Ketone meters

[A Jay]

I can't edit my previous comments, so I'll just create a new one.

The only real caveat to BBS is their 'Inroad Theory of Exercise', which isn't the whole story in triggering an adaptive response by the body though it is part of it. This is the best I can find right now on 'inroad theory' and its shortcomings:

These studies demonstrate that the concept of “inroad” is flawed. We are dealing with two different physiological phenomena. The first is short term muscle fatigue / force decrement due to metabolic perturbations, substrate depletion, and possibly short term changes in the t-tubules. The second is long term force decrement resulting from damage to the contractile and non-contractile cytoskeletal proteins, plasma membrane, and longer term changes in the t-tubules (such as the formation of vacuoles) accompanied by other disruptions in the E-C coupling system distal to the neuromuscular junction.

_http://baye.com/ryan-hall-on-inroad/

 

[hlat]

Does any member want an unopened sealed Nova Max ketone meter? Based on what I've read, it seems less user friendly than the Precision Xtra, so I'm keeping the Precision Xtra and giving away the Nova Max.

 

[Arwenn]

What are your thoughts about that? Have you seen any correlation between glucose and ketone readings?

Yeah I too have noticed an inverse correlation between glucose and ketone readings (i.e. if glucose was high, ketones would be low and vice versa). What threw things out was when I was severely stressed a couple of weeks ago, and I had high glucose AND ketone readings. I have been pretty good with watching my diet (& intake of macro-nutrients) and staying in ketosis, so the only thing I could put it down to, was cortisol from the stress response, putting glucose in my bloodstream.
So there was proof right there in front of my eyes, the insidious damage that being under stress can do!

 

[trendsetter37]

So there was proof right there in front of my eyes, the insidious damage that being under stress can do!

Yea wow that's pretty interesting and I guess it lends credence to really taking care of ourselves on multiple levels and not just diet, knowledge input, or stress management (EE/Breathing/Managing emotions) separately, but together all at once.

As for the home workout regimen I am not too well versed in the different ways of bodyweight resistance training. My initial guess would be slow squats, lunges, and push-ups. However, I will would mostly have to divert this to A Jay as I think he has a lot more tricks up his sleeve in this area.

Also if you have dumbells for curls, triceps, and shoulder exercises that would be useful as well. You may have already seen this thread but it looks like a pretty good starting point.

P.S. I can totally understand not wanting to go to the gym :P, Some of the stuff I see there is pretty crazy. The other day I saw this guy flexing his chest in the mirror. Rythmically ...I tried not to smirk because it was just silly; but keeping my composure turned into a workout in and of itself.

 

[Arwenn]

Hey A Jay, wow those sugar levels are looking good! Well done. :)

Thanks! :)

I am wondering though, can dehydration lead to low blood sugar levels and nausea? I added too much salt to my morning salt water yesterday, and it lead to some very unfortunate and dehydrating bathroom visits. I think it's called a 'salt flush'. After two or three of these visits, I felt very nauseated and when I tested my blood sugar it got down to 56 mg/dL. Which I know is really low. The only thing that helped was drinking a lot of water, which eventually got me back up to 77 mg/dL this morning. So again I'm wondering if it's the dehydration, low salt, low potassium, or a combination thereof that was causing my low blood sugar and subsequent nausea. Rather unpleasant experience, but it's helping better understand everything so I guess it's not so bad. :/

Now, off the topic of ketone meters, I've been following your dialogue with trendsetter about weights and training with interest. Sounds like BBS is a good read, I'll add that to my (never-ending) book list. Do you guys have any recommendations or suggestions for toning up? I'm a petite (5ft1") female, and I don't want to bulk up, just convert some flab to muscle. Ketone levels vary from 0.6- 2.5 mmol/L, and sugar between 3 & 6 mmol/L. I'm restricting carbs to around 25gm, protein to 60 gm and fats 100 gm. I don't drink much water & it's definitely something I need to do more of.

I have a gym set at home (I tried going to the gym, but got totally scared by all the Incredible Hulks). So any ideas of a basic routine that I could do at home?

Sure, I can make some suggestions. What type of equipment do you have access to?

BBS is a great read, I highly recommend it. There is a portion pertaining to the 'Inroad Theory of Exercise' that is off the mark, which is something I forgot to mention in my comment to trendsetter, but it's still very solid otherwise. I'll go back and edit my comment to include the caveat.

