Can anyone advise me please? bit upset

[nicky1]

Hi all

This is now my fifth week on Cambridge SS plus, I weighed in this morning and only lost 2lbs, which I am a bit down about. I have some Ketostix here and have just tested myself and I'm not in ketosis. (I last did this about a week ago and it showed a light pink). I have stuck to the plan 100%, I just don't understand what I'm doing wrong.

I tested myself because I felt a hunger pang. I am drinking about 3L of water a day, am having porridge, tetra, shake/soup and a bar a day, with a dash of milk in my tea.

What is going on???

I have had a cold this week, and have taken ibuprofen/paracetamol, and have been taking dulcolax every 3 or so days...

any help would be really great, thanks.

I feel like crying...

 

[x-Katie-x]

To be perfectly honest I'd say that it's most likely that you are in ketosis and you're just using a dodgy stick or something. I've never used a ketostick while doing this as as long as I'm 100% then I know that I'll be in ketosis.

The only things you've mentioned that I don't know whether it would knock you out of ketosis are milk --- it may be that it doesn't but I've never had it so wouldn't know and also someone once posted that dulcolax might knock you out but I've always (don't mean that I take them a lot) taken them.

So please don't go off the sticks --- pee sticks that test whether you're pregnant even when done by a dr and hospital haven't worked on me before!!

 

[nicky1]

thank you for taking the time to reply. I am going to re-test tomorrow morning first wee, and am going to take out my bar a day (sob..), and see what that does. I have done LL before and this never happened to me, I happily had 3 shakes and a bar a day, and lost much more weight. This time its a lot slower to come off, but I'm older, have a little less to lose this time. I will also knock the Dulcolax on the head.. thank you.

 

[sasha63]

your better to test in morning, all the water you've drank may have diluted the test reading, l have bar every day has never effect me the best part of day for me. l also have slow loss this week dont be hard on yourself

 

[Stinkybreath]

Yes i agree that the stick could have goven wrong reading, i bet when you test in morning it will be pink. If i test later in the day i sometimes get a reading saying not in ketosis, as sasha said you have been diluted with the water you have been drinking all day. Don't worry about it and don't be down.

 

[sumayyah]

a 2lb loss doesnt mean theres anything wrong hun. my last weigh in, 100% ss was 1lb, i turned the air blue when i got in my car, next week will be better im sure
oh and the water you drank can dilute the ketones in your wee to a level thats un recordable on the sticks, best to test first thing if at all
( ive not tested at all this time round )

 

[mrsessex]

As above ladies have said sticks are a nightmare

I've never tested once on cd I don't need to!

Keep doing what you're doing, 2 pounds is fine. My loses tended to go anything from zero loss to 7 pounds, very erratic. Loss is a loss .

 

[sleepybird]

I bet you have lost inches though, don't be disheartened my lovely. Keep going x

 

[Lily]

I've got no more advice to add to the brilliant advice you've had already, other than to say...

(1) I wish CDCs would tell their clients right at the beginning that they're not always going to lose 3 or 4 pounds a week. That actually, every now and again, you might even have a week where you don't lose anything. It's entirely normal. It would save an awful lot of heartache. :hug99: It certainly doesn't mean you've done anything wrong, and in my experience, a smaller loss one week is almost always followed by a much bigger one the next to make up for it.

and

(2) every now and again, you're going to feel hungry. Because newsflash - you are hungry. Ketosis masks most of the symptoms and makes it just about bearable, but it isn't necessary to be in ketosis to lose weight. So sometimes, when doing SS, you're going to have use diversion tactics, like brushing your teeth, taking a bath, a walk, painting your nails, going to bed early.

Most likely, it's having the cold that made you hungry - infections often do. It's probably best not to rely on Dulcolax if you can help it - once unbunged, try using some Fibre89 in your shakes/soups (available from your CDC) to help keep you regular.

I know it's hard (oh God knows, I know it's hard), but try not think in terms of 'only two pounds' and keep the bigger picture in mind - of how much you've lost in the last 5 weeks. Cos I'd lay money on it being much more than you could possibly have lost doing any other diet!

Keep your chin up, hun.

{{{Hugs}}}

 

[nicky1]

thank you all so much for taking the time to reply, your kind words are most comforting.

I will get some Fibre 89 stuff I think. I have tested this morning, and the stick is a faint pink, I won't be doing it again!! My counsellor did act surprised when I 'only' lost 2lbs this week(!) I was questioned, not unkindly, have you eaten? I haven't.

I have done LL before, and lost steadily through the duration, I lost 4 stone in 100 days, I just worry I have buggered up my metabolism with all the yoyoing up and down and it doesn't 'work' any more.

I also get a bit concerned if ketosis isn't happening, then you are losing weight through the 'unsafe' way of crash dieting where you are losing muscle mass instead of just burning fat. (And if you read all the scare stories, this is where people start to have heart problems..) As much as I want to lose weight I don't want to give myself a heart problem..

thanks all

 

[KD]

I also get a bit concerned if ketosis isn't happening, then you are losing weight through the 'unsafe' way of crash dieting where you are losing muscle mass instead of just burning fat.

You'll be burning fat and the protein will ensure that you aren't losing unnecessary muscle mass.

The stix are a pain. They aren't to test if you are in ketosis as so many people think. They are for diabetics and test for ketones in the urine. You'll only get ketones in the urine if you body has some left over after it's used what it needs. Mine never went pink.

If you think the bars are causing the problem, then switch to the peanut or cran bars as they have similar carbs to the shakes.

2lbs is fab. It's absolutely fine. The scales just weigh your whole body composition, not just fat loss. Scales are fickle. Weight loss is fickle.

The only thing you can control is keeping to the diet and the fat will melt away whether you weigh/pee on sticks/ or whatever. Promise.

 

[stokegal]

Hi Nicky

Did your CDC measure you as well. Sometime if you've not lost weight you may have lost inches - I know I didn't lose any weight last week but when my CDC measured me I'd lost 2 inches off my waist and 2 and 1/2 inches off my hips. I personally find the inch loss a bigger motivation than what the scales say.

Stokegal

 

[nicky1]

Hi all, I only have the peanut and cranberry bars, I don't like the rest, but on the advice of my counsellor, I am going to just have 1 porridge, and the rest tetras/shakes for the rest of the week, then I'll see what happens then. I didn't get measured this week, but overall I had lost 8 inches in just under 4 weeks as of last Sat.... I'm really so grateful to you all for your help, and support, thank you.

 

[Chlo]

Throw away the sticks, you really don't need them, and all they have managed to do is stress you out. If you stick to the diet it will work, just have faith.

With regards to the 2lbs, thats just the way it is, some weeks we have a smaller loss due to some random variable, but generally will have a larger weight loss the week after.

You are doing fab, keep it up, and stop stressing.

 

[fitz]

If its any consolation, I never change colour on the ketostix - on the rare occassions that I've looked it never changes & my losses are 1-3lbs a week - I also did LL previously (6 yr ago) & had better losses although I am looking at the bigger picture this time & know for certain that there is NO WAY I would have lost 20lb in 6 weeks on any other plan xx