Just starting. Again.

[Mnfitzg]

hi. I've had great success 5 years ago with Atkins diet. But have lost self control. I seem to be all about junk food/fast food or all about healthy food. No middle ground.im definitely an emotional eater and also have hashimotos which causes me to be very tired and low energy. Further I'm prediabetic and experience blood sugar swings also triggering me to eat. I remember that while on Atkins it was remarkable how my appetite and food cravings were suppressed. However I did find myself in a steady low mood and having continuous leg cramps that were problematic. I also had restless legs every night. I'm looking for ideas around the muscle cramping/tightness and emotional eating and depression. I really want to succeed this time. :help:

[livinright]

Muscle cramps could be a sign that you weren't getting enough sodium in your diet. There's a salt thread on here somewhere.

Magnesium can also help with muscle function. I take 500 mg of the cheap stuff from walmart. And I feel it if I run out!

As for emotional eating......
1. stop and recognize when it's happening. Acknowledge what you're feeling and why.
2. try to wait out the emotional storm
3. eat high fat moderate protein items if you can't wait out the storm. Think of your emotions as a tantrum throwing toddler. If you don't give in to the tantrums, they learn they won't get what they want. If you give into their tantrums, even just every once in a while, they think it's an effective way to get what they want. Don't give your emotions the carby crap they want to feel better. They'll eventually find more pleasant ways to get what's needed.
4. Work on trying different ways of working through your emotions. Something will eventually work.
I like to journal, visit my neighbor, soak in the tub, foster puppies, do homeless outreach, volunteer at a soup kitchen, learn something new..... those are all things that I enjoy and keep my emotions mostly balanced. Plus some of those things help me keep an attitude of gratitude!

[Mnfitzg]

Thanks for your suggestions. The muscle cramping was a big issue last time I did Atkins and was in ketosis for 12 weeks. My muscles felt constantly tight and getting progressively tighter as days went by making it hard to sleep at night.I was biking 1hour hilly terrain 4 times a week and drinking 8 cups of water and eating lots of salt on my food. I also found no relief from the magnesium supplements or calcium. I'm wondering if being in ketosis was the problem. Is it possible I was over exercising. I just can't figure it out. I appreciate your thoughts on this. Thanks

[JEY100]

:wave: welcome,

Chris Kresser just had an article about lesser known causes of RLS. https://chriskresser.com/4-little-known-causes-of-restless-legs-syndrome/

One of those free On-Line summits on the topic of Mental Wellness starts TOMORROW! Both Chris Kresser and Dr Perlmutter are featured speakers..listening to a few of the topics may give you some. Kelly Brogan too.

Ann Childers is not speaking at this one, but good recent blog post: http://annchilders.blogspot.com

http://mentalwellnesssummit.com

[Mnfitzg]

Thank you. It's peculiar my restless legs and muscle cramps are 100 % related to the ketosis diet
I'm aware of a lot of reduced inflammation the diet gives me in my gut and joints but my thyroid tests show elevated numbers
As your suggested articles reveals a link with autoimmune (hadhimotos?), gut microbes, vit d and magnesium deficiences I see that maybe the combo of Probiotics, vit d, magnesium, and (my thought) to not over exercise , may make this attempt of Atkins successful. Thanks for the info.

[Nancy LC]

Check out the salt thread in my signature. Are you getting your thyroid treated? Just read that underactive thyroid can be the cause of the leg cramps too.

Here's a fairly good article about leg cramps. Are you on statins?

http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/tc/nighttime-leg-cramps-topic-overview

[Mnfitzg]

Thanks so much. On reading about salt intake i'm sure I wasn't getting enough when I had those cramps. And the thyroid connection is also one to investigate with my doctor. I'm one of those border line cases when it comes to blood test numbers. So I'm trying Brad kings thyroid support. Is there any issue with excess fluid intake causing excess loss of minerals? What is the minimum fluid intake recommended? Thanks again for your suggestions.