Bulletproof Coffee FAIL!

[Golfrocks]

I did my first Whole 30 beginning Sept 3. Did the 30 days and lost 12 pounds and felt great. I stayed mostly compliant for the next 30 days as well, adding only a little raw honey, maple syrup, and gluten free Ciroc vodka a couple of times. The weight loss pretty much stopped but I did not gain. I decided in the past couple of weeks to try bulletproof coffee and intermittent fasting thinking it would put me into ketosis and jump start the weight loss. I even sprung for the upgraded coffee and MCT oil, and used Kerrygold butter. So far this experiment has been a miserable fail! I have put on 7 pounds, feel very bloated, my newly clear skin has some acne again, and I have been extremely depressed and moody! Ugh! Anyone else have a similar experience with this? Is it just the butter or would MCT oil also be contributing to the problem? I did coffee with full fat coconut cream before trying the bulletproof and had absolutely no issues.

[missmary]

yeah, no. Intermittant fasting is something that works for very few people. The best candidates are already VERY fit men, but most of us humans (and especially women) need more a consistent pattern of nutrition. For those people, IF is too extreme, and results in hormonal imbalance (cortisol spiking, which leads to more inbalances, moodyness, etc.).

 

My guess is that this is what happened to you.

 

If you were losing on the whole30, and adding "raw honey, maple syrup, and gluten free Ciroc vodka" made weight loss stop, might I suggest returning to whole30, eliminating those things, and waiting for a month or so to see what happens?

 

After you've been eating onplan for a while, it might be worthwhile to do a controlled reintro with dairy. Your acne after adding bulletproof coffee points to a potential issue with dairy/butter, and it might be helpful to know that for sure.

 

good luck!

[Cassie001]

I think to moodiness is probably due to IF.

As for the weight gain, are you able to compare if you were eating more overall food on IF than before?
(I now that some people end up binging when they are only allowed 1 or 2 meals a day)

 

On the positive side, you have learned that IF is not for you, and that the Whole30 is!

[Golfrocks]

Thanks for the responses. Back to Whole 30 compliant foods today. It's nice to know what to go back to that works when something like this happens. Live and learn!

[Tom Denham]

Here is an interesting article on IF and when you might want to avoid it: http://huntgatherlove.com/content/when-not-fast

 

I did an IF experiment for about 3 months where I made lunch my first meal of the day. It was easy to skip breakfast. I never felt excessively hungry and had plenty of energy. However, I did not lose any weight and my sleep became more intermittent. I started eating breakfast again and my sleep got better again. 

[wingchun]

I've been experimenting with some IF since completing my whole30 a few months ago.  I try not to even really think of it as fasting.  I just find that if I make a solid breakfast with good proteins and fats then I'm not really hungry again until 4 or 5.  Then I have another compliant meal.  If I'm not hungry again then I don't eat until the next day.  If I do get hungry then I respect that and eat.  I would say I skip meal 3 about 3 times a week.  I've dropped about 5 lbs.  I'm a little suspicious of bulletproof coffee.  Even though insulin response is minimal with a pure shot of fat and coffee, is it really IF? 

[Vian]

Dairy contains hormones that frequently cause acne and other imbalances in many people. I've never tried intermittent fasting, so I can't really comment on it.

 

Bulletproof coffee doesn't have to be done exactly as they say on their site. You can use any coffee, and most fats. I make mine without butter (or ghee) and just use coconut oil (2 tbs.) and coconut milk (1/4 cup or so) (or half and half when not on whole30, dairy doesn't seem to disagree with me), then just whip it with a hand blender. The key is blending it, that emulsifies the fats and makes the coffee smooth and mild tasting, and far less bitter/more palatable than drinking it black (bleh!). I also like to add a little cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves to make a sort of chai/pumpkin pie spice flavor. 

 

I do find after switching to BP coffee that I have a lot more energy in the morning, and while everyone else is freezing at work, I'm warm - an indication that my metabolism is running high.

[drtracyb]

I totally get buzzed drinking bulletproof coffee (my version - coconut oil and ghee).  I can't finish a whole cup because my heart starts racing.  I assume the oil facilitates the uptake of the stimulants.

[Golfrocks]

Thanks for the info on how you all do your Bulletproof coffee. I went back to just coffee and full fat coconut cream the past two days. The seven pounds went away, my face cleared up, and my mood lifted. I practiced Bikram yoga this morning and felt great too. I must say it was almost magical how quickly things turned around. I ate breakfast both mornings too...eggs cooked in ghee with avocado and a handful of blueberries yesterday. Today I had some chicken sausage with spinach and red pepper and half a grapefruit. Now I know it was probably the Kerrygold butter coupled with the IF that was the problem. :-(. Such a bummer because I do love butter. But I will stay away from it now! I have never had an issue with coconut oil, but I am not sure if the MCT oil was part of the problem or not. Anyone tried it and had a problem with it? Will have to experiment with that apart from the butter. I appreciate all of your responses. Sharing the knowledge is power!