Two Weeks In, and some questions

Right. Went snowboarding, first time in my life that being out of
shape was clearly a problem. Went on Atkins _immediately_ (as in, I
was stripping cheeseburgers of their buns at lunch).

About a week later, once my body had adjusted to the new energy
source, I started walking / running. Turns out that whole ability to
walk arbitrary distances quickly scales into being able to jog and
even run long distances -- constant distance of 8-10 miles, with ever
increasing speed, seems to have worked really well for me. I can't
recommend this strategy enough; don't feel bad that you can't keep
running, just start walking and accept the 20-30% heart rate jump with
occasional spiking (Polar makes a great heart rate monitor -- very
good for realizing exactly how much you're pushing yourself).
Eventually, occasional will become often, and especially once you get
going, you just won't stop. This is _much_ better on the ego than
running continually to the point of exhaustion and dragging yourself
home.

Pretty cool, especially since a couple nutritionists have said it's
impossible to do sustained workouts w/o carbs. I'm on less than 10
carbs a day (it's just not that hard), and I'm keeping my heart rate
up, sometimes way up, for hours on end as I push through the 8-10
every other day. I pretty much *have* to be burning fat, since
there's nothing else to burn :-)

There is one possible concern. I'm using the best ketosis sticks on
the market -- Bayer's Ketostix
(http://www.westburypharmacy.com/Merc..._cod e=306381).
They're meant for diabetics, they're cheap($10.99 for 50), and they
actually _quantify_ how many ketones are in your urine. Before I
started exercising, I was averaging 40mg/dL -- the "dark" entry on the
ThinZ strips. I'm now somewhere between the two "large" marks on the
Ketostix, meaning 80-160mg/dL -- and I stay this dark even if I don't
exercise for a couple days. I'm curious if I should be concerned.
The strips lighten up considerably if I accidentally consume
carb-loaded food (for example, the two avocados the other day dropped
me back to ~30 mg/dL), so I can tell the strips are good. So should I
worry that my blood is basically saturated with fuel from fats?

BTW, is there any science at all to support the assertion that sugar
alcohols don't need to be counted? I've been avoiding them for the
most part, just because it's relatively easy to.

--Dan

In article ,
says...
Pretty cool, especially since a couple nutritionists have said it's
impossible to do sustained workouts w/o carbs. I'm on less than 10
carbs a day (it's just not that hard), and I'm keeping my heart rate

Why are you on less than 10 carbs per day? Are you on Atkins? If so, you can
(and SHOULD) have up to 20 carbs per day. At 10 carbs, you can't be taking in
much in the way of veggies. Don't get me wrong, I've had days where I had very
vew carbs, but it was accidental.

Also, it doesn't matter how dark the ketosticks are. In fact, if they are
CONSISTENTLY dark, you probably aren't drinking enough water. Being in ketosis
is like being pregnant -- you are or you aren't, so as long as it's registering
anywhere from pink to purple, you ARE in ketosis.

--
Saffire
205/174/125
Atkins since 6/14/03
Progress photo: http://photos.yahoo.com/saffire333

Why are you on less than 10 carbs per day?

Because my favorite foods (eggs, cheese, steak, burgers, chicken, etc)
are pretty low carb as it is?

Are you on Atkins? If so, you can
(and SHOULD) have up to 20 carbs per day. At 10 carbs, you can't be taking in
much in the way of veggies. Don't get me wrong, I've had days where I had very
vew carbs, but it was accidental.

I tend to use creamed spinach as a source of veggies. I might start
partaking in other fare; got pretty burned by the avocado
misadventure. Some refs to argue for it, perchance?

Also, it doesn't matter how dark the ketosticks are. In fact, if they are
CONSISTENTLY dark, you probably aren't drinking enough water. Being in ketosis
is like being pregnant -- you are or you aren't, so as long as it's registering
anywhere from pink to purple, you ARE in ketosis.

I dunno about this. I was under the impression that, assuming
hydration was kept constant, more ketones in the urine meant more fat
was being burned for energy (whether or not you're on Atkins).
Certainly that's what you read from the diabetic docs; the problem
there is the body burns fat instead of the sugars available in the
blood stream, and this causes Bad Things. Plus, heavy cardio has
multi-day effects on my ketosis levels, nicely filtering out hydration
effects.

I'm a geek, so I'm into quantification of such things.

