Weird symptoms / Calorie Deficit

Hello everyone,
So...I searched for this- but couldn't find anything exactly like it.

Whenever I enter into a calorie deficit, a set of symptoms will manifest in my body. They range from "uncomfortable" at first onset, and then intensify to a feeling of what I would call "ill / sick", and then finally to the point of feeling, well- almost "dangerous".

It always starts with
1). "keto flu" like feeling...achy, headache, nausea,
2). Then to intensified nausea, tightness in my throat/ jaw/scalp, acute pressure in my head ( especially in my temples and behind my eyes), and a tight or tense feeling in my lungs.
3). As the symptoms become more intense- the pain intensifies all over my body, my lungs burn and get really heavy/fatigued, it becomes difficult to focus my eyes, and I feel like I might lose consciousness

At any point during this progression - I can consume low glycemic index food, and my body will calm down...

This is my experience whenever I push my body into a calorie deficit. Does any of this make sense to anyone?
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Replies

  • Kintsugi_Haikyo
    Kintsugi_Haikyo Posts: 361 Member
    Man, that "kitten" ain't right. See a doctor.
  • DX2JX2
    DX2JX2 Posts: 1,921 Member
    Dude...see a doctor. How big a deficit are you running?
  • This content has been removed.
  • Sashslay
    Sashslay Posts: 136 Member
    I experienced this recently!!! Up to number 2. I put it down to not reaching my minimum calorie goal. Any time I feel it coming on, I eat a tablespoon of peanut butter. Within about 15 minutes I begin to fee better.
  • LindaCan2
    LindaCan2 Posts: 22 Member
    See your doctor ASAP.
  • CMNVA
    CMNVA Posts: 733 Member
    You are either too much in a deficit or you have blood sugar issues. Next time you go to the doctor, ask to have a 3-4 hour fasting glucose test.
  • noirelb
    noirelb Posts: 216 Member
    I vote hypoglycemia. My dad has it. Eat all day long and don't go to low into a deficit AND get diagnosed!!
  • Ready2Getcut
    Ready2Getcut Posts: 68 Member
    edited July 2017
    How much of a calorie deficit? Are you suddenly dropping a thousand or more calories a day? Are you changing what you eat? Have you had your blood glucose checked?

    So far today, I have had about 1200 cal of whole foods....I am about 280 lbs and not sedentary. My normal caloric intake is probably 2500 cal+. I'll eat some more food later tonight..

    My blood glucose is between 90 and 116 today. Ketones are normal.
  • Ready2Getcut
    Ready2Getcut Posts: 68 Member
    Wow- thanks for all of the responses!
  • Ready2Getcut
    Ready2Getcut Posts: 68 Member
    scarlett_k wrote: »
    See a doctor.

    I have- numerous times over the past five years. In 2014-2015, I did a really strict Paleo diet for six consecutive months and worked out 6 times a week. I tracked all of my behaviors/ how I felt- and everything I ate and the calories in a spreadsheet. I had the symptoms- in one form or another- every single day during that period.

    I went to my MD and explained everything in detail- showed him the spreadsheet. He ran a battery of 8 blood tests, including the HC1.

    Everything came up negative. He actually said "you're in great health"
  • Ready2Getcut
    Ready2Getcut Posts: 68 Member
    edited July 2017
    AliceDark wrote: »
    What kind of a timeline are you talking about? Does this happen after a few hours in a deficit, or a day or a week? Also, how big of a deficit are you talking about? If you cut 100 calories off of your maintenance intake, do you get all of these symptoms? What happens if you eat at a small deficit and include low-glycemic-index foods?

    But yeah, "see a doctor" is likely the correct response.

    It seems to have an inertia to it ( sounds weird)....it can happen late morning if I am eating really clean and working out. Almost always in the afternoon and into the evening.

    Actually I don't feel that here is a "maintenance" weight as of yet- because I haven't been able even get close to my ideal weight. if I am pushing my body at all, it happens- on a daily basis. If I don't push myself, I just continue to slowly pack on weight.

    I'm a big guy ( I carry alot of muscle and have a big frame)-- but I am carrying way too much fat at this point. 280+ pounds.

  • I3righti3lue24
    I3righti3lue24 Posts: 40 Member
    Men are recommend not to eat less than 1800 calories in a day. I wold bump up your calories to 2000 calories a day. An see how you feel, if everything from ur doctor is coming back in the clear. Otherwise seek another doctor, or nutritionist to help maybe pin point where you may be going off.
  • jgnatca
    jgnatca Posts: 14,464 Member
    Yeah your symptoms are low blood sugar and if you pass in to stage three you will pass out. Carry hikers mix, beef jerky and/or protein bars with you and with onset of stage 1, eat.

