Last 2 weeks can't lose a pound

(Trish) #1

Hi all. I’m trying to decide if I should go eat my favourite carby meals and then restart (if this would re-kickstart my ketoness) or if I should hang in there and keep on ketoing on, but I’m getting really disheartened. SW Nov. 30 was 208; CW 192. The first 2 weeks I lost 14 pounds (194 on Dec. 18). Since then been up and down between 192 and 194, but never below 192. I’m very diligent with avoiding carbs and Xmas eve was my only exception with 2 glasses of wine and a cup of whipped potatoes with dinner (total 79 carbs that day), which didn’t throw me out of keto as per urine dip next morning. I stick to 20 or less gross carbs daily, and track everything with MyFitnessPal. Yesterday, for example was 20 carbs (gross), 104 fat, 73 protein. I used KetoBuddy to do my calculations (see c/p below), the day before was 11, 78, and 56, so I think my macros are averaging spot on. I drink between 40 and 70 oz of water daily with a lemon wedge, typically have one 12 oz coffee in the morning with cream or half and half (cow’s milk, not flavoured chemicals) and use one packet of stevia. Coffee is morning, first meal is usually 1 or 2 p.m when I feel hungry, dinner is between 6 and 8, so effectively IF. Other perhaps relevant info I wonder about is how crazy stressful this past year has been…in a nutshell…surgery, death of grandbaby (placental abruption during delivery), path results “oops, sorry, that mass was cancer afterall, you should have had it out 3 years ago” (papillary adenoma), anesthesia complications after surgery (bladder stopped working for 2 months…better now, ya that was fun…not), listed house, house didn’t sell, lost job (outsourced), ill adult son living at home. So, with all that, I wonder if my trouble losing weight is perhaps cortisol/adrenal exhaustion related (although I feel ok). Any thoughts on any of this are very welcome. Sorry I wrote a novel; thanks for reading. :slight_smile:

Large calorie deficit (33%)
Calories to consume: 1207 kcal
Your fat intake should be: 98 grams
Net Carbs Protein Fat
20 grams 62 grams 98 grams
80 kcal 249 kcal 878 kcal
7 % 21 % 72 %

#2

Don’t quit. Don’t eat carb meals. You’re not stalled. You’re just changing in other ways.

Try fasting.

(Allie) #3

Calorie deficit is not the answer, not longterm. Just keep it keto and obey your hunger so your body has the fuel it needs to do what you want it to do. Reduced calories longterm will just make your body turn down its energy needs which messes things up longterm. All this aside though, two weeks is not a stall and the scale is not a good guide - get yourself a basic tape measure and use that instead.

(Trish) #4

I tried fasting. I caved by about 5 p.m. LOL.
I do let my hunger guide me; that’s why I don’t usually eat until the afternoon as I’m just not hungry before then. When I do eat, I’m full. Last night had salisbury steak with gravy and some fried onions and a salad with dressing. I couldn’t have eaten another bite. That’s one of the reasons why I know I can stick this way of eating since I’m not walking around chewing people’s arms off from hunger LOL. I do wonder about the whole adrenal thing though.

#5

Ditch the Stevie, anything that tastes remotely sweet spikes my bg at least 12 points. You could be inc. Insulin with the stevia

(Trish) #6

I will try that, Primal, and report back in a couple of days. Sadly, the coffee will also have to go as I’m really much more of a double/double coffee drinker and the one stevia was already barely tolerable lol.

(Michael ) #7

The first 14 pounds was mostly water. If you’re focused on weight and not measurements, it’s misleading. If you are someone who has recently started weight training or were previously protein deficient, you could be gaining as much as 2 pounds of muscle a month. There’s also a lot of chemistry changes going on in the beginning that can caise fluctuations.

Just stay in it for the long haul and not as a diet for quick weight loss. Good health will be your reward

Like others pointed out, calorie deficit is not recommended. And cutting out cream and stevia could help. No sense losing something you enjoy permanently if it’s not a contributing factor. I would just try cutting it fir a week and then bringing it back if no change or you’re too miserable. Ultimately, you won’t succeed long term if it’s too miserable to maintain forever

As far as carb up…better choice is just quitting the intermittent fasting for a few days and stop counting calories. Eat all day to satiety with keto foods and then throw in fasting or IF on some days. Don’t let your metabolism adjust, keep it guessing

