Introduction and looking for advice :)

(Kathleen Khalil) #1

Hi everyone :wave:
I wanted to introduce myself since I’ve been stalking this forum as a guest for two months and I finally joined yesterday. My name is Kathleen and I live between the United States and Egypt. I’m 34 yrs old, a kidney transplant recipient (twice: first one was given to me from my father but lost his kidney the next day the second one was from my baby brother) and due to the loss of my kidneys from childhood reflux my thyroid crapped out 12 years ago. I am 5’3” and 223 lbs with 100lbs to lose. I started Keto at the end of December of 2017 and in that time I lost 15 lbs but have gained 10 lbs back in the past month. I am eating at a 30-35% deficit. I eat about 850-900 calories a day, mainly because I’ve always struggled to eat more than that even before Keto. I have purchased a blood monitor but I am still waiting for it to be delivered, so I use the Keto sticks and since the fourth day of this lifestyle change I have had deep purple. SW:230 GW:125 CW: 223.

I generally have an 8oz cup of coffe with a TBSP of heavy cream that is 45 calories, a TBSP of coconut oil at 117 calories and a scoop of Keto Coco at 70 calories. (1.5 total carb)

For lunch I generally have an Atkins shake Mocha Latte which is easy for me because I have a lot of research work that I do. This is 160 calories with 5 total carbs (3net).

And for dinner I’ve been on a baby spinach salad kick as of late. I fry one or two egg(s) placed on 2 cups of fresh baby spinach, with two or three slices of chopped turkey bacon and 1/8 cup of chopped pecans sautéed in 1 TBSP of butter and a TBSP of Franks Red Hot sauce and topped with 2 TBSP avocado purée. Calories are around 510 with 9 total carbs.

I don’t snack much but if I have anything it needs to be quick and easy like an Atkins treat (which is about 130 calories with 3 net carbs) I only do this at most twice a week.

I drink around 78oz of water or more. I take life long medications Prograft, Myfortic and Prednisone. I work out but it is limited to walks around the neighborhood.

I’m at a lost and feel so much like a failure. I’ve been so strict and never cheat. It is such a defeating feeling to know I need to lose weight. Aside from the kidney, thyroid and weight I am very health my biweekly blood tests are all in normal health ranges. I feel so so defeated and am sorry to place all of this one you all but I need your help please.

Thank you so very much
Kitty

(Ethan) #2

I would avoid the Atkins shakes. The sweetener that they use (Maltitol) raises blood insulin levels for many people and even blood glucose for others! It sounds to me like your metabolism is significantly and negatively affected by the lack of calories you have consumed for so long. I would recommend increasing the amount of fat you eat as much as you are able. Also, you will likely struggle due to the Prednisone, which can really wreak havoc on blood glucose, stop ketosis, and stress the body. That doesn’t mean you can’t do this though! But it will make things harder than for others. The good news is that it’s still the best thing you can do probably for your nutrition!

(Kathleen Khalil) #3

Thank you so very much EZB! Sadly, I was so restricted from the diet I could eat on dialysis and that started at 16 yrs of age and I have never recovered. :pensive:

(Jessica) #4

Welcome!

Perhaps check out Dr. Jason Fung https://idmprogram.com/ and join his program if it’s within your budget. As a keto friendly nephrologist he would have insight into ways that your situation could best be addressed.

(Allie) #5

And causes disaster pants…

(Kathleen Khalil) #6

Thank you so much! This means more than you know!

(Candy Lind) #7

I think the advice to visit IDM/Dr. Fung is the best you could have received. I agree that keto can’t hurt, but with your specialized needs Dr. Fung would be invaluable.

Best of luck on your keto journey! :muscle:t2:

#8

What I’m about to say is very unscientific and I’m not sure how it would apply to your particular situation regarding thyroid, but FWIW: my take on fat to satiety early on is that it’s not just about fat adaptation but also about our sense of deprivation.
The fat adaptation part is of course incredibly important: if your system still relies on sugar, and if insulin is still high, then eating at a deficit just puts the body into conservation mode. It can’t access your fat stores, so all it can do is down regulate your metabolism. But I think there’s also a psychological side which must show up somehow metabolically: the restriction or deprivation we feel when we’re eating at a deficit can often translate into the body holding onto fat stores.

You said that you actually struggle to eat enough, so maybe this is not relevant for you…

Good luck! There are plenty of folks on here who will keep trying to help if they can.

(Cindy) #9

I came from 30 years of non-fat, super low calorie dieting, and made the sudden switch to the keto diet about 9 weeks ago. To get over the keto flu and get into ketosis, I had to lower my carbs to 20, limit my protein to 2 oz of meat per day, 1 oz cheese (for the osteoporosis in my family), and 5-6 nuts. Then I had to add what felt like huge amounts of fat to my diet - heavy cream in my coffee, olive oil all over my salads and veggies (I hadn’t eaten anything on a salad for all those years) - everything I could think of. It worked all of a sudden and I dropped 10 pounds very quickly, although that wasn’t my goal. But it was a very big paradigm shift for me that was mentally kind of hard to get the hang of. But now that I’ve made the shift, it’s pretty amazing!

(Cindy) #10

Hi Kitty,

With any kind of kidney issue, you should stay away from spinach. It is loaded with oxalates which cause kidney stones, along with other types of inflammation. The Adkins treats are nice and fun, but as someone else said, they do spike insulin and slow down weight loss for many of us.

I switched to zero carb because I also couldn’t keep my weight down with any carbs at all. I eat plenty of meat, cheese, eggs and high fat dairy, and it works for me. I’ve lost all my weight, fully down to my goal and I’m easily keeping it off. These foods are free of all the toxins like oxalates that so many plants are loaded with. Even the pecans you’re eating have oxalates in them. The last thing you need right now is extra inflammation of any kind.

My very best wishes to you!!!

(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #11

Thanks for following up on this thread. It’s good to hear your experience.