HELP! I can not get into ketosis!

Hi. I am am a 54 yr old woman needing to lose 30 to 40 lbs. I followed a strict keto diet for 40 days losing 9 lbs the first 2 weeks then plateauing. At day 40 I was advised to break the diet for one day then restart with Atkins, I am now on day 4 of Atkins. During these weeks I have tested my blood and have never gotten above .5. I am presently at .3. I have logged every bite entering my mouth. Myfitnesspal is set to 20 grams carbs, 100 gram fat and 80 gram protein (protein is the only category I occasionally go over, but not by much). My calories have been between 1200 and 1400. Does anyone have any idea why I can not get into ketosis? I am baffled and becoming frustrated. I did Atkins about 15 years ago and had no problem getting into ketosis.
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Replies

  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,321 Member
    I have no idea. Asking the the Low Carb Group might get you some help. I do Keto, but have never had an issue getting into Ketosis. My first thought was what are you testing with because the urine strips are useless as they go bad very quickly. Since you use a blood test, which one by the way, you may want to check the expiry date on the strips it uses. That is my only suggestion.
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,207 Member
    csplatt wrote: »
    is there a reason why your goal is ketosis? Why not simply eat in a calorie deficit?

    I do it for health reasons and I don't want to count calories for the rest of my life. :)
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,207 Member
    csplatt wrote: »
    is there a reason why your goal is ketosis? Why not simply eat in a calorie deficit?

    99% 0f people that try to circumvent CICO by using other means find that the alternatives don't work. Those alternatives MAY cause fatloss however it's always because of their roundabout way with CICO.

    There is no backdoor entry into stored fat.

    How does any dietary intervention circumvent CICO? and what do you mean 99% fail when using other means, what are these other means?
  • claireychn074
    claireychn074 Posts: 1,596 Member
    Um 🫣 “you are” not “you ate”. Oops.
  • tomcustombuilder
    tomcustombuilder Posts: 2,207 Member
    csplatt wrote: »
    is there a reason why your goal is ketosis? Why not simply eat in a calorie deficit?

    I do it for health reasons and I don't want to count calories for the rest of my life. :)
    I think you ate one of the only people I’ve met on here who does keto sustainably. It’s great to see it working so well but I think for quite a few people, they do it as a short term diet. They aren’t doing it for health but because it’s been pedalled as a quick fix, and of course the weight goes right back on as soon as they carb-out again. You’re proof it does work long term, but I think you might be in the minority!
    Yes it does work long term. The key for anyone is find an eating style you enjoy, that makes you feel good and is reasonably healthy.

    You have the KETO people, vegetarians, vegans etc, etc. and us that just eat almost exclusively non highly processed foods but include meat, veggies and fruit.

    Lol then you have the fast food crew....

  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,207 Member
    edited May 18
    csplatt wrote: »
    is there a reason why your goal is ketosis? Why not simply eat in a calorie deficit?

    99% 0f people that try to circumvent CICO by using other means find that the alternatives don't work. Those alternatives MAY cause fatloss however it's always because of their roundabout way with CICO.

    There is no backdoor entry into stored fat.

    How does any dietary intervention circumvent CICO? and what do you mean 99% fail when using other means, what are these other means?
    any diet with an actual name is other means whether it is KETO, Atkins or others. Most that do these think there is some magic to them. It's usually the "Carbs make you fat" group.

