New to this 3 weeks in

(M) #1

I’m about 3 weeks into this keto thing and haven’t lost any weight or inches this past week. For a little background I’m a 30yo female 5ft1 and current weight is 155.8. My starting weight was 161.2 on April 26. My lowest healthy weight was 125 a few years ago. Since then I’ve had 2 children, one just 7mo ago. Currently I’m fasting from 8pm-noon having just black coffee, at noon I’ll have a 0 sugar 4g net carb protein shake usually with a bit of heavy cream, then dinner is something like chicken with broccoli or steak and asparagus all cooked in butter or olive oil, mostly butter… my goal weight is 140 and my ideal weight is 125. What can I do to speed this up or jumpstart the weight loss. I do not count macros, I just keep it simple hflc

(George) #2

Welcome to keto! Your fasting window is pretty great, so I wouldn’t change that, but are you feeling full after your meals? You either 1. might not be eating enough, or 2. not eating enough fat. Are you having any artificial sweetener during the day or any snacking here or there? Your dinners look pretty similar to something I’d be eating, but I usually incorporate some extra sources of fat.

I normally do extended fasting to accelerate loss or break stalls, but since you’re so new to keto I wouldn’t jump right into that quite yet until you become fat adapted

I wouldn’t get too discouraged though, everyone’s body reacts at different times, especially women due to the hormonal differences from men. Some women actually gain weight on keto for a while, then BOOM, sudden weight loss.

(M) #3

i do not snack between lunch and dinner, after dinner i might have a piece of cheese, olives, a couple strawberries or half of a Quest protein bar if im in need of something sweet to snack on. i have been using sweeteners, mainly sucralose or erythritol. i choose fatty meats such as ribeye or dark poultry cuts, of course bacon. i have been slacking on my water intake, could that be my problem?

(Neil) #4

Welcome to the community!

Another thing that’s commonly mentioned is that women lose inches before pounds (for men it’s the opposite). You might notice that your clothes start fitting better before you see weight coming off on the scale. Some people like to take photos of themselves periodically and/or take tape measurements of different places on their body to track this progress for motivation!

(Danielle) #5

I did Keto two years ago and easily lost about 55lbs; the first 35lbs came off like a breeze, the next 20 took a little bit of work (exercise). I then got preggo and over the course of 9 months put about 40lbs back on. After about 7-8 months post preggo I started Keto again. I have been having a REALLY hard time. I’m only down about 15lbs after about 3 months (I was down about 30lbs last time). I have not gotten the mental clarity I had before, and it just feels so much harder than last time. I’m still sticking with it, but I’m a little peeved that it doesn’t seem to be as easy as it was before.

My best guess is that my hormones are still wacky from being preggo. They say it takes a 12+ months for your hormones to get “back to normal”. Also cortisol is a KNOWN staller of weight loss, if you are stressed (uuhhh no duh! new baby in the house), then this can also stall your weight loss. And lack of sleep (what is sleep?!?) will also impede your weight loss.

Sorry if that isn’t helpful, but keep in mind, you carried and delivered an entire person from your body… give yourself a little leeway and patience.

Keep Calm & Keto On (and I’ll try to do the same)

(George) #6

It might not be having a huge impact, but I believe any post-dinner snacking that close to bedtime has a negative affect, so I would eat those things immediately after dinner, without letting too much time pass. I believe waiting at least 3 hours between dinner and bedtime is also beneficial. My cutoff time is 630pm, and go to bed at 10pm.

I would definitely keep the water intake up, and cut the artificial sweetener. Some people respond well to them, others don’t. Same goes for dairy. It might be worth experimenting removing all artificial sweetener for 1 or 2 weeks, and seeing how you progress on the scale, same for dairy.

And the other poster on here is correct, women do tend to see changes in inches over actual weight loss on a scale.

(M) #7

im going to start cutting out the snacks and try to eat my dinner a little earlier, lets see what happens

(Michael - When reality fails to meet expectations, the problem is not reality.) #8

@Blackcoffeecabernet Just curious. Why is your user name Blackcoffeecabernet? Wondering if you add something to your coffee that I don’t. Yet! :face_with_raised_eyebrow:

(traci simpson) #9

Maybe two of their favorite drinks?

