Derailed after a few carbs

keto
fasting
(Larsen) #1

Hello fellow ketoers,

I have a short story and I need some advice. I have been doing IF for a long time, but after finding the podcast I decided to go all Keto. I also changed the IF to 23-1 from 16-8. Everything was fine, I was eating lots of fats, about 100g of protein and only carbs from vegetables under 5g I would say. Everything was fine. I was feeling great!

Then I bought a device to measure my blood sugar and ketones and tested about an hour after my meal. My blood sugar was 4.0 mmol/L and my ketone level 4.6 mmol/L (the device works fine, I have tested it on other people).

So I googled and became a little concerned, was my blood sugar too low and ketone levels was starvation mode.

I then decided to eat a few date balls to even it out. And then a lot of problems started. The next day I was hungry when I woke up, but I decided to still fast, on work I was starting feeling really weird, and then I got a panic attack, I legitimately thought I was dying. So I got myself some sugar to raise the blood levels in case it was my blood sugar.

Now I have a hard time getting back to fasting and I feel like crap, how do you react to a few carbs?

(Alec) #2

Dave

  1. I don’t think that your 4.0 BG level was out of the ordinary, I am pretty sure normal is considered 3.5-5.5.
  2. I am no expert on ketone sticks, but it seems clear to me that these things measure the ketones you are spilling, and if your body is no good at using them, it will spill a lot.
    Cheers
    Alec
(bulkbiker) #3

When fasting I get blood sugars as low as 3.5 mmol/l and ketones up to 6.0 mmol/l
Nothing to worry about with either of those figures I have a little jump for joy in fact.
I reckon those are pretty usual numbers for people on a keto diet with a 23-1 fasting regime.
Celebrate and ditch the sugar… maybe try a 48 hour fast to get rid of the urges then clamber back into the saddle.

(Allie) #4

I wish this “starvation ketosis” crap would die the death it deserves. Phinney and Volek did so much good with their books, but that nutritional ketosis chart hasn’t helped anyone.

Your blood sugar and ketone levels were just fine now put this mistake behind you and move on with your life.

(Larsen) #5

Ok thanks :slight_smile:

When I read starvation I think loss of muscle mass and depletion of my reserves. Can you explain why you think > 3.0 is fine?

(Allie) #6

Personal experience mainly, it’s rare for my readings to drop below around 3.5mmol and they get up to 7.5mmol when I’m fasting.

Generally the higher my levels are, the better I feel.

(Larsen) #7

ok, sounds like being in these levels aren’t a problem.

(Allie) #8

I find it easiest to judge by how I feel rather than anything else. If I feel good / great then I’m doing it right, but if I feel bad, something needs to change.

#9

Fasting long enough to deplete glycogen stores will always result in high ketones, because in the absence of food, the body needs an energy source.

If you want scientific evidence, there is a lot of good information on fasting. Check out YouTube videos by Dr Fung as a starting point.

If you want testimony, here’s mine. Over the past 9 months, I’ve been mostly in a state of continuous ketosis, with BK > 3. I got a DEXA every 3 months. I lost 75 lbs (now normal BMI) with no decrease skeletal muscle.

Ultimately what really matters is what’s true for your body. If you’re concerned about losing muscle, get tested to establish your baseline. Continue your dietary or workout endeavors and test again in a few months.