New to LCHF diet

If you are feeling that weak and wobbly, you are either needing more salt/potassium/magnesium, or you are eating too few calories. The answer is salty broth (good quality stock cubes in hot water) or bovril, or supplements. Please don't eat bananas!

Throw in some more of the good fats (google fat bombs), nuts, make up some sugarfree jelly and then smother it with cream.

Do you know what your calorie intake is, per day?

If your blood glucose has sat at 5.5 after meals, then you can afford to increase your carbs a bit. I suggest more lush veg options (cauliflower cheese, creamed spinach, broccoli with blue cheese, sugar snaps tossed in salted butter).

Are you wanting to lose weight? If not, go for more food, and expect to lose a bit of weight anyway.

At the moment, your body is transitioning from sugar burning to fat burning. If this is the first time you have keto-adapted, it can be a rough ride. I think the more carbs you used to eat, the rougher the ride. But once you have 'crossed over' you will feel great. And once your body has done it once, the next time gets easier.

If you want to feel somewhat better within an hour or two, I recommend a big cup of bovril or broth, followed by a nice rich meal, masses of meat and veg, extra fat. Eat to satiety.

If you have a headache, take a pain killer with a BIG glass of water.

And remember to drink more than you think you need. Approx 1 litre per 5 stone of body weight is ideal. Most people don't get anywhere near that - but low carbers NEED it.

This thread may help too.
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/threads/what-is-your-number-1-lchf-tip.67929/

Cracker467 said:

I used to have whole grain food that kept me going through out the day, what can I replace this with please on a lchf diet? I'm going to up my carbohydrates with vegetables and give it another week, I can't live like this!

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Once you are keto adapted you won't need snacks.
I eat them less and less.
Fat is so slow release you stay on an even keel, even with exercise.

But, in the meantime, excellent low carb snacks include
Pork scratchings
Cheese
Nuts
Cold meat
Good quality, fat rich hummus, taramasalata or peanut butter (by the spoonful, you don't need crackers)
LC jelly with cream
Celery with cream cheese or pate
Coffee with cream
Low carb hot choc, with cream

Cracker467 said:

I'm consuming loads of cheese and fat so can't be salt I don't think.

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Try it and see.

While you were eating all those carbs, you were eating a lot of hidden salt.
Now you aren't.
In addition, when you switch to LC, your kidneys dump fluids, taking salts out of your system at the same time.

You will need to actively add salt back in for a week or two, and then keep an eye out for cramps after that. Especially in hot weather.

Cracker467 said:

Hello everyone I'm a week in so far and I have been very strict with my carbohydrate intake so far consuming less than 10g or less a day. Can anyone recommend a website that can be used as gospel as many LCHF websites conflict with one another, for example have any fruit in moderation, only have certain types of fruit, only have berries etc.

This feeling of chronic fatigue is worrying me, is this common will it lift? I'm a huge fan of weight lifting and there is no way I can hit the gym feeling like this .

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Hi, @Cracker467 . You are probably on the wrong diet with regard to your weight lifting requirements.
Hope this link from Diabetes.co.uk will help..Building Muscle with Diabetes
Best of luck as there are many good diets out there, that will better suit you in the long run.

The best book I have found on general LC, is Voleck and Phinney 'The Art and Science of Low Carb Living'
The best website I've seen is dietdoctor.

And if you want the best low carbing for diabetics, I recommend Bernstein's 'Diabetes Solution'

More protein meats , chicken,ham,bacon,pork,veal,beef,lamb ?
Doing some tasty casseroles with these are easy and can do you a couple of
meals from a slow cook pot made of it all .
Throw in your favourite tasty veggies into the casserole .

Eggs are and can be really filling if combo with other things .
Try a tasty Spanish omelette chuck in mushrooms,peppers,tomatoes,onion, etc
Have a salad alongside it to bulk it up if hungry or pre/after work out at the gym ?

Hearty vegetable soups are both filling and tasty too .
This is ideal to add and throw them extra meat proteins into the soup .

I do these easy tricks with my meals now .

Attempt to meal prepare and shop ahead - and do a 'job lot' pot of something .
Rather than attempt to always keep making just one meal a time kind of thing .

One portion person meal isn't always as tasty or maybe as filling .
Try making a 'job lot' pot of a tastier stew or casserole .
These can do or make 2 even 3 meals sometimes .

Sometimes I have to adapt and plan well ahead to add spice and variety to
keep things tasty, suited to my diabetes and it is loads easier on the weekly workload too .
If you see what I am trying to mean and say ?

These ways can help me keep going and prevented me from giving up in the past

In my opinion (I am no expert but low carbing) eat as much vegetables and salad as you like... I don't think you can eat too much veg (apart from potatoes) As its all low carb. Some root veg, Carots etc are higher than leafy veg, but still ok in small quantities, tomatoes the same. Hopefully you will feel much better in a few days time

The question about root veg comes down to personal tolerance (which needs to be tested with your meter)

I can eat a few chips without spiking.
But potato in any other form sends me sky high. @bluetit1802 can eat 2 or 3 spuds with her evening meal.
Carrots, parsnips, sweet potatoes and beetroot send me high - other people can eat them regularly.
Suede and turnip are ok for me in small quantities...

See what I mean about personal tolerances?

Do you have any significant fat sources other than dairy fats? It's good to diversify your fats. If only because you need a lot of fat and for most people who have not done LCHF before that takes some getting used to.

Some people use coconut oils and or MCT. But I was just thinking of meat fat really.

Cracker467 said:

The Bovril has helped thank you.

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Brilliant! Am delighted.
2 cups a day would be a good amount...
And, if you really want to embrace the LCHF ethos put a splash of cream into your next cup of bovril.
I was shocked at the deliciousness...

Cracker467 said:

I've been avoiding vegetables with high carbohydrates is this wrong then? I know to avoid vegetables that grow underground like potatoes.

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Cracker467 said:

I avoid nuts as I'm allergic to them unfortunately so rarely have them. Other than dairy products I have Avocados some times and eggs, fat on meat, Omega 3. What other fats should I consume?

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I love to have 2 avocados a week .
These are a good fat to consume .

anna29 said:

I love to have 2 avocados a week .
These are a good fat to consume .

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I love avocados!!!

I get through a lot of butter, double cream, coconut oil, coleslaw (Tesco value at 25p is the lowest carb coleslaw I have found) and avocados..... always buying these at every shopping trip we make.