newly starting low carb again, and new to forum

[HPalma]

Hi
I started following atkins Jan 14th. I previously did Atkins 15 years ago and was extremely successful. I re-visited the diet several times over the years without much success. So I gave up. This time is so slow going. I am struggling a lot. The first 10lbs came off in 10 days and now I have 10 days without dropping anything.
This is what happened the other times and I gave up with frustration and tried other diets which worked great short term, but I couldn't keep the weight off. I feel low carb is a reasonable, doable long term diet to keep the weight off without struggling with constant hunger. That is if I can get the weight off.

So I am trying to stick out this stall and not give up. It is quite frustrating to be at a standstill so ealry on in the diet. Does anyone have any tips? It seems I have heard of other people having faster weight loss the first time around as well. Is there anything to do if you are a "repeater" and finding it hard to lose?

[MickiSue]

The best tip I have is this: you have lost 10 lbs WOOOOOOOHOOOOO!

If you assume that even people who lose 25 in the first month (because they have a very large amount to lose) will eventually average out to 1 to 2 pounds a week, you can see that you have lost 5 or more weeks worth, already.

The second best is this: before I started low carb and grain free, I lost 5 pounds. In three years. And I was eating a traditionally healthy diet.

Since starting, even with a major slip up last winter that put back on 12 pounds, I am down 29 lbs from when I started this, 34 from my high.

I feel good: my joints don't ache, I have better energy, my lipids have never been better.

THIS is the way that I will be eating for the rest of my life. So, if I hit a slowdown once in a while, so be it.

That said, if you stall out for 8 weeks, then figure out if you need to modify. For many of us, we find that we are either eating too few calories, or too little fat, or both. Once that's fixed, we start losing again.

Other issues can be that we're using too many artificial sweeteners (which do contain carbs) or some part of our eating plan doesn't work for us. For some it's nuts, for some it's dairy.

But your body is just resting from that huge 10 lb loss. Celebrate it, and keep on with this wonderful way of life!

[HPalma]

Yes. The 10lbs in 10 days is thrilling. Unfortunately the last 10lbs I gained was fast and recent.
And now a dead halt for 10 days. I am wondering if it is dairy. I have upped my dairy significantly. One of my favorite perks of low carb eating. I am eating enough calories and enough fat. I am getting salt. i am drinking water and staying in my low carb range. I have been exhausted this last week. Really really tired, so something is going on. Tired, strict, thirsty and not losing. I think I need to record how I am feeling after I eat particular foods. Maybe I need to up my carbs. But I just don't want to give up. I want to stick it out.

[JEY100]

Welcome,

There are excellent tips in the Newbie Advice sticky : >>>
Especially Dr. Eades on the "second time around", with hundreds of comments he has answered.
https://proteinpower.com/drmike/2014/01/05/help-low-carb-dieters/

No weight loss in week 3 & 4 is perfectly natural and expected. Here is the explanation: http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?t=365499

You are not "stalled" but feel free to check the Tips and Stall sub-forum for lots of advice

All the best,

[HPalma]

Thank you.
I will check it out now.

[HPalma]

AAAHHHHHH......feeling frustrated.
Well Janet I checked out your articles, they were helpful. Thank you. I was feeling so much better and patient about my situation.
Then this morning I am up 2 lbs and feel ready to cry.
I know the body fluctuates and it is all okay in the scheme of things, but I really really feel down. I guess it will NEVER be like the first time where I just dropped weight easily and quickly. I think I really need to let that memory go. That is over for me. I am older, probably pre-menopausal and my weight is desperately clinging to me. Just had to vent. But I am not giving up. I am sticking it out. I am going to try and do some more reading. Perhaps stay off the scale, though that is incredibly hard to do and focus on other things.

[MickiSue]

HPalma, have you measured? The scale lies, because when you lose a lot at once, your body will fill the empty fat cells with water, as a way to keep them ready to fill up after you have stopped "starving" yourself.

But you will continue to lose girth, and that can be the most exciting. When women get near (and past) menopause, we start to gain weight around the waist, and low carb really impacts that area first.

You can do this, and really, there is no alternative. Either eat on plan, and enjoy the benefits of being healthier and losing the weight, even if more slowly than you'd hoped, or go back to what you were doing and go back to gaining.

