrolyte imbalance. It is not indicative of being in ketosis.

    Even seasoned LCers can experience it if they let their electrolytes fall out of place.

    Read the electrolyte stickie on the Launch Pad for more information.

    This. I never had it in the beginning because of being aware of electrolytes. I've had a day or two here and there of feeling crappy and a shot of salt water fixed that up in 30 minutes.
  • HairTie1
    HairTie1 Posts: 16 Member
    Interesting. I didn't realize it was all electrolyte imbalance based. I just figured your brain went a bit silly when it switched from glucose as primary fuel to ketones as primary fuel. Good to know. I think I've experienced some strange muscle soreness as well (I'm a distance runner) due to electrolyte issues. Ramping up my consumption of salt tabs because I'm going through 20+ cups of water per day... probably north of a half gallon. Even more on days where I have to hydrate long runs. At some point I'm going to get fed up with guessing and trial and error and just pay to have some tests done on sweat rates and electrolyte concentrations in urine, but I need to crawl before I can walk, or run.
  • baconslave
    baconslave Posts: 6,948 Member
    edited January 2017
    samanthaluangphixay wrote: »
    Not everyone gets it. It is an electrolyte imbalance. It is not indicative of being in ketosis.

    Even seasoned LCers can experience it if they let their electrolytes fall out of place.

    Read the electrolyte stickie on the Launch Pad for more information.

    2nding that.
    I'm at 100g daily but I exercise heavily so I'm possibly in-and-out of ketosis. I've been low-carb for over 2.5 years. I still have to pay attention to my electrolytes.
  • CanadianMissy
    CanadianMissy Posts: 39 Member
    The first time I did primal back in 2013 I basically ate zero carbs the first two weeks. I was VERY ill-feeling. I definitely had the carb flu. But it passed after about two weeks.

    Now I try to just eat around 75-100 grams a day. I feel better that way, have more fun in my diet, and still lose weight. I try to follow the Primal Blueprint carbohydrate curve.
    http://www.marksdailyapple.com/dial-in-your-carb-count/

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