Dedicated Ketosis Thread (Page 7)

Not a feeling I get, but anything is possible. He tries to test things on himself, and since he uses Superstarch, he gets a lot of questions on it.

I don't plan on using it, as i don't believe we need any form of carbs.

It is a great idea, and would probably make our life easier in the long run, but it would also mean giving up fruits. In seven days it will be 3 whole years since I stopped eating added sugar and my taste buds have had a drastic transformation. There are many fruits I can't eat, even a Granny Smith apple is getting too sweet.

I still had what i call "mental" craving for desserts over the last Holidays, but the cravings are now very easy to ignore, even though I have not gone completely sweet free, since I use Xylitol for jam, and diet colas.

here's how I have come to think about it, since I have a defau lt skeptical position whenver someone recommends a brand. However, I look at it like this. Everyone I have heard mention it is a long course endurance athlete with a belief in getting off sugar spiking fueling. There is almost nothing out there in product-land to respond to this market, since it is small. UCAN came about for medical reasons for a specific disorder. N one was looking for a non-glucose oriented fuel. I happened by accident really. Nw they are seeing that the principles that a ketogenic endurance athlete wants to hold to, are able to be done with this kind of thing. The truth is, long distance isn't a natural state, so we may have to accept some level of technology with it. Te neat thing about UCAN is that is from starch but meabolically acts like a fat.

So my question was why use it at all then? Vnnie's answer was pragmatic. He prefers olive oil and cream cheese. But when you are in summer heat, 10 hours out, those are not as feasible.

My experience among triathlees is that once we find a product we like, we live on it. No one I have seen recommend it thinks we should hammer it every day or every workout. I is always mentioned as an option for that long long day.

don't know if it was Gluten or carbs related, but my biggest problem was Inflammation. Used to think I was riddled with arthritis, but it's all gone now.

I live in the Ottawa area, so brought the kids skating on the biggest skating rink in the world on Friday. 5.7 miles of skating on the Rideau Canal, followed by our family's favorite Restaurant to pig out on Fajitas.

So not exactly low carbs 

Returned quickly to normal, Yesterday was low carbs Pizza and today is a carbsless Spinach Lasagna. Tasty and filling

The great news is that today I PR'd my half marathon time by 8 minutes.  So those who think that you cannot workout as successfully on low-carb might want to reconsider.  Now, I did have some carbs, an energy bar and banana pre race and 2 GU's during.  Another banana right after.  I also treated myself to a great breakfast of a chicken empanada and some sweet potatoes.  I am sure I knocked myself out of Ketosis for a few days, but I am OK with that.

I felt spectacular the entire time.  Best race ever.  The fact that I am about 15 pounds lighter than when I did this last year is again testament to how this way of life works.  Don't give up!!

COngrats on the PR!

And I should mention that I recorded my first podcast appearance this Saturday as a guest on Low Carb Conversations With Jimmy Moore and Friends. Notice there is no word "expert" in this title. I'm a real newb in this world, but writing a lot from that perspective. Jimmy and cohost Cassie liked some of my blogs, so I got an invite. The show will be up on Friday. http://www.lowcarbconversations.com/

Not the greatest week, but not terrible.  Decided to take a rest week after the half.  Food was OK but probably the slackest week I have had.  Wednesday was our 20th anniversary and we went out for an incredible dinner including a SF coconut cream pie that the restaurant made special for us.  I did eat the crust.  And tonight, I was feeling in a bit of a funk and had a burger (no bun of course) but I did have some sweet potato fries.

Was still in trace ketosis but after the fries not expecting to still be there.  Hopefully it will come back quickly.  Hoping to PR a 5k tomorrow and then back to training for the next half marathon on the 24th.

I had a birthday, sort of. I'm a leap year baby. Anyway, for my birthday I went on a one night road trip to a concert with a friend. He is a major beer guy. I had 2 pints of a wheat beer, and a really nice top shelf bourbon. (i was not the driver) Also had a cheesesteak with the roll, and a bourbon and coke at the show. Breakfast in the am included piece of toast with jelly, and some grits. Ate a bowl of cereal in he afternoon, first since Christmas. Friday night, we had a family dinner and went out for ice cream where I got a brownie sundae. Just for giggles, I checked my blood ketones Friday night, and of course, it was down to .1 (ketosis range is .5 to 3.0).