Watch for hidden carbs, and and if you are thirsty, drink. Have you had a physical recently? Sometimes being tired is a sign of a low functioning thyroid, which also occurs more frequently in women around menopause--lucky us! And a low functioning thyroid slows or reverses weight loss, too.

[JEY100]

Don’t Trust the Bathroom Scale With Your Mental Health

We humans are about 2/3 water. Each of us contains about 40 liters (or quarts) of the stuff, and each liter weighs a bit over 2 pounds. Our bodies effectively regulate fluid balance by adjusting urine output and sense of thirst, but this is done within a 2-liter range. Within this range, your body doesn’t really care if it is up to a liter above or below its ideal fluid level.

What this means is that we all live inside a 4-pound-wide grey zone, so that from day to day we fluctuate up or down (i.e., plus or minus) 2 pounds. This happens more or less at random, so with any one weight reading you don’t know where your body is within that fluid range. Your weight can be the same for 3 days in a row, and the next morning you wake up and the scale says you’ve ‘gained’ 3 pounds for no apparent reason.

For people who weigh themselves frequently, this can be maddening. There are two solutions to this problem. One, just don’t weigh yourself. Or two, defeat this variability by calculating average weights. You can weigh yourself every day, and then on one day per week, calculate your average for that week (i.e., the average or mean of 7 values). If you are really into math, you can weigh yourself every day and then each day calculate a new mean over the last 7 days. Each day you do this, you drop the oldest value and add the newest one to the calculation.

And of course, for [free] there’s an iPhone ‘App’ that will do this for you

Phinney, Stephen; Volek, Jeff (2011-07-08). The Art and Science of Low Carbohydrate Living: An Expert Guide to Making the Life-Saving Benefits of Carbohydrate Restriction Sustainable and Enjoyable (pp. 241-242). Beyond Obesity LLC. Kindle Edition.

One of my favorite "pearls" from Phinney & Volek.

As Dr Eades wrote, and I reminded in another Intro....be sure that you really ARE following the Induction rules...and not what you "remember" how you ate LC 15 years ago. Not only is your body 15 years older, but your memory is 15 years fuzzier. :)

[HPalma]

I struggle on.....So I have been extremely tired and so thirsty. I drink first thing in the morning and all day long and most days I just end up going to bed exhausted and thirsty. I have been reading up on possible causes. I feel like crap and am not dropping pounds at all since day 10. Fist article I read said its normal to feel crappy and fatigued and this is not the time to quit, it will pass. So I kept on. Another article I read is you need more sodium on a low carb diet. I have been salting everything so I didn't think I could be low on salt, but I read drinking lots of water can lower sodium, so I made a drink of mineral water, lemon juice and sea salt and drank it down. I have to say I felt sooooooooo much better. I was so happy. I thought that was so simple. I was just low sodium. My energy picked up and stayed up the whole day. Next day I was exhausted again. I tried the drink and nothing. I felt just as exhausted. In frustration I decided to up my carbs. I had a high carb lunch. I did feel much better, but then a few hours later I REALLY crashed. I just felt so exhausted. Next day super exhausted again. I didn't go to work. I am so fatigued I can't imagine even trying to drive. I tried the drink again and it didnt help. My thirst is outrageous. I am probably drinking 3 gallons a day. Mostly water and herbal teas. In doing more reading it seems adrenal fatigue and thyroid problems can occur or be exasperated on a low carb diet. I think I need to carefully and thoughtfully up my carbs and go to the Doctor. I just can't fathom that eating low carb can be causing me to feel this awful. But I feel awful and it doesn't seem to be passing. So it may need to be addressed by a Doctor. I had my thyroid tested a few years back, the dr. said it was normal. Now I just need to find a Dr.

[MickiSue]

I am hypothyroid. I eat extremely low carb. AND I take thyroid supplements.

Before you get your thyroid tested, and before you up your carbs, do more research on what "normal" levels of TSH should be. What other values should be tested, like free, not just total, T3 and T4.

What kinds of thyroid supplements are more likely to lead to actually feeling better. (HINT: natural, not synthetic).

Just like any other part of the body, the thyroid can slow down with age, and for some reason, it seems to do that more with women. I was 53 when my went off the rails.

[bkloots]

Sorry for the frustration. However, it does sound like your difficulty with both thirst and fatigue are unusual. I don't think these extreme conditions are mainly related to a low-carb diet, even in the early stages. A consultation with your health care provider is advisable.