    Seriously? so if someone decides that what they're eating might not be a good idea and may be effecting their health and change their way of eating whether that be a vegetarian diet, vegan diet, med diet, dash diet that you think they think there's some magic to it and they're only kidding themselves thinking there's some kind of back door, what ever that means, or is your obvious fear of low carb and ketogenic diets made you that afraid of something that is more studied than any other diet on the planet, which there's thousands of studies and that ketosis been part of human existence for a few million years.
  • Adventurista
    Adventurista Posts: 1,640 Member
    Op is asking advice to get into a state of ketosis.
  • themoralesfamily
    themoralesfamily Posts: 8 Member
    I chose to attempt ketosis because: 1. I have had many children and ketosis based diets were the only weight loss program that ever got me back to my normal weight after childbirth. 2. I have a very busy schedule so easy to follow rules and foods, such as keto based diets, work well for me 3. For my entire life I've been basically low-fat, high-carb (rice, beans, fruit, and milk) lacto-vegetarian, not intentionally but because that's just what I enjoy. However, I felt after breast-feeding children for many years I needed pay attention to eating a more balanced diet. 4. Most of all, prior to my previous 40 day keto I was logging 1200 calories per day and walking a slow but consistent 17,000 - 20,000 steps 5 or 6 days a week for 3 months. All that time i may have lost 3 lbs total - which just defied science to me! How was that even possible? My husband blames hormones since I'm a 54 year old woman - maybe he's correct. So, I figured if calorie restriction and walking was not doing the trick, maybe ketosis would help. However, on the Keto/Atkins I have had ZERO energy and I have not walked in weeks, which is quite discouraging. I can feel my legs getting mushy!
    Thank you all so much for taking the time to try to advise me, I really am at a point that I'm just so confused and frustrated.
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,207 Member
    Answer ✓
    I chose to attempt ketosis because: 1. I have had many children and ketosis based diets were the only weight loss program that ever got me back to my normal weight after childbirth. 2. I have a very busy schedule so easy to follow rules and foods, such as keto based diets, work well for me 3. For my entire life I've been basically low-fat, high-carb (rice, beans, fruit, and milk) lacto-vegetarian, not intentionally but because that's just what I enjoy. However, I felt after breast-feeding children for many years I needed pay attention to eating a more balanced diet. 4. Most of all, prior to my previous 40 day keto I was logging 1200 calories per day and walking a slow but consistent 17,000 - 20,000 steps 5 or 6 days a week for 3 months. All that time i may have lost 3 lbs total - which just defied science to me! How was that even possible? My husband blames hormones since I'm a 54 year old woman - maybe he's correct. So, I figured if calorie restriction and walking was not doing the trick, maybe ketosis would help. However, on the Keto/Atkins I have had ZERO energy and I have not walked in weeks, which is quite discouraging. I can feel my legs getting mushy!
    Thank you all so much for taking the time to try to advise me, I really am at a point that I'm just so confused and frustrated.

    Yeah zero energy is basically because your not fully fat adapted, kind of like limbo where insulin is all over the map, been there done that. Hopefully your not consuming keto cheat treats and just sticking to old fashion whole foods, anyway that does pass and like most will then experience a full day of very high and steady energy that really doesn't fluctuate much and not to mention mental clarity. Also try increasing your fat a bit, it's a stable and efficient energy source that doesn't rely on insulin and for some reason the fat is bad mantra just keeps people from using it for it's intended purpose, energy.
  • MargaretYakoda
    MargaretYakoda Posts: 2,986 Member
    I chose to attempt ketosis because: 1. I have had many children and ketosis based diets were the only weight loss program that ever got me back to my normal weight after childbirth. 2. I have a very busy schedule so easy to follow rules and foods, such as keto based diets, work well for me 3. For my entire life I've been basically low-fat, high-carb (rice, beans, fruit, and milk) lacto-vegetarian, not intentionally but because that's just what I enjoy. However, I felt after breast-feeding children for many years I needed pay attention to eating a more balanced diet. 4. Most of all, prior to my previous 40 day keto I was logging 1200 calories per day and walking a slow but consistent 17,000 - 20,000 steps 5 or 6 days a week for 3 months. All that time i may have lost 3 lbs total - which just defied science to me! How was that even possible? My husband blames hormones since I'm a 54 year old woman - maybe he's correct. So, I figured if calorie restriction and walking was not doing the trick, maybe ketosis would help. However, on the Keto/Atkins I have had ZERO energy and I have not walked in weeks, which is quite discouraging. I can feel my legs getting mushy!
    Thank you all so much for taking the time to try to advise me, I really am at a point that I'm just so confused and frustrated.

    Skipping the keto portion of this discussion, 1200 calories a day is the rock bottom floor unless you’re disabled in a way that makes walking difficult or impossible, and/or you are unusually short.

    You might be so tired that you’re just not moving much at all, which will impact weight loss. And (potentially) the stress you’re putting your body through might be causing water retention.

    Try putting your details into this calculator and see if you can increase your calorie intake.
    https://www.sailrabbit.com/bmr/
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,207 Member
    edited May 19
    csplatt wrote: »
    is there a reason why your goal is ketosis? Why not simply eat in a calorie deficit?