    Your minimum before exercise should be 1500 calories.
  • Ready2Getcut
    Ready2Getcut Posts: 68 Member
    noirelb wrote: »
    I vote hypoglycemia. My dad has it. Eat all day long and don't go to low into a deficit AND get diagnosed!!

    What does that mean? ( no sarcasm) - like, how would a doctor typically arrive at a diagnosis of "Hypoglycemia"

    Is that what it sounds like to you? Hypoglycemia?

    Is it possible that I can I be this heavy, and be hypoglycemic?
  • mmapags
    mmapags Posts: 8,934 Member
    Are you eating keto or low carb?
  • Ready2Getcut
    Ready2Getcut Posts: 68 Member
    DX2JX2 wrote: »
    Dude...see a doctor. How big a deficit are you running?

    I would guess that I am down about 1,000 cal today. The weird thing is- I have eaten so much high fiber food today, that food doesn't even sound appetizing.
  • AliceDark
    AliceDark Posts: 3,886 Member
    AliceDark wrote: »
    What kind of a timeline are you talking about? Does this happen after a few hours in a deficit, or a day or a week? Also, how big of a deficit are you talking about? If you cut 100 calories off of your maintenance intake, do you get all of these symptoms? What happens if you eat at a small deficit and include low-glycemic-index foods?

    But yeah, "see a doctor" is likely the correct response.

    It seems to have an inertia to it ( sounds weird)....it can happen late morning if I am eating really clean and working out. Almost always in the afternoon and into the evening.

    Actually I don't feel that here is a "maintenance" weight as of yet- because I haven't been able even get close to my ideal weight. if I am pushing my body at all, it happens- on a daily basis. If I don't push myself, I just continue to slowly pack on weight.

    I'm a big guy ( I carry alot of muscle and have a big frame)-- but I am carrying way too much fat at this point. 280+ pounds.

    When I asked about maintenance, I meant your maintenance calories. What may be happening is that you're aiming for a crazy low deficit, which isn't a good idea for a number of reasons. At your current weight, you should be able to lose weight at a steady rate while still getting to eat a good amount of food.

    If you tell MFP that you want to lose 1 pound per week, how many daily calories does it give you? Could you try eating to that target for 1-2 weeks to see how that feels?

    Being in a deficit doesn't mean dropping your calories through the floor. It just means eating fewer calories than you're burning over the course of the day, taking into account your normal activities. 1200 calories is an EXTREME deficit for a man of your size.
  • HeidiCooksSupper
    HeidiCooksSupper Posts: 3,839 Member
    You are simply not eating enough.

    I put your stats into https://tdeecalculator.net guessing 35 years old, 5'9", and lightly active and got a TDEE of 3019 calories/day -- approx. the number you could eat and not lose or gain weight. Eating 1000 calories under your TDEE is the minimum recommended and should result in losing two pounds a week.
  • Ready2Getcut
    Ready2Getcut Posts: 68 Member
    AliceDark wrote: »
    AliceDark wrote: »
    What kind of a timeline are you talking about? Does this happen after a few hours in a deficit, or a day or a week? Also, how big of a deficit are you talking about? If you cut 100 calories off of your maintenance intake, do you get all of these symptoms? What happens if you eat at a small deficit and include low-glycemic-index foods?

    But yeah, "see a doctor" is likely the correct response.

    It seems to have an inertia to it ( sounds weird)....it can happen late morning if I am eating really clean and working out. Almost always in the afternoon and into the evening.

    Actually I don't feel that here is a "maintenance" weight as of yet- because I haven't been able even get close to my ideal weight. if I am pushing my body at all, it happens- on a daily basis. If I don't push myself, I just continue to slowly pack on weight.

    I'm a big guy ( I carry alot of muscle and have a big frame)-- but I am carrying way too much fat at this point. 280+ pounds.

    When I asked about maintenance, I meant your maintenance calories. What may be happening is that you're aiming for a crazy low deficit, which isn't a good idea for a number of reasons. At your current weight, you should be able to lose weight at a steady rate while still getting to eat a good amount of food.

    If you tell MFP that you want to lose 1 pound per week, how many daily calories does it give you? Could you try eating to that target for 1-2 weeks to see how that feels?

    Being in a deficit doesn't mean dropping your calories through the floor. It just means eating fewer calories than you're burning over the course of the day, taking into account your normal activities. 1200 calories is an EXTREME deficit for a man of your size.

