Lost in a nutritional whirlwind
onederbaby
Posts: 23 Member
I started the keto diet about 3 months ago. I have lost about 20 pounds, thought I would have lost more. As I sit here not feeling myself: exhausted, moody, emotional; I wonder if it is the nutritional imbalance. Now, my body has always lacked in Venetian vitamins, but I have felt I've gotten worse over the last week. I just feel blah. Tired, cranky, emotional, you name it. Any advice?
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Replies
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Twenty pounds is a significant achievement over three months. Go treat yourself with a non-food reward and perhaps switch from Keto to something you can do long term. Expect a bounce-back of water weight that will go down over the next few weeks.
What are Venetian vitamins?5 -
Did you start Keto without researching it? This is pretty common for Keto.
Are you supplementing your nutrition that you may be lacking?
Why did you start Keto? If just for weight loss, it isn't necessary and if you don't feel good, I would go back to eating a more balanced plan. Just log it, stay at calories, succeed.4 -
I researched it and even got approval from my cardiologist. My cholesterol and blood sugar showed improvement almost instantly. But as time is going by, I am finding myself drained. I have thought about going back to a balanced diet, but my husband and I are doing this together and he is putting up resistance on stopping. I told him it wasnt feasible to do two diet plans at one time (the grocery bill). So I feel lack of support too.0
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onederbaby wrote: »I researched it and even got approval from my cardiologist. My cholesterol and blood sugar showed improvement almost instantly. But as time is going by, I am finding myself drained. I have thought about going back to a balanced diet, but my husband and I are doing this together and he is putting up resistance on stopping. I told him it wasnt feasible to do two diet plans at one time (the grocery bill). So I feel lack of support too.
it should be relatively easy to add carbs back in, even if he's not doing it - keeping it simple - add a baked potato; add rice; add pasta - look at starchy carbs (most bang for your buck) and its not too onerous to add to a diet3 -
*supposed to be, many vitamins. I am always low in vitamins D and B12. Then potassium. I've been on prescriptions for years.1
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It's pretty easy to add carbs in. Go buy yourself a loaf of bread. You can both still eat the protein, and you can cut back on the fats a little.5
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onederbaby wrote: »*supposed to be, many vitamins. I am always low in vitamins D and B12. Then potassium. I've been on prescriptions for years.
Well the potassium would be helped by adding in vegetables and/or fruit.
Vegetables are inexpensive and could be added to your meals (your husband could skip them.)
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20 lbs in 3 months is over 1 lb per week, that's kind of awesome. What were you expecting???
No one way of eating us required to lose weight. I guess first do some thinking and see if there is any way to get the nutrition you think you're lacking while still doing keto. Also make sure there isn't perhaps another reason you are feeling bad, it could be all sorts of things. Otherwise, if the way you are eating is making you feel bad, don't eat that way
I thrive on carbs, so keto or even LCHF would be tragic for me. Other people it works phenomenal for. You just have to figure out the right balance for you.6 -
How much weight did you have to lose when you started? 20 pounds in 3 months is moderately rapid weight loss in real life (no matter what happens on The Biggest Loser and its ilk
). If you had 50 or more pounds to lose, it may've been an OK rate, but as you're getting lighter you might want to slow the loss a bit.
If you're feeling tired, cranky and emotional, it could be that your body likes carbs more than your husband's does . . . or it may be that you're getting light enough now that 1.5 or so pounds a week is too fast to be losing. Those symptoms are pretty classic symptoms of over-restriction.
Many people here encourage a rule of thumb of losing no more than 1% of your body weight per week, and less than that as you get within 25-50 pounds of goal. Some of us are a little more sensitive to rapid loss, and do better losing even more slowly.
I know we all want the weight off ASAP, but strength, energy, health, and sustainability of the process are all really important, too.1 -
onederbaby wrote: »I started the keto diet about 3 months ago. I have lost about 20 pounds, thought I would have lost more. As I sit here not feeling myself: exhausted, moody, emotional; I wonder if it is the nutritional imbalance. Now, my body has always lacked in Venetian vitamins, but I have felt I've gotten worse over the last week. I just feel blah. Tired, cranky, emotional, you name it. Any advice?
