Hi there
I’m struggling, 6 weeks in now. I think I’m fat adapted, but I’ve only lost 7lbs in total. My weight has increased in the last 10 days.
I’m doing everything I should, very low on carbs, good macros, but I’m wondering if I’m just eating too many calories.
I eat between 1200-1300 per day.
Are there any women my age (49) out there having the same issue? How many calories do you eat and still lose weight?
I’ve not yet tried a fast.
It’s normal for weight to fluctuate around this time, as your body shifts towards becoming fat-adapted,
so I wouldn’t worry about it yet. 1200-1300 calories isn’t even a lot.
Hi, 1200-1300 calories isn’t a lot, unless you’re very short in stature.
Our weight does go up and down, after the initial loss. It can be scary or discouraging, I know. But it’s normal. Our need for fat does decrease as we “adapt,” but I’ll let someone else comment on that.
You’re doing great so far!
Keto is carb restriction, not calorie restriction. If you are eating the right things and eating to satiety, the number of calories will take care of itself.
There’s one other factor you might consider that could be causing you to not lose weight and that’s stress. Cortisol (the stress hormone) triggers a fight of flight response by the body and the last thing it wants to do is give up fat storage. In fact, it can enhance glucose availability which increases insulin which will increase fat storage.
Jason Fungs talks about this in his book The Obesity Code . He says one of the side effects of Prednisone (a synthetic cortisol) is weight gain and it’s been proven in studies where healthy people were injected with this drug.
The better question is how you FEEL. Hungry? Eat more. Not hungry? Don’t eat.
This whole thing of “how many calories” we should eat is built on a house of cards. The numbers just cannot predict what YOUR body needs. If you’ve been living your life with a pseudo calorie counter in your head (Iike I did for years), try letting it go. Keep your carbs low and then eat your protein and fat to satiety.
Under this fat I’m actually quite a small person 
, I’m “light boned” for want of a better description.
I think I’m just losing patience, I need to keep going, thanks for the moral support everyone! This is a great forum, helps to put things back into perspective.
I think the stress factor is very interesting, this could definitely play a part with me.
Thanks all x
7 pounds in 6 weeks is just over a pound a week, not too bad as an average at your age. Do a search for PISS (Post Induction Stall Syndrome), many people stop losing or gain a few pounds around this point. Keep track of your NSV (non scale victories), those are a surer way to tell if this WOE is working.
I would venture to guess that you are “becoming” fat adapted. Six weeks is possible but believe fat adaption is a slow transformation that takes time to be complete or efficient. Stay with it and listen to your body. Once you are several months in you can start playing around with things like adding or decreasing fat or protein to see what effect it has.
If you’re caloric intake is too small early on especially your body is likely to react by going into famine mode slowing down your metabolism and ability to shed weight. It’s a tricky thing to balance.
Hi and welcome,
I’m not a woman but about that age, I eat about 1800-2000 now, but when I started I was shy about food and I was only eating 1300-1400. I thought I had to help keto and make sure I did not have too many calories. A bad habit, years of conditioning.
I am going to guess you are not eating too many calories. But that is just a guess.
With keto we can eat until truly satisfied, that feeling of “hey I just cannot eat anymore”. And still lose weight.
The most important thing by far is get the 20g carb limit. Watch for hidden carbs, we easily dismiss the subject, “it doesn’t happen to me”, “I checked already”. “It’s my age”. This or that. But it is real, more info in my accountability thread
Also, any medication or pills can completely change the situation …
Otherwise hang in there, tweaks are par for the course.
