Introduction and ? about excercise

[shamarie]

Hi All...

I had great success with Atkins several years ago, but that way of life got away from me. So...back on wagon for me. I am on day 10 of induction, and so far so good. I even scooped up Peanut Butter Cup ice cream for the fam last night without sneaking a bite, or even drooling! I didn't weigh myself until a few days in, but have steadily been losing, and believe myself to be down about 7 or 8 lbs. I have 15-20 more to go (we'll see what the mirror says at that time).

My problem is...I like to run as my main source of excercise. Now, mind you, I knew that during this induction period I wasn't going to have quite the energy I had prior, but I went out for a jog for the first time after a couple weeks last night...and it was ugly. My legs felt like dead weight after 3/4 of a mile (whereas I usually can jog at least 3 miles without too many problems). Has anyone found that they regained the ability to jog successfully, even with the lack of carbs as fuel? Perhaps I just need to focus on alternative forms of excercise?

Appreciate your input!

[Greeneggs&ham]

Assuming you're certain that your legs weren't sluggish as a result of either the temperature or the time off (I took two weeks off for other reasons once and had a hard time re-starting too), I would look at how much time between eating and jogging you are allowing.

I typically try to run in early morning or late afternoon -- in the morning I run before eating anything and in the afternoon, I run about 3-4 hours after a meal. I've always assumed that gave my body time to both digest the "lump of meat' I fed it, and to convert a good chunk of dietary fat to energy.

What I am more likely to see is that I can't go long distances without "bonking" from lack of energy, although that has never happened for a 3-4 mile job. Good luck!

[liv]

We have a running thread in the exercise forum. Come join us. Many of us run. Betty runs marathons and stuff and she has low carbed for 7 years I think.
I run 3-4 days a week for exercise. No problem.
Just give yourself a bit of time to adjust. Your body will use ketones for energy very effectively but it may take a bit of time.

[rosie321]

Hi there!

I also run as my main form of exercise. Before I started Atkins I'd routinely run 4-miles 3-4 days a week in addition to strength training 3 days a week. I did my first induction a couple months ago and had no energy at all. I was lucky if I made it to a mile-and-a-half. During my strength training classes at the gym I'd be pooped a half-hour into class. It was really discouraging because I felt like I had to sacrifice my typical exercise routine to do this WOL. I really push myself when I work out and was not prepared to "take it easy" on the exercise front.

I restarted induction couple weeks ago and decided to do things a little differently. About a half hour before working out I ate 1/2 of an Atkins Advantage Bar for the extra carb boost. I KNOW how frowned upon the Atkins products are so I'm not suggesting that you do the same, but I can say that exercising was much easier this time around. I guess I've justified the bars because I know how hard my body is working and I figured those carbs would be the first to go, if in fact my body can't handle the sugar alcohols. I finished my second day of OWL yesterday and was able to run my full 4-miles for the first time since starting Atkins up again. I do plan on removing the bars from my diet as I "climb the ladder" though.

So again, this is just my personal experience, and what I did to cope with the fatigue. I think once your body becomes more used to lypolysis rather than glucosis, exercise becomes easier.

Good luck!

[shamarie]

Thank you Rosie, and everyone. I'm just gonna give it some time and try to keep on truckin'. I'll check out the runners forum too.

[imagood1]

I just finished a week of re-induction (after being laid up for a few days and going out of keotsis). My first day back on exercise I rode my bike 15 miles -- since then every day I have riden 25 miles -- my stamina came back by keeping at it.

I eat breakfast and wait about an hour to go ride -- it takes 2 hours exactly-- I was riding 25 miles in 2 hours 20 minutes before I got out of keotsis. Keep at it -- start slow and work your way back into your routine.