I woke up today and went back to my new normal routine. Fundraiser dinner of green eggs and ham, later some macadamia nuts, and noontime bacon before heading out to a really challenging 7 mile trail run with some beastly hills. probably the hardest run I've ever done, took more out of me than a half marathon. Never ate again today, I wasn't even hungry after the run. Thought about eating post race out of habit, but I just couldn't do it.

I get home and check a keto stick. Dark purple. Blood test, 2.6!

Moral of the story, I was in deep ketosis before the 36 hour birthday bash. I indulged pretty seriously by lowcarb standards (but only barely so by my old standards). I expected to be out of ketosis for days, based on prior small indulgences. But with what amounted to intermittent fasting along with a strenuous workout, I dove right back in.

Now sitting here at almost midnight, I am getting strong hunger growlings, something I haven't felt for ages, even doing 16/8 pattern of intermittent fasting for a couple weeks.

Today is our traditional yearly trip to the Sugar Shack. Announces the end of winter. I won't touch the maple syrup, but the Baked Beans, potatoes and bread will definitely kick me out of Ketosis.

Ah well, I'll pig out, enjoy the food, complain of cramps all evening, fart all night, wake up with no energy. I'll fight the Carb addiction for a few days while I return to normal about the darned carbs.

What one wouldn't do for tradition.

Outlanduc:  The end of winter???  We are still knee deep in winter in MN.  Sounds fun!  Enjoy.

Claaw: interesting how quickly you fell back into ketosis.  So do you test your blood daily?  Is it a finger ?  

I ate come chocolate last night and I swear it kept me awake all night with fits and turns.  Horrible sleep.  I am in such a food rut.  Way too many nuts, too much cheese, having a hard time figuring out fats.   No meat today.  Spinach salad with 2 oz feta, 1 oz cheddar and a half an avocado for lunch.  Yum!

Tough, tough swim this morning.  Ran six miles yesterday, did an hour of yoga, and a leisurely 1000 yards in the pool.  So far no problems with lack of energy from little carbs.

Oh we still have 5 feet tall snow banks, and 17 degrees today, so spring has not arrived yet. But you can feel that winter is dying, there is light at the end of the tunnel.

I think another 2 weeks, and I'll be able to run outside.

I had three full plates and I'm feeling it :-)

Had no problems resisting Maple syrup. I celebrated 3 years sugar free on March 01, and I can say that I'm now free of cravings. Even mentally, I was not even tempted, I no longer see any attraction to sugar and sweets.

I don't do every day, but when I'm predicting some changes. As long as I see purple on the urine strips, no worries. The test strips are expensive, so I am tight with them, and yes I do a finger .

I've heard that the linger you are in ketosis, the more adapted you are, and therefore a short drop out of ketosis will take less and less time to "bounce back" so to speak. My first two months, it was still a very new way to be for my system. So each higher carn day presented a swing back to 30+ years of habit and the body seeks equilibrium. But now that I've been fueling on ketones for a bit longer, it is the norm. That is my rudimentary understanding anyway. Ad in this case, I would think that the low food intake the. Same day as a major energy output was a factor. But I must re-iterate, I wasn't starving myself, it just happened organically. I wasn't hungry.

Do you think there is just a point where your body settles into a weight that it likes and it will not (without taking drastic measures like starvation or some insane diet) go lower?

I am not young, but not old (48).  Before starting the low carb life, I was hovering in the mid 170's.  I knew that was too heavy for me.  Now, I am pretty securely in the low 150's.  Bounce between 151 and 154 on any given day.  Solidly in trace ketosis and have been for awhile.  I think I am eating enough.  My normal routine is:

Breakfast - 2 hb eggs and 3 pieces uncured bacon

Lunch - Some type of protien (left over from the previous nights dinner) on a spinach salad with ranch dressing

Dinner - Protein and either spinich salad or another green veggie

Snacks are usually some cheese and pepperoni

I also work out cardio 4-5 days a week and with a personal trainer lifting weights 2 times a week.