Personally, low carb makes my depression worse and what you're describing seems like similar symptoms. It might be worth looking into. Either way, I'd probably add some carbs back in to see how you feel and then pay close attention if you decide to cut down again. A trip to the doc to get your vitamin levels tested again to see if everything is okay might not be amiss, either.2 -
onederbaby wrote: »I researched it and even got approval from my cardiologist. My cholesterol and blood sugar showed improvement almost instantly. But as time is going by, I am finding myself drained. I have thought about going back to a balanced diet, but my husband and I are doing this together and he is putting up resistance on stopping. I told him it wasnt feasible to do two diet plans at one time (the grocery bill). So I feel lack of support too.
It sounds like talking to your doctor is your best advice. Remember others may mean well but encouraging you to do the opposite of your doctor isnt good advice0 -
@AnnPT77 I went back and looked at my progress, it has actually been 20 pounds in 2 month. I didnt mean to lose that quick. However, the only carbs I'm taking in are from the vegetables. I limit myself to broccoli, spinach, cauliflower, and occasionally brussel sprouts. I made the mistake of listening to these groups that said no to fruit, eventhough strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, and raspberries are okay; and not eating any.
I am pretty overweight, I have a ways to go. Ive lost almost 50 pounds so far. However, I am rethinking the LCHF and just returning to a balanced way of eating.1 -
Since you mentioned blood sugar, I am guessing you had blood sugar issues when you started? If that's the case, then you have a valid medical reason for cutting carbs in addition to wanting to lose weight. Adding them all back may or may not be the best option depending on your situation.
I'm a type 2 diabetic and I manage my blood sugar well on a lowish but not low carb diet - usually about 150g a day, which is substantially less than most Americans eat. That's high enough to keep me from feeling "keto flu" and high enough to power my workouts, but low enough that my damaged pancreas can keep up.1 -
rheddmobile wrote: »Since you mentioned blood sugar, I am guessing you had blood sugar issues when you started? If that's the case, then you have a valid medical reason for cutting carbs in addition to wanting to lose weight. Adding them all back may or may not be the best option depending on your situation.
I'm a type 2 diabetic and I manage my blood sugar well on a lowish but not low carb diet - usually about 150g a day, which is substantially less than most Americans eat. That's high enough to keep me from feeling "keto flu" and high enough to power my workouts, but low enough that my damaged pancreas can keep up.
Yes, close to my doctor diagnosing me. I asked for a chance lose weight and see if that will help my levels. I go for more bloodwork next week.0 -
onederbaby wrote: »@AnnPT77 I went back and looked at my progress, it has actually been 20 pounds in 2 month. I didnt mean to lose that quick. However, the only carbs I'm taking in are from the vegetables. I limit myself to broccoli, spinach, cauliflower, and occasionally brussel sprouts. I made the mistake of listening to these groups that said no to fruit, eventhough strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, and raspberries are okay; and not eating any.
Why? What do you have against cucumbers, carrots, green beans, hicama, and radishes?
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rheddmobile wrote: »Since you mentioned blood sugar, I am guessing you had blood sugar issues when you started? If that's the case, then you have a valid medical reason for cutting carbs in addition to wanting to lose weight. Adding them all back may or may not be the best option depending on your situation.
I'm a type 2 diabetic and I manage my blood sugar well on a lowish but not low carb diet - usually about 150g a day, which is substantially less than most Americans eat. That's high enough to keep me from feeling "keto flu" and high enough to power my workouts, but low enough that my damaged pancreas can keep up.
That sounds smart. If you have high cholesterol and BG, adding back in your previous level of carbs might do your health no favours. If you do choose to add back some carbs, I would do so gradually, and keep an eye on how it is affecting your post prandial BG numbers.
In the meantime, increase you sodium a bit and maybe magnesium. If you are not getting at least 3000-5000 mg of sodium a day, it can affect you energy and cause a general flu-ish weak feeling. Symptoms of fatigue, moodiness, brain fog, nausea, BM issues beaches, muscle weakness and spasms are typical of low electrolytes and can be fixed fairly quickly with salty broth or even just eating a teaspoon of salt spread throughout your day. Low sodium will eventually lower potassium levels too. For reference, there is 2300 mg sodium in a teaspoon of salt.
