High intensity training and Ketosis...any thoughts

[Astroguy]

Clipped from my intro (feel free to read that to know more about me) :wave:

Briefly... I started induction on Atkins on Oct 12th, Ketone stips showing high amounts 80-160 mg per dL or 8 to 16 mmol per L ... stips are old but I think I go as dark as they can indicate.

I have a few questions about this diet considering my renewed physical activity... the most pressing question right now is the amount of ketosis I should allow myself to be in. My test strips show I have a very large level of Ketones (reached ketosis on 3rd day of induction, today is the 4th day)...is that safe? In addition, tonight for a couple hours I had cold hands and feet, lightheadedness, mild stomach cramps, flushed face and I feel flushed. Sounds like symptoms of ketoacidosis. I am not diabetic... Anyway... I am wondering if this is normal of if I need to add to add more carbs to reduce the amount of ketones because of how much I am burning.
If this sort of reaction is safe, I am fine with it. I actually love seeing purple on those strips because I know its the effects of burning fat, but with the amount of exercise I do...

Here is a breakdown of carbs ingested and workouts on average..

Carbs 18g per day on average so far
Workout 1-1.5hours per day 3 days on, one day rest


Steve

BTW: In the 2 hours I spent here posting and reading, I feel perfectly fine now, but the question remains...has there been any sorta special consideration given to athlete...uhmm... wannabes :agree: and how much more ketones they will produce when on very low carb intakes:help:

BTW...I am a personal trainer...not really wanting to train until I can offer some visual proof of such knowledge....

[watcher16]

Your workout scheme could use some refinement. Check the posts of Built. Be prepared to take time to tune in on what diet works for you. Good luck!

[diemde]

Welcome to the forum! Exercise is definitely a component of the low carb way of life, so it's good for you to keep doing it.

[moderator hat off]
I am by no means an expert since I just started exercising less than a year ago. My recommendation would be to go easy on the exercise the first 2 weeks of induction since your body is adjusting to this new way of life. Once you are past induction, though, there are some things you can do to manage both exercise and lowcarbing.

I am assuming you are lifting based on your PT comment. Many lifters have extra carbs before lifting and then some protein and a few carbs after lifting. Many count these outside of the low carb limits for the day. So for your lifting days, you definitely want to increase carbs.

[Moderator hat on]
There are a some great threads here about different ways you can implement an increase in carbs while low carbing. Take a look at the TKD/Body Opus forums for specific plans. Also, on the top right side of your screen there is a search function you can use to find any specific issues you might want to look up.

Good luck!

[binki]

How much water are you drinking? IANAD, but it sounds like you might be dehydrated.

[Astroguy]

Thanks for the fast responses.

Workout sceme... I am certainly open to suggestions, however I am not a novice at this...just paying the price for falling off the fitness wagon too long. I've always been a very fast gainer and find even now I am somehow gaining muscle mass despite dieting! (no, there are no steroids involved). All the indicators I go by suggest that my program is working for me and I take an extray day off away from the gym if I am feeling overtrained (which does happen!).
I have read some of Builts posts and (she?) is very knowledgeable. Built is welcome to ask/respond to anything. Dialogue is great!

Diemde, thanks to your thoughtful response.
I would feel uncomfortable adding more carbs at this point ... as long as the high levels of ketosis is safe I can stick with it. You see, most days I do train and adding extra carbs sound more like the lowered carb diet (my own formula) that lead to my sticking point. It could very well be that the lean mass I was gaining was just being offset by the fat loss keeping my weight the same, but I wanted better results on the fat loss.
I have just started exploring here, so I am keeping my eyes open for new information I can consider.
The body is a complicated thing, huh? I wish dieticians and more MD's would recognise that all people are NOT the same. I have found that losing fat for one is now different for me than when I was younger.

Binki! I think you have a point there! I always drink a 2L bottle of water while working out (I sweat a LOT when I workout!) but I think with the dry mouth and flushed skin...a good chance that it was caused by dehydration. Before going to bed I had several large glasses of water and took pottasium, magnesium and calcium (muscles were twitchy, and that seems to help a lot).
Ketosis sure puts the fluid balance out of whack and I guess I need to get used to dealing with that.

Have a great day :)

Steve

[mps]

I have read some of Builts posts and (she?) is very knowledgeable. Built is welcome to ask/respond to anything. Dialogue is great!


Steve

Built is one of the members the new sticky refers to. :(
It sounds like you just started LC (Oct 12?) I would stick with your current level of carbs for a couple weeks. Your workouts might suffer a little but things will get better. After a couple weeks you will want to reevaluate your carb situation. If you are attempting to build muscle you will want glycogen for your workouts. There are many ways to do this, within LC parameters on most days.
I started like you... strict LC and then eventually moved to NHE. Now I use various stratigies depending on my goals.
Good luck.

[mps]

What are your workouts like? I know that you said it works for you. But are you SURE there are not some changes that could make it work better? I thought I knew a lot when I came here... it turns out that I had a lot to learn. There are good reasons not to lift more than 4 days/week.