Keto Egg Fast and Why I Keto

I have been struggling since Samuel was born to lose the stubborn baby weight.  I know, I know.  It takes nine months to gain, allow nine months to lose.  But really, you only gain the pounds after the first trimester, so six months to gain, and six months to lose, by that math.  That being said, I know I should be patient.  It's just not easy when the weight scale DOES NOT MOVE.  When I was transferred to the hospital (he would have been my 4th home birth if he hadn't pooped in utero), I weighed 166.  Three days post partum I was down to 152.  Six weeks post partum: 148....where I have stayed.  (I was hovering around 135 and trying to be 130 pre-pregnancy).  Little Samuel is almost 11 weeks and I'm no where near my pre-pregnancy weight.  I'd love to blame the extra fifteen pounds on why my running has been a struggle.  That may not be the case....
6 weeks Post Partum

I have been living the ketogenic diet for several years and consider myself a fat adapted athlete.  I have enjoyed it's mental and physical health benefits.  It suits me.  Since Sammy was born, however, I started to notice cravings.  Food, food, food.  Almonds.  Cheese.  Broccoli.  Mayonnaise.  All. The. Food.  I've never had breast feeding make me feel this way before.  And then the weight scale fluctuated UP, not down.  I tracked my food.  I stayed within 1800-2000 calories a day (running 6-10 miles on a regular basis, I didn't want to cut calories). It seemed as though I was suffering from the marathon training weight gain.

Last weekend we went on our first camping trip to Winthrop for the Sun Mountain 50k (you can read about that adventure HERE).  I ate like I was going to run 30 miles Saturday -- which I did not.  I let the carbs get out of control.  And the cheese.  Have I mentioned that I love cheese? Oh, and after my DNF, there was a bottle of wine. Needless to say, I came home Monday feeling toxic, lethargic, and out of balance.

Key in: egg fast.  I am on day 3.  When I started I was 150lbs and am down 5lbs and 1.5 inches at the waist.  The first day, I felt the tell-tale signs of keto flu, which I have not felt since I first started.  Which tells me one of two things: either I ate way more carbs over the weekend then I thought, or my ratios have been wrong for a while and I've not been in ketosis for some time.  I put himalayan pink salt on everything and swallowed several salt pills to counter the effects.  I ran on day one, just four easy miles, and was careful to keep my heart rate down while my body adjusted back into a fat burning state.  The second day was much easier, until afternoon when I was so hungry!  I drank my BCAA sports supplement drink and another 16 ounces of water.  When I was still hungry, I gave up the calorie restriction and had more eggs, butter, and cheese.  It didn't hinder anything, as the next morning (today) I was still down another 2lbs.  I feel brighter, more energetic, and less bloated.

I may go another two days (they say people shouldn't egg fast for more than 3-5 days, since there is absolutely no fiber in the diet).  But I do know that when I start back on a more regular keto diet, I need to watch those nuts (and probably the cheese too).  Macros are so important when living keto.  Too much protein and you're out.  Too many carbs and you're out.  Looking back, I may have had too much of both.  But I know that I am feeling like I'm using that endless supply of fat more efficiently, so when I end this egg fast, the cravings for my favorite foods should be more manageable.

Waiting to climb the rope out
of a gully at Volcanic50 last year
For those of you curious, here is the explanation for why I started keto and why I stay keto.  After my last baby was born, I wanted, of course, to lose the baby weight.  I started paleo.  From there, I learned about keto and loved how it made me feel.  It seemed to cure some of my eating disorders (overeating, not eating, guilt).  In that way, it helped my mental health.  I felt leaner, fitter, happy.  When I started running, I figured I needed carbs to fuel my training.  I gained a few pounds and felt sluggish.  Well, that wasn't working!  I again cut carbs and put myself back into ketosis.  I learned about the fat adapted athlete.  I read Phil Maffetone's Endurance Training and Racing, Guide to Health and Fitness, as well as The Art and Science of Low Carbohydrate Performance by Jeff Volek and Stephen D. Phinney.  Over last year's season of races, I ran fat adapted.  Of course, I ate a few handfuls of gummies and peanut M&Ms on race day, but for the most part, I was fueled by meat sticks and cheese from the local Owen's Meats "The Candy Store for Carnivores" during my long runs and races.  They have a vending machine at the book store in town. How awesome is that?  I've never bonked.  I don't even know what that feels like.  I don't get cravings (or didn't, hence why I think I was out of ketosis the last few months) and have so much more mental and physical energy!

So, I keto on (or will now that I'm back in).

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

2018 Ultra Kick off: First Race Post Partum

Teanaway Trail Marathon and Half

Making Time