Perhaps consider eating more too. You might not be eating enough for your body to stay healthy. Losing 10 lbs a month is pretty aggressive. Generally speaking, most can use fat as their main fuel source without a problem and don't have a big dip in energy (except for that electrolyte imbalance) so I wonder if you just need a bit more food.
And remember, keto is usually just keeping carbs below 50g (approximately). You can get a fair bit of variety in that, including fruit if you wish. You just need to limit portion size if you choose higher carb foods like potato or tropical fruits. If you health can handle more carbs, then add them in.
Best wishes.1 -
FireOpalCO wrote: »onederbaby wrote: »@AnnPT77 I went back and looked at my progress, it has actually been 20 pounds in 2 month. I didnt mean to lose that quick. However, the only carbs I'm taking in are from the vegetables. I limit myself to broccoli, spinach, cauliflower, and occasionally brussel sprouts. I made the mistake of listening to these groups that said no to fruit, eventhough strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, and raspberries are okay; and not eating any.
Why? What do you have against cucumbers, carrots, green beans, hicama, and radishes?
They have a higher carb count. Trying to stay below 20 carbs a day.2 -
onederbaby wrote: »I researched it and even got approval from my cardiologist. My cholesterol and blood sugar showed improvement almost instantly. But as time is going by, I am finding myself drained. I have thought about going back to a balanced diet, but my husband and I are doing this together and he is putting up resistance on stopping. I told him it wasnt feasible to do two diet plans at one time (the grocery bill). So I feel lack of support too.
It sounds like talking to your doctor is your best advice. Remember others may mean well but encouraging you to do the opposite of your doctor isnt good advice
yes and no...on average doctors get less than 4 hours of nutritional training during their med school careers - so unless they stay up to date on research about metabolism, diet etc - they may not be the best source of information
for example - the blanket recommendation to cut carbs for TD2 - that works for some people and yet others on this forum saw a decrease in blood glucose with an increase in carbs (which is in line with some of the recent research i'm reading); ditto with PCOS - some people response well to low carb - others to higher carbs but more startchy ones compared to sugar etc...4 -
onederbaby wrote: »FireOpalCO wrote: »onederbaby wrote: »@AnnPT77 I went back and looked at my progress, it has actually been 20 pounds in 2 month. I didnt mean to lose that quick. However, the only carbs I'm taking in are from the vegetables. I limit myself to broccoli, spinach, cauliflower, and occasionally brussel sprouts. I made the mistake of listening to these groups that said no to fruit, eventhough strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, and raspberries are okay; and not eating any.
Why? What do you have against cucumbers, carrots, green beans, hicama, and radishes?
They have a higher carb count. Trying to stay below 20 carbs a day.
Cucumbers are practically water.
USDA food database: https://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/foods/show/11205?fgcd=&manu=&format=&count=&max=25&offset=&sort=default&order=asc&qlookup=cucumber&ds=SR&qt=&qp=&qa=&qn=&q=&ing=
100 gm of cucumber = 3.63 gm of carb.2 -
I know you said diet. My restricted diet (no gluten, limited carbs) is sustainable. I eat a keto diet. I don't follow a specific keto lifestyle. The rest of my family eats low to high carb, all at the same table and with the same meal, which I made. What I eat is just my diet and does not really affect my lifestyle, except the GF which limits where I can eat.
A lifestyle (to me) is more of a social, financial and spiritual thing IMO, and not what foods or macros you choose. Perhaps your lifestyle is centred around food and your diet is a big factor of your lifestyle, mine isn't really.
I would assume that people like me, who have used to diet to improve health and manage their weight for years, are the 1% who chose it for the right reason?3 -
I know you said diet. My restricted diet (no gluten, limited carbs) is sustainable. I eat a keto diet. I don't follow a specific keto lifestyle. The rest of my family eats low to high carb, all at the same table and with the same meal, which I made. What I eat is just my diet and does not really affect my lifestyle, except the GF which limits where I can eat.
A lifestyle (to me) is more of a social, financial and spiritual thing IMO, and not what foods or macros you choose. Perhaps your lifestyle is centred around food and your diet is a big factor of your lifestyle, mine isn't really.
I would assume that people like me, who have used to diet to improve health and manage their weight for years, are the 1% who chose it for the right reason?
