Please help, not losing weight

(Michael Cauley) #1

OK here is my problem, 6 months ago I started in insulin along with my pills. I gained 40 lbs in 1 month. I went on keto and have brought my A1c from 10.8 to 6.9. I have yet to lose a pound I bought blood ketone tester and I am between 1.5 and 2.5 daily so I am in ketosis. I am eating 2000 cal daily any my macros are 70% fat, 25 % protien and 5% carbs. I have been able to cut my Lantus in half and onlt Bolus if I am eating carbs but atill no weight loss…any suggestions?

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #2

I take it from the mention of a bolus dose that you are a Type I diabetic. If that is so, you would probably get better practical advice from the Type I Grit Facebook group.

I can tell you that if you keep your carb intake below 20 g/day, you should not need your bolus dose, and you might be able to reduce the daily dose somewhat, as well. I have seen lectures by parents of kids with Type I on the YouTube channel of Low Carb Down Under, including a number of presentations by Dr. Mark Stapleton, an Australian radiologist who developed Type I at age 40, but while they are encouraging, they don’t go into the details you probably need.

As long as you are taking insulin above a certain level, you will find it difficult to lose fat, but not taking enough insulin carries its own risk. I strongly urge you to get in touch with the folks at Type I Grit, because they better understand what you are dealing with.

If, on the other hand, your pancreas is still producing insulin, then I would suggest cutting your carb intake as low as you can, and consulting with your physician about elminating your Lantus and other sources of insulin. See if Metformin alone would be enough.

(Roberta Worley) #3

You might try looking into this:

#4

Unless you’re doing therapeutic keto (e.g. to control seizures), the percentages are next to worthless. Your macros should be in grams, where the proteins macro is a lower limit (primarily based on lean body mass), while the carbs and fats macros are upper limits.

Two priorities:

  • You need to keep carbs low to stay in ketosis.
  • You need to make sure you get enough proteins. Your body needs them. Being significantly low on them over an extended period can cause the body to get it elsewhere. That may mean break-down of muscle tissue. Not good.

After that, ideally, it should be hunger that determines how many fats and additional proteins (and thus calories) that you need to be eating, if only because leaving yourself hungry all the time means keto won’t be sustainable. You don’t need to eat all of the fats macro if you’re not hungry, because the body can make up the difference with stored body fat.

#5

I never lost anything on keto or on any other woe eating 2000 kcal either since my energy need became this low. No surprise.
I can’t possibly know anything about your energy need but keto doesn’t automatically causes fat-loss. Amounts of food matter and satiation is tricky. I can easily overeat on keto choosing the wrong food that can’t satiate me well (they may interfere in another ways too). But timing is important for me too. Just being in ketosis isn’t enough for everyone, be it fat-loss or other benefits.