When to stop keto?

#1

Hi everyone,

This is my first time keto. I’ve been keto for 20 weeks so far (dont know whether i am still a newbie, but I do not know much about keto) and I’ve lost 11-12kgs from that. However, the following issues frustrate me and I might need some opinions from here.

  1. everything was fine and good for the first 3 months. From this month onwards, I’ve been experiencing sleeping issue. I used to sleep like 8-9 hrs before but now only 6-7 hrs. Neither really tired nor energetic. I tried to get back to sleep but usually cant.

  2. my hair comes off a lot more after keto. I am not sure which nutrients i am lacking

  3. i got a cramp on my lower leg while sleep, usually at abt 6-7am in the morning

I wonder any supplements should i consider or any opinion to ease these problems. Thanks so much.

(Peter - Don't Fear the Fat ) #2

1 & 3 are probably electrolye levels - probably more magnesium, you need to experiment.
2 might be magnesium too but I’ve never heard of this on Keto

(Barbara M) #3

I’ve seen multiple people remark on hair loss after starting ANY weight loss plan. A diet is generally a shock to the system and depending on what you are eating, the body may shed hair (or it temporarily goes dormant) until it’s convinced you aren’t starving yourself.

Amy Berger (low carb and keto specialist) has some YouTube videos on this subject if you’d like to hear directly about her info.

The hair loss is supposed to be temporary, if this helps.

Good luck, keto on and carry on.

(KM) #4

Yes, hair loss can be an issue for people doing keto, we’ve discussed this a number of times. I’ve had some luck using products with cynatine, a type of collagen. The more extreme the carb cutting and the longer the fasting periods, the more troublesome this is for me. It may just be a calorie deficit, I’ve never been able to pin it down but it’s not protein and it’s not biotin. I lost half my hair in one extreme event, and I feel like maybe that set up my follicles to grow and shed in quantity from then on. I have periods where basically not a single hair falls out, and then hundreds of hairs a day for months.

A few months back I added iodine and suddenly had a lot more hair growth everywhere, but that’s stopped. So potentially thyroid?

I guess I should be grateful as hell my health Achilles heel is scraggly hair, but it’s maddening sometimes.

I do agree magnesium helps cramps, it didn’t do much for sleep though.

(Bob M) #5

This magnesium seems to help me (most nights, though not all) for sleep:

https://a.co/d/fMcQqV6

For cramps, if you have or like pickle juice, this can help stop cramps, though no one is sure why (it can stop a cramp immediately – has done so for me – which means it’s not the electrolyte content).

(Joey) #6

Congratulations on your considerable success with carb-restriction. You’ve gotten good replies above so I’ll keep it short…

Magnesium is widely known to reduce cramping and enhance sleep (it has a muscle relaxing effect and is an essential electrolyte).

If you are not feeling tired after awakening (naturally) after 6-7 hours, your body is operating well within healthy norms. The extra sleep you used to get (need?) is no longer required for healthy function - i.e., you’re a winner.

Hair loss has been covered above. I’d suggest doing focused searches on that specific topic to find relevant info from throughout forum.

:vulcan_salute:

(Edith) #7

So… the hair falling out now is most likely due to the drastic change you made when you first started keto 20 weeks ago. The change in diet causes your hair to go into the telogen phase. That phases lasts about three months and then the next phase begins. The shedding phase. This phase can also last several months. As the old hairs get pushed out, the new hairs start growing in. Keep an eye on you hair over the next month or two and look for new half inch to inch long hairs. That will show you that you have new hair growing in.

If you don’t see new hair growth or your still existing hair seems to stop growing, you should check how much protein and calories you are eating each day. It may not be enough.

(Bob M) #8

I wonder why this doesn’t happen for everyone? Or at least I don’t remember it happening to me.

(Joey) #9

My understanding (limited tho’ it be) is that women and men have very different reactions to dietary changes - also affected heavily my hormonal cycles, pre/post-puberty, menopause, etc. Plenty of variables at play.