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Am I doing the LCHF diet wrong?

Emmar

Emmar

Well-Known Member
Messages
63
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
I have been doing this diet for 6 weeks now, my bs has improved slightly, I've only lost 5lbs (need to lose about a stone and a half), not experiencing symptoms of high blood sugar, not really craving 'bad' carbs so all good there. But I am constantly experiencing muscle pain. I can't be certain the pains started when I started the diet or have been there before but they have got much worse - after walking the dog for any length of time my feet, calves, hips are in agony. The other day I had to put my sons bike into the car, bit of a struggle but now my hands and arms have been excruciating for 2 days. Swimming, my arms hurt after a single length. Although not a gym bunny I have always been quite strong, I now feel incredibly weak. Could this be a side effect of the low carb diet?
 
What exactly is your typical diet ?

If you are not replacing the energy lost by not eating Carbs that could be part of the reason.
 
Emmar said:
I have been doing this diet for 6 weeks now, my bs has improved slightly, I've only lost 5lbs (need to lose about a stone and a half), not experiencing symptoms of high blood sugar, not really craving 'bad' carbs so all good there. But I am constantly experiencing muscle pain. I can't be certain the pains started when I started the diet or have been there before but they have got much worse - after walking the dog for any length of time my feet, calves, hips are in agony. The other day I had to put my sons bike into the car, bit of a struggle but now my hands and arms have been excruciating for 2 days. Swimming, my arms hurt after a single length. Although not a gym bunny I have always been quite strong, I now feel incredibly weak. Could this be a side effect of the low carb diet?
Click to expand...
Sounds like you may have a bug perhaps an appointment with you GP may be a good idea. Some here say there is such a thing as carb flu but have not experienced it myself so don't really know what the symptoms are of that
 
Hi, I would check with your doc - it could be all sorts - meds perhaps?
 
Lots of questions (sorry)

Are you on any statins (they can cause muscle aches and pains)?
Have you been adding extra salt or supplementing magnesium or potassium? (well designed LC diets recommend that you drink broth, preferably bone broth to replace the minerals that are sometimes lost during a LC way of eating.)
Are you experiencing aches, or cramps? If cramps, then I would definitely suggest you look at the symptoms of deficiency for magnesium and potassium

You say you have only lost 5 pounds, but I would be celebrating the fact that your weight loss has been slow. I think that is much kinder on the body, and more sustainable in the long run.

How low carb are you?
- there is a kind of no-man's-land that people can get into, where they are cutting carbs just enough to feel listless and miserable, and lack energy, but have not cut the carbs low enough to experience being fat adapted and burning their own fat reserves.
- since each of us is different, and has different tastes and lifestyles and our bodies have different medical histories, it is impossible to guess when a person has cut their carbs enough - it is just a matter of experiementing, up and down the carb scale, til you find the right balance for you.
 
@ Catlady I have made an appointment with the doc for next week just to be on the safe side.

An example of my daily diet (b) eggs (poached or scrambled) with ham or bacon, or sausages or mackerel / occasionally Greek yoghurt with blueberries and flaxseeds (l) ham or chicken or prawn or feta salad / omelette if not eggs for breakfast / soup / homemade crust less quiche (d) meat or fish with non starchy vegetables (broccoli, green beans, cauli, asparagus, peppers, courgettes etc) or casseroles with cauli mash. Snacks are nuts or cheese. Had a blood and urine test recently which showed ketones present so I think that means my body is burning fat as energy source?

I am not on statins. The pains are very achey, not cramps, and last for days.
It's probably not a bad idea to have a cup of bovril each day though as I don't add salt to any food.

As a rough guide, how much fat do people incorporate into their diet whilst still maintaining weight loss?
 
I have also just ordered a box of Ketostix to ensure my body is burning fats as energy!
 
Re your fat question,

If you want to lose weight, I should aim for just enough fat that you are not hungry. That will be different for everyone.
Then wait and see what happens to your weight.
You can tweak up and down once you have established your baseline.

In my case, I get Ravenously Hungry if I cut the fats too much, so I end up rarely losing. Others find it easy, and the weight drops off. Additionally, some people say that once they are very low carb, eating more fat encourages weight loss, while others find they still need to watch the calories.

Sorry to be so vague, but the more I read these forums, the more I realise that everyone has a different set of variables (age, sex, hormone situation, activity levels, etc) and there really are no simple One Rule Suits Everyone.
 
Low Vitamin D3 can also be an issue for people with chronic pain and is often found in people with Type 2 - might be worthwhile getting yours tested.
 
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