Umm, that salt flush does not sound pleasant. :/ Maybe watch the salt/water intake- also what supplements are you taking? When I first started dramatically increasing fat intake, I had to take digestive enzymes or I would feel nauseous.


I have a home bench press, similar to this:

with a barbell/dumbell set like this:

 

[Arwenn]

As for the home workout regimen I am not too well versed in the different ways of bodyweight resistance training. My initial guess would be slow squats, lunges, and push-ups. However, I will would mostly have to divert this to A Jay as I think he has a lot more tricks up his sleeve in this area.

Also if you have dumbells for curls, triceps, and shoulder exercises that would be useful as well. You may have already seen this thread but it looks like a pretty good starting point.

P.S. I can totally understand not wanting to go to the gym :P, Some of the stuff I see there is pretty crazy. The other day I saw this guy flexing his chest in the mirror. Rythmically ...I tried not to smirk because it was just silly; but keeping my composure turned into a workout in and of itself.

Thanks for the link to the other thread, trendsetter. Hmmm, I don't have a kettle-bell, but I'm sure a dumbbell or barbell will suffice. Yeah, I have tried the gym a few times over the years- I'm afraid it's just not for me (experiences similar to old mate you describe above, as well as the whole meat-market thing :/ ). So, best to train at home in privacy away from what I consider a fairly toxic and superficial environment.

 

[Gaby]

So my first experiment after over a month in the ketogenic diet... These ones are after a few sips of green tea.

Glucose levels: 74 mg/dl
Ketones: 6.4 mmol (Ouch!).

I ate eggs with onions before going to bed last night because I was hungry. I also lost 1 kilo throughout all this period, but I gained muscular mass... I have a knee problem, a post-traumatic meniscus injury after carrying heavy weights back and forth. When I started exercising, it began to hurt less since I'm developing the leg muscles which supports the knee. So, no muscular loss, but rather development. But I can definitely have more fat and water!

Now I'm going to start loading on water to see if I arrive to a more decent ketosis range! :)

I sustain my aberration towards pricking my finger though! :/

 

[luc]

P.S. I can totally understand not wanting to go to the gym :P, Some of the stuff I see there is pretty crazy. The other day I saw this guy flexing his chest in the mirror. Rythmically ...I tried not to smirk because it was just silly; but keeping my composure turned into a workout in and of itself.

Same here :) - we really have to force ourselves to go to the gym because of the "bad vibes". We usually go during non-peak hours, so our exposure to the "somatic narcissists" is somehow limited, but what drives me NUTS is the music! It's one of those Top-40-stations and the "music" that is played can only be described as plain Satanic.

We are bound for 2 years to the gym (that's the way it's done here in most places) and I'm not sure if we would do it again - maybe it's better indeed to own your own basic equipment. On the other hand, you have plenty of options in the gym, plus we see it as an exercise to ignore the toxic environment and just "do our thing"...

 

[Arwenn]

So my first experiment after over a month in the ketogenic diet... These ones are after a few sips of green tea.

Glucose levels: 74 mg/dl
Ketones: 6.4 mmol (Ouch!).

I ate eggs with onions before going to bed last night because I was hungry. I also lost 1 kilo throughout all this period, but I gained muscular mass... I have a knee problem, a post-traumatic meniscus injury after carrying heavy weights back and forth. When I started exercising, it began to hurt less since I'm developing the leg muscles which supports the knee. So, no muscular loss, but rather development. But I can definitely have more fat and water!

Now I'm going to start loading on water to see if I arrive to a more decent ketosis range! :)

I sustain my aberration towards pricking my finger though! :/

Wow, Gaby those are high ketone levels! The highest I've gotten is 2.5 mmol/L. So I obviously need to up the fat intake more. You'll have to keep us posted on how increasing water affects your ketones.

I'm having a portion of keto custard, a few cashews and a bit of dinner with the kids (usually lean protein with lots of butter, or a really fatty bit of meat like ribs, with a small salad with olive oil, salt & lemon for dressing). I'd really like to know what you are eating Gaby, to be getting such high blood ketone levels. I think optimally for me, I'd like to sit on 1.5- 2mmol/L for ketones.

