Fell off and struggling to get up

(Adriana) #1

So over a month ago I started doing IF 18:6 which I ended up gaining 4lbs after a couple of weeks. After that I decided to start eating normal again for a week or so and see what reaction my body would have. during that time I started taking Ibuprofen for about 4 days, on the fourth day major issue with my stomach; make story short I ended up with a stomach ulcer and my keto life started going down the drain. it was a rough 3 weeks before I started to feel less pain. Now almost fully recover I’m trying to get back on track but i’m finding it so hard. The extra carb consumption not only has made me crave them more but also making me sooo tired and to top it all off I’ve gained seven pounds.

somewhere along my web travels I read that sometimes metabolism needs to be reset. reason I’m bringing it is because I don’t think i’ve been eating enough hence the weight gain on IF. I’ve always had issues with my weight so I’ve been a long term low calorie eater but with IF I was barely eating 900 to 1200 calories I’m 5’4 227bls then. so should I start eating maintanance calories combined with KETO? My plan is to get back on after this weekend(big bday party) but I wanted to try that approach? any advise?

(George) #2

I would either get back to 18/6 daily IF, or even make the window smaller, say a 20/4, and make sure your eating window is within a reasonable time of day (I never go past 7pm) My wife is the same height as you and does 18/6 at about 1000-1200 calories/day and it’s been working. I also increased her fat intake (I do all the cooking) and since I started doing that she’s been losing an extra .7-1.2lbs/week

I myself do OMAD with unintentional lower calories (anywhere from 1200 to 1700, but on the higher side lately), with about 80 percent of my calories coming from fat.

(Adriana) #3

hmm ok. but I did gain four pounds when I did 18:6 for two weeks… should I try again? and how long to see the scale moving in the right direction?

#4

There are some people who have trouble eating a reasonable amount when they do time restricted eating (TRE) like 18:6 or OMAD. Some people make it seem like it’s the easiest thing ever, but that hasn’t been my experience.

You’ve had a lot going on over the last month or so, so it’s tricky to parse out what’s going on and what might be causing you trouble. There may have been inflammation from whatever caused you to take the ibuprofen in the first place, your body’s effort at healing that, then the ulcer and effort at healing that. All of these things can interfere with weight loss or cause gains.

My advice would be to start with just plain keto for a few weeks, and don’t worry about anything else until your body settles down. Keep your carbs under 20g and eat what you want until you’re fat-adapted (I’m not sure what you were doing before you started the TRE, so I don’t know if you were fat-adapted before). TRE isn’t going to hurt you as long as you aren’t hungry, but if you are, I’d expand that window for a while. Try that for a few weeks and see how you go.

(George) #5

Yes, but there are alot of factors too. Maybe you were having too much protein and not enough fat, or you were eating too late in the day, or you were consuming too much dairy, etc.

But overall I do think that IF/EF is an important and useful tool to use with Keto.

I believe because of the hormonal differences, women sometimes might gain some weight on Keto, at least for a little while, then you start dropping weight pretty consistently. Everyone’s body is different, but any gain should only be temporary. Just stay persistent and you should see the results.

(Norma Laming) #6

I think women do tend to struggle. If it’s not working for you then I’d suggest giving it a rest for a while. My own experience is that when I’m not well, going without food helps a lot. At other times, the key for me is to eat when I’m in hungry. Sometimes that means I eat hardly anything. Sometimes that means I eat two smallish meals. Other times it means I eat a lot and then nothing for 18-24 hours. Be strict and ask yourself if you’re really hungry: sometimes the answer comes by working out what it is you want to eat. If I can’t face a steak then I’m not really hungry. Sometimes a mug of tea sweetened with erythritol or a coffee with heavy cream will get me over the bridge, so to speak, then I’m not wanting to eat for ages after that.
I do think that women have to be careful. Bottom line: if you’re cold and hungry then for goodness sake eat something or your metabolism will go wonky.

(Alec) #7

This. Keep it simple. Do basic keto. Low carbs, eat to satiety. Don’t undereat. You may need to eat quite a lot (for you) for a while to rebuild your metabolism, and you may have some short term weight gain. But stick with it, don’t forget you are healing yourself, this is what matters. Aim for the long term goal, which is health and then long term weight loss. Don’t take short cuts.

(Robert C) #8

It sounds like restricting the eating window is not working for you. Maybe a better strategy is to restrict the number of meals. Only have two meals a day - zero snacks between meals. Eating windows are problems for some (especially if you have not been Keto for a long time so that your satiety signals all worked out).

Two 700 to 800 calorie low carb high fat meals and the kitchen is closed otherwise - that will keep insulin low for most of a 24 hour day. If you must add calories to your coffee - make breakfast one of those meals. 100 or 200 calorie BPC plus enough eggs and bacon to get to 700 or 800. You might notice after a while that you’d rather have some extra bacon or eggs instead of the BPC - probably a good thing.

Only whole food meals - no nuts, jerky, Keto cookies, deserts (even if planning on artificial sweeteners). Snack foods are for after hitting goal weight.

(Adriana) #9

Thank you, you are right. Next week back to basics. I have to. And yes I think it’s the undereating situation. I can burn 2800 to 3000 calories some days and only eat 1800 so you would think that I would be dropping the weight like crazy but that hasn’t been the case unfortunately.

(Adriana) #10

Thank you for the tips, I will try to incorporate as much as I can.

(Adriana) #11

You got a point there. I’m trying to get out of the calories in calories out mentally. I feel that if I eat 2600 on a day that I burned 3000 I’m going to gain weight. You know what I mean?

Thank you and I appreciate your response and advise

#12

Even with the CICO model eating 2600 and burning 3000 should result in weight loss.

Keeping it simple and eating to satiety sounds like a good plan for now. You’ve been through a rough patch so need to let your body finish all the healing internally before it’ll be able to cope with fat loss.
Good luck and hope it works for you

(Paul H) #13

It’s baby steps and persistence. This is a long term thing. Be patient with yourself. Find the proper foods that satisfy you and are actually doable with your time. It takes time for that alone. Then you will try controlling portions more and counting total intake. I don’t own a scale…It’s about health at first. How is your blood work? How do you feel, sleep…etc. Once you get the courage/strength to control portions then IF is doable and you will not fail. Find the little things that make you happy and don’t let the set backs beat you down… Be patient you can and will get there!!

(Alec) #14

To get out of the calories in calories out mentality is very simple: do not calculate or think about calories at all. Just forget them. Eat to satiety, trust your body. Eat when hungry, stop when satiated. Simple as that.

(Adriana) #15

Thank you. 2 weeks yesterday strict keto and no calorie counting. But started August 1st. Took me a couple of weeks to really get under 20gms per day

(Adriana) #16

Aww thank you… Just what I needed to read today. It’s been almost a month and I haven’t seen much changes in body composition. I haven’t weight myself and won’t until Thanksgiving (Canada). I’m looking in the mirror tonight, like all of me and doubt creeps in and I think “what if this doesn’t work” and I get fatter?

(Mary) #17

Hi Adriana,
You look pretty young but is it possible you’re entering menopause? That’s a definite game changer for women…

(Adriana) #18

It has crossed my mind, but I don’t have any other symptoms. I turned 38 this year though.