Diet Problem

[Arbolado]

32 days ago I started the AIP diet recommended by Amy Myers MD. My wife had cancer a little over 10 years ago and since then has never felt well. She has had various symptoms of autoimmune disease along with fibromyalgia. Before cancer/chemo we were a pretty active family, biking, hiking, camping, skiing etc, but since the cancer/chemo it's been difficult for her to even go for long walks. Recently her doctor suggested that she should try going vegan, that many of his chemo patients have suffered similar symptoms as she has and some have had success going vegan and reducing or eliminating their symptoms. So my wife started researching diet and autoimmune disease and settled upon the AIP diet after talking to her doctor. Now I didn't have to do the diet, but I wanted to be supportive and see what happened. Some good some bad and the bad is why I am writing this post, to see if anyone has any thoughts on my dilemma.

I'm 51 yrs old and I'm 6'5", before the diet I was 227.5 lbs (my doctor likes me around 217 based upon my build) and riding my bike 80-100 miles a week and swimming around 10k yards a week. Besides feeling like a pig riding up hills I thought I was doing pretty good. Since the diet I have dropped 15.5 lbs and I'm down to 212 which I'm happy about. However, since I started the diet I have no power on the bike or in the pool, everything is a slow slog of survival to get through a ride or a swim. And that's the problem, I'm not enjoying either one, its just a chore. I'm surprised with how I feel. For the diet I have given up, gluten, dairy, sugar, alcohol and I have gone from five cups of coffee a day to one (I sleep great now). But I eat a ton, I never feel hungry. I eat chicken, fish (wild salmon and halibut), sweet potatoes, yams, salad, fruit, berries, dates, vegetables. I think I'm getting enough carbs from the fruit and the sweet potato and yams, but its not translating to any energy on the bike.

I can't seem to find any information on this diet and its effects on exercise. In the past I have eliminated carbs from my diet and I always knew that around 90 min or so on the bike I would start to bonk, but those first 90 min were good. Right now I don't even get five minutes of good feeling. I will say that I feel great in every other aspect of my life, I sleep better, my indigestion is gone and my head is clear all day long, plus I have no cravings for food. Its just the problem with exercising and hard efforts.

Thx.

[joosttx]

What is your daily protein intake before the diet and now?

What is your % muscle mass before and after


How many times do you eat during the day? Before and now?

[Mabouya]

I'm no expert, so I'd talk to a professional nutritionist.

Clearly you want to a) support your wife as best you can, while not necessarily slavishly following a diet regimen that probably wasn't designed for people in your situation, b) retain the benefits you've seen for yourself, and c) eliminate the down sides.

[jumphigher]

I'm no expert, so I'd talk to a professional nutritionist.

Clearly you want to a) support your wife as best you can, while not necessarily slavishly following a diet regimen that probably wasn't designed for people in your situation, b) retain the benefits you've seen for yourself, and c) eliminate the down sides.

I agree. Talk to a nutritionist in this situation.

[wasfast]

While the goals of eliminating all those things are ultimately good, that's a pretty big cliff for your body after all of it's (somewhat) long life. The combination of no sugar, no caffeine and little carbs mean your adapted energy boost supplies are suddenly in short supply.

I started ketogenic (low carbs essentially) several years ago and for the first 3 weeks, I was trashed. My blood sugar thought the apocalypse had happened. I had less energy and certainly didn't feel awesome on the bike but I was determined. I started feeling better after that. Perhaps you're still reeling from the sudden change? The other comments about protein would also seem relevant but I'm just an armchair commentator.

[rabo]

I would say your body needs way more than 32 days to adapt to a diet.
Or maybe your body is telling you, the diet is not the best for the power side of performance.
Do you feel you have no power, or do you have numbers to back it up?
Eat like before for a week and see if there really is a difference?

[jsivvy]

Since the diet I have dropped 15.5 lbs and I'm down to 212 which I'm happy about. However, since I started the diet I have no power on the bike or in the pool, everything is a slow slog of survival to get through a ride or a swim.

If I'm reading this correctly, you've lost circa 16lbs in 32 days. That's a huge amount of weight to lose that quickly, and will certainly result in lack of energy. It's very difficult to lose any amount of weight, more than a couple lbs a month, without feeling tired/out of energy while training. Give it some more time until the weight loss rate reduces and I expect your energy will rebound.

[ChristianWong]

If I'm reading this correctly, you've lost circa 16lbs in 32 days. That's a huge amount of weight to lose that quickly, and will certainly result in lack of energy. It's very difficult to lose any amount of weight, more than a couple lbs a month, without feeling tired/out of energy while training. Give it some more time until the weight loss rate reduces and I expect your energy will rebound.

While it is a considerable amount of weight to lose, OP is a big dude and the proportionate loss is not as great as it seems. At 6'3" I had a similar fluctuation, although from a loss of upper body mass when I took up cycling and stopped mindlessly lifting weights.

I agree that visiting a nutritionist is the way to go here. This is a drastic change and the body needs time to adjust but having some professional supervision over the transition period can't hurt.

[MMM]

If I'm reading this correctly, you've lost circa 16lbs in 32 days. That's a huge amount of weight to lose that quickly, and will certainly result in lack of energy. It's very difficult to lose any amount of weight, more than a couple lbs a month, without feeling tired/out of energy while training. Give it some more time until the weight loss rate reduces and I expect your energy will rebound.

2000 calorie deficit per day seems excessive (not sure what your typical RMR). I try to target 500-1000 calorie per day when trying to lose weight (1-2lbs/wk).

[guido]

Sounds like what I experienced the first time I tried the Paleo diet. I recently have tried again and had much better luck by going even more restrictive on carbs, ie. staying in the Keto range. Cutting out all the starches and grains, getting adequate good fat (way more than you think you need -- avocado is your friend), clean protein and moderate amounts of multicolored vegies, I now can go about 6 hours of hard fast hill walking/hiking on just water and a packet of almond butter.
Any carb restricted diet will reduce your anaerobic top end power in exchange for easily sustained aerobic moderate output. It is very common to experience the "low carb flu" when your body is making the change is quite expected. Hang in there! However expecting the same performance response when making big dietary changes like this will lead to disappointment.
Your mileage may vary, etc.
Best of luck!

[rec head]

Only slightly OT but is the diet helping your wife?