I need specific advice from a sage ketoion

(Maureen ) #1

I have finished 2 weeks of keto. I haven’t lost any weight.
I’m 55, woman. I’ve been strictly 70% fat, 20-25% protein, 5-10% carb ( strictly from berries, veg or nuts). I haven’t had any sugar or carbs at all. I’m eating 2 meals a day, no snacks. 1500 calories. I exercise 5 times a week, yoga, interval training, and weights. I drink about 3 cups of coffee a day, water, and lemon juice water. I drink apple cider vinegar in the morning. I’m taking a multi-vit, D, 1000 potassium.
Why haven’t I list any weight?

So desperate for guidance.

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #2

Two weeks isn’t long. It takes 6 to 8 weeks simply to become fat-adapted. Also, you’re a woman. Things are more complicated for you. As if you didn’t already know that, lol!

A well-formulated ketogenic diet is a long-term change in eating habits, rather than a short-term diet fix. The stories you heard of enormous weight losses were generally about men who had enormous amounts of weight to lose. A lot of us don’t have stories like that to tell, but we do have our reasons for continuing to eat this way.

The point of eating keto is to lower your blood sugar and insulin levels, because high insulin and high blood sugar do a lot of damage, and insulin also happens to be the fat-storage hormone. So cutting carbohydrate drastically is the best thing you can do to enable weight loss. But even on a low-carbohydrate diet, cutting calories seems to backfire, because when our body thinks there’s a famine going on, it hangs on to every resource it can, so as to get us through. So paradoxically, the ket to losing weight for many people is to lose more.

Now, I’m not saying to go crazy and stuff yourself silly. But what I am saying is to eat enough at every meal to satisfy your hunger. Some days that will be more, some days less. And as your insulin drops and your hormonal signaling improves, you are likely to experience a sudden drop in how much food you want to eat. This is your body saying thank you, that’s enough, and you can trust what it says. If you eat to satiety, your body will peg your appetite to a level that will allow it to use both the food you eat and the food you have stored up in your fat tissue. And the low insulin level from eating this way will let all that fat out to be burned. The key, in my experience, is to listen to what the body is saying, and not to try to out-think it.

Welcome to the forums, and we look forward to hearing more about how things are going for you.

(Laurie) #3

Welcome, Maureen!

I don’t know how sage this is, but you could try cutting out the nuts and berries. Good luck.

(Cancer Fighting Ketovore :)) #4

You might also want to make sure you are limiting yourself to less than 20g of carbs (rather than based off a %).

If you are eating 1500 calories and 10% is carbs then that’s 150 calories of carbs, or about 37.5g of carbs.

(Full Metal KETO AF) #5

I second @islandlight abou leaving berries and nuts for later. I waited till the two months point to add small occasional amounts of these. I am surprised you didn’t even drop a few pound of water weight. Not sure about why other than thinking you might not be keeping carbs low enough to deplete stored glucose which is the process that releases that water. Usually at least a few pounds would drop by now. Try really cutting carbs hard for a week, you might need to give your body the extra push. And ease up on the exercise for a few weeks, try daily walking. Too much exercise is stressful on the body especially when you’re changing your diet in such a radical way. You’re likely used to running on sugars and carbohydrates. But whatever you do Keep Calm Keto On (KCKO) :cowboy_hat_face:

#6

Hi and welcome,

Have you lost any fat? If you pinch yourself you’d feel it or are clothes fitting more loosely? It’s possible to burn fat but retain water weight for a while longer so the scales don’t move but things are progressing.

Otherwise the very big key to keto is the carb count. We must check it, double and then triple check it. Berries and nuts are certainly allowed on keto BUT they do have sugar and it can add up quickly.

Are you using a good app to help you count? Entering everything? Accurately? (it’s easy to lookup some similar food item but it turns out very different).

Are you aiming for 20g Net Carbs or 20g Total Carbs?

To be more sure of entering ketosis try 20g Total Carbs in the first couple of weeks, it is a stricter protocol but more sure to work. The advice I obtained was avoid berries and nuts in the first few weeks. Get into ketosis, then add them in carefully.

Bare in mind - any medication or pills - can have a side effect such as “retain water” or block weight loss (even weight gain).

And just because someone else takes ABC and it doesn’t effect them it does not mean that applies to you. We are all different and react differently.

There can be many other factors but the above are the most likely.

I know it’s a pain but we need to think in terms of weeks and months not days so if you’re 100% sure none of the above applies then continue as-is give it couple more weeks (otherwise tweaking and seemingly minor, but crucial, changes are part of keto).

