Keto symptoms gone--cause for concern?

Was just reading about "keto breath" and realized it's been months since I've had that or any other symptoms of keto flu. I feel completely normal. I hit my goal weight last month and have been fluctuating back and forth a few lbs. below it without really losing since then, but have not upped my calories since achieving goal. (My true goal, I guess, would to hit 5 lbs. BELOW the goal, or 130 instead of 135, and the past three weeks I've either been 133 or 134.)

I was just wondering if maybe I stopped losing because I "fell out of ketosis." As I have not had any symptoms at all, including totally normal breath, normal sleeping patterns, digestive patterns, etc. I believe I am tracking accurately and have had only a few days over 20 net carbs, but sometimes restaurant food can be deceiving.

Any suggestions? I am fearful the only thing that will work will to cut my calories down from under 1400 to under 1300 (or lower) and I just.don't.want.to. But that might be necessary....

Replies

  • bozmo
    bozmo Posts: 177 Member
    I'm not an expert, but I understand your body adapts to the ketones, so what you are describing would be normal. If you are staying around 20 carbs you are very most likely in ketosis. The only real way to tell is with a blood ketone meter. If you are staying at your weight goal it doesn't seem like you need to adjust your diet?

    Congrats on making your weight goal!
  • kpk54
    kpk54 Posts: 4,474 Member
    Being in ketosis does not cause weight loss. Ketosis is not a weight loss cause.

    If you are not losing I'll guess you might have discovered your maintenance calories OR

    You have inadvertently decreased intensity/duration of your exercise OR

    You are at or close to goal and sometimes weight loss slows the closer one get to an acceptable weight

    OR the restaurant food you mention in your post is not only deceiving in calories but also sodium and even in ketosis there is a limit of "how much sodium is too much"....
  • Running_and_Coffee
    Running_and_Coffee Posts: 811 Member
    kpk54 wrote: »
    Being in ketosis does not cause weight loss. Ketosis is not a weight loss cause.

    If you are not losing I'll guess you might have discovered your maintenance calories OR

    You have inadvertently decreased intensity/duration of your exercise OR

    You are at or close to goal and sometimes weight loss slows the closer one get to an acceptable weight

    OR the restaurant food you mention in your post is not only deceiving in calories but also sodium and even in ketosis there is a limit of "how much sodium is too much"....

    One thing I've noticed is my heart rate has decreased, and my workout burn is a lot lower than it used to be. A 3 mile run used to be at least 325 calories and now it's 280 something, and when I look at my Garmin data, my heart rate is about 20 points lower than usual. Maybe I just need to run faster. I think the exercise burn/intensity might be the issue. I am a little confused, as I have been a runner for years and very slowly decreased HR/increased speed over several years when I first started running, but perhaps being a little lighter has made it easier to run at my usual pace. And, I can try eating a little less. :-)
  • baconslave
    baconslave Posts: 6,948 Member
    edited June 2018
    The closer you are to ideal bodyweight, the dumber your body is going to be about it. That just IS for everyone regardless of WOE. Water fluctuations mask weightloss often at that point.

    Some people as they become adapted stop smelling like death and are still in ketosis.
    I always still stank though. :unamused:
    If your body continues to stall, take a maintenance break for 2 weeks and try again. That might reset your hormones enough to remind it that you are FINE and that it can carry on. It's what I needed.

    The body becomes more efficient over time. As you lose weight, your body also requires less calories to do the same job. As your heart becomes more conditioned, your heart rate does decrease. My resting heartrate has gone down below 60 most of the time now.

    Also, over time, when you are constantly in a deficit, your NEAT will go down as an adaptation. Maybe focus on moving more when not exercising.

    Just thoughts in addition to stuff mentioned by other posters.
  • tcunbeliever
    tcunbeliever Posts: 8,219 Member
    You could do the HR training where you run to keep your heart at a target rate instead of running at t pace based on distance/time. I think it's mostly endurance runners that train like that, but it might help offset the adaptation you are experiencing.

    Also, if you do decide to cut calories, you can cut them on alternate days so you can reduce your weekly intake, but not have to fight the hunger every day.
  • tcunbeliever
    tcunbeliever Posts: 8,219 Member
    I'm not a runner, but my son is, which is the only reason I even know about it...he is totally loving the HR training stuff and he has improved his mile and up times considerably....of course he's almost 16, so he's young and his body is quick to adapt to new training anyway.

    I love food, and I love to eat BIG meals of food, I love that feeling of being stuffed and fat and happy...so I opt for calorie cycling and skipping meals instead of eating tiny meals that I find unsatisfying...it works for me, everyone has to find whatever works for them.
  • MissMorts
    MissMorts Posts: 94 Member
    baconslave wrote: »
    Also, over time, when you are constantly in a deficit, your NEAT will go down as an adaptation. Maybe focus on moving more when not exercising.
    Hi Baconslave!
    Sorry but what is “NEAT”?
  • canadjineh
    canadjineh Posts: 5,396 Member
    edited June 2018
    Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis
    https://ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12468415

    *Waves to @MissMorts * :)
  • baconslave
    baconslave Posts: 6,948 Member
    edited June 2018
    MissMorts wrote: »
    baconslave wrote: »
    Also, over time, when you are constantly in a deficit, your NEAT will go down as an adaptation. Maybe focus on moving more when not exercising.
    Hi Baconslave!
    Sorry but what is “NEAT”?

    Hey there!!!
    Simply put, NEAT is all the moving done during the day that isn't exercise.
    So when in a deficit for a long period, we start to tend to move less when not exercising. That cuts our calorie burn during the day. Over time that can catch up to us, especially when we have very little wiggle room between maintenance and deficit.
  • medic2038
    medic2038 Posts: 434 Member
    Like some others have said, once you get through the intial phase of your body getting used to it... your body adapts pretty well.

    I've been doing keto for about 7-8 years now (not constantly), but i literally can't tell whether or not currently in keto (outside of the pee sticks).