    Thank you. I understand what you're saying. Possibly I'm just being clumsy about the whole thing. I am eating a whole food diet right now, which has alot of vegetables/quinoa ( and alot of fiber). I feel horrible, but food doesn't even sound good- I'm actually kind of bloated right now ( from all of the water/fiber I would assume).

    What I do know is that when I was on a strict diet/workout regimen, I could maintain a body mass of about 270 pounds on about 2200 cal/day intake. That literally doesn't even "add up".

  • Ready2Getcut
    Ready2Getcut Posts: 68 Member
    Sashslay wrote: »
    I experienced this recently!!! Up to number 2. I put it down to not reaching my minimum calorie goal. Any time I feel it coming on, I eat a tablespoon of peanut butter. Within about 15 minutes I begin to fee better.

    Thank you. I'm eating some peanuts now.
  • Ready2Getcut
    Ready2Getcut Posts: 68 Member
    edited July 2017
    AliceDark wrote: »
    AliceDark wrote: »
    What kind of a timeline are you talking about? Does this happen after a few hours in a deficit, or a day or a week? Also, how big of a deficit are you talking about? If you cut 100 calories off of your maintenance intake, do you get all of these symptoms? What happens if you eat at a small deficit and include low-glycemic-index foods?

    But yeah, "see a doctor" is likely the correct response.

    It seems to have an inertia to it ( sounds weird)....it can happen late morning if I am eating really clean and working out. Almost always in the afternoon and into the evening.

    Actually I don't feel that here is a "maintenance" weight as of yet- because I haven't been able even get close to my ideal weight. if I am pushing my body at all, it happens- on a daily basis. If I don't push myself, I just continue to slowly pack on weight.

    I'm a big guy ( I carry alot of muscle and have a big frame)-- but I am carrying way too much fat at this point. 280+ pounds.

    When I asked about maintenance, I meant your maintenance calories. What may be happening is that you're aiming for a crazy low deficit, which isn't a good idea for a number of reasons. At your current weight, you should be able to lose weight at a steady rate while still getting to eat a good amount of food.

    If you tell MFP that you want to lose 1 pound per week, how many daily calories does it give you? Could you try eating to that target for 1-2 weeks to see how that feels?

    Being in a deficit doesn't mean dropping your calories through the floor. It just means eating fewer calories than you're burning over the course of the day, taking into account your normal activities. 1200 calories is an EXTREME deficit for a man of your size.

    So.. someone who is 283 pounds and lightly active ( at this point), needs 2760 calories for maintenance.
    You definitely have a point. However, I have a feeling that I would steadily pack on weight at anything close to that.
  • VintageFeline
    VintageFeline Posts: 6,771 Member
    AliceDark wrote: »
    AliceDark wrote: »
    What kind of a timeline are you talking about? Does this happen after a few hours in a deficit, or a day or a week? Also, how big of a deficit are you talking about? If you cut 100 calories off of your maintenance intake, do you get all of these symptoms? What happens if you eat at a small deficit and include low-glycemic-index foods?

    But yeah, "see a doctor" is likely the correct response.

    It seems to have an inertia to it ( sounds weird)....it can happen late morning if I am eating really clean and working out. Almost always in the afternoon and into the evening.

    Actually I don't feel that here is a "maintenance" weight as of yet- because I haven't been able even get close to my ideal weight. if I am pushing my body at all, it happens- on a daily basis. If I don't push myself, I just continue to slowly pack on weight.

    I'm a big guy ( I carry alot of muscle and have a big frame)-- but I am carrying way too much fat at this point. 280+ pounds.

    When I asked about maintenance, I meant your maintenance calories. What may be happening is that you're aiming for a crazy low deficit, which isn't a good idea for a number of reasons. At your current weight, you should be able to lose weight at a steady rate while still getting to eat a good amount of food.

    If you tell MFP that you want to lose 1 pound per week, how many daily calories does it give you? Could you try eating to that target for 1-2 weeks to see how that feels?

    Being in a deficit doesn't mean dropping your calories through the floor. It just means eating fewer calories than you're burning over the course of the day, taking into account your normal activities. 1200 calories is an EXTREME deficit for a man of your size.

    Thank you. I understand what you're saying. Possibly I'm just being clumsy about the whole thing. I am eating a whole food diet right now, which has alot of vegetables/quinoa ( and alot of fiber). I feel horrible, but food doesn't even sound good- I'm actually kind of bloated right now ( from all of the water/fiber I would assume).

    What I do know is that when I was on a strict diet/workout regimen, I could maintain a body mass of about 270 pounds on about 2200 cal/day intake. That literally doesn't even "add up".