Cheers

(Cindy) #7

Maureen, I’m almost 54. Easily needed to lose 50+ lbs. Not sure exactly how much because I hadn’t weighed since mid-2017…last dr’s appt was 225 but I knew I’d gained at least another 10-15 lbs (who knows? maybe more?) before starting keto.

I didn’t weigh for the first two MONTHS. I knew I need to commit to keto as a way of eating and not just as a way of trying to lose weight quickly. I’d read enough to know that it can take time. So I was committed to some of the NSVs…reduced inflammation being a primary one. In that 2 months, I noticed my clothes getting looser and I wasn’t nearly as achey in the mornings.

Then I decided to start weighing in January. I lost 5 lbs in the month. Nothing spectacular, for sure, but at that rate, I’d be down 60 in a year. I can live with that because I find this woe pretty easy.

All that to say…I haven’t a clue if I lost or gained weight when I started keto. It didn’t matter to me because I was focused on the dietary changes (avoiding sugar, carbs, adding in fat), etc and I did NOT want the scale to interfere with that process.

So my recommendation to you would be to put the scale away (it’s my goal to become the anti-scale guru on the board. :smiley: ). Lose the “strictly” a bit so you can enjoy this process. Lose some of the exercise, too, UNLESS you’re doing it because you love it and/or are doing it for other benefits. Exercise really does NOT help with weight loss in some ways and keto works just as well without it.

As to why you haven’t lost any weight? It depends. How much weight do you need to lose? Do you have any other metabolic issues going on? Peri or post menopausal? As Rebecca said, you might still be getting too many carbs.

Oh, and as for “how” I did keto? And am still doing it?

  • <20g carbs per day (usually total, but sometimes I’m a rebel and look at net instead)
  • protein as I want it
  • not afraid of fat (so I add as much mayo or butter, for example as I WANT vs the old days of feeling guilty for every bit, but I also don’t make myself eat more than I want)
  • eat when I’m hungry and do my best to NOT eat when I’m not. I eat to satiety, too.

I don’t track % (does anyone REALLY want to do that the rest their life? some do…not me), I’m not currently weighing (maybe next month), and I’m enjoying the feeling of my clothes getting a smidge looser each week or so.

(Maureen ) #8

Wow! All of you are great!
I’m using “my fitness pal” ap. I’m really strict about recording everything I eat. I’m going through my diary and noticing the grms of sugars and carbs, so although I’m keeping it at 5-10%, I’ve been getting as high as 36grms total sugars and carbs. :woman_facepalming:so ya! I gotta lay off the berries and nuts. I’m doing the vitamins because I dont want to be depleted, especially in my potassium, however, I have wondered if that could be an issue.
Well, I have noticed about an inch gone, but why doesn’t this translate to weight? I know it’s old school of me to want to see the pounds off.
I have never felt better eating like this and i refuse to call it a diet, it’s a lifestyle.
Okay, so even though I’m taking in about 1500 a day, sometimes that’s even too much food, given my age, I figure it’s okay.
Right?
Do you advise me to stop the vitamins?

Ps. I really got started on this because of Dr. Berg <— anyone else?

(Maureen ) #9

As to you Cindy,
I’m post meno. Started taking the most amazing suppliment…changed my life… called Sam-e. Which led me to start keto, because I just wanted to feel better.
I have 35 lbs to lose.
Oh, and another thing; is it normal to feel anxious? I get this “dumping” feeling. I have always been on the low blood-sugar side. So I’m assuming my body is starting to regulate itself, hence, these “dumping” situations. My breath is atrocious, so I’m told, so I think I’m full on in keto.

(Cindy) #10

That doesn’t translate to weight loss, because, unlike other calorie restrictive diets, keto spares muscle. So you tend to maintain muscle mass while losing fat. With the amount of exercise you do, you could very well be adding muscle, too, but since muscle is denser than fat, the scale stays the same…while your clothes get looser. :smiley:

I don’t think your vitamins are an issue unless you’re taking the ones that have a lot of sugar in them to make them taste good.

Don’t worry about the calorie numbers. Really! Some apps, like MFP, are still based upon the CICO dogma. Keto is NOT about calories in/calories out. Listen to YOUR body…find what works for you.

If you’re hungry, EAT! Just don’t eat carbs. :wink: Maybe you have some hormonal issues needing to get worked out, maybe your BMR is low from dieting in the past…whatever. If you’re hungry, you need to listen to that signal.

If you’re not hungry, don’t eat. It’s ok, you won’t go into the “dreaded” starvation mode if you’re simply not hungry because your body will tell you when it is. And again, if you’re avoiding carbs, you’re not going to have the crazy up/downs of glucose/insulin spikes so those will be “true” hunger signals.

(Mother of Puppies ) #11

I am very “sage“ in that I have been stumbling down this road for two years.

