Hi everyone,
First of all, I'd like to state that I'm not obsessed w/ those ketostix. I use them 3 times a week, max.
I've been a good LCer in the past month (I've been posting my menus in my journal, if u're interested ) Yet my ketostix are almost always "negative". (I've noticed that everytime I had cream cheese, I'd get a "moderate") I've been keeping my fat-intake above 60% (sometimes I hit 70% ). Can anyone please tell me why I always get "negative"?
I drink 4L to 5L of water a day. I take my supplements. I exercise for 15 minutes a day (that's my best effort ). I've been losing the same 2 lbs (139 lbs-141 lbs) for more than 8 weeks. I'm not losing inches. In fact, I think my wrists are getting fat, kind of swollen. I'm tired all the time. Actually, I'm absolutely exhausted pretty much all the time. My arms & legs (muscles) hurt. My head hurts (but I accidentally hit my head on the window frame the other day, so....) all the time. I'm so tired that I've been sleeping for more than 12 hrs a day.
I've lost 8 lbs since the 1st Jan but honestly I think they're all water-weight (I have a big water-retention problem. All the women in my family do too.) I've been fed-up for quite some time
A friend of mine did Atkins a couple of years ago & he never got into ketosis (he was a good LCer). He was on Atkins for 5 months, no ketosis, no weight-loss.
I'm sorry for being such a baby. I really need your help, encouragement & input on my situation. I thank u for listening.
Have a great day!

Bebe

Hey Bebe I didn't realise you were feeling like that.

The ketosticks can be misleading. I was amazed when mine were negative earlier this week. However, your other symptoms are more worrying as on a low carb diet you should be feeling more energetic.

Might I suggest you drink a little less water (Am I allowed to say that), unless you like that. Why not give 3 litres a day a try. Your urine must be very dilute and so this could be one reason why the ketosticks don't register ketosis. Just seeing a trace result is fine.

I also note that you have very few carbs and quite a lot of protein. You might want to think of increasing your carbs to around 20, and increasing your fat content to at least 70% and reducing your protein to around 20%. Excess protein can be converted into glucose and then this is used instead of body fat.
Adding more carbs can stimulate weight loss, so lets hope it does for you.

Whatever else happens, don't get depressed. I've found that my seratonin levels have improved a lot and I'm in a much better mood than I was last July.

Keep the faith and good luck.

Hi Disneybebe

It is no fun at all to be feeling the way you are now. I do agree that perhaps you should try upping your carb intake. I perused your journal and you have managed to keep it very low. I also understand how mentally difficult it can be to increase your carb take. I held mine firmly at Atkins Induction Level even though I was well beyond induction. Only after a lot of reading on this forum including a lot of posts from Nat that I reluctantly and I mean reluctantly increased my carb intake. I am still trying to fine tune what proportions my body needs. I was also wondering what you are doing for supplementation. I really believe this WOL is difficult to do effectively and in a healthy manner without proper supplementation. I am still fine tuning this also.

But whatever you decide to try, please keep working at it because I know how easy it is when your feeling this way to say to heck with it but I also know that the rewards of this WOL are ten fold.

Good Luck and I will be rooting for you!

I have had similar problems. A few pages back in my journal I was lethargic and feeling half dead.Lots of advice( thanks to Natrushka and Karen B specially) later I have adjusted several things and I feel lots better....alert and alive
1) potassium to 400 a day (Eades recommendation)
2) calcium and magnesium supplements which aid the absorption of potassium(Nat. explained these in my journal)
3) getting calories up to the level right for me (2000 - 2400 in my case)
4) increasing my vegetables. I *thought* I was doing 20g, but when I weighed and measured I was only getting 1/4 the salad and 1/2 green veg recommended. Now up to the proper 20, I feel marvellous..havent lost *yet* but am thinking of adding another 5 or so in green veg. Now Im convinced you can go too low.
let us know how you get along and hope youre much better soon.

