New here, but not new to keto - quick question

#1

Hi there.
I did Atkins a loooong time ago when it was pretty much unheard of and considered taboo. I never felt better but after 9 months health issues (unrelated I think) caused me to give it up. I’ve tried to low carb a few times over the years but always only gave it half an effort which, as you know, can lead to weight GAIN instead of loss. 6 days ago I decided to do it and do it right, tracking and all.

Anyway, I have a curiosity question and hopefully you can tell me why this is happening because I am one of those OCD people who will research it to death and not quit till I get an answer that makes sense. What better place than here, right? :grin:

A few times in the 6 days I’ve been doing keto I have felt strange right after I eat. Strange like I had too much sugar or too much coffee or like I’ve had an adrenaline/insulin spike. Dizzy, anxious, etc. Is this something I should expect in these early days or is there something I should be doing differently?

Thanks in advance for any insight.
Sue

#2

Give us the menu of what you’ve been eating. Also, any artificial sweeteners involved?

#3

Breakfast is a bulletproof coffee. Lunch during the week is 1/2 avocado, all beef hotdog and a hard-boiled egg. Lunch this weekend has been sausage and scrambled eggs. Dinner is a vegetable with butter and some sort of meat. Snacks are either beef sticks, a cheese stick, or a handful of nuts. My dessert at night is whipped cream cheese with a splash of cream, vanilla extract, and Splenda. For the first few days I had 7-10 grapes for “dessert” at lunch because of the sweet cravings. I’ve had none this weekend.

Yes, I have used Sweet n Low in my coffee all my life, and during the past week I’ve been using Splenda, but sparingly.

Sue

(VLC.MD) #4

Might be low in sodoium

(Karen) #5

Yep, need some salt.

(Mike Glasbrener) #6

So you’re 6 days in? How carbie were you before keto? Insulin resistant? If so so the first few days to a week or two are tough, although you’ll typically shed water weight quickly. As others say salt helps. If insulin is high your kidneys retain salt. Once insulin drops your kidneys start performing more normally and spill excess salt so adding salt could help. Also, don’t restrict calories. Focus are eating high fat very low carb stuff and try to get some green leafy veggies occasionally.

#7

OK, thanks, but it happens right after eating certain meals (will have to pay attention now to what’s in those meals). When I was eating high carbs on a daily basis I would almost always feel lousy after my lunch (dizzy spell, then anxiety, then a mad dash to the bathroom) and it felt like it was a sugar spike/crash type of thing. I’m not diabetic but have suspected for years that I am a reactive hypoglycemic so eating Keto should be really good for fixing that. But since starting keto again I’ve had that dizzy, drunk feeling a few times after a meal, but luckily it only lasts about 30 minutes.

I had given up dairy a few years ago but have been adding it back in this week. Isn’t there a lot of sugar in dairy? Maybe that’s it.
Sue

#8

Not really suspecting that it’s a salt issue but you guys know better than me so I will load up even more for a few days. It feels like a drunken high with dizzy waves, pretty much like what I feel when I’m having a blood glucose fluctuation… just not sure why it’s happening on a LCHF diet but, as you said, I’m early in the game and anything is possible.

I wasn’t very carby before the 6 days because I went gluten-free late July so I had already cut a lot of carbs, but I was still eating potatoes and rice and lots of corn.

I would LOVE to be eating leafy green vegetables but since I have colitis, I’m constantly struggling with foods that won’t put me into a flare and salad does a number on me. I tried again this weekend. :frowning:

Thanks for the feedback and for being here - LOVE this forum!
Sue

(Edith) #9

It could be a reaction to a certain food. Is there anything different that you’ve been eating that you didn’t eat pre-keto when you have that reaction after a meal?

Edith

#10

Had been off all dairy for well over a year but when I started keto a week ago I started adding dairy back in. Maybe?
Sue

(Allie) #11

Dairy is a very common trigger food for problems…

(Kitty) #12

I’ve had that happen too, especially after a high fat AND high calorie meal. I guess I just thought it was a little too much energy all at once or something. I just try to keep my meals under a certain calorie amount and I dont have the problem anymore. (Of course, as long as that calorie amount is ENOUGH to satisfy me)

I just have to wait about 10 minutes to make sure I’m satiated because I’m a compulsive overeater that wont stop if I dont wait.

#13

Thanks for commenting. It’s not happening much at all anymore… maybe it was just the newness of this way of eating, or my blood sugars rising or falling too rapidly which I’ve always had a problem with. We’re asking our bodies to change a lot - I guess it has the right to protest once in a while.
Sue