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Low-carb flu

Sirzy

Sirzy

Well-Known Member
Messages
266
Location
Glasgow
Type of diabetes
Other
Treatment type
Insulin
I was wondering if anybody has any advice/tips on how to deal with low-carb flu symptoms (jelly legs, tiredness, etc). I went low carb after first being diagnosed almost four years ago, and stuck with it religiously for two years, but then the carbs started creeping back in again. I really want to get back to a LC diet as I can remember having so much energy after getting through the first stages of cutting back on the carbs. I've also got digestive problems (SIBO) which will also benefit from LC-ing.

Does anybody know how long low-carb flu lasts and also, how low do I need to go before I start burning fat? When I was initially following a LC diet I was eating less than 30g of carbs per day, is this low enough? Thinking back, last time, I cut the carbs without adding more fat to my diet, which might explain the horrible symptoms, this time I'm eating plenty of olive and coconut oil (no dairy as this isn't allowed if you have SIBO), will this maybe stop me feeling so awful? I'm really tired and foggy headed at the moment which isn't great as I like to stay active, but I'm barely managing to get out for a walk every day just now :(
 
You probably need more salt.As Jack said.
Try half a teaspoon of sea salt or any salt in a small glass of water. Repeat when needed.

It can take anything from a few days to a few weeks to pass.
 
When I first started, I was taking the following supplement list. I didn't feel any of the expected symptoms:

2500mg Omega 3 twice daily
50mg Zinc twice daily
138mg Magnesium with evening meal
500mg L-Tyrosine twice daily
225 micrograms iodine twice daily
 
Thanks for the advice everyone :) I'd read about adding salt before, but because I tend to add salt to my meals anyway I thought this would be enough, I'll try taking a teaspoon in water a couple of times a day as well.

Jack412, one of your links suggested adding in a small amount of carbs if fatigue and shaking starts around day 3-5, but I've read elsewhere that you shouldn't do this as it prevents fully switching to fat burning. I could try a small amount of rice or some strawberries, but I don't want to keep doing this every time I feel a bit wobbly in case I'm maybe delaying switching, what do you recommend?

Tim2000s I'll add in some of those supplements you suggested, I take so many already it's a wonder I don't rattle when I walk!

Thanks again everyone :)
 
Hi @Sirzy

I have been only getting my very low carbs from mainly veg. I hardly ever have intentional carbs.
The carb flu for me only lasted a couple of weeks but we are all different!
Keep at it, you've done it before, keep going. You know it's logical!!

Love the avatar!
 
Sirzy said:
Thanks for the advice everyone :) I'd read about adding salt before, but because I tend to add salt to my meals anyway I thought this would be enough, I'll try taking a teaspoon in water a couple of times a day as well.

Jack412, one of your links suggested adding in a small amount of carbs if fatigue and shaking starts around day 3-5, but I've read elsewhere that you shouldn't do this as it prevents fully switching to fat burning. I could try a small amount of rice or some strawberries, but I don't want to keep doing this every time I feel a bit wobbly in case I'm maybe delaying switching, what do you recommend?

Tim2000s I'll add in some of those supplements you suggested, I take so many already it's a wonder I don't rattle when I walk!

Thanks again everyone :)
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I didn't add any carbs except non-starch veg, as @nosher8355 said...I ate coconut oil off a spoon
carbs will drag out keto adaptation, it just depends how crook you're feeling. another way is to have more protein and half of that will convert to glucose, day 2-3 you run out of glucose and not fat adapted yet. it normally lasts only a few days. It may take upto a month before you can run a marathon
 
Thanks so much for the encouragement Jack and Nosher, you've both talked me down from the couple of spoonfuls of rice I was contemplating having with dinner :) It's day three and I'm feeling really odd, very tired and foggy, almost like I'm in a dream (if that makes sense), and I've got slightly wobbly legs. I've had trouble concentrating on my work and have been having trouble stringing sentences together :( I've also had a few teaspoons of salt in some warm water and haven't had a headache since trying this, yay! I've upped my coconut oil intake, I'm aiming for about two tablespoons a day, does this sound about right?

Jack, I've read that I shouldn't overdo the protein too much as it will convert to glucose, as you said, and prevent me moving to ketogenesis, it's really hard to resist having more if I'm feeling a bit hungry, I think the fat is starting to decrease my appetite though, so it's no too much of a problem.

I'm really hoping that the tiredness will improve before next week as I've got a ballet course booked (don't laugh!) and I really don't think I could manage it feeling like I do just now, hopefully I'll be over the hump by then or at least on my way to having a bit more energy.

