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Lchf: blood ketone levels

bellabella

Well-Known Member
Messages
135
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
To all those on an established LCHF way if eating, do you know what your blood ketones are? Have started lchf three weeks ago ( loving it so far) last week my ketones were 0.6, but I tested again today, and they were only 0.1? Have been eating very low carb, so thought they would be a bit higher... Maybe I should exercise more to use up the glycogen stores?
 
I'm usually around the 1.5 mark (went up to 3.3 once last week). Seemed to mostly be below 1.0 when I first started last year so I don't know if I have become better adapted over time. What's your protein intake like?
 
Are you using ketostix or a blood ketone meter? In many people the ketostix can stop reading or read low after they are up and running on low carb. Not usually in only 3 weeks, but you say you are very low carb, so maybe.
 
There was a thread on typical levels... too tired to search for it, but if you search for "nutritional ketosis" and "ketones" that might find it.
 
I use blood ketone levels. I haven't formally started counting up my carbs/ protein/ fat as of yet, as I'm newly diagnosed and carb counting, while I agree it's the way forward, at this point it would be a bit of information overload trying to figure it out. I will soon though. My typical daily intake looks something like this: breakfast: eggs&salmon/ eggs and sausages/ eggs and rashers with mayonaisse. Coffee.
Mid morning: coffee
Lunch: homemade almond bread( eggs, almonds, butter +\- Philadelphia cream cheese, smoked salmon
Dinner: some form of meat and green veg usually topped with cheese and sour cream.
Snack: not always bit if I do: 90% chocolate melted with Philadelphia/ full far yoghurt +\- blueberries
 
Pretty good diet! And it looks tasty too.

OK carb detectives, can we find the hidden carbs in bellabella's healthy diet might be keeping her out of ketosis?

Bella to stay in ketosis (if that is your goal) you really are going to have to count carbs, at least at first.
 
Hello Bellabella. I use myfitnesspal to calculate my carbs. You set your targets for carbohydrate and calories and then key in your food diary each day and it does all the calcukation for you which is very useful. :)
 
Pretty good diet! And it looks tasty too.

OK carb detectives, can we find the hidden carbs in bellabella's healthy diet might be keeping her out of ketosis?

Bella to stay in ketosis (if that is your goal) you really are going to have to count carbs, at least at first.
I suspect it's the protein breaking down to glucose through gluconeogenesis rather than the obvious dietary carbs.

Would be useful to see the numbers though if you were to use myfitnesspal as @mo53 suggests.
 
I suspect it's the protein breaking down to glucose through gluconeogenesis rather than the obvious dietary carbs.

Would be useful to see the numbers though if you were to use myfitnesspal as @mo53 suggests.
Could well be, though there isn't much gluconeogenesis until you get into ketosis. But definitely worth counting the g protein as well as the g carbs.
 
Carbs and Cals app also good. It does sums (and keeps all the records). Best thing about it, you can put in your own foods and ingredients, or your own figs where you don't like theirs. Now I've done that, I use it constantly.
 
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