Gained weight on Keto

(shari) #1

I have been on keto for 8 months now. I have 15 lbs to lose to be at a good healthy weight. I started out not losing and maintaining for about 4 months and then i started gaining. I am up 5lbs. I am not a big eater so that isnt the problem. I am ridiculously self disciplined in keeping my carbs below 25 grams. I feel defeated. I am an active woman of 55 and it just seems crazy to me.

Stalling out?
(MelissaH) #2

Could you be under eating? How many calories are you eating in a day?

(Bunny) #3

It is ok to increase your carbs or food intake on a ketogenic diet, it is about the quality of food you are eating, once you remove the processed carbohydrates and amount of sugar don’t be afraid to eat more!

If your body senses you are starving it, it is going to fight you and hold onto the fat! Even if your are in ketosis! That is why I combine this paradigm with intermittent fasting ratios and eat when I am hungry and look at my blood glucose levels to see when my body thinks it is going into starvation mode! That is how I control that little stall/plateau thing!

That regained weight is just water weight!

References:

”… “When calories are cut significantly for the intention of weight loss, metabolism usually drops too, leading to a plateau, then weight regain,” says Amanda Bontempo, an RD with a Master of Science degree in medical nutrition therapy. Basically, your metabolism is dependent on the quality of food you consume, but calories are what really count. …” …More

(Gabe “No Dogma, Only Science Please!” ) #4

I’m sorry, but this is the kind of advice that, while well-intentioned, is just plain wrong. You don’t gain wait from eating too few calories. @Monurse please don’t think I’m picking on you – this happens all the time on the forum and I know you mean well. I just feel like I have to call it out once in a while – it’s not personal, I promise!

A better question is if she is OVEReating fat calories which would prevent her body from burning its own fat reserves. (This has likely been my primary problem; I often eat past satiety.) Additionally: the OP is a 55 year old woman, so it’s entirely reasonable to ask whether there is a hormonal issue. Post-menopausal women are extremely likely to find themselves stacking on weight for no reason because of the reduction in oestrogen, a key hormone in fat regulation. (The same happens to men if their free T is low.)

Insulin is not the only fat-regulation hormone. Keto folks seem to forget this on occasion.

So the first thing I’d suggest is visiting your doctor, explaining your situation, and getting some thyroid and other hormonal tests. You may like to test things like CRP, HbA1C, advanced lipid profile, and fasting insulin while you’re at it (might as well check your other biomarkers while you’re going in for blood tests anyway.)

There are a number of other things that I would suggest, and @redrider I’d be happy to engage with you if you’re interested. You’re not alone; don’t feel defeated. There are a lot of people here on this forum who have stalled or gained just like you, many of them lurking in the shadows like I’ve tended to since I got flamed mercilessly a couple of times for daring to challenge ideas like “CICO doesn’t matter.” I’m one of them – I gained some earlier this year.

LCHF isn’t a magic bullet, but from my pretty reasonable layman’s understanding of the science, you won’t do yourself any good going back to starches and sugars. But don’t despair! There’s a lot of us around. Stay engaged, keep calm, and LCHF on. We’ll all figure this out together.

EDIT: @monurse maybe you meants what @atomicspacebunny is saying – that you shouldn’t starve yourself. And that’s 100% true! Though apart from eating to satiety, I do suggest the blood testing as above, and the following are things I would definitely look into: time-restricted eating (see the YouTube video with Joe Rogan and Rhonda Patrick); strength training to put on muscle; check your cortisol levels (stress hormone); and there’s discussion here by the head of NYU Langone’s Men’s Health Center about sleep as well as his bullishness on GLP1, an injection that leads to a lasting reduction in appetite. I am skeptical about the latter but consider sleep critical (another challenge for me!)

Best of luck, stay in touch.

I’m trying very hard
(MelissaH) #5

I was merely trying to engage in conversation @gabe with the OP. It’s hard to give advice when we don’t have all the details. The statement
“I am not a big eater so that isnt the problem.”
is what caught my eye. Womens hormones play a big part. Most of us have been taught to lose weight you need to eat less. If your metabolism is used to little calories it slows down. I agree that hormonal testing is a good place to start.

(Gabe “No Dogma, Only Science Please!” ) #6

No worries @Monurse. I tried not to be too combative but it’s always a balancing act, especially using text-based communication!

(Bunny) #7

The slower the weight loss, the more the metabolic resistance (set point) declines. The set point usually escalates the faster (why the scale will not budge) you try to lose weight, and does not decline; that is why you don’t want to starve yourself trying to burn fat. It (your body) thinks your trying to harm it!

Your metabolism will switch gears and try to outpace your effort to starve it!

(Janet Maggio) #8

This is only my personal experience but after losing 125 lbs doing LCHF I decided to cut my calorie intake to 1000 calories since I hit a plateau that seemed to last forever. Within 2 weeks I had gained several pounds. My doctor okayed this as the only way the medical profession seems to know how to deal with this phenomena is to tell you to cut calories even lower. I went back to eating between 1200-1500 calories a day (and before you all jump down my throat, I do not count on a daily basis but once in a while) and I lost what I had gained in a couple of weeks. I am not saying this would work for everyone but it is just my experience.

#9

I don’t think it is as straightforward as that. Consistently eating less energy than you need does result in a down regulation of metabolism more often than not. I have seen so many people follow a calorie-cutting system to lose weight who have to keep dropping the amount because they stall out. Your metabolism has to compensate if you aren’t eating enough and does so by saving energy with those pesky little things like hair growth and regular periods for women. The other kick in the guts is when the calorie-cutter starts eating a normal amount again and inevitably gains weight. Who hasn’t experienced that repeated cycle on yo yo diets - lose weight then gain it back plus a nice little bonus extra when you go back to your regular diet?

I’m not saying the answer is to eat more either but sometimes it can be in the long term, especially if you eat smarter. It really depends on the individual’s context.

I completely agree with blood testing - especially thyroid if you are symptomatic - and looking at things that are nothing to do with food like stress, sleep and mood. I agree with looking at fasting too and when/how often you eat.