You have mentioned eating "enough" salt and fat. You might consider posting a typical day's menu for people here to have a look at. Often it's a lack of fat (fuel for energy) that leads to fatigue. Excessive thirst is something else, and drinking "gallons" of water can't be helping with your body's electrolyte balance.

Let us know how you're getting along.

[JEY100]

Is your thirst something new? Has your doctor been checking your blood sugars? Even if the thirst is new to the diet, still should check fasting and 3 mo. Glucose.
Do you have a gluconometer to check Blood sugars yourself (easy and inexpensive)? They are helpful for everyone to test your reaction to different foods. http://www.wheatbellyblog.com/2014/10/blood-sugar-tool-fingertips/

When starting a new diet like Low Carb, people blame every symptom on it, when it could be hormonal changes, thyroid, a tropical infection, low grade flu, new medication side effect, whatever, he usual things not related to diet. As Barb suggested, see a doctor to rule out something else. Hope you feel better :wave:

[HPalma]

This kind of thirst is new, but I have always been thirstier than most my peers. I had a friend urge me to see a Dr. about it 25 years back because she thought my thirst was unusual #3. I did some tests. I think one was for diabetes, but the Dr. said I was normal. Nothing to worry about. I don't have a Dr. now and I haven't been doing any tests. I did see a Gynecologist 2 years ago, and then another gyno 4 years before for the same issue that doesn't get resolved and I asked to have my thyroid tested and hormone levels tested. Both of the Dr.s said I didn't need it. About 8 years ago I did convince my baby dr. to give me a thyroid test, he said I didn't need it, but agreed to the test, and he said it was normal. But I do feel something is off. I have trouble sleeping, I have weight problems I have been moody, anxious, depressed, (on and off) and I am wondering if it is a hormone imbalance or something to that effect. The last Dr. wouldn't test me and said since they are long standing issues she didn't think it was anything. But these symptoms have increased since my pregnancies. Plus, the reason I keep going to gynecologists, is extreme vaginal dryness, which to me seems would be hormonal. Also the dry course hair which started growing in after my second child. I sort of have given up on Dr.s. I live in a small town in Central America and all the Dr.s on my list from my insurance are a 90 min drive away. It is a real trek to see them, I don' t like going to the city, and I have never felt "treated". I, however, can easily go to a lab in my town and ask for tests. I wont get reimbursed by my insurance but at least I may be closer to some answers. I know I need to keep trying Dr. s from my list. I pretty much gave up after 3 frustrating experiences.

But on another note I added a small organic potato to my usual breakfast of sausage and eggs and my energy improved substantially. I felt pretty normal. At lunch I added some beans and throughout the day I added more vegetables. I had been getting 22-27 carbs a day and on Tue I did 61 and on Wed I added the potato again at breakfast and yucca at lunch and again more vegetables and some more lemon and fresh coconut water. I hit 73 carbs that day. But I feel TONS better. I am less thirsty as well. My energy was mostly normal both days with a few periods of tiredness, but not to the extreme it was before. I am feeling so much better. Thank you for your concern.
Mickisue. I am interested in learning more from you. I am going to do some reading and then maybe I can ask you more about the tests you mentioned?
To answer other questions
I have been plugging in all my food to the atkins meal tracker and I am getting between 120-150gms of fat daily. Protien 100-150gms. I usually have eggs and meat for breakfast all cooked in butter. Meat and veggies for lunch and meat and veggies for dinner. Meat is chicken, steak or ground beef. In the morning usually chicken sausage made at a nearby organic farm without all the crappy additives or bacon from the grocery store, (w crappy additives) Everything is cooked in butter real. I also use coconut oil and cream cheese and regular cheese. I snack on pork skins regularly. super fatty and salty and 0 carb. I put heavy cream in my coffee or c.o or both. I limit use of artificial sweetener formy coffee. Usually stevia, but now that I am upping the carbs I am using Xylitol. I never drink diet sodas or any diet drink or diet snacks like atkin bars, shakes etc. Mostly just whole foods and water, coffee or herbal tea. I limit my coffee to the morning. 2 cups only.
Oh there is one exception. I made chocolate with unsweetened bakers chocolate, stevia and xylitol and C.O. It is in my freezer and I have had a small peice of that on occasion. Probably no more than an 1oz. every few days.

