3 months in and stalled, what to try?


(Tj Slattery) #1

Here are my 90 day pics. Down 22# but have literally been stuck there for 3 weeks.

Can’t deny the progress but was hoping for some more consistent progress. A bit afraid of fasting, so any direction from “lifers” would be appreciated.


#2

you should probably put this in the “Stall Point” sub category, as that’s what your topic is about.

In any case, can you provide some more information about what you are doing?
Are you tracking what you eat, macros, etc?
Have you adjusted what you eat based on your new bodyweight/lbm etc?


#3

You will continue to lose with keto, just at a slower pace. Hitting plateaus, and then seeing another weight reduction is very common. But, it takes patience. Some people have to wait weeks or months to see the needle move again. This is because your body is “moving furniture around” if I may use that analogy.

To move the needle much faster, fasting is employed to set autophagy at a more rapid pace. For instance, your body needs to now get rid of the extra skin that went around your tummy. With keto alone, it is slower. By fasting, the autophagy of the unneeded skin cells is accelerated.

Here’s the diagram at this link that I use to express this sort of dynamic. The longer the fasting window, the more weight loss. And then keto helps to sustain your weight loss. If the only fasting you are doing is a couple of hours between meals, then the rock is barely rolled up the hill. A longer fasting window induces greater weightloss, and then you can use keto to sustain your loss.

So, the question becomes this: are you okay with slow weightloss, or do you want a more rapid approach to your target weight? Either answer is ok. Just need to be honest with yourself with what you want to do. It is completely normal to plateau on keto, and then experience slower weightloss. But, you need to be ok with this. If not, then fasting is another strategy you may want to try.


(Tj Slattery) #4

I’ll attempt to move this yes. I am tracking most religiously net carbs which on average are about 30 total per day. Fats are around 80 to 100 g per day and my protein intake is higher at around 180 g per day. Now this is where I get trouble. i try to keep my total caloric intake at no more than 1600 calories total.I exercise vigorously for 45 minutes 5 days a week, and typically run a 5 K each weekend with one “rest day”


#5

CICO will not work as a long term solution, and will slow down your metabolism. If you are under eating calories, you will experience short term weightloss, and then your body dials down your metabolic rate (meaning it finds ways to reduce calorie expenditure to keep you alive) and then it will force you to gain weight.

Fasting will maintain your higher metabolic set point. You will be able to eat more (and obtain satiety…instead of feeling like you are starving yourself), and keep the weight loss level. But, if you cut your calories, you will be reducing metabolism…it’s a downward spiral.


(Tj Slattery) #6

I do occasionally IF, eat last meal no later than 7:00 PM followed up by first meal about noon. I have yet to do a 24 hour fast or longer but will try. Thank you for your direction


#7

Why are you eating so much protein? Body builders I’ve heard from don’t even eat that much.

Also, pull your carbs down more (under 20 grams at least). Likewise, sometimes net carbs isn’t the best way of measuring, sometimes total carbs really does make a difference.

And yea, CICO should not be the primary idea for the long term, but restriction for most people will last longer than 3 months if everything else is right.

Also, are you checking your bodyfat % rather than just weight in any way?


#8

Ok, good luck.

But again…I strongly caution the calorie restriction. If you extend your fast (let’s say 1 to 3 days) then DON’T restrict calories on the feast days. Keep a keto way of eating, aim for 1 to 2 grams protein per kg lean body mass, 20 grams or less of carbs, and add lots of fat to your meals to satiety. This will keep your metabolic rate burning high, and keep your weightloss levels (and you will not feel like you are starving yourself as calorie restriction would otherwise do). Calorie restriction is a horrible feeling, and will unravel all your effort that you put in.


#9

I moved it to Progress, Stall Point.


(Roxanne) #10

Great looking progress! I also questioned your high protein level, I’d try reducing that and upping your fat, instead. Some people find that they can break through a stall by eliminating certain things, dairy in particularly. However, you might have reached the point where intermittent fasting would be beneficial, or even just changing things up.


(Siobhan) #11

Extra protein you don’t need to maintain muscle is converted to glucose (sugar). It is likely that is one facet of the problem. Replace the extra protein you don’t need with fat, and see if that helps.


(Omar Newsome) #12

You’ve made some amazing progress! I would suggest staying the course for a while longer. Sometimes the body needs to “buy in” to the whole weight loss thing. By your results you are surely doing things right so why make changes when you know what’s working.


(Jason Fletcher) #13

If you are looking for direction from lifters you could try the ketogains protocol you can find it here on there site. https://www.reddit.com/r/ketogains/wiki/index. I would guess you are about 27-32% body fat right now. When after you read the facts and used the ketogain calculator to figure out your macros you can go to the ketogains group on facebook and ask your questions.


#14

?? I believe he said “lifers”, not “lifters”.


(eat more) #15

i think you’ve inadvertently been practicing CICO restriction…which still “works”…short term…at the expense of your metabolism.
do you know what your BMR is?
do you know what your TDEE is?
what formula/calculator did your macros come from?

like others i think 1600 is too low…especially given your activity level.
it’s possible that 30g carbs could be ok given your activity (glycogen flushing effects)
protein is high (45%)
fat is low (45-55%)

just as an example
i’m 5’2", 130lbs (ish), 25% bodyfat (ish), moderately active (heavy lifting 2-3 days a week and HIIT 2-3 days/week, and i stand for work)
my targets at a 10% deficit are as follows:

calories* 1637
carbs 20g (5%)
protein 77g (19%) (.8g per pound of lean body mass)
fat 139g (76%)

i still wonder at times if these targets are too low for me since i don’t know my actual bf%

*we still have to at the very least recognize calories to get targets but not count/restrict them

i suggest revisiting your targets and ketoing on :blush:

carb 20g
protein .8-1g per pound of lean body mass
fat “the rest” :blush:


(Tj Slattery) #16

What calculators would you recommend. I actually dont know what TDEE stands for.


(eat more) #17

TDEE stands for “Total Daily Estimated Expenditure” which is BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate…what you need just to exist if you laid in bed all day) + activity

i like the KetoDiet App calculator (i don’t use the app)
i think the data is easier to read and gives multiple options; maintenance and varying deficits

another popular one is: