‘Why am I not losing weight on keto?’

Why are you not losing any weight on a keto diet? And how do you stop yourself from eating out of anger?

These questions are answered this week by our food-addiction expert, Bitten Jonsson, RN:

Eating keto with no results

I followed keto between May 2019 and Dec 2019, and slowly lost 20 pounds (9 kilos). Then there were Christmas parties and I went to Florida for three months, which lead me to fall off the keto wagon. I went back on keto with enthusiasm and vigor on May 4, 2020 and have lost nothing. It’s very discouraging, to say the least.

I go up a pound, and the next day go down a pound. I don’t understand. And believe me, I wouldn’t complain if I was cheating.

Perplexed and disappointed, I forge ahead. I’m anaemic and take an iron pill every two days, which causes constipation so I need to take laxatives. Also have a very dry mouth due to blood pressure and cholesterol meds so I take Fishermen’s Friend lozenges that alleviate slightly.

Please help me!
Mary

Mary,

I’m sad to say that this is a very common problem. To go on and off keto (or any diet) like this can be problematic for our metabolism. The time from 4th of May until now is in my world a very short time. If you are a sugar addict, then your biochemistry is even more sensitive than others. You’ll need resilience and patience.

There are some things you could try. One thing I recommend is nose-breathing. It might sound far-fetched but in my experience, I think it works. The way I see it, if we are stressed we tend to mouth breathe and “over breathe”, which also results in dry mouth and more stress. Go to this link for more information about nose-breathing. Plus, it’s an easy intervention with no real downside to trying it.

Going up and down one pound is, I think, only caused by a shift in fluids.

Do you do any physical activity? I suggest walking on a daily basis to increase insulin sensitivity. I also suggest you join our support group on Facebook to learn more about sugar addiction and how to start implementing other recovery tools instead of only focusing on weight loss. Sometimes being too focused on only that causes stress.

Last, you might want to contact a professional that works with biochemical repair, see the list here.

Keep going, things will get better,
Bitten

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Eating out of anger

I need help.

I started with the keto diet last year and lost 15 pounds (7 kilos), which I was very happy about.

The problem I have is that I use food to cope with frustrations. I work from home and do love my job, even though some customers make it difficult to get off in the morning.

My problem is my husband, his way of acting makes me fall off the wagon. Every time I ask a question or make a comment, he responds with a nasty attitude. Then I get so upset that I eat and also drink.

What can I do to control this anger and my weight? I want to mention that I’m 54 years old, which makes weight loss more difficult.

Myrtha

Myrtha,

I really do understand how difficult this is. I feel with you.

First of all, I want to congratulate you on starting a healthy keto lifestyle and losing weight.

Being addicted to sugar, i.e always really wanting our “drug food” sets things up in very strange ways.

You might not want to hear this but think about it in this way: what if you use your husband’s behavior as an excuse to eat? Ask yourself why you give him this power over your health. I know, these are very tough questions to ponder, but our addiction does strange things to us.

Do you keep drug food in the house? Please remove that first thing, and if your husband buys them, see them as his, not yours.

I hear that you need a lot of knowledge. Read Dr. Vera Tarman’s book Food Junkies to understand our addicted brain, then join our support group on Facebook. Many in this group will identify with you and share tools they’ve learned along the way to deal with situations like this.

Warm regards,
Bitten