Does anyone else fall miserably at keto/low carb?

[YenniferOfVengeberg]

Being a (very) obese pre diabetic I thought this would be the answer, but 10 weeks of under 25g carbs and I've lost 6lb, that's it.
So hugely frustrating! Still have dreadful brain fog, constantly exhausted, absolutely no energy. Skin and hair look dreadful.
What's even more frustrating is my much slimmer friend is losing pounds and pounds!
I'm not drinking alcohol, drinking gallons of water and ensuring I'm getting enough salt. I suspect I have to accept this is not the diet for me

Why don’t you come and join us on the current low carb boot camp? Lots of very knowledgeable people to help and guide. It’s in the low carb boot camp area, sorry I’m not sure how to do links

I was just thinking I need to do this! I had a crumpet for breakfast and pizza for dinner and my midsection is just doughy I'll look for low carb bootcamp thanks

I tried bootcamp a few years ago. Lasted 3 weeks. Exactly the same, decided to give it a real go this time but the beain fog is actually dangerous (I nearly crashed the car today).

I do however fondly remember BIWI and stuntnun. Lovely bootcamp, sad it didn't work.

@Rshard

Why don’t you come and join us on the current low carb boot camp? Lots of very knowledgeable people to help and guide. It’s in the low carb boot camp area, sorry I’m not sure how to do links

Exactly what I was going to say!

Come join the current bootcamp. There’s absolutely no need to keep your carb intake that low, and your lack of energy, brain fog and lack of weight loss indicates you’re trying to do a low carb, low fat plan which really doesn’t work and isnt good for you.

I’m a type 2 diabetic and I’ve lived the low carb/high fat way of life for years (with some months off the wagon here and there) and it’s brilliant. I lost 3 stone in 3 months when I first did low carbing, and have kept it off by and large.

I'm a vegetarian so to be quite honest while I'm sure I'd lose lots of weight I cba eating just vegetables.

Cross post.

Why not join us and at least talk it through with BIWI again?

Ninkanink I am definitely eating enough fat.

@Ninkanink

Cross post.

Why not join us and at least talk it through with BIWI again?

I'm worried about the brain fog.

I low carb for T2D and it keeps my HBA1C down. No idea how much weight I've lost, I went down a dress size quite quickly and have just stayed there!

Interestingly, I read in Gin Stevens book Feast Fast Repeat that she didn't lose weight on numerous and extended long low carb attempts (I do lose weight on low carb). She had her DNA analysed in Ancestry.com or similar, then uploaded the raw data to one of the companies which claim to analyse DNA for likely food sensitivities. Her results said that her ideal diet should contain 50-60% carbs due to having the gene which helped humans adapt to high carb diets. This DNA research is new and not terribly well thought of. It's explained better here. www.dietdoctor.com/study-gene-helped-humans-adapt-to-higher-carb-world-but-50-of-us-dont-have-it

Has anything else worked for you in the past? If so it might be better to just give that another go instead.

I have come across a very few people for whom low carbing just doesn’t seem to work or they really feel unwell on it and I guess you might be one of them.

If you’re worried and really don’t feel well and are almost having car accidents then it sounds like it’s time to stop. My previous suggestion to join bootcamp/talk it over with BIWI was because i’d forgotten what your thread title was and thought you were asking for advice on why it wasn’t working, and I figured you might not really know what you were doing with it.

Ninkanink calorie counting. But ended up crash dieting (9lb in a week!) And it all went back on

I fail because I seem to lose all enjoyment for food, I do lose weight but eating is such a chore and I cannot maintain being so dissatisfied with my diet long term so I end up failing and rebounding.

Glad I found intermittent fasting as It works for me for as both weight loss and maintenance.

There is no magic bullet one size fits all cure. If it is not working try something else.

There's a transition period where you'll feel like total shit when adjusting to keto, I don't think it should be as long as 10 weeks though.

Yes, have you tried intermittent fasting, but with carbs, not keto?

@YenniferOfVengeberg Having read Potatoes Not Prozac, I seem to fit into the camp of women who get PMDD on low carb. It is scary how I feel on low carb and my family hates it, I'm a different person. Have you tried Huel? It is disgusting but has recommended amounts of carbs, fat, protein and helped me get into a better food routine and now my portion sizes are more normal now that I'm back on 100% normal food.

Yeah the transition period for keto/low carb shouldn’t be more than a couple of weeks, really.

I'll have a look at intermittent fasting. I've been convinced for years that I must've done it wrong. On paper low carb should work for me!

I don’t think very low carb (under 25g) works for everyone, although lots of books etc will claim it does. I’ve done it a few times and felt awful.
I found the info on the diet doctor website excellent, and changed to low carb, as in under 50-70g ish. I’ve lost 2 stone in four months (including the keto bit). I’m also doing 16:8. There are very helpful Dr Fung videos on the website. If you’re prediabetic, I’d say it’s an invaluable resource. I paid for a month but loads is free:

www.dietdoctor.com/the-perfect-treatment-for-diabetes-and-weight-loss

www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/benefits/how-to-lose-weight-with-low-carb

Can I suggest you join the Delay Don't Deny group on FB for info on intermittent fasting. The main group, not just the UK smaller group. I find it the BIWI bootcamp equivalent. Very clear guidelines and supportive.

Every time I’ve tried low carb I feel absolutely ravenous, actual hunger pains.

I only need to lose 7 pounds but honestly can’t do it. I need to find something filling that helps with weight loss.

I lasted about a day and half on low carb many years ago when I first tried it. I felt utterly atrocious - lethargy like I’ve never known, starving, headache and very low mood. I remember sitting in my car in a supermarket car park eating chicken pieces and thinking I’d rather just be fat.

I think the trick is probably to try and do something sustainable and change your way of life permanently.
If you restrict yourself too much it just becomes too difficult.
I aim for less than 130g of carbs a day with 16/8 and try and be fairly active (not sports or gym!). Calories around 1200 - 1400 which is generous when carbs aren't involved!
I've lost 7.5kg in my menopausal state and am flabbergasted really that it has actually worked!
I'm intending to eat like this for the foreseeable future, even if I reach an acceptable weight as I enjoy it and feel really well and satisfied with my daily food.

That sounds really sensible, @abstractzebra. Tbh I’m probably under 100g ish of carbs, I guessed before as I don’t log it anymore. I’m also menopausal and am so glad it’s still possible for me to lose weight with reasonable effort. I was putting off starting as I was worried I’d put loads of effort in and nothing would budge.