Im a 42yr old female, in moderate physical condition. Im new to this forum and have used atkins off and on( for a month at a time average) usually to drop fat and maintain weight when needed. I have done this for about 8yrs now. I have always found it hard to get the energy I needed to exercise with much intensity (bike, run, etc) while doing very low carb. I have always wondered if this was just a matter of not letting my body get used to the fat burning long enough? My delima has always been the low energy- if I keep carbs below 30 daily(this is where i lose fat). Like I said though, I dont think Ive ever went over a month on extreme low carb. If I start eatting higher carb ...say 150 or more daily I struggle to maintain what i have, but I get the energy I want for exercise. I want to start incorporating weight lifting into my excercise program to build or save as much muscle as I can to combat old age. I do not want to bulk up like a competive lifter, although I am prone to muscle gain if lifting and eating a lot of carbs...more than the average female I would say. Does it sometimes take a longer period of time(more than a month) before you feel energy on extreme low carb? Are there people here that have been very low carb without many fruit/veg over the years who have maintained vigorous excercise? Would you say you feel healthy? I am not a believer in the low fat high carb "healthy" diet. I would love any advice or opinion you can give me.

see my reply to your other post here: http://forum.lowcarber.org/showpost...932&postcount=7

Thank again Arie. I wasnt sure where to post my questions on this site so I went in sevarl spots "fishing" for answers.