New to this and frustrated. Please advise

#1

I am 6 weeks into Keto. The first 3 weeks I lost 8 pounds the nothing since. Super frustrated. Very small body measurement changes as well. I weigh 210 and am 5”8, female, age 49. I IF 16/8 or 18/6 M-F (started week 4). Macros 19C/95P, 118F. I Walk 3-4 times per week for 30 minutes. Help!

(Cindy) #2

I think being super frustrated might be because you came into this with your expectations too high. We hear/read about people dropping tons of weight very quickly on keto, but those are usually NOT the norm. They’re usually men, some with a lot of weight to lose, or young men who tend to lose more easily anyway.

So you’ve lost ~1.3lbs/week since starting keto. Recommended weight loss is 1-2 lbs/week…more than that, and you’re not just losing fat. So you’re easily within that range. Yeah, I know…we all want to lose 5+ lbs/week, but it’s just not realistic.

There’s a phrase here, KCKO (keep calm and keto on). It especially applies to women because women, in general, just don’t lose as quickly as men. But…could you live the rest of your live eating this way? That’s the key. Because if so, in a year, you’ll have lost a chunk of weight AND be able to keep it off.

(Full Metal KETO AF) #3

@cw2001 hit the nail on the head :cowboy_hat_face:

#4

So when does the “weight just melting off easily” start happening? Or for some is it just a different way to eat with no weight loss?

#5

You’re in what’s called the post-transition “stall”, and it’s normal. Your body is reassessing itself, switching to being more efficient at burning fat. However, you must ask yourself what your expectations are. If you’re waiting to magically lose 5lbs a week, it isn’t going to happen. As mentioned above 1-2lbs a week is normal and expected. Go by what your clothes tell you. Ditch the scale, buy a tape measure.

(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #6

It’s a valid question, and the answer is, “it’s complicated.” Women have a more irregular pattern of weight loss, especially before menopause. You just have more complicated hormones to work with. Not only that, but many women here found that it took a month or two for things to sort themselves out and for weight to start coming off. I don’t want to scare you away, but look for threads about “shark week” on these forums. You ladies are tough—as a man, I’m horrified!

Also, because of the social indoctrination about keeping calories low, a lot of women find that a ketogenic diet can add weight, in the form of muscle or increased bone density, while at the same time taking off weight in the form of fat. When that happens, it pays to concentrate on how your measurements change, because the added muscle, etc., is a sign of increasing health and vitality.

So patience, grasshopper. Give your body time to sort things out. This is a long-term improvement in all kinds of health that you are investing in, so don’t sell yourself short and quit too soon. I haven’t lost any weight in a year, and I would really love to lose another sixty pounds. But I have to say that the improvement in my bloodwork alone has been worth it, even if I never lose another pound. I feel soooo much better than I did when running on sugar! :bacon:

(Cindy) #7

It doesn’t. It’s not magic. And if it just melted off for everyone, more people would probably be eating this way. But as with any health plan, results vary from individual to individual. But you need to ask yourself why you’re eating this way, too. If it’s to have better health, long-term weight loss, etc, then it’s great.

If you just want to quickly drop a bunch of weight, keto not be right for you.

@PaulL gave a really good answer, and probably nicer, than mine. :wink:

(Carl Keller) #8

Healthy weight loss requires us to correct the behavior of our hormones, mainly insulin. It took most of us decades to screw up our insulin so we have to be patient while waiting for it to sort itself out.

#9

At this point what it seems is one set of what to give up after another, to the point that it does not seem sustainable long term. Especially if I’m seeing so few results. If there were results, that would be a different story. Do you see people on this forum for whom this does not work? If not, What am I doing wrong?

#10

For the past three weeks the tape measure hasn’t shown a difference. I’ve had a tape measure the whole journey.

#11

We’re telling you that you aren’t doing anything wrong. What were your expectations? And many of us are long-termers, it’s quite sustainable.

#12

My expectations were to not go 4 weeks with no signs of change.

(Robert C) #13

Here is an analogy for you.

If you are in California and want to get to New York but you have a broken down car (insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome etc.) you can start walking or you can fix the car. Cranking the engine and grinding the gears is what most other (calorie restriction based) diets do. They don’t try to resolve the actual issue - just some sounds and vibration like something is working (a little weight loss, some new pants and then, back goes up the weight).

Drop a quiet new V8 (fat-adapted) engine in there and you’ll get somewhere!

