Not sure what’s going on

(Scott) #1

Xmas eve I went over my carbs . By around 50z small spoon of mashed potatoes and gravy. Before this my mojo reading was 1:4-2.1. Got back on Xmas day around 10-12 grams per day. Mostly carnivore . I do have a couple pepperoni sticks a day and have had about 3 spoonfuls of endive keto ice cream every few days . I was before too. Since Boxing Day I can’t get a reading higher than .4 and glucose reading won’t go below 100. The funny things is I have lost 3 lbs since Xmas but can’t help feeling would be more if in ketosis.

(Michael - When reality fails to meet expectations, the problem is not reality.) #2

As documented by many forum members over a very long timeframe, we’re all different and in different ways. Some folks can get away with a so-called cheat meal/day/week and return to normal within a day or two. Others aren’t so lucky. My guess is you’re probably one of the not-so-lucky ones.

Just start again. Sub-20 grams of carbs per day or less. Throw in some overnight 12 hour intermittent fasting a few times each week. Fasting encourages ketosis. I’d forget about the ‘keto’ ice cream until you’re back to ‘normal’ again. By then you just might decide you don’t need it anymore. I’m sure you’ll be OK - eventually.

(Bob M) #3

Also, when are you taking your blood sugar? If it’s in the morning, try in the evening. Same with ketones, try them in the evening.

And being deeper in ketosis does not equate to higher weight loss. The highest values I get are when I eat a ton, which should mean lower weight loss.

(Scott) #4

Thanks , I was below 15 grams or carbs closer to 5-10 from Xmas day on. I do my readings in late
Afternoon before supper . Just really strange my readings when from very good to not in ketosis and no where close again . Not giving up just really strange . Not eating anything different but we will take it a day at a time

#5

If you’re not eating enough carbs then you’re in ketosis, blood ketone levels don’t matter. Don’t waste your money on the strips.

(Scott) #6

Ok thanks , still
Have 25 left nice to see the numbers . More mental for me or visual . Still losing or staying same so doing something right. Realize so much of my old weight gain was boredom eating and eating just to do something . Not hungry at times but still want to eat but don’t

#7

If you want to track something that matters use cronometer and track your intake, then when/if you stop loosing, or gain you can go back and see what you did and how your body responded. You can also see if your diet it fulfilling your micro-nutrient needs. Also makes it way easier to change things and see what response it had.

#8

Hey Scott,

You have detectable blood ketones, even at 0.4mmol/L.

Blood ketones are not generated in a high insulin body state.

The fact that you have >0.1mmol/L indicates that your liver is producing ketones (or that the ketones are not being used rapidly by the body as fuel). It is more likely the first option.

This means with a lower insulin baseline, your body will continue to adapt to using fat as a fuel source. That will be fat from your meals (some of which will be used directly by some body tissues, and the rest will go into fuel storage until insulin drops, then it will be accessible as fuel, either as fatty acids or ketones), and/or it will be fat from stored body fat.

Along the way there you may have had some blood glucose spikes and subsequent insulin spikes during the variations in carbohydrate eating. Those variations and spikes are something to minimise over a longer term if you are healing your body from a carbohydrate and glucose fuel source dependency.

With extra carbohydrate foods, there would likely be some repletion of glycogen reserves in the liver and muscle. That may temporarily retain some water in some tissues. But as you get back into a low insulin state the glycogen becomes available as fuel, and as it is used up the retained water is excreted as well. Body weight fluctuations during aberrant carbohydrate eating (what ever that is for an n=1 plan) return to the normal trend (measured over a longer time scale) when the eating is restabilised.

Contrary to @lfod14’s sound advice, I think there is benefit to tracking blood ketones. The primary one is that the definition of the ketogenic way of eating is that ketones are being generated. Seeing blood or breath ketones (breath for tracking body fat burning) is proof positive that ketones are being generated. Many experienced ketogenic eaters rely on them knowing how it feels to be in ketosis, as much as doing a double check with a meter. The other reason is if you have an engineering mind, one that like measurements and variations, a mind that likes data and tracking.

#9

Are you referring to blood or urine strips or both? Each method of ketone testing measures something different: blood tests measure β-hydroxybutyrate levels and urine tests measure acetoacetate levels. β-hydroxybutyrate, acetoacetate and acetone are all ketones produced during fat metabolism. If you are burning fat, you are making ketones, so all three can be a gauge of ketosis.

(Scott) #10

I am using keto mojo. I use Cronometer but doing mostly carnivore . Don’t eat breakfast have about 4 hotrod ( pepperoni stick) say 1 carb for 2 sticks then maybe a couple cheese strings and it says 0 carbs so guessing 2 means 1 carb then supper usually 2 or 3 hamburger patties or 2 small 3 or 4 oz steak or 2 chicken breast . Every few days maybe a scoop of keto ice cream ( 2 carbs ) or a couple hot rods . That’s why I stopped tracking as it’s not a lot

#11

Either one, the main reason (most) track ketones is because they think it correlates to fat loss. For people managing a medical conditional that requires higher ketone levels if makes sense to track, other than that it’s a waste. If you’re eating ~20g of carbs a day and not falling on your face you’re clearly in ketosis.