"my tummy just won't lean out" - if you're a woman, your tummy is NOT supposed to "lean out." That little stash of fat right below your belly button? You need that. If you don't have it, it means you're so underweight you've become infertile. Magazines photoshop it out so they can make you feel terrible enough about your healthy, natural body that you buy stupid crash diet plans, not because that's what women are supposed to look like.

I agree about raising your carb intake, too. Can't comment on raising carbs vs. lowering fats, since I never track anything that precisely, but if you're craving sugar, there's nothing wrong with including some safe starches into your diet. For some people, that can apparently even help them off a weight-loss plateau.

Just one thing - chewing gum causes you to swallow air which will give you bloat. Another reason to kick the habit.

Also broccoli is gassy for some people (like me!)

I had similar problems when I went keto (check my recent thread). I went keto and I became lethargic for months, because for some people, their thyroid starts creating rT3 instead of T3 when their gut is not in the best shape to make the jump from glucose to fat. In other words, they fall into hibernation. I'd suggest you check your Reverse T3 hormone (among the other main thyroid hormones), and in the meantime, go up to 150 gr of carbs, adding fruits and starches. You will gain a bit of weight but doing so, but it's important to know if that's what's causing the trouble. If that's the problem, then you will have to go down to 50gr of net carbs slowly, in a matter of a year or more.

Like Eugenia said, have your thyroid checked. You can also experiment a little. Try including a sweet potato with butter in your lunch and see if you have the same experience afterward. You honestly may just need to up your carbs a little bit to get over this hump.

Also, please keep in mind that women are designed to have a little extra padding around the middle in order to carry and deliver healthy babies. That pooch you don't like may just be biological.

One observation - the typical lunch you describe has a few items high in salicylates (coconut oil and avocado) and one moderate in salicylates (broccoli). The symptoms you are describing could match up with symptoms of salicylate sensitivity. Have you ever noticed feeling similarly unwell after takin aspirin or Pepto Bismol?

I have only recently switched to full Paleo (I was using brown rice and sweet potatoes) but I was using coconut oil everyday and eating spinach, avocado and cayenne pepper on a daily basis (all high in sals) and after going full paleo still eating them. Recently I decided to try eliminating as much salicylate from my diet as possible (bummer cause I just bought 2 gallons of extra virgin coconut oil, switched to grass fed butter and tallow for the experiment) and I am feeling significantly better after 10 days of this in terms of bowel function, less fatigue and headaches, and less joint pain.

Might be worth a little experimentation to check out, along with the other good suggestions here.

Chicken is high in polyunsaturated fats which oxidizes easily when you cook it, which creates oxidative stress in the body and should only be eaten on rare occasions. You may be exposed to some toxins/mycotoxins either in your diet or your environment, which can make you fat. To drastically cut down the toxins you are eating I would suggest you have a look at the bulletproof diet at http://www.bulletproofexec.com/the-complete-illustrated-one-page-bulletproof-diet/. Cut down the exercise to only three sessions a week, probably 2 lifting sessions and one cardio would be ok(ideally 3 lifting sessions).

I don't know if this is the case with you, but if you are eating that lunch all at once, it may well make you feel tired and bloated. Your body has to digest all that and digestion takes energy independent of the macro ratios. You may want to spread that out into some smaller meals if you aren't already doing so. If you are feeling "stuffed" then you are eating too much at once.

Also, if you want to be more active then you may need to up your carbs to compensate. I try to do low carb most days, especially when I am in the office or otherwise at a low activity level. If I am going to go hiking or work in the yard or do something else strenuous, I make a point of getting some carbs in me either right before or right after. Doesn't have to be a crazy amount, and you should balance it with some fat and protein.

hey guys, thanks for the responses. So is the general consensus that I should perhaps up my carbs a little and maybe try giving red meat a go instead of so much chicken? Now, If I am going to up my carb intake shouldn't my fats come down a little? What is the protocol for the macros when increasing carb content? I did read somewhere for every gram of carb you increase you should decrease 1-2g fats.

I think I will up my carb intake slowly maybe to 50-60 to start since I have been eating way under that. I generally have around 80-100g fats a day. So what do I do?

I do plan on getting blood work done in which I will check thyroid again and other levels of importance. I appreciate everyone's input.

Please if someone could answer about the carb intake and fats macro wise that would be great.

thanks!

Brandi (sportsfreak17)

Thanks Maria,

I just want to lose a little bit of the pudge. I know that having a completely ripped stomach is unrealistic but I do believe I have a little extra fat that I could get rid of and no doubt be in a healthy weight range. After doing some research here and on mark's website I think I'll try macros with

136g protein (1lb per body weight ish) (35%) 58g carbs (15%) 85g fats (50%)

I'm thinking I will cut back on vegetable based oils and maybe trying getting my fats through meats and maybe grass fed butter if I can find some. What about coconut butters?

If I'm feeling good on this style of macros awesome..if not maybe I will continue to increase carbs and see what happens. It's so tricky because I gain weight really easily with the pcos. I also have issues with blood sugars when I eat specific things. That is why I went very low carb in this first place.

again I do appreciate the answers everyone... thank you so much.

if anyone wants to hack those macro ratios I will definitely take your opinion under great consideration. I just want to keep in mind I have been vlc for almost 2 months/