Can't lower insulin

(Mina Janssen) #1

Hi,

I do keto for a few years. And I also fast daily 18/6. Eat only 2 a day and 25 carbs.

My insulin stays to high 20 and I can’t loose weight at all.

Did somebody had this issue and any idea what to do? Did try a lot already.

#2

Welcome Mina.
I will be interested in hearing what others have to say. I don’t even know how to test for insulin.

I don’t know how much weight you need to lose. I know those who are close to their desired weight often have a more difficult time losing those last few pounds.

I also tend to do 18/6. Since I’m testing for BG, I find doing two 24 hour fasts in a row with 1 meal tends to lower my BG. Since starting keto about six months ago, I’ve lost a fairly steady 2 Lbs. a week.

I’m eager to hear what others reply.

#3

Try going full on carnivore for a couple of weeks and see if that helps. Sometimes people need to eliminate all carbs for a short time to break through the resistance. Some even choose to continue long term.

(Mina Janssen) #4

You measure insulin by blood. If I go carnivore wil that lower the insulin? I also heard somebody say stop dairy.

(Jane) #5

That does seem high after a few years on keto. Was that a fasting insulin test done at a lab?

I had mine done around 6 months into keto and it was 4.6 uIU/mL with the reference range 2.6-24.9 so you are at the top end of the range.

What does a typical day of eating look like for you?

(Mina Janssen) #6

Yes it is absolutely to high I am insulin resitance.

I ate by 11 eggs with ham and tomatoes.
Maybe yoghurt and berries.
Keto pancakes.
Eggs with spinach
Chickens with salad something like that.

Then I at six again. Cauliflower with chicken
Salmon with broccoli and avocado
Depends on what ik want zucchini with tomatoes cheese and meat.

If I am hungry some yoghurt or nuts or cheese as dessert. Count macros

The problem is the insulin but I just don’t know why???

Those are example of what I ate. Yes it is done at the doctors lab.

(Jane) #7

Are you on any medication that could be causing it to be high?

#8

Tracking everything you eat? Lowering Insulin is as simple as lowering blood glucose and leaving it low over time. 20 is your fasting number?

#9

Just looking at your sample menu, there are lots of potential areas for carbs to creep in…tomatoes, cheese, keto pancakes, yogurt, berries, etc. Any one of those things by themselves may be OK here and there, but when you start to add them together, it is very easy to get many more carbs than it may appear on the surface.

As I mentioned above, you may be one of the people who may really benefit with a period of time of zero carb intake, just to see if you can break through the resistance.

(Mina Janssen) #10

I use thyroid medication only. That does not cause ir.

Well it is not that simple for me. 20 is my fasting number after 13 hours. Yes sometimes it 15 or 18. But to high. Yes I count macros in fitness pal. 10%carbs 30% proteine 60% fat.

When first time starting keto my fasting glucose went up from 5 tot 5.8 never came down. Never lost really weight wich I really want to. But also want prevent diabetis.

Can it be dawn phenomenon keeping insulin to high? Dairy?

(Mina Janssen) #11

I track and weigh my food I do not ate to much carbs. I wish :persevere:. I can try that. I hoping just to find answer why this is happening it not normal.

(Eric) #12

Generally it is recommend to target a carb max of 20g. Some people do total carbs others do net. Using a percentage of calories may lead you to exceed that recommended number. Just my 2-cents.

(Robin) #13

When I do keto, I always use 5% carbs, 25% protein, 70% fat

(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #14

I’m not sure what you mean by the phrase, “high 20.” The insulin threshold above which ketogenesis is inhibited is about 25 μU/mL, according to the work done by Ralph De Fronzo and his team. If your insulin is between 20 and 25, you stand a good chance of still being ketotic. Also, our insulin level is supposed to fluctuate throughout the day; a fasting insulin reading taken every six months or does not give enough information about what is actually going on.

A better measure of your success on keto would be your level of serum β-hydroxybutyrate. If it is above 0.5 mmol/L, then your insulin is ipso facto low enough to permit ketogenesis. There could be another explanation for the lack of fat loss. In fact, you don’t even need a ketone meter; if your clothes are getting looser, you are metabolising fat from your fat store, regardless of whether you are losing weight or not. It is not unheard of for people to add lean mass while shedding fat.

I’m not saying that these possible explanations are what is really going on, merely that these are possibilities. We would probably need a lot more information about you, in order to get a real picture of what is going on.

(Alec) #15

I am a hammer, I see a nail. :slight_smile:

Have you tried going zero carb/carnivore for a few weeks to see if that helps? I can recommend it: it is working for me for fat loss.

(Mina Janssen) #16

I am doing keto for insulin resistance you measure this with fasting insulin. I should be below 5. Then weightloss can happen. That is why it’s to high. I am in ketose I do use stick with the urine.

I am fat no lean mass, I wish.

(Mina Janssen) #17

No I did not try that. Maybe I should give that a change. How long are you doing carnivore? It sounds so strict to do that. I mean you can’t do carnivore for a long time.

(Alec) #18
  • This is my 4th month of carnivore.
  • It is strict, but it is very easy to do. I always thought it was extreme when I was keto, but it is not.
  • There are lots of folks that have been carnivore for many years and are very happy with it.

Give it a shot for a few weeks and see what happens. It’s only keto without the plants. Easy! You may find that the problem you have is caused by plant toxins. There’s more toxins in there than you would think.

(Mina Janssen) #19

Ok will give it a try. Thanx al for the advice!

#20

Wrong, you most likely have way more muscle on your body than you think you do, and also way more than a person that’s at a normal bodyweight. How do you think you’re moving yourself around? I’d stop worrying about insulin and start worrying about blood sugar. You can test that yourself throughout the day and that’s more important. Taking snapshots of insulin doesn’t tell you what’s going on, checking blood sugar in real time does.

It (could) be damn phenomenon getting you, if it is, that’s a terrible time to check insulin for obvious reasons. My fasting sugars are still high to this day, yet my A1C averages 4.80 - 5.1, so it makes no difference what my fasting numbers are since it’s one time during the day and my averages are fine. I also wouldn’t hop on the blame everything on diary train that people like to do.

Also, since we’re talking fat loss (or lack thereof) what Thyroid med are you on? Because they absolutely can indirectly have an effect, if your thyroid is still sluggish as hell, and you’re simply not burning through what you eat than that’s a problem that can reflect here. If it’s just T4 or something that would make sense, if you’re on T3 than you should be melting fat off. If it’s just a desiccated thyroid, than those don’t really do much either way.