    I do it for health reasons and I don't want to count calories for the rest of my life. :)
    I think you ate one of the only people I’ve met on here who does keto sustainably. It’s great to see it working so well but I think for quite a few people, they do it as a short term diet. They aren’t doing it for health but because it’s been pedalled as a quick fix, and of course the weight goes right back on as soon as they carb-out again. You’re proof it does work long term, but I think you might be in the minority!

    Yeah, it's not used much as a dietary method really, about 5% of the US population apparently, so what's that, about 12 million people.

    Generally there's one of two reasons someone tries this diet and one being health. The journey goes something like this. Your prediabetic, overweight or obese, higher blood pressure, the beginning of fatty liver, skin problems, IBS problems and joint pain every day of your life and you begin to believe, this is just the way it is, age kicks in and life happens and when you talk with your doctor it's like, here I have medication for that and oh, don't eat as much salt.

    Then you decide to try and find a solution yourself and make changes that going on a diet, lose weight and hopefully feel better and while on this journey of discovery which is generally a year or more through trial and error you will eventually find yourself coming across reducing carbs as a solution which then generally lead to the ketogenic diet, which btw has resolved every one of my issues and the reason I stay on a ketogenic diet is because it's better than my IBS, skin and joint pain returning, it's kind of a no brainer, feel good or feel like shyte.

    The other way people just stumble on to it because it's popular now and because it's a powerful biological intervention that can and does effect metabolism in ways people don't try to understand and who for the most part never get into actual nutritional ketosis for any length of time who for a number of reasons, then decide to quite. Ketosis is a metabolic state which is quite different than say, trying to be vegetarian or now going to try a Mediterranean diet. Being in ketosis, is a seperate science and a seperate metabolic state unto itself which most people don't understand. I'm still learning.

    The ketogenic diet is the standard diet implemented around the world in lifestyle clinics for reducing most non communicable diseases, especially diabetes and has been for over a decade. :)
  • MargaretYakoda
    MargaretYakoda Posts: 2,986 Member
    The ketogenic diet is the standard diet implemented around the world in lifestyle clinics for reducing most non communicable diseases, especially diabetes and has been for over a decade. :)

    It’s a standard diet
    And it’s not suitable for everyone.

    There are good medical reasons why some people should not do keto. Including (but not limited to) people who have pancreatic, liver, or certain thyroid conditions.
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,207 Member
    The ketogenic diet is the standard diet implemented around the world in lifestyle clinics for reducing most non communicable diseases, especially diabetes and has been for over a decade. :)

    It’s a standard diet
    And it’s not suitable for everyone.

    There are good medical reasons why some people should not do keto. Including (but not limited to) people who have pancreatic, liver, or certain thyroid conditions.

    Of course. Individual medial concerns will always need to be reviewed by your PCP and associates.
  • MargaretYakoda
    MargaretYakoda Posts: 2,986 Member
    The ketogenic diet is the standard diet implemented around the world in lifestyle clinics for reducing most non communicable diseases, especially diabetes and has been for over a decade. :)

    It’s a standard diet
    And it’s not suitable for everyone.

    There are good medical reasons why some people should not do keto. Including (but not limited to) people who have pancreatic, liver, or certain thyroid conditions.

    Of course. Individual medial concerns will always need to be reviewed by your PCP and associates.

    Glad to hear you agree.
    Keto is not for everyone.
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,207 Member
    The ketogenic diet is the standard diet implemented around the world in lifestyle clinics for reducing most non communicable diseases, especially diabetes and has been for over a decade. :)

    It’s a standard diet
    And it’s not suitable for everyone.

    There are good medical reasons why some people should not do keto. Including (but not limited to) people who have pancreatic, liver, or certain thyroid conditions.

    Of course. Individual medial concerns will always need to be reviewed by your PCP and associates.

    Glad to hear you agree.
    Keto is not for everyone.