Good luck

(Trish) #8

I’d be happy if my clothes fit differently, but I don’t seem to be shrinking in that sense either. I’m pretty sedentary at the moment, but that’s good to know re the amount of possible muscle gain as I will be going to the gym and doing elliptical and weight training. Have to be careful though as I’ve some injuries, past herniated L5 and current TFCC tear. As per food, I’m honestly not trying to limit my food and am legitimately full after I eat. I tend to eat a lot of bacon and eggs and fry a lot of stuff in tons of butter. Also eat salad almost every day and use the full fat dressings (renee’s greek feta and the like) or my own oil and vinegar dressing. I will try taking the coffee/stevia/creamer out as suggested and see what happens. I can live without it. I’d just like to see some movement is all. I did the hCG diet a few years back and lost 32 pounds in six weeks and kept it off until I got stupid re eating everything in front of me. Sigh. Any thoughts on the adrenal angle, Mike? I know some people think that’s just a pile of hooey, but I wonder.

(Michael ) #9

Certainly hormones play a role and sounds like you have a lot of stress. Still pretty early in your journey to get too discouraged or worried about that imo. It’s frustrating to not see the pounds melting off but important to look at keto as a route to good health and not just smaller jeans. It can take time for the body to adapt and burn fat. I believe part of this is insulin resistance which should improve over time. A lot of people also have unrealistic expectations after reading about so and so losing 60 pounds in a month. But, so and so was 500 pounds and lived off Skittles so cutting out sugar and moving around resulted in unnatural weight loss. In conjunction with that massive water loss in the beginning. Assuming a person is not in a large calorie deficit, i think a reasonable fat loss is 2-4 pounds a month without exercise. So, a 2 pound muscle gain could negate fat loss for some. These are rough estimates that vary by individual but conservative might be good to stay motivated. If keto makes a person feel healthier and they are losing even 2 pounds a month and gaining muscle then you’re losing 24 pounds a year and keeping it off. The long haul good health and weight loss is the mindset i try to stay in. Albeit, if you’re 500 pounds, more drastic measures may be necessary so it doesn’t take 2 decades to get to a healthy weight. Anyways, maybe experiment with ditching the sweetener and see what happens

(Rob) #10

I stalled for 4+ weeks after initial water weight loss. Then weight started coming off fast, then another plateau, then more weight loss. I’ve been obese for most of my 4 and a half decades so there is a lot of reprocessing going on with little external evidence.

Remember Keto is not a weight loss diet plan, it’s a ‘body recomposition and redefining your dominant metabolic processes’ WoE. Weight loss is the side effect of positive internal changes. Becoming healthier is the primary aim… let it happen by KCKO-ing. I wouldn’t bother with experiments and fasting unless this continues for much longer… after all, you’re only 4 weeks in.

(Trish) #11

Ate more yesterday…chicken wings so that was easy to do. Scale says I weigh a pound more again today. Ugh. I must have been an accountant or something in a past life as numbers seem to really matter to me.

(Michael ) #12

Well if you haven’t evacuated your bowels and ate a pound of chicken wings, there’s your pound. I’m planning to fast so ate like 3 pounds of meat yesterday so scale is showing i gained a couple pounds :grin:

Yesterday: 1 lb hamburger, 1 pound chicken, 5 bratwursts. Bunch of butter and green veg

(Karen) #13

Goodness, what a lot of hardship. None of which you can control. I wm so sorry. Responding to your original post, do keto for how it makes you feel. The loss will come, and it is the one thing you can control. Quick prayer for a better new year, right now.

(Trish) #14

I actually have and even went two days in a row…woot woot. I should be good now til the end of the week LOL. I’m foregoing the coffee with stevia this morning and will do so all week. Also think I’m not getting enough potassium, so will look into that as well.

(Trish) #15

Thank you, Karen. I will muster on…always do. I do feel better on keto, but I surely do miss the fruit in my diet and a few other specific foods, but since I’m no hungry like with traditional diets I know I can hang in there. As I’m sure you know though, seeing the scale numbers coming down is a great motivator. Looking forward to going to gym again this week. Seems that I gain a pound at each workout though. Likely muscle retaining water post workout. Maybe I should just put the scale in the snowbank for the winter and dig it out come spring LOL. :thinking:

(Heather Miller) #16

This is the best part of what you have said! Use other methods like clothes fitting, energy, measuring tape and throw that scale away if you are stressing about it. Lots of people say weigh once a week or once a month or not at all…whatever you need to KCKO (keep calm and keto on!)