(M) #10

diygurl has it, not to go all “sound of music” on you but these are a few of my favorite things! Not together, although now im intrigued by the idea

(traci simpson) #11

Love it

(Michael - When reality fails to meet expectations, the problem is not reality.) #12

:wink: Wondered if you’re a coffee connoisseur. Not that I think there’s anything wrong with Mr Coffee, paper filters and drip brew.:flushed:

(Cancer Fighting Ketovore :)) #13

I was skimming replies and was wondering why you are trying to do IF so soon. You need to give your body time to adjust to keto. Just keep net carbs under 20g and keep up on the fat and make sure you are getting enough protein.

It really sounds like you might not be getting enough fat or protein, unless your supper is one large meal, and even then it doesn’t sound like its enough. Also, keep in mind, that if you are breastfeeding you need to account for that.

I’d suggest at least doing two meals a day, and skip the protein shake. It might be helpful if you would track your macros for a week, just to see what you are taking in.

(Katie) #14

Especially considering that you do weight training, are you getting enough protein? You can play around with increasing your protein:fat ratio.

(M) #15

i have been doing “body weight” training ie. squats, push-ups, sometimes with a small 10lb kettlebell…
i actually just stopped breastfeeding so maybe my body is adjusting to that hormonally…
im doing IF so soon because its easy for me, i was the type to skip breakfast maybe 4 days of the week anyway (before baby #2 and breastfeeding)
occasionally i do add collagen peptides to my tea with dinner(maybe 3-4 days/wk) i take a prenatal MV, B12, and magnesium daily

(Cancer Fighting Ketovore :)) #16

Definitely give yourself some slack, considering you still have a new baby. My baby is 8 1/2 months old, and it between giving birth and the treatment I was on for cancer it took me a long time to see reasonable ketones. I never breastfed him because of the chemo and other meds, but there was still a whole lot of hormanal things going on. I’d certainly give yourself time to stabalize and let your hormones balance out before doing anything too drastic. :slight_smile:

(Jane- Old Inky Crone) #17

Welcome @Blackcoffeecabernet! I just started back on Keto March 6 after being on a year long binge. I’m 5’4” and when I started I was 152 pounds. I immediately lost about 8 pounds then pretty much stopped. My weight gradually (slowly) crept down to 138 and then in the last couple days I’ve dropped to 134. It sometimes takes a while for your body to start burning the fat. Also, hormones are a huge factor. Give your body some time to recover from giving birth, and to get used to the dietary changes. You’re on the right track. Also, these people on these message boards are very knowledgeable, and are always ready to help you. KCKO

#18

Ditto, though if you’ve always been a breakfast skipper, that’s a naturally good habit to keep up. I’m wondering why at this very early date people are suggesting eliminating more foods. It sounds like you’re losing, but would like it to go faster. It may not. Despite the rumors, most people lose weight at about the same pace as they would on a calorie restricted low fat diet (1–2 lbs./week)–it’s just that with low carb they’re not hungry all the time, so it’s far easier to stick to.

(Maria Ortiz) #19

You’re not eating enough. When you are new to keto, take advantage of the fact that you don’t really have to be concerned with calories, macros, or fasting… those things come later during actual stalls and when you are already fat-adapted (6-8 week rough timeframe). My first stall didn’t occur until I was 6 months into keto and had lost 50 lbs and it was because I started eating less thinking it would make me lose rapidly again, but it had the opposite effect. Adding 700 calories into my diet daily worked immediately and I started losing again. Heavy cream isn’t really recommended if you are new to keto because of the lactose. I stall with heavy cream, personally. And over the years I’ve learned that just because something didn’t stall you in the past doesn’t mean it can’t stall you in the future once your body adjusts.

(M) #20

this morning i have somehow gained 2 lbs from when i weighed myself a couple of days ago. could it be water weight considering i upped my water intake as of 2 days ago? i know i shouldn’t weigh myself so much but im in a “weight loss challenge” and this morning was weigh in day. up 2lbs from the same time last week