    That premise holds true for absolutely everything in life, that's a given, I thought. Ok, glad we got that out of the way. :)
  • themoralesfamily
    themoralesfamily Posts: 8 Member
    edited May 20
    1 for some people dairy (including cheese) can kick them out of ketosis.
    2. sometimes, too much protein (more than you need) will prevent ketosis since extra protein can be used by your body to produce glucose during low-carbohydrate intake through a process called gluconeogenesis.
    3. if you are well into keto or low carb life style and have become fat adapted, you may not register ketones in test because you have now become so efficient in using ketones as energy your body stops dumping it. breath test are usually most accurate.

    you may want to consider doing a 3 day fat fast if you think #1 or #2 is the cause.
    Google Fat Fast for how to do this.

    low carb or keto (they are different but both result in being in ketosis) is indeed a sustainable WOE.

    i have PCOS. i lost 126 pounds >12 years ago and have kept it off and have maintained low carb WOE and it is very easy to stick to this WOE. approx 50 grams of GROSS carbs per day. (i do indulge for special occasions). i don't count any other macros or calories. just total carbs per day. i also maintain a very active fitness regime. (because PCOS our BMRs are much lower than the average person so exercise is a must). and all calories are not equal for my body so this is why i must maintain a low carb WOE.

    THANKS PEGGY. THAT IS VERY HELPFUL AND MAY BE THE ISSUE BECAUSE I DO EAT A LOT OF DAIRY AND PROTEIN TENDS TO BE MY ONLY "OVER" ON MY DAILY MACROS. ILL TRY THIS AND SEE IF IT HELPS.
  • themoralesfamily
    themoralesfamily Posts: 8 Member
    I chose to attempt ketosis because: 1. I have had many children and ketosis based diets were the only weight loss program that ever got me back to my normal weight after childbirth. 2. I have a very busy schedule so easy to follow rules and foods, such as keto based diets, work well for me 3. For my entire life I've been basically low-fat, high-carb (rice, beans, fruit, and milk) lacto-vegetarian, not intentionally but because that's just what I enjoy. However, I felt after breast-feeding children for many years I needed pay attention to eating a more balanced diet. 4. Most of all, prior to my previous 40 day keto I was logging 1200 calories per day and walking a slow but consistent 17,000 - 20,000 steps 5 or 6 days a week for 3 months. All that time i may have lost 3 lbs total - which just defied science to me! How was that even possible? My husband blames hormones since I'm a 54 year old woman - maybe he's correct. So, I figured if calorie restriction and walking was not doing the trick, maybe ketosis would help. However, on the Keto/Atkins I have had ZERO energy and I have not walked in weeks, which is quite discouraging. I can feel my legs getting mushy!
    Thank you all so much for taking the time to try to advise me, I really am at a point that I'm just so confused and frustrated.
    Walking and calorie restriction is what will work. Any diet is successful due to implementing a consistent calorie deficit over time.

    The fact that you regained the weight after “ketosis” illustrates the dilemma of people who lose weight then regain it due to going back to other ways of eating. Find a way to eat that you can stick with permanently that will allow Fatloss and then maintenance of that weight.

    Once you lose the weight the real work starts.

    THANK YOU, TOM, FOR YOUR RESPONSE. I APPRECIATE YOUR TIME. I HAVE NOT REGAINED ANY WEIGHT THIS PAST FEW MONTHS. THE ONLY TIME I HAVE EVER REGAINED WEIGHT WAS WITH ANOTHER PREGNANCY. AS I MENTIONED ABOVE, I DID 1200 CAL AND 17- 20,000 STEPS (MEDIUM SPEED) FOR 3 MONTHS AND I FELT THE 3 LB WEIGHT LOSS WAS TOO SLOW, WHICH IS WHY I ATTEMPTED KETOSIS. I THOUGHT IT MIGHT SPEED UP THE WEIGHYT LOSS. HOWEVER, I HAVE NOT GOTTEN INTO KETOSIS AND NOW I NO LONGER AM ABLE TO WALK DUE TO LOW ENERGY. I WOULD LOVE TO BE IN KETOSIS AND WALK DAILY.
  • themoralesfamily
    themoralesfamily Posts: 8 Member
    I chose to attempt ketosis because: 1. I have had many children and ketosis based diets were the only weight loss program that ever got me back to my normal weight after childbirth. 2. I have a very busy schedule so easy to follow rules and foods, such as keto based diets, work well for me 3. For my entire life I've been basically low-fat, high-carb (rice, beans, fruit, and milk) lacto-vegetarian, not intentionally but because that's just what I enjoy. However, I felt after breast-feeding children for many years I needed pay attention to eating a more balanced diet. 4. Most of all, prior to my previous 40 day keto I was logging 1200 calories per day and walking a slow but consistent 17,000 - 20,000 steps 5 or 6 days a week for 3 months. All that time i may have lost 3 lbs total - which just defied science to me! How was that even possible? My husband blames hormones since I'm a 54 year old woman - maybe he's correct. So, I figured if calorie restriction and walking was not doing the trick, maybe ketosis would help. However, on the Keto/Atkins I have had ZERO energy and I have not walked in weeks, which is quite discouraging. I can feel my legs getting mushy!
    Thank you all so much for taking the time to try to advise me, I really am at a point that I'm just so confused and frustrated.

