How long should I feel exhausted for after cutting out sugar?

[Mull]

Hi, I’ve been doing 16:8 for 4wks now and have cut out almost all refined sugar. I knew I’d feel like shit to start with but I was hoping I’d have some more energy by now? I’m eating a lot more protein during my meals, and drinking loads of water, but just feel exhausted. If I sit on the sofa (at any time of the day / evening) I fall asleep!

Please tell me I’ll soon be pinging with loads of energy? 🙏

Any idea what your overall calorie intake is at the moment? It might just be that you're not taking in enough calories fullstop.

@Farcry66 Im not sure as keen to not calorie count at the moment. I’ve got a lot of loose so I’ll probably have to at some point.

I typically have a ham and cheese salad for lunch (with a small amount of carbs, eg new potatoes) and then dinner with the family. All the normal family meals (cooked from scratch) but I am trying to increase the protein proportion on my plate.

It’s a lot less than I was eating before but I don’t think it’s tiny? Just no snacks and no sugar which my body seems to be very upset about 😴

Your body could be "upset" about not having food full stop. Keep the sugar and snacks away but try to widen the eating window . Have the same amount of food you are having now, but more spread out.

I think it was a good 4-6 weeks for me. The mistake I made was that I wasn’t replacing those missing calories initially. Realised my error after a while and began to feel better when I upped healthy snacks.

I felt exactly like this when I started on a 1500 calorie diet but was actually not eating enough and nowhere near as much protein as I needed..if youre completely cutting sugar out and fasting at the same time you will definitely feel like you have no energy if aren't getting enough sustenance from the foods you are eating. Instead of ham and cheese you'd be better off with chicken or other similarly protein rich foods (e.g. cottage cheese instead of cheese).

Posted at same time as @LemonLimeDivine - similar experience. You need to make sure you are eating enough calories- but of the right type of food.

Depends what your diet was like, before you started this diet. If you were eating lots of sugar, then you will definitely feel rubbish!

@L1R876 yes there was certainly WAY too much sugar before. A high blood sugar result from a blood test prompted me into action (knew I needed to for years but don’t bother, just ate more 🙄). There just isn’t a single ‘healthy’ snack I’d like to eat, I might just have to have some chicken or cheese from the fridge.