Please 1.5 years in and need help

(Gillian Mccarty) #1

So we have been strict keto for 1.5 years. I mean I guess macro wise anyway. We dont cheat and basically keep daily stuff the same. But all of a sudden the last month or so we are tired. Even after eating and upping our fat we are tired. We both are struggling and we dont know that why so we cant fix it. I dont want to add anything in terms of drinks or things. We have never had a problem being and staying fat adapted since the second week. We just need help we are tired

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

For any specific advice you’re going to have to provide more info. What and how much you’re eating, the more precise you are about it the better. Any changes to anything recently. Health issues if any. Changes in life situation, family, etc. Help us help you. Thanks.

(Gillian Mccarty) #3

Breakfast is generally coffee, his with splenda mine with heavy cream, liquid stevia, and some extract generally of some type, then usually 2 hours ish later I’ll have either 2 hard boiled eggs well salted, a two good yogurt with progranola in it, or 2 sausage egg and cheeses. Lunch is usually left overs from the night before. So today it was a chicken cordon blue casserole I made last night. And about 20 minutes after that it’s all I could do to keep my eyes open. Had a cheese stick while cooking dinner and did a pizza sandwich of sorts for dinner. It consisted of fat head dough with cheese lunch meat and mayo inside. Nothing life wise is different for us or health issues. And it’s both of us feeling this way not just one of us.

(Full Metal KETO AF) #4

I realize you’re a year and a half in but I’ll ask anyway, are you pretty sure you’re getting enough electrolytes? Sodium especially?

I don’t know what progranola is but I think the other breakfast is better. So lots of dairy maybe? Too much Tryptophan? I would try cutting back for a while if you’re eating lots of dairy. Do you eat red meat? I get the best energy from beef. Fatty Fish? Vegetables? If you’re Diet is not varied mix it up to see if you get a better overall nutritional profile. Also you might not be eating enough food.

Have you tried coffee after the meal? I dropped my afternoon coffee a month or so into KETO because I was energized and it got me too wired. About 10 months later I was crashing suddenly after eating. I am back to a late afternoon espresso again. :cowboy_hat_face:

(Scott) #5

Just because it is that time of year, if you burn any fuels for heat get a CO detector to rule that out.

(Gillian Mccarty) #6

Yes I’ve done the adding salt and adding zipfizz to my day, progranola is basically seeds and yes we eat a variety of meat. No fuel burning just a wood stove. And he is having the same issues but does basically no dairy at all. It truly is a puzzle over here lol

#7

Well, wood is fuel - if it’s an older model stove that hasn’t been maintained in ages, or a badly fitted new one, could be a concern?

(I experienced low dose carbon monoxide poisoning from a gas heater only used in the evenings with a cracked window. My carbon monoxide alarm didn’t function right, long story, but in looking at replacing the heater anyway - a handyman found that it was leaking. I did have strange tiredness for sure).

(Michelle) #8

How are you feeling, otherwise? Holidays are always stressful for me, and that makes me feel more tired. Also, do you two ever fast? That always revs me back up. Maybe try to start with 16:8 and see how it feels.

(Jack Bennett) #9

If you’re sure nothing has changed in your eating habits and diet, then looking for an external cause makes sense.

The CO detection is a good thing to verify. Could also be pathogenic - some viral infections have extreme fatigue as a symptom, for example. Hope you are able to track it down and fix it!

(Gillian Mccarty) #10

No we dont fast we would die lol. Actually tired has always been an issue. For us both. I’ve gone and had a battery of tests and all is fine except we found out I’m menopausal early but that doesnt explain him at all lol. I’ve added hormones and vitamins to my daily routine just the tired is getting worse for us both. I know we are getting plenty of fat and I’ve maintained a .8 level basically since the beginning. I just dont know what else to try. I do feel fine aside from tired. But have never really felt the benefits everyone raves about with the keto diet. We have had a virus going around so that could explain why the tired is dramatically worse but its always been an issue

(Marianne) #11

Dumb question, but are you getting enough sleep? Can you go to bed an hour earlier than you normally do?

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #12

I had a really bad viral infection in 2006, which resulted in some sort of permanent fatigue. On keto I am back up to normal levels of energy. It’s not the wonderful excess of energy that so many forum members report, but I’ll take it. :grin:

Unfortunately I got really sick this year with a hard-hitting, lingering virus that has knocked down my energy level again. I am hoping to return to keto-normal again after the holidays (Christmas is one of my busiest seasons), but we’ll have to see. In the meantime, I am doing my best to keep up with my responsibilities and am slowly getting better. The virus I had flattened everyone who had it for around four weeks, and a difficult recovery seems to be a further part of the experience. I am trying not to get too alarmed, and to keep my hopes up.

(Gillian Mccarty) #13

I’m getting way more sleep then normal actually lol probably because I’m so tired. I do think my fiance has sleep apnea and I wonder if he isnt doing something that’s interrupting both of our sleeps. I dont typically sleep well but the last few weeks I have slept extremely hard

#14

Where do you live? I notice I get more tired around this time of the year, and I think it’s because where I live it starts getting dark around 4, and with all the snow and cold it makes me not want to go outside. Less exercise and vitamin D? If it’s happening to both of you, maybe that could be why?

(Davy) #15

Minerals and Vits may do the trick. Deficiency in Potassium, Magnesium, Sodium, Calcium may cause tiredness.
Take a quality vitamin - I take Naturela One Daily multivitamin.
Get at least 3000mg of Real Salt or Sea Salt or Himalayan Pink Salt.
Make sure your Potassium is at least 4000mg preferably 4700mg…you can get ‘No Salt’ from Amzn. or Bulk supplement Potassium Nitrate.
Do these 3, I bet the tiredness will go away. . . might take a month to kick in.

(Gillian Mccarty) #16

Can you take a sodium pill? I got that no salt but it tastes gross. And I do salt everything well but maybe I need more

(Davy) #17

Depends on what kind of salt you’re using. Regular table salt isn’t so great…the pink salts have other minerals. The ‘No Salt’ is the potassium; probably 90% of people are deficient in Potassium.
Don’t know what a salt pill is.
What I often do, is make a shot of Pink salt, 1/4 tsp potassium and Mg in half glass water and shoot that down…followed by more water to help kill the taste. Could do this twice a day. Also I sprinkle No Salt and Real Salt every time on my meats and eggs.

Are you working out with weights or something that causes you to sweat a lot? If so, that REALLY depletes your Pot., Mg. and Sodium.

#18

I was really tired and it turned out that I had mono for the second time. :roll_eyes:

#19

It may not be diet related at all. Are you getting plenty of exercise and sunshine. I find that I need fun projects to work on to keep me energetic. Is your diet boring you to death? LOL

(linda) #20

Perhaps rule out depression. It’s a real diagnosis. You could take the Beck Depression Inventory available on line.