 

[Gaby]

I'd really like to know what you are eating Gaby, to be getting such high blood ketone levels. I think optimally for me, I'd like to sit on 1.5- 2mmol/L for ketones.

Lol! Well, I think there are other factors at play. I know water is a big one as I'm getting thirstier. It is like ketoacidosis in diabetics, often hydrating takes care of the greatest risks during ketoacidosis. I also have had a few nights of bad sleep, plus I started to exercise and do more activities. I need to do keto calculations again to more active instead of lightly active.

For breakfast I have eggs and bacon, for lunch I cook a big portion of green beans with pork chops and more bacon. I usually can't eat that in one gulp, so one portion at lunch and the rest in the late afternoon or so. I eat one portion of custard per day, sometimes one and a half.

I always eat when I'm hungry, like last night with the eggs and onions before going to bed. Well, now that I remember, I was out in the weekend and did intermittent fasting. You know, running around in another city and then you see food and it is like "yuk! I don't fancy eating outside". So I ate ham and didn't had enough water, other than my normal breakfast. So perhaps that tipped off the balance. I have the bad habit of not drinking enough when I'm outside as I don't like using public toilets.

Will let you all know how it goes. And here was me wondering if I was in ketosis range. I'm in total fast/starvation range!

I'm feeling good though. Will repeat tomorrow or so with plenty of water after waking up, just like Emmerich said.

 

[jsf]

If you live in France and search for a ketone meter, I've found one here :

_http://www.techni-contact.com/produits/2430-1385501-lecteur-de-glycemies-et-de-cetones-optium.html

It is an Optium Xceed on this page, and they sent me a wrong meter (CareSens, only for glucose), so I returned it and they sent me back a FREESTYLE OPTIUM NEO.

You can also find a FreeStyle Optium here :

_http://www.boutique-hado.fr/Lecteur-de-glycemie-Optium-Xceed-Medisense

The FreeStyle Optium ß-Ketone testing strips are available here :

_http://www.boutique-hado.fr/epages/216690.sf/fr_FR/?ObjectPath=/Shops/216690/Products/9972495

 

[Goemon_]

If you live in France and search for a ketone meter, I've found one here :

This meter is from Abott, so it seems to be another name for the Precision Xtra.

For french user it is cheaper here (78€):

_http://www.pharma7.fr/fr/lecteurs-de-glycemie-et-produits-de-controle/4703224-optium-xceed-kit-lecteur-glyc-5021791700875.html

Steel expensive compared to USA : arround 20$.

 

[Arwenn]

Have you guys had a look on Amazon and eBay? Also Abbott Labs (the ones who make Precision Xtra and Optium Freestyle) have an office in France. Perhaps you could try calling them and see if they will send you a meter, especially if you mention that are looking at self-monitoring regularly (they make their $$ on the strips).

Abbott Diabetes Care (Diabétologie)
12 rue de la Couture BP 20235
94528 Rungis Cedex
Service Clients:
Telephone: 0 800 10 11 56
Facsimile: 01 45 60 24 47
Commandes:
Telephone: 01 45 60 25 25
Facsimile: 01 45 60 26 80


Abbott Diagnostics (Diagnostic biologique)
Abbott Molecular (Biologie moléculaire)
Abbott Point of Care (Diagnostic délocalisé)
12, rue de la Couture BP 50203
94518 Rungis Cedex
Service Clients:
Telephone: 01 45 60 25 50
Facsimile: 01 46 86 85 46

Commandes:
Telephone: 01 45 60 25 25
Facsimile: 01 45 60 26 80

 

[Goemon_]

Amazon.com and ebay don't alow shipping of this product to France.

 

[trendsetter37]

Sooo about those really expensive ketone strips for the precision xtra meter. I can't find them locally and everywhere online sales them for about $5 per strip...except one place!

_https://www.universaldrugstore.com/medications/Precision+Xtra+Ketones+Test+Strips/

If you are just getting started you can get 10 ketone testing strips for $20. That is way better than the $40 to $50 price i've seen elsewhere. FWIW.

It came up here as well. That site is like a needle in a haystack relative to the rest of the prices that show up on amazon and even ebay. Oh and they ship internationally from Canada. I'll let you guys know what the quality is like when I receive my first batch.