Not losing on keto
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072499tt
Posts: 37 Member
This is the end of week 2. week one I lost close to 3 lbs and then this week gained 1.5. I am so frustrated. I dont know what else to do or what else to tweak. It so frustrating to see other significant losses happen for others and not me. I am trying so very hard. My life depends on it. I did not track for the last 2 days but I also did not eat anything ridiculous and felt I was on track still. Has anyone had this experience?
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I have! Several times, actually. Two things have helped me - combining keto with intermittent fasting, and keeping my daily calories around 1200, even with exercise. I’m not sure if that will help, but that’s what worked for me.2
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I haven't lost any significant weight in months, and I still have 30 lbs to lose, but I can tell I've lost inches. I'm also lifting heavy 2-3 times per week, so maybe gaining muscle/losing fat resulting in a wash. The scale is a liar. Keto is about more than weight loss. It's about healing your body and battling insulin resistance.3
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I dont think I can add fasting right now..it all seems too much. I will consider it however. Thanks for the suggestion. In terms of calories, I was thinking of lowering to around 1400 to see if that makes a difference. Currently im around 1670 or so. I am 250lbs so I am wondering if 1200 would be starvation for me.0
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I am also exercising about 3 times per week0
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I would never eat 1200 calories for any length of time.2
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I agree that 1200 might be too low. 1200 is what’s recommended for me, but my daily calorie recommendation always increases when I exercise. Once I started ignoring that increase and stuck to my baseline, i started seeing more loss.
I thought IF would be too much for me, but I basically just switched to black coffee and lots of water in the morning, then eat lunch, mid afternoon snacks, and dinner. As long as I hydrate well, it works better than I thought it would.
Good luck! I know it’s a long journey that can be frustrating. I started out at 265 and eventually lost 100+ pounds, but it is an up and down journey.2 -
Thank you @booksnbrains . I’m going to look more into IF0
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I haven't lost any significant weight in months, and I still have 30 lbs to lose, but I can tell I've lost inches. I'm also lifting heavy 2-3 times per week, so maybe gaining muscle/losing fat resulting in a wash. The scale is a liar. Keto is about more than weight loss. It's about healing your body and battling insulin resistance.
Yes the scale is a liar...and it’s hard when you have weight to lose not to rely on it. I agree 100% that is more than about weight. The weight is also important to get out of obesity however. So it’s so hard. The non weight related things I’ve noticed is more energy and better mood-which has felt amazing. Just gets frustrating when the other parts aren’t happening visibly . Most of my anxiety around this is become I’ve not lost much this year at all and there are health implications you know? But I’m not giving up0 -
for a net loss of 1.5
yup, i have seen that (and sometimes worse)
weight aside, how are your other markers (blood glucose, a1c, insulin, etc)?1 -
Keep tracking. It’s too soon to think you can wing it.5
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When I first saw the term "intermittent fasting" I had no clue what it was, I just saw the word fasting... Recalled biblical texts about fasting...And thought "Uuhhmm, NO!"
After a few weeks in, started reading more and more on keto research and blogs, realized I was already doing the IF thing. Because on this diet, I do not wake hungry and had started skipping breakfast...IF.
I also read while on Keto, focus more on size, inches lost, progress pictures, and how clothes are fitting rather than getting fixated on the number on the scale.
I wouldn't recommend lowering calories too much. Because we lower calories (somewhat naturally) as we lose and hit plateaus. I try to give myself a wide range so I'm not freaking out over calorie intake, 1300-1500. I don't worry if end up in the 1600s. I do worry if I go under 1300.
Can you tell a difference in your health, over all energy, decreased inches? These are things I find more important than the numbers.
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It seems like you've gotten good advice already. I just wanted to add, if it was me, I would maybe lower my calorie total by 100 (so from 1670 to 1570) for a couple of weeks and see if that makes a difference. I presume you got the 1670 from entering your info in MFP, but maybe from a doctor or something else. Also, do weigh & measure & track. Eyeballing food is really hard and likely to be wrong. That has made a big difference for me.5
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doing KETO and calorie counting does not work well. Your body will use the fat it stores to make up the cal deficiency from you food intake. I ate 800 cal yesterday and my body WILL use my stored fat for the extra... I run 1200 cal MAX a day. 7 months and 18 KG later it still works. I do have heavier cal days but only 2 a week. Work our 5 - 6 days a week. IF will also help lower and balance your insulin levels creating less hunger.1
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Thanks everyone. I weighed today and am officially back where I started 2 weeks ago. I will make some adjustments and see what the next week brings.1
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What are your macros in grams? Are you weighing everything? Carbs should be under 25 g, The balance of fat and protein in grams, should be fairly close with protein higher. Always eat your protein.3
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FWIW, I eat <20 g net carbs, and shoot for <100 g fat and >158 g protein. I am in maintenance at more or less 1600 cal/day. The charts and calculators all say I should be getting 2000+ calories to maintain, but they lie. Calories were lower when I was losing the 135 lbs.2 -
Definitely try lowering calories. Somewhere around 1300-1500.
Usually recommended calorie intake for women trying to lose weight, closer to 1300 if sedentary, closer to 1500 if active. Customize the macros a little lower for both fat and protein.
Make sure you're drinking plenty of water, getting carbs from veggies, and avoiding zero calorie sweeteners like sucralose, aspartame, and saccharin, these can spike insulin and keep you in and out of ketosis. Avoid beans and legumes, even if low carb. Make sure fats are coming from good fats: olive oil, coconut oil, avocados, butter, animal fats.
Erythritol, Stevia, or Monk fruit seem to not spike insulin or blood sugars.
Sorry if this is all "duh" information, but my first couple of days, I didn't realize my organic safflower oil and my sucralose were bad for keto.
I thought I can still have that bite of bread, rice, drop of honey, tbsp of cane sugar, or nibble of dessert as long as it wasn't 20 sugar grams worth.
And I was wrong.
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I just thought of something else... Did I read that you lift weights?
Depending on genetics, weights can bulk a female up and cause weight gain.
A long time ago, in a galaxy far away, I hired a personal trainer. I told them I wanted to tone up-- not bulk up. They insisted lifting weights could not cause a female to gain weight and bulk up. They were wrong. Fast forward to the family pictures at a wedding (reason I was trying to tone up). I looked like the Incredible Hulk!!! HUGE!!
Ditched the personal trainer...I started using one pound hand weights (or 15.9oz canned goods from kitchen). Doing a lot of reps while doing light cardio/aerobics while watching a show. 25-30 minutes cardio, alternate days with some floor toning exercises, no weights other than 1 pounds. I only workout 3-4 days and rest for 1-2 days. Muscles need a break to heal, especially when starting out.
Also, could try eating high protein meal immediately after workout. This speeds up metabolism.
Sorry so long! I'm a foodie, nutrition, science, and health nerd. That loves to talk food, health, and science.
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