Ketones in blood/ doing keto wrong

newbies
blood
(H) #1

Hi
Just wondered if someone could offer any advice… on 6th wk of keto and having not lost weight, decided to get a blood monitor.
I first tested it Sunday evening and it came up at 0.00 which was disappointing… but I assumed it may have been because I’d homemade keto ice cream and maybe been a bit heavy on the peanut butter/ coconut milk.
Since then I’ve cut back carbs massively and I’m counting max 14g (total) a day.
The maximum I got to on the result I did on Monday was 0.5 and today it had gone down to 0.2 an hour after I’d woken (black coffee only)

I’m just wondering if anyone knows what it could be. As I say I’m 6 wks in and so had hoped to be in ketosis now but the reason I got the blood monitor was because I’ve not seen weight loss and I’ve not had the symptoms of being in ketosis either really (except there are days where I’ve had lots or energy… and then none!)

Still enjoying the new way of eating and I’d say I do feel better. I haven’t gained weight but I’d hoped to have started seeing results.
More than anything, I don’t want to keep doing it wrong if, indeed I am doing it wrong because apparently the min I should be at is 0.6mm.

Any tips?

(Bob M) #2

Which meter did you get?

Try taking it at night or close to bedtime. What happens is that you will typically have higher morning blood sugar, but lower ketones. In the evening, it reverses: higher ketones, lower blood sugar. Or at least that’s what happens to me.

As for losing weight, did anything else change? How are your clothes? Belt? Wedding or other ring if you wear them? Sleep?

(I personally gave up on the scale years ago, but many still like to weigh themselves. I can dig that.)

(Joey) #3

Greetings and congratulations on heading down this keto path.

As for tips, you’ll likely get many good ones from folks here… with the caveat that we’re all unique (different starting points aiming for different ends). So to get more tailored tips, can you please share a bit more to shed light on your current situation? For example…

  • Are you meaningfully overweight to begin with?

  • What are you trying to accomplish through keto? Health issues/concerns?

  • Having cut back sharply on the carbs, can you share more about what you’re actually eating?

  • How’s your hydration and electrolyte intake? (Much initial weight loss when restricting carbs is water weight, which needs to be kept at a healthy level to avoid dehydration, so this is relevant too)

  • What does your glucose level look like when you test?

Answers to these questions could help guide those with expertise/experience to offer better focused suggestions.

Best wishes!

(H) #4

Hi. The meter is a fairly cheap one to be honest… it’s called eBketone… I was just curious to see what it said.
I do feel healthier but that’s about it. I car say my clothes feel looser to be honest… I haven’t had the symptoms that people talk about when they talk about ketosis like the headaches (except a very slight fuzziness at the start I suppose) or the fruity type breath…

(H) #5

Hi!
No I’ve not got too much to lose only 10-15lbs or so so I know that will be a factor.
I’ve been eating about 1500 cals a day I guess over the past two weeks. I’ve been trying to eat while hungry so it means i only have black coffee until about midday and then I have lunch- maybe eggs with Mayo or some pork rinds because never starving. At dinner I’ve been having say, Omelettes with cheese and some bacon and then some sugar free jelly with cream.
I do have tea with milk in the day- two or three cups.
So overall it’s about 14g carbs a day with the eggs, cheese and milk/ cream.
I take a magnesium supplement and also a collegen supplement too. I’m wondering whether the sweetener in the collegen might cause impact so I’m going to give that a miss today and check.
It’s just really because I was hoping that I was fat adapted because for the past 6 weeks I’ve tried to stick to it ridgidly. I had a bit of an error where I went out and ordered chicken wings and the sauce had sugar in it. I made that mistake twice so will probably now just avoid wings!! but aside from that I’ve been ok since I started counting carbs every day - but if the meter is right, I’ve probably not even been in ketosis :worried:

(H) #6

Sorry I should have said- hydration is good but could be better. I’m trying to drink more water.
I have noticed my glucose is down. It was 4.6 the other day when the lowest I’d ever seen it pre keto was 5.2 so there is an impact there.
Health issues - under active thyroid which I know is a big player but again I’m just trying to lose the stubborn fat!!!

(Michael - When reality fails to meet expectations, the problem is not reality.) #7

PS: I often post this link for newbies concerned about ketones levels. I wish some of you other veterans would also post it, since I’m sure I miss many. :eyes:

(H) #8

Thanks. That’s a really interesting article and very helpful. I’ve been reading some of amy Bergerac stuff and I bought her newest book but it was a digital version and it expired before I got a chance to finish it. I was really intrigued by the point she makes though about not eating as high fats as ‘standard’ keto if you have fat to lose… and I wonder if I need to start thinking about that but I’m trying not to mix it up too much to see what works. It’s good to know the levels aren’t the be all and end all and a lot of what she says makes sense… though it still leaves me with my non existent fat loss question :joy:

(H) #9

Sorry… Berger… not Bergerac :joy:

#10

Amy Berger also writes extensively about the potential role for ketones in preventing cognitive decline/dementia/Alzheimer’s and ketones could play a role in preventing/fighting cancer and reducing inflammation (heart disease) plus a lot of us feel tangible benefits from higher ketones. I think ketosis is a distinct metabolic state worth achieving (for me YMMV)

(Michael - When reality fails to meet expectations, the problem is not reality.) #11

@fitbod Good points. Unless there’s something very wrong metabolically if one is consistently eating sub-20 grams of carbs per day you can assume you’re in ketosis. While in ketosis, and metabolizing sufficient fat (based on whether one is in maintenance or burning onboard fat) one can assume that the liver is producing all the ketones one needs for whatever purposes they serve. Including feeding the energy needs of the brain. One school, exemplified by Dr. Ali says up to 75% of total energy. Another school exemplified by Dr. Bikman says maybe as much as 100%. Still an open question. A brain on ketones is a healthy brain. Per unit ketones provide more energy and produce less waste.

