Any advice for very sore leg muscles, sore throat and headache?

(Jacqui) #1

I’m currently on day 10 of keto and for the last few days I’ve been getting pain in my leg muscles, particularly the outer thigh muscles.

I have tried the suggestions I have found in the forums, like salt (I have low salt with potassium and sodium), I have magnesium once per day since about day 3, and I take a calcium and vitamin d tablet and vitamin at least 5 days per week. Drinking a decent amount of water too.

I have also had a sore throat for a few days and have read that may be b12, so I made sure to have nutritional yeast this evening, and plan to look into some tablets for that too.

Yesterday morning was the first time I haven’t been hungry. I had a coffee with cream and then nothing until about 12.45, then I got a headache in the afternoon. With that and not being particularly hungry in the evening I didn’t have dinner. I then wasn’t hungry this morning but have still got the headache on and off. I didn’t eat until about 3pm and then had a small meal around 8pm.

So it would seem I am getting better at burning fat but still experiencing some keto flu.

Is there anything else, for the muscles, throat and headache, apart from more b12 I can try?

Many thanks x

(Full Metal KETO AF) #2

Eating meat will give you all the B12 you need. Keto has so much meat and animal proteins that it’s hard to be deficient in B vitamins. I don’t know what to tell you about your problem, it seems like you’re doing things right. 2+ liters of water? About magnesium are you taking like 400mg daily? Salt 10-15g. everyday? There is magnesium oil that’s for topical application, you could try applying this directly to the sore muscles. Epsom salt bath may help also. If you’re having the leg pain mostly in the evening try dosing with the magnesium later in the day. I hope you’re feeling better soon, I think this will pass. At 10 days keto flu is the most likely culprit. :cowboy_hat_face:

(Carl Keller) #3

This was my first thought. You’re getting salt but are you getting enough?

(Jacqui) #4

Thanks both. Maybe not enough salt then, I’m not sure how much I’m having. I’ll try to monitor that.

Feeling very nauseous this morning. Before keto I would have felt like eating to combat it, but now I feel the opposite. Supposed to be a day out at a BBQ today so I’m hoping my stomach settles.
I don’t know if it’s a general keto flu thing or because I haven’t eaten much the past couple of days.
I’ve had box this morning and no effect either way on the nausea.

(mole person) #5

Early in the adaptation period some people need a crazy seeming amount of salt. Your body is dumping a lot of water and your sodium goes with it leading to all sorts of electrolyte imbalances.

I’m not sure why but different people get hit by this in hugely varying degrees. I barely got it at all but my husband was sicker than anyone else I’ve even heard of. He got so nauseated that he couldn’t stop vomitting until he had some sugar. This happened twice before we sorted out his salt.

Anyhow, here is what worked for my husband. Take two full teaspoons of salt. Just regular salt. Starting first thing in the morning take 1/4 teaspoon any way you like. You can just eat it (that’s what he did) or add it to a drink such as coffee or water, or have it in some broth.

Make sure you have all of it over the course of your day. Some of it can go to seasoning your food. That fixed my husband right up. He only needed this intervention for about a month. Now, after two years, he only eats salt on his food exactly as he did prior to keto. Plus, he now wears a size 30 pants, exactly as he did when I first met him. So it was very worth the initial sorting out period!

(Jacqui) #7

Thank you all. I will try the extra salt.
Weirdly the sore throat feels like I’ve been drinking salt water. The feeling is in my mouth too.

My stomach is now much more settled after eating some lunch at a BBQ. Still a little choppy, but much better. A bit of a headache but that is less now too.