I’m on week 8 of keto and I have low energy no motivation

keto
carnivore
(Justin Gambini) #1

Im 28 years old I’m 5’7 I weigh 160lbs my body fat is 9.7. I work outside 8 hours a day 5 days a week in the California sun. Fixing sprinklers lawn mowing digging holes and etc. I workout about once or twice a month. Every time I lift weights either light or heavy it takes me 10-20 days to fully recover.

I’m on week 8 of keto and I have a short fuse cunning cold don’t care don’t give a rip attitude. I have no motivation to workout or do much. I don’t have that smile on my face like I used to have when I ate carbs. Here’s what I’ve been eating every day for 8 weeks.
Breakfast 6am: 4 egg ommlette cooked in butter with cheese and 2 hamburger patties 80/20 with cheese on top.
Dinner 6pm: 1lb of rib eye cooked in butter with a few pieces of broccoli.
That’s pretty much what I eat in a day. I probably drink less than 4 bottles of water a day.

I used to eat a sad diet for 9 years Mexican burritos cooked in corn canola or vegetable oils for lunch every day and chili with beans and 2 hamburger patties for breakfast and my dinner was low burritos with 2 cans of tuna. I liked it and I had energy to workout and lift weights and I was happy. I also suffered an asthma attack in 2013 that caused a heart arrhythmia. I’ve had it for 5-6 years. It has gotten better on a keto diet.

I have a few questions. Will I ever get that energy and happiness that I once had on a high carb diet?
Will I be able to recover faster after heavy weightlifting and workouts?
Last one. Will I be able to heal my sun burn nose and face after 9 years in the sun?

(Cindy) #2

I don’t think you’re eating enough. Your daily total is 4 eggs, some cheese, 2 hamburger patties, and 1 ribeye (the broccoli doesn’t count LOL), you’re 28 with 10% body fat in a very physical job…I think you need to eat more. And, maybe keto isn’t quite right for you, your lifestyle, and your body. That doesn’t mean you go back to SAD, but it might mean that a higher carb amount is better for you. Try adding in some healthy carbs, such as eating chili with beans, . Have some blueberries or strawberries. You can add in some nuts (cashews, macadamia, etc). You can even add in some dairy in the form of HWC or sour cream.

Your fatigue is your body’s way of telling you it needs something. Try actively increasing calories and a moderate amount of carbs for a week…see how you feel. Keto is all about n=1 (finding what works for you).

#3

It is possible that u arent completely adapted yet, but getting very close, 6-8 weeks is typical adaption time for guys ur age. Remember to eat enough in the beginning as u dont have a lot of fat in ur body to tap into.

The way i see it is energy/happiness level will rise as ur body becomes efficient at using ketones and has plenty of energy to work with. U wont be able to lift as much as u could on carbs as muscles prefer carbs for heavy lifting and explosive exercises (my n=1 is around 85% strength on keto vs 100% on carb based diet) BUT u wont be tired all the time and ull be able to keep on going for longer and also recovery is faster.

Autophagy via fasting may help with ur skin and face, look it up with the search on top of the page.

(Michael - When reality fails to meet expectations, the problem is not reality.) #4

@Jman48 I’m going to give you the benefit of the doubt and assume your “short fuse cunning cold don’t care don’t give a rip attitude” is not the issue and you’re really looking for advice.

I’ll third the suggestion: EAT MORE!

As for feeling that energy and happiness that you once had on a high carb diet: you are in the depths of what is popularly called ‘keto flu’. I DON’T LIKE THAT TERM. What you are experiencing is better called ‘carb withdrawal’. You ate a high carb SAD for 28 years and keto for 2 months. Get real! Every cell and organ of your body is craving carbs/glucose and you’re only providing fat - IF you are actually eating sub-20 grams of carbs per day. If you’re not, then you’re only prolonging the agony.

Forget whatever you ate before on your fave SAD diet. That was then. Ancient history. Concentrate on what you eat now. Stay sub-20 grams carbs, eat whatever protein and fat you feel like. You’ll get over it and then be able to tell the next guy the same thing when he cries in your beer (yes, your once a month Bud Lite :cry: ).

(charlie3) #5

I’ve been doing 40 net carb keto for a bit over a year. Lately I walk 4 miles and do 60 minutes of cardio on an air bike 7 days a week and 30-40 minute lifting sessions 3 imes a week. I bet it took +6 months to get mostly fat adapted and probably my body is still perfecting the process. I feel better eating low carb which makes evereything else better. Your results may be different.

(MooBoom) #6

This is totally totally normal at this stage (not yet quite fat adapted but far enough into keto eating that carbs are no longer your fuel source), and sounds like text book electrolyte imbalance to me. I too am I a flat pancake of gloom and spiky irritation if I don’t supplement. And I’m fat adapted so :woman_shrugging: it’s a necessary thing for some. You work in the sun so you’ll be sweating electrolytes out like nobodies business- I def think an imbalance is likely your issue.

You need to increase your sodium intake, and supplement magnesium and potassium. Every single day. Unprocessed Celtic sea salt is fantastic if you can get it. For magnesium and potassium, you can get pure versions of these in powder form with no rubbish additives from iherb- brand ‘Now’.

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #7

The answer to your questions is “Yes, most likely, but it will take time.” Dropping carbohydrate intake enough stimulates the production of ketone bodies as soon as your glucose store is sufficiently depeleted, but adapting to a full fatty-acid-based metabolism takes a certain amount of time, usually six to eight weeks. During this adaptation period, your atheletic performance will suffer. People report that it returns after fat-adaptation, however, and for many people it returns at a higher level. Be sure to increase your salt intake somewhat during this period, since the kidneys excrete sodium faster when insulin is low, and sodium deficiency leads to symptoms of headache, dizziness, etc. (known popularly as the “keto flu”), which you don’t need on top of everything else.

Although your endurance will improve as soon as you become fat-adapted, your explosive performance may continue to suffer until your glycogen levels return to normal. Phinney and Volek published a recent paper on this, and apparently, after a long enough interval of fat-adaptation, the glycogen levels of carb-adapted and fat-adapted athletes are identical.

And yes, weirdly, people do tend to suffer less damage from sun exposure on a low-carbohydrate ketogenic diet. A lot of what we have come to consider “normal” over the past 50 years is actually the effects of a high-carbohydrate diet.