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Slow Going #keto

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This is a continuation of the keto journey. Previous articles:

Diet progress update:

Diet progress

It’s been about a month since the last update now and I thought it would be a good time to provide another update.

As you can see, the graph still continue to show linear progress, but this might not be the truth. My scales have been in my shower room for quite some years now and have rusted inside. I purchased some new scales and they seem to think I’m 10kg heavier than I think I am - they are exactly the same make and model. The new scales also have some problems accurately displaying weight. So now I have no idea which ones can actually be trusted or not.

I intend to get properly weighed by a medical facility and then base my measurements from there. These scales are cheap anyway and were not designed to weigh accurately at my current weight. Ideally I need to get checked up to make sure everything else is running correctly too.

One thing I can obviously improve on is having less 1500 kcal days, since Christmas they have appeared more than they should. I think my target range should be between 500 kcal and 1000 kcal days. I’m sometimes snacking on some keto foods if I’m feeling hungry - ideally I just need to stop eating keto foods entirely. Either that or go on full-day fasts.

Recap

In the last post I discussed a few points:

Anyway, let’s talk about what’s new!

Exercise

I have continued with exercising, although not nearly as much as I should. I have found that exercising massively decreases the amount of work I can do the next day, so I try to avoid it. The irony here is though that in order to decrease this effect, I need to exercise more.

Exercise currently includes cardio via cycling which is getting easier, and a mixture of long and short walks (2 hours to 30 minutes). The walking is now getting ridiculously easy and I for sure need more strenuous exercise than this.

Currently I find that exercising via cycling leaves me in pain afterwards, with my muscles taking 3 days to recover - including my lungs and heart. I thought maybe I just needed cool-down exercise, but this still didn’t help. I am really not sure what is going on. I possibly need to take on a lot more water than I currently do - I’ll try this next.

I find that during cycling or long walks my heart rate jumps from about 100 beats per minute, up to 150 and I start to feel exhausted. This happens reliably and matches exactly when I become exhausted - nearing collapse. Forcing air more rapidly helps, but only buys time. I am not sure why I cannot operate for even a short time in this zone, but I will keep pushing.

One thing I’m essentially doing zero of currently is weight-lifting, although my arms are becoming more defined simply as a result of losing weight. I really do need to work in more weight-lifting as it’s a quick way to raise my heart rate.

Clear Mind

One nice benefit from this diet so far is a clearer mind. I’ve been able to think more clearly and make longer-term decisions to benefit me in the future. This sounds like something small, but to me it’s the largest benefit so far. I’ve gone from thinking about a week in the future at most, now to sometimes considering years in the future.

An example of an extension of this was my room layout. I wasn’t happy with it, but had put up with it for a long time. Given how I feel now, I actually did something about it. I was no longer willing to accept the reality of the room and cleaned it up and moved it around. It was well overdue, but it now actually feels like a space I want to work in.

Sleep

Unfortunately my sleep quality still isn’t perfect. I often get my nose blocking whilst I’m sleeping, limiting the positions I can sleep in comfortably. I still have no idea why it’s happening, but it’s for sure related to my sleep apnoea, one of the main reasons I started this in the first place. It is getting better as the weight comes down, but I wish it would happen quicker.

Another problem is that I am now severely limited in positions I can sleep in. I get a pain in my chest when sleeping on my left and right sides - again - no idea why. Reading online I see it could be a vitamin deficiency, so that does suggest that a doctors visit is required.

To add, I have started sleeping in twisted positions to alleviate pressure in my chest, which in turn has meant that I’m now experiencing back pain. I move about a lot in my sleep and I can really do my back some bad.

Foods

One thing I recognize is that I have become too accustomed to some keto-friendly foods. I’m still in the right p[lace regarding calories and carbohydrates, but I could be doing better. These are the foods I look to cut out:

Next Steps

I need to see a doctor and make sure my body is not trying to give out on me. I think everything is okay, but it’s really hard to know for sure.

The other thing I need to do is to get a fitness advisor. I have no money to spend on this, so the ask is tough. I will need to reach out to my friends and see what comes up.