  • Relax into it and continue to research
  • do n=1 experiments to find out what works for you
  • Incorporate intermittent fasting
  • use a tape measure over a scale.
  • notice the healing effects all over
  • don’t focus on a timetable
(Running from stupidity) #12

It’s my goal to become a fat cranky Aussie bastard, but goals like that aren’t much of a goal WHEN THEY’RE ALREADY REALITY.

(Cindy) #13

Well, so far, I’ve only converted ONE person to a non-scale stance, so I have a long way to go before I achieve guru status. Not sayin’ nuthin’ about your goals. :smiley:

(Running from stupidity) #14

FTFY

so I have a long way to go before I achieve guru status

Being a guru is about advertising yourself as one, not about actual results.

Just put “Cindy - official forum anti-scale guru” in the name section of your profile and you’re basically there.

(Carl Keller) #15

Hello and welcome Maureen.

It’s the great keto paradox. It has to do with body recomposition. In your case, I believe you are losing some water weight, hence the lost inch, but your bone density and muscles may have increased from the interval training and weights and that is likely what canceled out the water loss. It’s a good trade off if you ask me. :slight_smile:

Also when you want to reply directly to someone, click the reply button directly under their response (not the one at the top or bottom of the page). This sends them a notification and they are guaranteed to see your reply. If you don’t do this, they may not return to the thread and will never know you responded to them.

Another way to send a notification is to put an @ sign before their name. Example:

@Affnan Hello.

(Ashley) #16

I would watch berries and nuts especially in the beginning. Everyone’s different but for me personally I either over at with them, or I’d stall with them!

(Janelle) #17

I appreciate the whole non-scale thing but when there are very, very few other NSVs and one knows what one looked and felt like at a certain weight, the scale is useful for some of us. I’ve lost 19-20lbs in 21 weeks. That lb a week is what keeps me going since my pant size hasn’t changed, none of my illnesses have gotten better, and my cholesterol has gotten worse.

To the OP - you said you haven’t had “any sugar or carbs at all” but then you state 5% to 10% carbs. I have to keep to the 20 grams of whole carbs or I don’t lose weight. I am 5’9 - 50 years old and started at a similar weight to you. I don’t track my food every day but if nothing is budging, I plug my meals into Lose It. If you’re at all like me, you’re lying brain will tell you it’s ok to have something when it’s not. If you have a tool to keep you honest, it might help. I do eat berries and nuts - but only if I have room in my “carb budget”. Does it suck to have to track? Yes! Will a lot of people tell you that keto is simple, don’t track and the weight will just fall off? Yes! I suppose that if ALL you are eating is meat and eggs with a teeny bit of dairy and a tiny bit of veg every single day, it should fall off - and maybe faster. It’s not totally sustainable in the long term for everyone so we branch out, add sauces, get creative with the cooking, or eat “low carb” processed foods go over our carb limits and slow down. (Not saying this is you - just some things I’ve noticed.)

Finally, my own “keto practicing doctor” told me that excercise is counter-indicated for the first few months while your body is adapting. Consider whether that might be causing your body to hold onto water, etc. for now.

(Marianne) #18

Hi Cindy,
I would like to be the second member of your anti-scale club. I detest the scale and refuse to weigh myself. If my clothes feel super loose or I am noticeably thinner, I may weigh myself, but other than just occasionally, I don’t want to know. I feel for these people who weigh themselves every day, sometimes twice a day. It is a total mind f*&^.
Everyone’s posts here are so encouraging and lots of great tips. I have been so afraid of the calories in dressing and mayo that I’ve been wondering how to get all my fat it.
Do you eat dairy? - cheese, cottage cheese, sour cream?

(Cindy) #19

Welcome to the club! :wink: Don’t be afraid of the calories. For me, one of the best things about keto is that I can try to let go of some of the indoctrination that’s been so wrong all these years. Fat isn’t bad. You need the fat. You just don’t need the carbs. So I love putting as much mayo (I make my own) as I want on something. Eating the fatty ribeye instead of a lean steak. That sort of thing.

I do eat some dairy, most cheese and HWC. I had sour cream in the beginning, but just don’t eat enough of it before it goes bad in the container.

(Marta Loftfield) #20

@Affnan, this is the age old keto problem :blush: ! Women seem to lose inches first and men seem to lose weight. Which, of course, is exactly the opposite of what men and women want.:rofl:. I concur on dropping back on the berries and nuts to start.

It is great that you are monitoring on MFP but be sure you are eating enough. I know this sounds weird but this woe is not calorie restriction. Make sure you eat a ton of fat to satiety and keep your carbs under 20g. Soon you will find yourself unintentionally skipping meals - this will be fat adapted!!

You will do fine! Welcome!