I'm in Ketosis, but no weighloss for four weeks???

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Doczoc

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Just as the title says really. Been on a stall for four weeks, no big deal I guess, but what I don't get is the ketostix keep showing up dark purple! My understanding is that fat and/or muscle must be broken down for this to happen so why isn't the weight dropping?

Obviously I don't WANT to lose muscle mass but surely if I've been in ketosis that long then weight should have come down a bit whether it's fat or muscle? Shouldn't it?

Bizarrely people are saying that I look slimmer recently even though there has been a slight increase in weight. I am exercising but not at the frequency or intensity to build muscle mass I don't think. hmmmm
 
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sixfoot

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On the thread " lo carb must be high fat" there are several examples of stalls my own included. I think Patch brought in the ratio of fats to protien. The reason being that protien will break down to glucose in the absence of carbs. What i found is that if you reduce your protien by a small amount and up your fats it may break the stall.
Exercise such as walking shouldnt raise your weight but is good for insulin resistance whereas Pumping weights is designed to build muscle mass which is worth bearing in mind.

Also is takes about 3weeks for your body to make the change.

Dave P
 
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Doczoc

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424
sixfoot said:
On the thread " lo carb must be high fat" there are several examples of stalls my own included. I think Patch brought in the ratio of fats to protien. The reason being that protien will break down to glucose in the absence of carbs. What i found is that if you reduce your protien by a small amount and up your fats it may break the stall.
Exercise such as walking shouldnt raise your weight but is good for insulin resistance whereas Pumping weights is designed to build muscle mass which is worth bearing in mind.

Also is takes about 3weeks for your body to make the change.

Dave P
Click to expand...

Hi Dave

I've been low carbing snce November and have enjoyed a good success, losing 3st in the process, so my body should be fine at burning those fats. I keep carbs to around the 30g mark and have incresed fats like Patch suggested, been doing that for over a month now. As for exercise I use a Concept 2 rower which gives a good aerobic workout as well as working all the major muscle groups. I'm just working on building up the duration and intensity of each session. So all in all I seem to be doing everything 'right'!

TBH I can get my head around a stall, what I want to try to understand is the mechanism by which I can be in ketosis, as I say dark purple, for a month and not see a loss of some kind. I could understand it if I wasn't in ketosis but those ketones must be coming from somewhere.
 
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Doczoc

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424
Think I found the answer, ketones can come from dietary fat as well as bodily fat, never knew that...
 
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Trinkwasser

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Muscle is denser than fat, sometimes you can have a pseudo-stall where you are still losing fat but replacing it with muscle, you will get slimmer but stay the same weight.

Otherwise tinkering with your fat/protein balance one way or t'other may restart the weight loss, sneak up varefully on your body or it will resist your efforts!
 
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Doczoc

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catherinecherub said:
Hi Doc,
Not a low carber myself. Found this article which may help,
http://www.biblelife.org/plateau.htm
Regards,
Catherine.
Click to expand...


Managed to read it fully at last.

Very detailed and lot's of food for thought, excuse the pun. Some of it is a bit 'full on' and thus far I've resisted the temptation to follow a diet as such, instead just eating food that fall within the general catergory of 'low carb'.

I am starting to come round to the idea that I need to get a bit more scientific about all this though and that article will help, it's in line with other articles I've read which talk of the ame kind of approach.

Thanks again!
 
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sixfoot

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989
Doc you are going the right way..... If you do basic research on Metabolism and the Fats , Protien, Carbs interaction with Insulin the rest dosnt take that much more to work out.

All power to you
Dave P
 
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hanadr

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I don't seem to be able to get ketosis or any more weight loss.It's been about 6 months since the scales made a visible move. they are "shading" down.Certainly NOt going up.
I must be getting fitter though
Resting pulse rate, below 60 and blood pressure about 120/75.
I am still 89 kilos ( should be about 75 - 80 ) and 62 years old
 
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catherinecherub

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Hana
You must have a high metabolic resistance to weight loss. If you read through the article it suggests that if this is your problem then you must not cheat??
No roast potatoes for you today. :)
Regards, Catherine.
 
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shews

Active Member
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I'm so confused. I have never had ketosis since I have started low carbing. Is that why my weight loss is so minimal?

I am having less than 50g carbs per day and sugars are much more stable but no keytones what so ever.

Should I be more strict with carbs and eat more fat?

My carb intake generally comes from salad/green veg/ tomatoes/ occasional raspberries/ nuts and sweetener.
I also use a recipe for low carb porridge with ground flaxseed and soya protein which i have every morning. Maybe I should stop this and have eggs instead- according to atkins flaxseed is banned during the induction?

Sal
 
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Doczoc

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Update - I'm still on the plateau but I've really chilled out about it. Probably been about two months now but I don't mind. I'm in this for the long haul so I've been experimenting with different foods, had a few more carbs than usual and on 4 or five occasions had a complete cheat, nothing spectacular only pita breads. I seem to have become addicted to Greek yogurt with nuts in it, probably eating way too much of that but my weight has been stable. I'm gonna continue in this vein for a couple of months then go for the next big push. I feel my body needs this time to adjust at the moment.
 
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catherinecherub

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Glad you are more relaxed about your long term goals Doc. I am sure that things will work out well for you. It has been an experience of some members that when they add a few more foods and then go back to being strict the weight loss starts again.
Whatever you decide has to be your choice.

Regards,
Catherine.
 
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catherinecherub

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As I don't carb count it would be difficult to give exact numbers. I suppose on average I consume 120-140 carbs per day. This doesn't mean that I eat lots of starchy carbs as in bread potatoes etc. But I do eat porridge most days, homemade meusili, burgen bread, (1 slice at a sitting), various varieties of beans, sweet potatoes. I find that if I balance a meal with low G.I. foods then I do not have a problem. I suppose you could say that I follow a medium carb, low fat diet. There is always some fruit or veg included in every meal as is some form of protein. I do not use sweeteners of any kind and do not drink any fizzy drinks or squash, I have water, decaffinated tea and coffee and either a gin or wine in the evening.
My exercise is not a routine. I use a lot of energy at work, always get an hour's walk in every day, cycle sometimes, look after three healthy young men, (my sons), housework, gardening, decorating and at the moment am caring for a sick relative. I am a bit of a fidget and cannot sit still for long so perhaps that helps as well. :?:
I doubt I have the lowest HBA1c but I may be one of the lucky ones who has managed to do something that works for me. I have been on medication when I strayed for a bit. I think I got fed up with it all and rebelled for a while. I managed to get my head around it and became motivated again.
I cannot say that it would work for everyone, but I have to say that it does work for a lot of people.

Catherine.
 
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