Leg Pain - Please Help Me

#21

Are you tracking how much sodium, potassium and magnesium you are getting in the day? Can you tell us at least estimated totals? If you aren’t very precise on it, might be a good idea to track them as well as you can for a bit to figure out whether you really are getting as much as you expect or need.

(Full Metal KETO AF) #22

I take 400mg Magnesium Glycinate, KAL. @djindy is right about Lite-salt. You have to be REALLY careful with that stuff though, if you overdo the daily recommendation you’re :heart: will not love you! I never use it. :cowboy_hat_face:

#23

If you underdo it, your heart may not love you, for that matter. You’re right though, as with anything else, you need to be careful.

Personally, i’ve had more problems getting to the 4,700 mg of potassium a day than going over it, but mileage may vary.

EDIT: a bit of further research indicates the 4,700 mg number may not be the standard, with other keto recommendations more in line with 3k-4k mg (3-4g) or potassium, which is a bit lower.

#24

Yes. I’m always very close to meeting this macro, along with fat. Fat usually exceeds my goal by a few. I have increased veggies more than anything but I’m certain about the protein. I also find I’m not very hungry. I do listen to my body but I don’t eat if I’m not hungry.

(Full Metal KETO AF) #25

I would like to thank you two for these points. I applied them to myself. :cowboy_hat_face:

I use Cronometer and it does track those things, I am usually more focused on the daily macros but I like the trends profile as it seems more relevant to me, especially in the case of minerals and vitamins. I need to up my game a little. I’m going to pick up some Lite-salt too. :wink:

I always assumed I was okay here but now I see that I need to get more in. :cowboy_hat_face:

#26

Just bought potassium powder. It arrives today. Yesterday was my 3rd day taking a magnesium supplement. I’ve also been upping my sodium (exceeding daily requirements in MFP which I realize isn’t set for keto but it’s a good gauge and what I have right now). I gained weight, feet feel swollen & my rings are tight :frowning: Water weight I’m guessing.

I’m reading conflicting advice:
Drink a lot of water/drink for thirst
Increase your sodium but not too much (how much is too much?)
Buy lite salt for potassium but not too much/I don’t need or use it.

While I have been totally loving this way of eating, I’m getting worried. I am on my 5th night of not sleeping. I’m a mom + I attend school FT… I cannot afford painful nights of no sleep :confused:

Maybe this isn’t for me… I haven’t had any other negative symptoms but this. But maybe my body is asking me to stop, increase carbs (I am at 20 or below) or do something else. I am frustrated and scared. And how do I go back introducing carbs? I’m reading horror stories :pensive:

I just want to eat & be healthy. That’s it. I wanted to better myself and my body.

(Full Metal KETO AF) #27

@Liamsm0m I hope you don’t give up yet. You could try an epsom salt bath before sleeping. Give the process time to work. It’s unusual to have persistent keto flu symptoms if you’re getting enough electrolytes. It hasn’t been asked so are you sure you’re keeping carbs low enough to get into ketosis? If you’re still getting too many to allow depleting your body’s supply you could be just dragging out the change over to ketosis leaving your body still screaming for sugars. For me I felt an almost instant change on day 5. :cowboy_hat_face:

#28

Thanks for your thoughtful response.
I actually started this by accident! I have been tracking for a bit in MFP. And I started upping good proteins and veggies - just like through recipes, etc. After day 3-4, I noticed my carbs were staying under 20 and I had this weird taste in my mouth. So I googled and saw keto. I wasn’t completely sold so I went on a research binge and thought well if I’m kind of already there why not give it a shot? So I did and I’m in about week 3. The benefits I felt after a week are too many to list. My favorite perhaps was my dry flaky feet went away overnight. Normally I need a pedicure every two weeks (I blame carbs… they are dry and flaky :joy:) and my feet are like baby feet. It’s the good fat!

Anyway, like I said above… I’ve enjoyed it. So I stuck with it. Now I’m down 15 lbs. So I can say it works… I’m at no more than 20 carbs a day.
But these leg pains…it’s too much.

I’m sincerely hope it’s the potassium. I’m also going to try to increase my carbs slightly with berries to see if that helps. :crossed_fingers:t3:

#29

Oh and this is the only keto flu symptom I’ve a had…

(Full Metal KETO AF) #30

It’s pretty much what I went through, just didn’t linger for me like it’s doing with you.

(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #31

You need to drink fluid, but don’t force yourself. You don’t want to drink so much that it flushes out your electrolytes, after all. Tim Noakes, after years of urging runners to hydrate more, now has to urge people to drink only to thirst. After the sports drink companies saw a promotional opportunity, they started pushing people to drink so much that several runners have collapsed and even died from electrolyte depletion. Balance is all, in this sort of thing.

As for sodium, potassium, magnesium, and calcium, yes, some people have to supplement, but getting too much can be as much of a problem as getting too little. On balance, I’d say that if we have to take supplements, that’s generally a sign our diet needs fixing. The most recent studies indicate that people are their healthiest when ingesting 4-6 grams of sodium a day, which is 10-15 grams of table salt (NaCl).

It also appears that, when we get enough salt, most of us don’t need to supplement the other minerals, because balancing out the salt helps the body balance the others out, as well. That said, there are some people who will still need electrolyte supplements, but probably not as many as we think.

(Di trying!) #32

Hi, Im a Newbie and been doing Keto for just 2 weeks and had same problem, kept me awake all night my first week! I purchased Trace minerals by TMSPORT, Electrolyte Stamina. Its a tablet that can be taken x6 daily, but I’ve been taking 2-3 and my leg pain is gone! Actually I didn’t even think about it until I saw your comments. I got them on Vitacost and only has 2carbs for 6 tabs! These may be helpful!! Good Luck!

(Cranford Coulter) #33

I make my own capsules with capsule makers from capsuleconnection.com. That way I can include some black pepper in the turmeric capsules. Turmeric is better utilized if combined with black pepper. I started taking it 6 years ago to avoid knee transplants. I have had arthritis in my knees since I was 15. I’m almost 64. I was able to discontinue the Synvisc shots and no more talk of replacements. It also brought my cholesterol numbers in line. I take 2- 650mg capsules with food each day. I also take 3- 500mg Magnesium Citrate capsules. This is mainly because I am a migraineur. Most people only need one capsule to prevent cramps. If you get diarrhea, you are taking too much. Most people absorb the citrate form better than the oxide, which is more commonly sold. You can buy the powder from bulksupplements.com reasonably. One can just stir it in water and skip making capsules.
I just find the capsules simpler.
Magnesium is not what stops the cramps (or the migraine). It is the catalyst that releases the adrenaline or electrolytes necessary to deal with them. If the electrolytes are also not present, all the magnesium in the world is not going to help. At least that is how it was explained to me.