Thanks for the avatar compliment Nosher, I love Star Trek TOS ;)
 
I meant to ask you both, how many carbs are you eating a day? I'm probably around 15-20g just now, from small amounts of veg with lunch and dinner.
 
Sirzy said:
I meant to ask you both, how many carbs are you eating a day? I'm probably around 15-20g just now, from small amounts of veg with lunch and dinner.
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Depends of what combination of salad I have with my protein, saying that I don't carb count! I just eat to keep my bloods level and to my meter. So I can have for example pulses as long as they are strained.
The lower carb the better for me. It can be boring. But i make it an adventure in trying different combinations to see what it does to my BSLs.
The key is control. I've just had a homemade soup for tea. Last night homemade curry and salad. Mmmmmm!
The weight loss and all the other health benefits are a bonus!!
 
Just to say that TOS is what got me into Trek but Patrick Stewart is my favourite actor in the whole kit and carboodle.
I am surrounded by plenty of memoriablia in my 'room'.
 
I felt like that but worse. I could barely stand. Felt like I was dying that's when I came here and @donnellysdogs told me to eat more fat. It felt like she had saved my life. A few days later I felt much better. I was not eating enough calories when trying to keep my BG below the levels I chose. Basically starving myself. I was a low fat eater but never again
 
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Nosher, I know what you mean about keeping food interesting, it's really difficult because I'm also trying to control/eradicate my SIBO, so meals are pretty boring. I've recently started eating chicken again, I was a vegetarian for a long time, and this has added some variety, I'm ashamed to say it's now my favourite food!

Patrick Stewart is great isn't he? Have you seen the pictures that he and Ian McKellan posted on Twitter recently, they're hilarious, they look like they're having such a good time, makes me laugh every time I look at them :)

Beardie, how long did your low carb-flu last? I've been upping my fat intake and will probably up the coconut oil again tomorrow. My BGs are really low which I'm guessing might be making me feel a bit ropey too as I 'enjoyed' myself a fair bit over Christmas, but now I'm VLC again they're in the low 4's. I don't take any medication, so I'm not too worried about being that low, but it must be contributing to my tiredness.
 
Sirzy said:
Nosher, I know what you mean about keeping food interesting, it's really difficult because I'm also trying to control/eradicate my SIBO, so meals are pretty boring. I've recently started eating chicken again, I was a vegetarian for a long time, and this has added some variety, I'm ashamed to say it's now my favourite food!

Patrick Stewart is great isn't he? Have you seen the pictures that he and Ian McKellan posted on Twitter recently, they're hilarious, they look like they're having such a good time, makes me laugh every time I look at them :)

Beardie, how long did your low carb-flu last? I've been upping my fat intake and will probably up the coconut oil again tomorrow. My BGs are really low which I'm guessing might be making me feel a bit ropey too as I 'enjoyed' myself a fair bit over Christmas, but now I'm VLC again they're in the low 4's. I don't take any medication, so I'm not too worried about being that low, but it must be contributing to my tiredness.
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I felt really bad for about a month and within a couple of days of eating more fat I felt way better.
I did go quite extreme though.
 
I felt the same when I went VLC after diagnosis because I didn't add any fat to my diet. I felt much worse then than I do now, although there's still time!
 
So I just used a 'Keto Calculator' (http://keto-calculator.ankerl.com/) to try and work out how I should be dividing my carbs/fat/protein per day and it came up with these results for me, based on a number of different variables;

Age: 40/Female/5'2" | Weight: 105 | 24% Body Fat | Moderately active

* 1635 kcal Goal, a 4% deficit. (1221 min, 1703 max)
* 15-20g Carbohydrates
* 79g Protein (48g min, 79g max)
* 140g Fat (94g min, 147g max)

Some of the figures seems a bit suspect to me, for instance, 79g of protein seems like a really small amount, can this be right? Also, it says I should be eating between 94-147g of fat per day, that seems like an awful lot to me. Do any of these figures sound right to anybody else?
 
Hi,

The fat looks spot on.

The protein is worth checking.
Do they mean 'pure protein' weighing 79g or 'a piece of meat/fish/egg' weighing 79g?

Eggs are a protein food, but they are only 12.6% protein, according to Tescos nutritional info:

Nutrition

Typical ValuesTypical Values Per 100g-
Energy547 kJ-
-131 kcal-
Fat9.0g-
of which saturates2.5g-
Carbohydrate<0.5g-
of which sugars<0.5g-
Protein12.6g-
Salt0.385g-
 
As Brunneria suggests, 79g of actual protein is a massive amount of food.
 
Don't eat the max protein. Eat the minimum protein, since any excess over your structural protein replacement needs will be turned into carbs. Make up with more fat instead.

Are you 105lbs or 105kg?
 
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