    How do you know you maintain on 2200? You say you are not sedentary, do you mean outside of purposeful exercise as well?

    2200 makes no sense whatsoever. I'm a 165lb truly sedentary female who does exercise. I could maintain my current weight on 2000 or so calories.

    So I think you have grossly underestimated your maintenance and therefore are cutting too low. Have you managed to maintain this deficit for any period of time to know what your average losses were?
  • Ready2Getcut
    Ready2Getcut Posts: 68 Member
    mmapags wrote: »
    Are you eating keto or low carb?

    Today I have had quinoa, broccoli, a potato, and 7 oz of lean pork...
  • Ready2Getcut
    Ready2Getcut Posts: 68 Member
    noirelb wrote: »
    How much of a calorie deficit? Are you suddenly dropping a thousand or more calories a day? Are you changing what you eat? Have you had your blood glucose checked?

    So far today, I have had about 1200 cal of whole foods....I am about 280 lbs and not sedentary. My normal caloric intake is probably 2500 cal+.

    My blood glucose is between 90 and 116 today. Ketones are normal...

    Well now I'm voting simply too low in calories... Well its after dinner time here so do you mean that 1200 is all you will have pr is it earlier where you live?

    it's 8:00 pm here- I just ate some peanuts, so I'm over 1200 calories now. The things is that I experience these symptoms on a regular basis....and I'm GAINING weight. That is why I'm pushing so hard to restrict calories.
  • Ready2Getcut
    Ready2Getcut Posts: 68 Member
    edited August 2017
    AliceDark wrote: »
    AliceDark wrote: »
    What kind of a timeline are you talking about? Does this happen after a few hours in a deficit, or a day or a week? Also, how big of a deficit are you talking about? If you cut 100 calories off of your maintenance intake, do you get all of these symptoms? What happens if you eat at a small deficit and include low-glycemic-index foods?

    But yeah, "see a doctor" is likely the correct response.

    It seems to have an inertia to it ( sounds weird)....it can happen late morning if I am eating really clean and working out. Almost always in the afternoon and into the evening.

    Actually I don't feel that here is a "maintenance" weight as of yet- because I haven't been able even get close to my ideal weight. if I am pushing my body at all, it happens- on a daily basis. If I don't push myself, I just continue to slowly pack on weight.

    I'm a big guy ( I carry alot of muscle and have a big frame)-- but I am carrying way too much fat at this point. 280+ pounds.

    When I asked about maintenance, I meant your maintenance calories. What may be happening is that you're aiming for a crazy low deficit, which isn't a good idea for a number of reasons. At your current weight, you should be able to lose weight at a steady rate while still getting to eat a good amount of food.

    If you tell MFP that you want to lose 1 pound per week, how many daily calories does it give you? Could you try eating to that target for 1-2 weeks to see how that feels?

    Being in a deficit doesn't mean dropping your calories through the floor. It just means eating fewer calories than you're burning over the course of the day, taking into account your normal activities. 1200 calories is an EXTREME deficit for a man of your size.

    Thank you. I understand what you're saying. Possibly I'm just being clumsy about the whole thing. I am eating a whole food diet right now, which has alot of vegetables/quinoa ( and alot of fiber). I feel horrible, but food doesn't even sound good- I'm actually kind of bloated right now ( from all of the water/fiber I would assume).

    What I do know is that when I was on a strict diet/workout regimen, I could maintain a body mass of about 270 pounds on about 2200 cal/day intake. That literally doesn't even "add up".

    How do you know you maintain on 2200? You say you are not sedentary, do you mean outside of purposeful exercise as well?

    2200 makes no sense whatsoever. I'm a 165lb truly sedentary female who does exercise. I could maintain my current weight on 2000 or so calories.

    So I think you have grossly underestimated your maintenance and therefore are cutting too low. Have you managed to maintain this deficit for any period of time to know what your average losses were?

    So..... in 2014-2015, I did a really strict diet ( similar to Paleo) for six consecutive months and worked out 6 times a week. I tracked all of my behaviors/ how I felt- and everything I ate and the calories in a spreadsheet. I had the symptoms- in one form or another- every single day during that period.

    I was averaging about 2200 calories a day during that time.....YES. I got all of my carbs from green vegetables and some fruit ( in the morning). The rest of the calories came from lean meat and protein powder ( 3 times a week). I would "cheat" on the weekend- usually Saturday night and into Sunday. ( some alcohol and crappy food)

    During that period time, my body weight averaged about 270 pounds-- as low as 264.5, and sometimes as high as 274.