    Yeah zero energy is basically because your not fully fat adapted, kind of like limbo where insulin is all over the map, been there done that. Hopefully your not consuming keto cheat treats and just sticking to old fashion whole foods, anyway that does pass and like most will then experience a full day of very high and steady energy that really doesn't fluctuate much and not to mention mental clarity. Also try increasing your fat a bit, it's a stable and efficient energy source that doesn't rely on insulin and for some reason the fat is bad mantra just keeps people from using it for it's intended purpose, energy.

    I HAVE BEEN STICKING TO OLD FASHIONED SIMPLE FOOD - GRILLED CHICKEN, EGGS, AVOCADO, ETC. I DID JUST ORDER THE ATKINS SHAKES, DO YOU ADVISE THAT I RETURN THEM AND STICK TO REAL FOOD? ASLO, WHAT DOES "NOT FULLY FAT ADAPTED" MEAN? AND DO YOU THINK IT WILL PASS ANDS I WILL GET ENOUGH ENERGY TO WALK MY 20,000 STEPS PER DAY AGAIN. RIGHT NOW I CAN HARDLY GET TO 8,000. LASTLY, IF IM LOW ON ANYTHING IT WOULD BE FAT CONSUMPTION. WHAT TYPE OF FAT DO YOU RECOMMEND? COCONUT OIL OR DAIRY? THANK YOU SO SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME AND KNOWLEDGE!
  • MargaretYakoda
    MargaretYakoda Posts: 2,986 Member
    I chose to attempt ketosis because: 1. I have had many children and ketosis based diets were the only weight loss program that ever got me back to my normal weight after childbirth. 2. I have a very busy schedule so easy to follow rules and foods, such as keto based diets, work well for me 3. For my entire life I've been basically low-fat, high-carb (rice, beans, fruit, and milk) lacto-vegetarian, not intentionally but because that's just what I enjoy. However, I felt after breast-feeding children for many years I needed pay attention to eating a more balanced diet. 4. Most of all, prior to my previous 40 day keto I was logging 1200 calories per day and walking a slow but consistent 17,000 - 20,000 steps 5 or 6 days a week for 3 months. All that time i may have lost 3 lbs total - which just defied science to me! How was that even possible? My husband blames hormones since I'm a 54 year old woman - maybe he's correct. So, I figured if calorie restriction and walking was not doing the trick, maybe ketosis would help. However, on the Keto/Atkins I have had ZERO energy and I have not walked in weeks, which is quite discouraging. I can feel my legs getting mushy!
    Thank you all so much for taking the time to try to advise me, I really am at a point that I'm just so confused and frustrated.
    Walking and calorie restriction is what will work. Any diet is successful due to implementing a consistent calorie deficit over time.

    The fact that you regained the weight after “ketosis” illustrates the dilemma of people who lose weight then regain it due to going back to other ways of eating. Find a way to eat that you can stick with permanently that will allow Fatloss and then maintenance of that weight.

    Once you lose the weight the real work starts.

    THANK YOU, TOM, FOR YOUR RESPONSE. I APPRECIATE YOUR TIME. I HAVE NOT REGAINED ANY WEIGHT THIS PAST FEW MONTHS. THE ONLY TIME I HAVE EVER REGAINED WEIGHT WAS WITH ANOTHER PREGNANCY. AS I MENTIONED ABOVE, I DID 1200 CAL AND 17- 20,000 STEPS (MEDIUM SPEED) FOR 3 MONTHS AND I FELT THE 3 LB WEIGHT LOSS WAS TOO SLOW, WHICH IS WHY I ATTEMPTED KETOSIS. I THOUGHT IT MIGHT SPEED UP THE WEIGHYT LOSS. HOWEVER, I HAVE NOT GOTTEN INTO KETOSIS AND NOW I NO LONGER AM ABLE TO WALK DUE TO LOW ENERGY. I WOULD LOVE TO BE IN KETOSIS AND WALK DAILY.

    Reiterating my suggestion that 1200 calories might be too low for you.