Hi Anne- Thanks Anne. Actually, I've been feeling kinda fed-up for quite a while (about the lack of weight loss mainly). I've tried to stay cheerful but in the past couple of weeks, I've been feeling tired, sleepy & just exhausted. This afternoon, I finally decided to have a good rant BTW, Anne, I still feel very tired but I'm feeling way better mentally after reading your kind words

Hi Lynn- Thank u so much, Lynn (BTW, that's a SEXY name!). Thank u for your input & encouragement. And thank u for taking the time to read my journal

I never ate any salad or veggies b4 this WOL, I was a fruit-person. When I was a little kid, my mum used to lock me in the bathroom for hours because I refused to eat my greens (but still I never ate my greens).I'm averaging 2-3 cups of salad a day. I eat some veggies too.
I use quite a bit of black pepper, soy sauce & stuff in my cooking & they've carbs (I always forget to put them in Fitday). I'm pretty sure that my actual carb-intake is higher than what I post in my journal. However, I'll try my best to eat more salad & veggies from now on (I know they'll do me good).
I'm taking 2 multi vitamins & minerals tablets (I checked my DANDR & I'm getting the required supplements' doses), a vitamin E soft-gel capsule & 2 cod liver oil capsules daily.
I'd love to get a "trace" on the ketostix but all I get in "negative" (I only get a positive reading after I have fatty food, like walnuts or cream cheese). I don't have ketone breath & my urine smells normal instead of funky, why?
I'll try to lower my protein-intake, up my good-carb-intake (greens) & up my fat-intake.
I'm not giving up
Thank u for your help, Anne & Lynn.
Have a great weekend!

regards,
Bebe

PS. Note to myself.
I've abused my body with slimming drugs & yoyo dieting for years. I could've died from a slimming-drug-overdose (It happens quite often in HK) but thank god, I'm still alive I should be grateful instead of bit*hing about the lack of weight loss. From now on, I'm gonna be much more positive

'Love your P.S. Bebe. Be good while I am away and don't give up! We can do this!



Julie

Hi Plum,
I just missed your reply, we must be typing at the same time It's funny cos I was just on the phone with my best friend & I was telling her that I'm feeling half dead, in the exact words!
Thank u for your advice & input. I'm going to get some potassium, calcium & magnesium asap. I guess I really need them cos I got leg cramps last night
Have a great weekend!

regards,
Bebe

Hi Julie,
I missed your reply too, we must be typing at the same time also
Thanks, I'll behave while u're away (but please come back soon ), I promise.
I sometimes tend to forget how lucky I really am, so I wrote that PS to remind myself I'm a lucky person really.
Have a great weekend!

regards,
Bebe

i think it's a good idea to try to shift your focus from "losing weight" to "feeling great" (especially for those of us who've had eating disorders in the past).

LC may NOT be what makes you feel best. Since you feel so lousy, I'd say, experiment--try paleodieting for three months. If that doesn't help you, try Zoning for three. Keep trying different programs until you find the one that makes you feel physically best! Throw out your scale and try to forget about your weight. forget ketostix entirely. Focus instead on your inner sense of how you feel--how's the energy? Any pain? That should guide us to what we eat and do as exercise (which should be fun, not some bizarre form of self-abuse. )

Also, not everyone is genetically designed to be a size 5. Mother Nature probably made some of us natural size 20's, some natural size 10's...is it possible that whatever weight you are at is perfect? That it's the fashion industry that is wrong and not you?

HTH!

Hi Razzle,
Thank u so much for your reply
Mine is a new scale, so I'm not gonna throw it away. However, I've just put the darn thing on top of the cupboard, out of sight
I'll stick with Atkins for another month. If things hadn't improved by then, I'd do The Zone. Anyways, I'm going to the bookstore to get The Zone. I want to learn more & read more about this WOL.
Thank u for sharing your wisdom with me. I feel much better already
Have a great weekend!

regards,
Bebe

Hi Bebe

Interesting to read the other replies to your post. Having started out on Atkins and probably still mainly on that way of life, I read Protein Power and Schwarzbein at the start of this year.

I found the second book very inspiring and filled me in on a lot of points that I'd missed, or where not fully covered by Atkins.

You say that you used to eat a lot of fruit. Well in both of these books, fruit is part of the plan, it just has to be eaten in moderation and with protein, not on its own.

I was so impressed by Schwarzbein that I brought it for a friend for her birthday.

Hiya Anne,
How was your weekend?
I like PP but the part about calculating your body fat percentage just did my head in! It's so complicated! Yet the Eades did a rather good job explaining the basics
I've been trying to get the Schwarzbein book for months but failed. Must look harder....

Bebe