Always thinking about food

(Kitty) #1

I went keto to help with my food addiction and low energy, but 2.5 years in and I still want to eat all the time, and live off stimulants to get through each day. Any advice out there?

#2

What are your vitals and macros? Do you track your food intake?

(Brian) #3

Are you indulging on artificial sweeteners? They tend to make you hungry all the time

#4

That hasn’t been my experience at all.

What triggers me is nuts and seeds.

(Kitty) #5

Vitals WNL, and yes I track everything. My ketones are generally between 1.5-2.5, and glucose 85-95 fasting.

(Kitty) #6

No. One adapt keto bar after dinner. I have gone without any sweeteners in the past to see if it helped and it did not.

(Cathy) #7

Is it possible that you are not eating enough?

(Kitty) #8

I eat 1700-1800 calories every day. I don’t exercise very much and am 5’5”, 110lbs, age 42, female. It seems to be enough or even too much according to all the calculators I’ve used. I have tried eating more, but not for long periods of time, usually only one day, lol.

#9

Do you think there’s a possibility that your weight is below what is healthy for you? At 110lbs and 5’5 your BMI comes out about 18.3, which is theoretically only healthy for around 1% of the female population and if you’re hungry and tired it certainly points to a high chance that you might actually need a bit more adipose tissue (fat mass). I’d definitely increase your intake - a bit more protein to support muscle growth, but the bulk from fat (or carbohydrates as this would be easier, although if you want to return to a ketogenic diet you might experience a few weeks of lethargy). Too little adipose tissue for what is healthy for you would increase your hunger and cause food cravings and thoughts about food. A healthy BMI for a 5’5 female is generally 20+ (with certain exceptions, e.g. ethnic variability; medical conditions) as this is optimal for hormone production and has a lower mortality rate than suppressing weight below what is appropriate for you.

(Cathy) #10

You must be very lean at your weight and height. Eat if you are hungry and see what happens. Maybe you just will feel less hungry and maybe not. Just be sure to keep it withing your carb and protein goals.

(Cathy) #11

What stimulants are you talking about?

(Kitty) #12

Caffeine, adaptogenic herbs

(Cathy) #13

By your account, those herbs don’t appear to be helping you. Maybe consider dropping them and concentrate on nutritionally dense foods that are keto friendly. Hope you feel great soon!!!

#14

Hi @Ashlee – You mentioned you previously had a food addiction – what were its symptoms, how did you conclude you had one, and how much did you weigh at your peak? Answers to these intrusive personal questions may offer clues to a resolution.

It’s possible that addressing problematic thought / behavior patterns may go beyond the choice of diet, Keto or otherwise. In my case, I’ve seen an improvement in self-defeating patterns, but I’m not completely out of the woods.

#15

If you are into such things, I would recommend the KSM-66 branded extraction of Ashwagandha. It is supposed to really help with cortisol levels. Otherwise, caffeine and most stimulants are usually appetite suppressants, but you should definitely try to do an n=1 experiment to see how you do without them. I’d wean off the caffeine though; quitting cold turkey can give nasty headaches.