Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

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Im 24. Over the past few months I took up paleo, lost tons of weight, and became extremely active doing an Insanity program and, more recently, distance running. I have celiac disease so paleo worked great for me.

However, the past few weeks i have started to feel off. I eat tons of grassfed meat and wildcaught fish and leafy greens and other vegetables. But I started to get a brain fog, almost like I've been glutened. I can't think well and Im really mopey and depressed. I feel less functional at work. Im beginning to wonder if my 5k's, Insanity, and no carb diet are causing me to crash, because I cant figure out what I ate that would have trace amounts of gluten in it. My athletic performance is going downhill too. I died after 1 mile yesterday.

What's wrong with me?

edited Oct 15 at 16:54

asked Oct 15 at 16:49

RacerRex9727
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What's wrong with you is that you aren't eating carbs. – Nasty Brutish and Short Oct 15 at 17:19

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Overtraining. This is exactly what happened to me and it took weeks and weeks to get over. Repent! – NewEra Oct 15 at 19:34

Okay, so I took a week off and decided to increase my carb intake (added two bananas) as an experiment even though I wasn't working out. My energy levels went straight up, my brain fog went away, and I returned to being highly productive at work. This morning I ran 2.5 miles and conquered it. So I guess you all were right. It was a combination of overtraining and lack of carb intake. I might have overcompensated my carb intake this week, so I got to find a balance between diet and working out so I don't get fat again. – RacerRex9727 Oct 21 at 15:17

Bean · Answer 1 · 2012-10-15 17:22:58Z UTC

This happens to me occasionally and it took me a few times to figure out that I was exhausted/overtraining. For me, the biggest indicator is feeling mopey or depressed as that is very out of character for me normally.

My suggestion would be to take a week off from intense excercise. If you need to be active, replace it with mellow walks, yoga or a light swim...let your body rest! Then all the other standard stuff: continue to eat healthy, lots of rest and drink plenty of water. Avoid caffeine and consider upping your carbs and seeing how this makes you feel. I add Maca Powder to my diet to help my adrenal glands but this is a personal preference.

See how you feel after your week of rest and don't be afraid to take another one. Overexhaustion can take awhile to come back from and it can also cause permanent damage so take your time adding back in your intense workouts.

Edit: When you say zero carbs? what does that mean? As an active person, you should definitely try adding more into your diet.

Paleodude · Answer 2 · 2012-10-15 17:48:06Z UTC

Even Mark Sisson, Mr. Primal Blueprint, eats 100 grams or so a day of carbs. Mark works out intensely a few times a week too. My guess is you are under carbed and over trained. You need to find some balance between workouts and carbs. I increase carbs post workout and on resting days cut WAY back on carbs. Try resting as others have recommended and increasing carbs on workout days.

Ryan · Answer 3 · 2012-10-15 17:26:18Z UTC

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I recently dramatically increased my salt intake and I feel better in general. So far, my afternoon crashes have mostly gone away. I take in some salt throughout the day instead of just at mealtimes, and I make sure to get plenty of salt with me meals. I give credit to this thread:

http://paleohacks.com/questions/130718/the-great-n1-salt-experiment-aka-how-i-found-the-final-piece-to-my-energy-puzzl#axzz29ODs9NmF

answered Oct 15 at 17:26

Ryan
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	Do you do iodized salt or kosher salt? – RacerRex9727 Oct 15 at 17:56
	Both, at the moment. I already had some plain iodized table salt at work so I use that during the day. At home, I have "nicer" salts like sea salt and Himalayan pink salt. I upped my iodine intake a few months back via seaweed, but I still had afternoon crashes at work that the salt seems to be helping with. – Ryan Oct 15 at 18:01

rooky · Answer 4 · 2012-10-15 17:45:26Z UTC

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Your body needs the carbohyrates. Eat them!

answered Oct 15 at 17:45

rooky
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crightfunnylol · Answer 5 · 2012-10-15 17:50:40Z UTC

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maybe its time for a carb refeed, it will get you back on track

answered Oct 15 at 17:50

crightfunnylol
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wudshapr · Answer 6 · 2012-10-15 18:37:39Z UTC

"However, the past few weeks i have started to feel off."

"Zero carbs may be a slight exaggeration... but for the past few weeks I did stop eating fruit and other "paleo carbs" and mostly stuck with vegetables and meat."

I have taken the time to copy and paste a quote from your OP, and one from a response you wrote to a comment. I will leave them here for you to read over and analyze, for your answer might be within your own words.

mamasaid · Answer 7 · 2012-10-16 04:35:46Z UTC

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I agree with the above comments that you need everything mentioned - salt, rest, and carbs - just wanted to add that you're likely low on potassium as well, as many low carbers are. Jacked up electrolytes can wreak havoc on even a sloth, so with your activity level, it's no wonder you feel like crap. You could easily be hypoglycemic as well. Are you punishing yourself for something?

answered Oct 16 at 4:35

mamasaid
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	No, I was having so much success losing weight I got all caught up in minimizing my carbs. I guess after going down two jean sizes I don't have any more fat to lose and I started crashing. – RacerRex9727 Oct 21 at 15:20
	I hear ya - been there, done that. Glad to hear that adding carbs helped. Regular refeeds may not be a bad idea unless you're not too apprehensive to increase your daily intake and fiddle with the numbers until you find the level at which you look and feel your best. Good luck with finding your personal sweet spot. – mamasaid Oct 22 at 1:47

Hack my lifestyle! Why am i crashing?

7 Answers