I feel weak...

[dreamofdaughter]

Is this common on the LE diet? I can barely get through my 60 min runs anymore. I have to walk/run them now (mostly run but maybe a couple 30sec - 1 min breaks in between). I am hoping this is a sign of muscle loss/weakness. I am wondering how long I can keep with this diet, mostly. I see myself wasting a way and I feel weird about it. I am about 102 lbs (maybe less?) and 5'3. Our first attempt is this month. Praying for BFP just so I can eat more food and look less waifish...:(

[MrsEnglish]

That sounds bad. You have a BMI of 18, which is already slightly underweight. If you get too thin, you will stop ovulating. How thin is too thin is different for each individual; some women will stop their periods when they get a BMI of 18, but there have been female body builders who got to 10% body fat or less and got their period every month. BUT even if you are one of the lucky ones who can get really thin and still ovulate, it's just not healthy.

Are you eating carbs? Once I tried a keto diet and after just a few days felt weak on my runs, so I added in whole wheat pasta and then felt normal on my runs again.

I'm pretty sure atomic will tell you to stop losing weight and maybe even gain weight. The point of the LE diet is to be healthy and easy enough that you can sustain it for at least 6 months.

[dreamofdaughter]

Thanks for your response. I feel bad! I am eating tons of carbs in the form of veggies/fruit and whole grain bread and brown rice. I am definitely not trying to lose weight but I can only eat so much in the day esp with the not eating until 11/12. I eat at that time, then around 3 and then around 7/8. Not sure what else to do cause I can't snack. I am still ovulating. Had my hormones checked last month. Dr was very happy with my day 21 progesterone of 42. I started the fiber supps last month and it seemed to zap my energy so I think I will have to stop it. Maybe it reduces my nutrient absorption too much. I want to feel better energy wise which means eating more but also don't want to accidentally sway blue. The weird thing was I was feeling amazing on the LE diet with lots of exercise until about 2 weeks ago (when I added fiber..that's why I am
thinking it is related).

[atomic sagebrush]

Eat more food anyway. You are under the minimum cutoff of 18.5 and you may even be better off gaining some weight back.

Not being able to get through exercise you are used to doing is NOT a goal for our sway. You should continue to feel normal and healthy while swaying.

[atomic sagebrush]

Thanks for your response. I feel bad! I am eating tons of carbs in the form of veggies/fruit and whole grain bread and brown rice. I am definitely not trying to lose weight but I can only eat so much in the day esp with the not eating until 11/12. I eat at that time, then around 3 and then around 7/8. Not sure what else to do cause I can't snack. I am still ovulating. Had my hormones checked last month. Dr was very happy with my day 21 progesterone of 42. I started the fiber supps last month and it seemed to zap my energy so I think I will have to stop it. Maybe it reduces my nutrient absorption too much. I want to feel better energy wise which means eating more but also don't want to accidentally sway blue. The weird thing was I was feeling amazing on the LE diet with lots of exercise until about 2 weeks ago (when I added fiber..that's why I am
thinking it is related).

Add in another meal if need be. BMI 18 is not sustainable and it's better to go to 4 meals or even 5 than either be not getting enough food or snacking all day.

Just because you ovulated last month doesn't mean you will this month. Yes, drop fiber.

[atomic sagebrush]

also, how much potassium are you getting?

[dreamofdaughter]

Thank you so much atomic. I will happily add in another meal. :) I have no idea how much potassium I am getting tbh. I was carefully tracking protein fat and carbs and then I got fed up and felt obsessed so I quit tracking. So now I just have been eating what I think is enough. I have been feeling very mellow since I stopped tracking and I figured that was better for the sway. I do think the fiber was doing something to my testosterone because I have been feeling super calm and less irritable. But that could be due to being tired too. At any rate, I plan on dropping the fiber.

My days food might look like a whole grain bagel with margarine and some cream of wheat with rice milk or a homemade whole grain poppy seed muffin. Then some
Sweet potato crackers with hummus and mixed salad (kale, cabbage and poppy seed dressing).And then dinner would be two spinach and chickepea patties (Costco) with brown or white rice and at least a half cup of cooked broccoli. I would also have 3 dates after that if I felt like I wanted something sweet. But usually I try to go without them. I have been eating 4 whole eggs a week as you suggested and I also try to eat a small amount of salmon once a week. But mostly, I eat lentils or chickpeas for protein and margarine or other omega 6s for fat.

[dreamofdaughter]

Oh I forgot. I also eat at least one Apple a day and a cup of strawberries or raspberries and if I only have apples then I eat two a day.

[atomic sagebrush]

Ok. What happens sometimes is that when you're not tracking, it can be easy to cut back without really even realizing it. And as you get used to less food, it's really easy to eat a little less at meals without intending to since it doesn't feel like a super huge restriction like it does at the start. It doesn't take much, because the LE Diet is already lower limits, to fall below the limits and at BMI of 18 we can't do that. So I want you to track again just for a couple days and see how it adds up. Also, go to the store and get some coconut water or V8 juice or orange juice and have a good size serving of that every day to be sure you're getting enough potassium.

Since you aren't doing dairy (right?) I want you at 6-8 eggs a week instead.

[atomic sagebrush]

Oh I forgot. I also eat at least one Apple a day and a cup of strawberries or raspberries and if I only have apples then I eat two a day.

:agree: Keep doing this. You do not need fiber at all with the nice level of fruit and veg in your diet, so please don't worry that dropping it will have a negative effect on your sway.

[dreamofdaughter]

Ok. What happens sometimes is that when you're not tracking, it can be easy to cut back without really even realizing it. And as you get used to less food, it's really easy to eat a little less at meals without intending to since it doesn't feel like a super huge restriction like it does at the start. It doesn't take much, because the LE Diet is already lower limits, to fall below the limits and at BMI of 18 we can't do that. So I want you to track again just for a couple days and see how it adds up. Also, go to the store and get some coconut water or V8 juice or orange juice and have a good size serving of that every day to be sure you're getting enough potassium.

Since you aren't doing dairy (right?) I want you at 6-8 eggs a week instead.

Thanks atomic! I will do all this. :) Yes, I think you're right that I probably fell below the limits but I am pretty used to not eating a lot now so it doesn't feel as difficult - my stomach has definitely shrunk so much, it's hard to fit in a lot of food at each meal! I love eggs so I can definitely do that (yep, no dairy :))

Thanks again!

[atomic sagebrush]

Exactly!! I have done this with dieting in the past - not even with LE Diet but just with weight loss. I would realize "wow I'm really not eating much and I get full fast" so I'd be putting half-plates of food back in the fridge or tossing out the last few bites of every meal. Even though it was rarely much food all at once, when you're already eating 1500 cals a day, a few bites here and there and then the occasional half-meal added up and this was the only time I ever had diet affect my cycle! So just be sure you're getting the potassium foods and then try eating a bit more and keep us posted how it's going.

[atomic sagebrush]

Something else occurs to me, which is anemia. So let's try to rule that out (or solve it if it's there). Get an iron supplement of 18, 30, or 60 mg (any of these will be fine, no higher though) and I want you to take this daily for 2 weeks. You may feel profoundly better, in which case you should continue taking this daily for 6 weeks then reduce to 3x a week (but if you notice a return of symptoms, then please reup to daily)

Continue this even into pregnancy until such a point you have your iron levels tested, usually in the first trimester sometime. If your iron levels are normal then you can wean off at that point.