I think after taking a step back and reading everyone's posts, I have gained some perspective. When I went back and realized that it had been 20 pounds in 2 months, I do feel like that is a bit fast and maybe my body is having trouble adjusting. Then I went back and evaluated what I was eating. Sure enough, I havent been eating enough. A protein shake for breakfast, sometimes lunch, or leftovers; then dinner, which I figured wasnt much over 400 calories. So my day consisted of 500-900 calories, depending on the day.
I have decided to stick to low carb, but adding back foods that are natural and not processed. I will expand my veggies and add fruits. Not sure I will add grains back. But, I think I have a good plan. I just hope it doesn't backfire and the weight comes back on.2 -
onederbaby wrote: »
I know you said diet. My restricted diet (no gluten, limited carbs) is sustainable. I eat a keto diet. I don't follow a specific keto lifestyle. The rest of my family eats low to high carb, all at the same table and with the same meal, which I made. What I eat is just my diet and does not really affect my lifestyle, except the GF which limits where I can eat.
A lifestyle (to me) is more of a social, financial and spiritual thing IMO, and not what foods or macros you choose. Perhaps your lifestyle is centred around food and your diet is a big factor of your lifestyle, mine isn't really.
I would assume that people like me, who have used to diet to improve health and manage their weight for years, are the 1% who chose it for the right reason?
I think after taking a step back and reading everyone's posts, I have gained some perspective. When I went back and realized that it had been 20 pounds in 2 months, I do feel like that is a bit fast and maybe my body is having trouble adjusting. Then I went back and evaluated what I was eating. Sure enough, I havent been eating enough. A protein shake for breakfast, sometimes lunch, or leftovers; then dinner, which I figured wasnt much over 400 calories. So my day consisted of 500-900 calories, depending on the day.
I have decided to stick to low carb, but adding back foods that are natural and not processed. I will expand my veggies and add fruits. Not sure I will add grains back. But, I think I have a good plan. I just hope it doesn't backfire and the weight comes back on.
Be aware that you may see a small scale jump right at first if you increase carbs (from a little more water retention that's involved in metabolizing them) and amount of food (from literally the physical weight of the food going through your digestive system). Neither of these are fat regain, so there's no reason to worry about them. The effect will be temporary, perhaps hiding ongoing fat loss from you on the scale, until things level out again. Then you'll see loss resume.
You won't regain fat rapidly doing what you suggest. In the very unlikely event that there would be regain, it would be very gradual, and you'd have time to adjust your calorie goal as needed. The weight isn't going to suddenly come back on.
Best wishes!4 -
onederbaby wrote: »
I know you said diet. My restricted diet (no gluten, limited carbs) is sustainable. I eat a keto diet. I don't follow a specific keto lifestyle. The rest of my family eats low to high carb, all at the same table and with the same meal, which I made. What I eat is just my diet and does not really affect my lifestyle, except the GF which limits where I can eat.
A lifestyle (to me) is more of a social, financial and spiritual thing IMO, and not what foods or macros you choose. Perhaps your lifestyle is centred around food and your diet is a big factor of your lifestyle, mine isn't really.
I would assume that people like me, who have used to diet to improve health and manage their weight for years, are the 1% who chose it for the right reason?
I think after taking a step back and reading everyone's posts, I have gained some perspective. When I went back and realized that it had been 20 pounds in 2 months, I do feel like that is a bit fast and maybe my body is having trouble adjusting. Then I went back and evaluated what I was eating. Sure enough, I havent been eating enough. A protein shake for breakfast, sometimes lunch, or leftovers; then dinner, which I figured wasnt much over 400 calories. So my day consisted of 500-900 calories, depending on the day.
I have decided to stick to low carb, but adding back foods that are natural and not processed. I will expand my veggies and add fruits. Not sure I will add grains back. But, I think I have a good plan. I just hope it doesn't backfire and the weight comes back on.
Hopefully adding on 500-1000 kcal will make you feel better.
I would look into adding in protein too. For a woman losing weight, most will want over 70g of protein to help them preserve lean tissue. IMO, getting closer to 100g is even better. That's roughly 300-400 calories right there. You may not be getting enough if you total calorie intake was only 500-900 kcal.
Check out the Low Carber Daily MFP group. There's a lot of long term low careers who can help, and many newer members for support.
Good luck finding that calorie and macro sweet spot.
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