I am not really unhappy with the scale.  My clothes fit great and I am stronger than I ever have been.  Maybe low 150's is just where I will be.

Just wanted thoughts.

I have to confess - I haven't read every single post but have made my way through many of the pages.  I did something like this after the birth of my child.  I had some excess weight and was too zonked most of the time to exercise so I really restricted my diet.

I followed a similar plan where I severely restricted my carb intake - I would allow myself two servings a day but they would be things like a breadstick or the little crunch baguette or flatbread type things.  Otherwise - no grains, cereals, pastas, potatoes or starchy vegetables.  I let myself have unlimited vegetables but no peas, corn, beets, carrots etc.  Two pieces of fruit per day but limited - no tropical fruit, no dried fruit - but rather fruit such as an apple, orange, peach, strawberries and cantaloupe.  No dairy...at all.  This one was hard.  Sometimes I'd sneak in plain yogurt.  The difference is that I didn't eat high fat meat.  I kept it all lean.  So egg whites, fish, chicken etc but no game, no ground meats and nothing processed (bacon etc).  I let myself eat red cuts of meat 2x per week.  One processed source of protein per day.  

A typical day would look like this:
-1 slice flatbread with mashed strawberries, 1/2 an apple
-salad with peppers, half an orange, cucumbers etc etc, 3 little bread sticks
-protein bar - no carb
-veal with sauted vegetables

I think when I tallied it up I was only eating around 1000 calories which is pretty low for me.  I was losing on average 2-3 pounds per week but once I got past the initial 3 day carb-craving headache and my body adjusted - I felt fine and... full.  I didn't use any strips to tell if I was in ketosis mode.  What gave it away was my breath.  I had this horrible bad breath in the morning.  I remember I googled it and it said it was a symptom of the fat burning process.  

Anyway - Not sure if this is even relevant.  I just thought I'd share my experience.  I set my upper weight limit at 145 and once I hit that the bells start ringing and I revert back to this way of eating but I've modified it a bit to account for my exercise.  I'll eat the whole egg and measured portions of things like quinoa as well as nuts.  I eat ground meats though still try to keep it lean.  Still trying to stay away from most carbs and dairy and I'm working out and losing a pound per week.  My goal is to stay processed free.

Hello everyone-

Welcome  Kimmax.  Thank you for sharing your experience.  Pregnancy weight is the hardest to get rid of.  I was squarely in the 50+ pound club for each of my pregnancies and was even higher with number one.  It took a year for my body to recover and I was not athletic at all except following number five.  Never heard of a low carb diet until this year so I think you are way ahead of the curve.  Eating only a 1000 calories a day is so little food.  No wonder you were zonked.

Dodgersmom-I do think our bodies settle into a weight that is right for us.  Plus with the demands of reproduction cycles, we have added issues related to weight fluctuations.  You may be in a temporary plateau while your body sets itself up for the next drop in weight.  Don’t forget you may be adding muscle weight to replace lost fat.  Hard to know.  I think I am in a weight rut, too.  I would really like to love another four pounds or so but am not confident it will happen except for really slowly.

I think I am in carb creep.  My weak time of the day is when I get home.  I just want to snack and the easiest think in reach are nuts.  Been eating way too many almonds, pecans and even some cashews. 

What do people munch on after work? 

Tonight I had some nuts and a cheese stick.  Carbs for the day are at about 27g.  Not sure if I am in ketosis or not since the dip sticks change somewhat but the color does not match anything on the label.  More beige than anything approaching pink or dark purple.

Had a great 3000 yard swim workout this morning.  I am tired!  Restful sleep continues to elude me.

Ya that and a baby that loved the night lights!

Actually once I got in to a routine I felt fine in that I didn't feel hungry.  Just ate throughout the day.
re: the meal plan I listed above - I'd have chicken or turkey breast on the salad - missed that.

I used to be starving by 5pm but started eating raw veggies or a piece of fruit around 3:30pm and now can make it til dinner.  I don't eat after dinner until the following morning.  Just drink water if hungry.

I'm just getting to episode 101 of angriesttrainer. I usually don't mind all the off topic stuff, but eps 100 and 101 have been kind of over the top.