--Dan

Dan Kaminsky wrote:

I dunno about this. I was under the impression that, assuming
hydration was kept constant, more ketones in the urine meant more fat
was being burned for energy (whether or not you're on Atkins).
Certainly that's what you read from the diabetic docs; the problem
there is the body burns fat instead of the sugars available in the
blood stream, and this causes Bad Things. Plus, heavy cardio has
multi-day effects on my ketosis levels, nicely filtering out hydration
effects.

In persons who are not Type I diabetic, there is a feedback loop, where
if ketone concentration gets too high, the body ceases metabolizing fats
and releases insulin.

--
jamie )

"There's a seeker born every minute."

In article ,
(Dan Kaminsky) wrote:

Why are you on less than 10 carbs per day?

Because my favorite foods (eggs, cheese, steak, burgers, chicken, etc)
are pretty low carb as it is?

Are you on Atkins? If so, you can
(and SHOULD) have up to 20 carbs per day. At 10 carbs, you can't be taking
in
much in the way of veggies. Don't get me wrong, I've had days where I had
very
vew carbs, but it was accidental.

I tend to use creamed spinach as a source of veggies. I might start
partaking in other fare; got pretty burned by the avocado
misadventure. Some refs to argue for it, perchance?


I don't have any references, other than common knowledge that non-starchy
vegetables have a lot of vitamins that you need. Oh, and fiber. Spinach
is a great one. I actually have to be careful with my spinach consumption,
not because of the carbs, but because sometimes I get too much fiber, if ya
know what I mean.

--
Michelle Levin
http://www.mindspring.com/~lunachick

I have only 3 flaws. My first flaw is thinking that I only have 3 flaws.

(Dan Kaminsky) wrote in message . com...
Why are you on less than 10 carbs per day?

Because my favorite foods (eggs, cheese, steak, burgers, chicken, etc)
are pretty low carb as it is?

Are you on Atkins? If so, you can
(and SHOULD) have up to 20 carbs per day. At 10 carbs, you can't be taking in
much in the way of veggies. Don't get me wrong, I've had days where I had very
vew carbs, but it was accidental.

I tend to use creamed spinach as a source of veggies. I might start
partaking in other fare; got pretty burned by the avocado
misadventure. Some refs to argue for it, perchance?

Also, it doesn't matter how dark the ketosticks are. In fact, if they are
CONSISTENTLY dark, you probably aren't drinking enough water. Being in ketosis
is like being pregnant -- you are or you aren't, so as long as it's registering
anywhere from pink to purple, you ARE in ketosis.

I dunno about this. I was under the impression that, assuming
hydration was kept constant, more ketones in the urine meant more fat
was being burned for energy (whether or not you're on Atkins).
Certainly that's what you read from the diabetic docs; the problem
there is the body burns fat instead of the sugars available in the
blood stream, and this causes Bad Things. Plus, heavy cardio has
multi-day effects on my ketosis levels, nicely filtering out hydration
effects.

I'm a geek, so I'm into quantification of such things.

--Dan


When Lance Armstrong recommends a low carb diet I'll believe it. Your
body can be forced to do lots of crazy things--not all that are good
for you.

When Lance Armstrong recommends a low carb diet I'll believe it. Your
body can be forced to do lots of crazy things--not all that are good
for you.

They need to give Lance Armstrong a cameo in X3; damn guy's a mutant
:-) Who the hell goes through chemo and is *stronger* for the
experience?

Watch out for the American cliche of, that which is easy and presently
good must necessarily be dangerous and long-term painful.

--Dan

In persons who are not Type I diabetic, there is a feedback loop, where
if ketone concentration gets too high, the body ceases metabolizing fats
and releases insulin.

Here's a question:

Are free-floating ketones energy sources, or waste material?

--Dan

"billydee" wrote in message
om...
When Lance Armstrong recommends a low carb diet I'll believe it. Your
body can be forced to do lots of crazy things--not all that are good
for you.

I guess that makes sense, if you are an endurance athlete. Lance Armstrong
demands more from his body in one day of training than I do in probably a
month of workouts. I would imagine his carb and energy needs are quite a
bit different from mine.

carla

Dan Kaminsky wrote:
Here's a question:

Are free-floating ketones energy sources, or waste material?

--Dan

Ketones are a fuel source.

The following explaines a lot regarding ketones/FFA:

http://www.humboldt.edu/~rap1/C431.F...C431n07Dec.htm




--
Rudy - Remove the Z from my address to respond.

"It is better to die on your feet than to live on your knees!"
-Emiliano Zapata

Check out the a.s.d.l-c FAQ at: http://www.grossweb.com/asdlc/faq.htm