Doesn’t matter what a meter registers or not. It’s all context, most of which we do not know in full or even moderately. Even a continuous ketone meter that actually works, will only measure how many ketones are in transit not how many are in the system doing stuff.

(H) #12

All makes sense. Whenever I post questions on here the answer always seems to come back to trusting the process … so maybe I just need to give it longer to work for me (or to at least see the physical results).
I do find it very easy to go 16 hours without eating now, which is unheard of for me before. I like that I don’t think about food all the time. That is a definite ‘plus’ for me.

(Joey) #13

It sounds like you’re actually doing great. If you weren’t in ketosis, you wouldn’t go 16 hours easily without a struggle to replenish carbs. Your mitochondria would seem to have already made the adaptation from gas to diesel :wink:

Without knowing how much “stubborn fat” you are trying to lose, you might keep an open mind as to what your body believes its ideal weight is - as compared to whatever you’ve decided is the right number. Your body might be right and your guess might be wrong.

Our weight is simply a measure of how much gravity is tugging on us. It’s not telling us anything about the composition of that weight. And many women report that losing weight on keto comes much slower, over time, than for men in the same family eating the same low-carb menu items.

But back to gravity… Are you building heavier muscle through exercise and replacing lighter fat? Retaining water? Hormonal changes underway (pre/post-menstrual)? How do your clothes fit/feel? And belt tightening? Sleeping differently? Concentration improvements? etc?

If you feed yourself in healthy ways (and remove dietary obstacles to your wellness), barring any significant health constraints your body typically does a remarkable job of optimizing itself. Precisely how much the Earth is tugging on you may not really be the best indicator of your inner health and healing underway.

Food for thought :slight_smile:

(H) #14

Thanks!!! These are all great points. Health wise, I love it. It’s actually helped me achieve way more than I ever could have if I hadn’t started it… the biggest thing, and I I don’t if this is just me, is that it helped me stop drinking alcohol, which I’d been trying to do for years but never managed it. I’ve tried to reduce alcohol for years but just couldn’t kick the habit - but since starting this I’ve totally quit. I think it’s to do with the appetite because I just don’t feel the ‘craving’ for alcohol any more. I literally couldn’t get past Thursday without a bottle of wine as usually that would happen Friday, Saturday and Sunday too!!
Like I say I don’t know if that’s a ‘keto’ thing or whether it’s a ‘me’ thing but either way it’s amazing for me and I’m delighted with that, I’d nothing else even happens…
I do feel so much healthier and I also appreciate that though I insist I’ve got 10lbs of weight to lose it’s mainly aesthetic. But I’m a person who needs quick results otherwise I panic it’s not working and give up :joy::unamused:
My weight has been stable on keto instead of going up and down all the time - another plus. And I don’t binge at weekends anymore on pizza and chips and then spent days feeling rubbish… all plus points that I can actually see!!!
I used to get up at 9am every morning no matter how hard I tried to get up earlier, I just couldn’t. Now I get up at 6 and go walking.
I’ve been on crazy diets for the last 20 years so I suppose, as people have said on here before, it takes time to undo all that mess.
I like the science of it all (even though I don’t quite get it) and I like the way it feels like you’re doing good from inside to out…

(Joey) #15

@H1980 You rock. Enjoy all these awesome lifestyle benefits and know they’re real for you. You don’t need to blindly trust in the advice of others … you’re witnessing firsthand the good stuff happening in your life.

(The easiest way to lose weight is to relocate to the moon. Someday NASA’s marketing staff will catch on.)

Meanwhile, onward in good health! :vulcan_salute:

(H) #16

Thanks! I’ll be first in the queue for that rocket!! :grimacing:

#17

I started keto for more than weight loss and the kind of benefits you cite are what will keep me doing keto long-term. The weight loss has been nice though and I am determined to lose another 10-ish pounds to get to “shredded”.

You have only been going for 6 weeks so be patient and you might start seeing weight/fat loss. I think for a lot people though it takes more than the standard keto advice to get really lean. I’m pulling multiple levers at this point.

(Bob M) #18

Just a warning that if you DO partake, you might be surprised at how much more affected you are. At least for me, I can get pretty “hammered” from one drink. My ability to handle alcohol is much lower now. If I’m out, I have a maximum of one drink and only while eating. (Though I also normally have one drink while “in” also.)

(H) #19

I’ve had a real love/ hate relationship with drinking forever. On the one hand I love it. I wish I could be a person who could go for a glass of wine and be all sophisticated and then drive home. I’m not. I’m the one ordering another bottle…and a double whiskey.
Ive tried to give it up for years on and off. Managed it for 6 months last year and then went back to it at Xmas.
I stopped since starting keto and I feel different about it… like the craving has gone. I don’t miss it and I love that.

#20

You start entering ketosis once you burn of your liver glycogen which doesn’t take long, either your meter is bad or your diet isn’t right. Are you tracking anything other than carbs, and are you doing this with an app?