And, as said above, the longer you’ve been insulin resistant, had metabolic syndrome, stressed, sleep deprived, cortisol spiking etc. the longer it will take to fix the engine. But the fixed engine is, in most people’s opinion around here I assume, what will work - even if you have to spend more time in California seemingly without progress waiting for the fix.

(Dan McNeill) #14

@Kawp Based on your numbers, you are right around 1500 calories per day. The “normal” calorie intake for a woman is 2000 calories per day. So, based on your calorie intake, you should lose somewhere around 1lb per week. The one thing that doesn’t get mentioned a lot is that keto or no keto, calories do count. What makes is easier to cut calories on keto is the satiety factor. Typically, when people do low carb/keto, they find themselves eating much fewer calories. Just eating keto, doesn’t necessarily make the weight melt off, eating keto with a large calorie deficit does. Personally, I was not keto for my first year. I was 100% atkins/low carb. I started at 300lbs and lost 100lbs my first year. I lost the bulk of my weight with a very simple, very boring diet…meat and veg. That’s it. This was a severe calorie deficit for me, somewhere around 1200 cal/day, but I wasn’t hungry. I often ate the same thing every day for lunch (baked chicken slices and seasoned mayo) and often the same dinners several nights in a row. Basically, I decided to make food less important in my life. I consider myself keto now solely based on what and how I eat, it is my preferred diet now. Keep up the good work, you’re making progress. Progress is more important than perfection here…

(John) #15

Perhaps try a different way of eating than this one? Not every diet is right for every person.

It is working exceedingly well for me, but if it were not I’d be doing something else.

(Cindy) #16

Kawp, you haven’t mentioned the types of things you’re eating. Yes, you have to give up some things, like carbs and sugars, but you should be able to eat plenty of other yummy and sustainable things that you enjoy.

For me, I spent years feel guilty every time I used mayo or butter or ate bacon, an avocado…all those fattier foods. So yes, I’ve had to give up some things (sweet tea), but I’m thoroughly enjoying others.

I can tell you, though, that if you’re doing this solely for quick weight loss, you’re going to probably be disappointed. Many people here have lost weight, but they also eat a ketogenic diet because it reverses so many health issues. When I started keto, yes, I wanted to lose weight (and still do!), but I was also tired of feeling achey and stiff in the mornings. I was tired of feeling old. I also knew I was probably headed toward T2D and who knows what else.

When the emphasis is on your HEALTH vs just weight loss AND you’re eating plenty of good food, then the process to lose weight doesn’t seem quite so slow. People who lose weight quickly on very low calories diets, weird restrictive diets (HCG, grapefruit, you name it) can do that in the SHORT term because it’s just a matter of buckling down for a short period of time while the weight comes off. Problem with that is that you can’t live that way, so the weight comes back.

Keto is sustainable.

(Katie the Quiche Scoffing Stick Ninja ) #17

Also known as PISS (Post Induction Stall Syndrome) :smiley:

#18

Yes, I’ve already had another thread on that earlier this week.

#19

I guess it doesn’t seem sustainable to me if I’m not seeing results. Never eating chips and salsa again, or bread of any (real) kind, or any ice cream or desserts or pizza doesn’t seem pleasant honestly, and seems silly if not seeing results from abstaining. I never felt guilty eating bacon or avocados, they were part of my weekly/daily diet already, as was steak. But giving up grains and sugars (and I suspect dairy comes next) with no significant seen benefit seems torturous. I believe people stick with this (Keto)because they see real results and I’m not thus my frustrations.

(Jessica) #20

But you’re only 6 weeks in. I think what others are saying is that if you were looking for a quick, crash diet, keto is not it. If you are looking for long term, sustainable weight loss, it begins with fixing some stuff first. After your body gets things sorted out, you’ll likely see some steady weight loss. If you look around, you will see A LOT of “why am I not losing weight now” threads and a lot of them are exactly where you are in the process. They lost a lot at first then stopped. It was so common, Dr. Atkins had a name for it (PISS, mentioned above).

As for sustainability, this is the only way I’ve ever eaten that I’m losing weight and not starving to death all the time. I don’t feel deprived. Sweets are very rare treats, as they should be, not daily staples. I enjoy salsa on a cheese crisp or in a spoon. I know dairy is talked about a lot here as people do tend to have intolerances, but I’m not giving it up anytime soon.