[MickiSue]

If you instantly felt energy from eating more carbs, your body could be struggling to get into ketosis for some reason. Once you are through the hard work of induction, you SHOULD be in ketosis, and your energy should be in a more steady state, rather than the peaks and troughs of eating more carbs.

Is there a way to get reviews of the doctors on your insurance list? 90 minutes one way is a long way to go to be disappointed. But it's a reasonable distance to go for actual help.

[JEY100]

There are many issues that could contribute to your symptoms, and I 'm not a doctor, nor play one on the Internet, but after reading your history, you should be aware of a little known type of diabetes that is becoming more common in adults. Called LADA, or Type 1.5, it is slowly progressing and takes a special protein antibody test to find, since it is an auto-immune version. http://www.everydayhealth.com/diabetes/1205/what-is-type-15-diabetes.aspx As mentioned before, you could first start easily taking your own BG to see if you even have high numbers, both fasting and after eating at home. Even if your morning fasting number is OK, also take it after eating beans or potato to see how high and how long until back to baseline. Both the WheatBelly article above and this one http://chriskresser.com/how-to-prevent-diabetes-and-heart-disease-for-16/ explain the process (I get a meter and 100 strips for around $20 from an on-line diabetes supplier)

[HPalma]

That diabetes 1.5 sounds very intereting. I have never heard of it. When reading about it, the symptoms of diabetes 2 caught my eye.
"symptoms of type 2 diabetes
Frequent infections may also be a sign of type 2 diabetes. In women, vaginal yeast infections are particularly common. Yeast infections can also occur on the skin and, in men, in the groin.

Other infections associated with undiagnosed type 2 diabetes include gum infections, urinary tract infections (particularly in women), slowly healing wounds with subsequent infections, and infections of the feet."



What is so interesting to me is when i did atkins for the first time I had almost all these symptoms. I lost 20lbs the first month then another 5 or 6 the second month. I stopped losing weight. Actually never lost more weight but continued w atkins over a year and suffered w/ all the above infections and horrible rashes. The first reactions didnt start right away, probably in my second month of atkins. First i had itchy redness all around my eyes. I thought it was my face cream. Then I got rashes on my armpits and back. I was in and out of the dermatolgists office all year. At the same time I got a yeast infection, then another. Then i started feeling exhausted. It went on for weeks. After i read an interview about a women who went in for a regular check up and found out she had stage 4 cancer, she mentioned her only symptom was feeling tired. So that got me into the Dr. who did a full battery of tests on me. He said i had a uti and parasites and that was why i was so tired. I took antibiotics for them both and felt less tired but i continued to get more bladder and yeast infections and the rashes got so bad i had to give up make up, deodorant, and soap, and severely cut back on the gym as they got worse with all of the above. My gums were sore and irritated. I didn't attribute any of this to the diet. As my weight and cholesterol and triglycerides levels were so good i thought the diet could do no wrong. Except the dermatologist gave me a list of foods to stop ingesting, which he said aggravates the skin. pork, diet drinks and coffee were on the list and which i consumed heavily on the diet. But cutting them out didnt stop the rashes.
The thing that was weird to me is thedr. said my blood sugar was almost at pre-diabetic levels. It wasn't so before the diet. Then i went off atkins because i was pregnant and when they tested my blood sugar i mentioned this Dr. He said there was no sign of amy problem and my levels were good. Also all my rashes went away. I stopped getting infections. It was almost a year before I could use make- up or deodarant without itchiness.
Anyway it seems extreme low carb dieting gives me symptoms of diabetes. I have upped my carbs to 75-100 daily and i feel much better. I am still not losing, but not gaining either.
I do plan to see a Dr. and go over all this

[JEY100]

As you wrote, odd that you would get symptoms when you were eating LC and not, say when you were pregnant, which can push borderline blood sugar issues into gestational diabetes. No clue.
But sometimes a one off fasting BG test at the doctors misses on-going blood sugar problems you might see by taking BG at home, after eating, etc. as described before. Home meters aren't perfect, but over time, you can see a pattern. Kresser explains the three tests he would use to diagnose diabetes, including a five hour glucose tolerance test that your doctor could check, worth doing with the extreme thirst you have. http://chriskresser.com/when-your-“normal”-blood-sugar-isn’t-normal-part-2/