Really enjoying the helpful information on this forum! I have a question that I haven’t seen come up yet. I have reached my target weight after 8 months in near-continuous ketosis and have maintained it for a few weeks now. Now that I am back down to my college weight (yay) and 20% body fat, I no longer have the benefit of being able to go long periods without eating or being hungry. I am not craving carbs, but I think about food a lot, and want to eat every few hours. Fasting now seems impossible, whereas it used to be pretty easy. Does anyone else experience this? Does it mean my body fat is low enough that I have to keep consuming fat for energy? I don’t look super lean, just fit. Kind of a drag to be back in my “food prison” mindset, even if the food I’m craving is keto. I’m hoping it will pass.
Maintenance and new hunger
It’s a good question. Is it a craving or simply a call to eat when you feel hungry? Maybe the answer is to progressively step up the amount of fat and protein that you eat when you eat. The hunger might be that you are not eating enough to meet your energy needs.
Thanks, that could be it, though I’m worried about blowing out my macros, which have got and kept me here. I guess it’s more like general fat/protein hunger, but borders on specific cravings sometimes…I do find myself fantasizing about heavy cream a bit more than is seemly.
I’m actually down around 10% body fat and I felt this way a couple of months ago and my problem has been identified.
For me the issues were/are sweeteners and dairy, and when I reduce/eliminate them I found I could fast pretty easily for 2-3 days again, but everyone is different and YMMV.
I could go without fat during the fast, but I found that could literally lose 8 lbs during a 3-5 day fast, so I realize that I need to supplement with dietary fat and stress a feasting cycle after the fast for a full rebuild/repair.
Edit:
Thanks @Chance !
This was actually something I discovered several months before the sweetener/dairy enlightenment and increased my intake on non-fasting days, so it was actually 3 things for me 1) not eating enough on non-fasting days, 2) sweeteners, and 3) dairy.
Great answer @BillJay! I love hearing how people are maintaining!
I’m down at my target weight and trim. I have experienced this. For me it’s a bumpy ride hitting the bottom end of the scale.
I don’t think I’m as onto it as @BillJay but have had similar experiences. Dairy is a problem for me, as are nuts… also bacon. These all seem to trigger a lot of hunger for me (and/or glucose responses).
I haven’t looked into the sweetener yet so I am interested in it.
All said, the amount of fat I eat and still stay trim really quite amazes me. I am heartened by this image from Dr Phinney and realising that it takes a lot more energy input to maintain a healthy weight than it did to lose the weight.
Yep, I’ve heard that when you reach your goal, you have to up the fat consumption to cover your energy needs. Your body can only access so much energy from your fat stores. You don’t have much left, your body is going to fight to keep it!
Anyone have the detail on the amount of energy that can be tapped per day from body fat? I’ve heard something in the neighborhood of 30Cal per day per pound of body fat. That would imply that once down to a lean body composition one would only be able to draw about 600 to 900 Cal per day from fat, the rest would have to be provided by dietary fat.
You will have to excuse me @BillJay. I am reading my own answer in the light of day and thinking Duh! The wisdom of Socrates, “the reason you are hungry is that you are not eating enough”. There must be an honorary degree waiting for me somewhere!
That’s a really interesting chart from Dr. Phinney.
If it represents an idealized general trend with fat loss, it makes sense that people would crave more protein as they reach maintenance. The protein stays at 20%, but increases from 70g/day at the beginning to 110g/day at the end.
Yeah, exactly, I’m not sure of the exact amount either. This is why it can be harder to fast if you are lean. I know Dr Fung doesnt recomend anyone under 20% body fat fast.I know the dudes talked about how many calories you could access per pound on one of the podcast, but I’m not sure which one. Maybe someone else who knows more can chime in.