Sugar and Cholesterol Experiment – Part II

I’m writing these words on the evening of Day 3, which completes the Washout Stage. I knew this experiment had more potential for pitfalls than the others and it appears I’ve ran into one even before the Intervation Stage.

The problem? I’m not feelin’ 100%.

Probably Electrolytes

As I’ve already shared with my Patrons in the daily vlogs, I was dealing with calf muscle twitches that I’ve been addressing with added electrolytes. I haven’t had something like this in a long time. I figured I’d keep the dosage identical for every day throughout all stages to ensure it is a constant. And for the most part, the calf twitches have subsided. (FWIW, I’m resolving now by dosing 4 servings of Sports Salts and 2 servings of Magnesium Malate over the course of the day.)

So with that said, I still feel a bit off and these symptoms could still be related to dehydration/catchup on the electrolytes or something else:

• Poor sleep. I’ve been catching around 5 hours in the last couple nights and find I’m having trouble staying asleep in the morning.
• Mild headache. Not heavy, but not ignorable either.
• Low Energy. I’m familiar with the “run down” sensation that typically accompanies low electrolyte levels — but this one doesn’t feel quite the same as other times.
• Loss of appetite. All my experiments where I eat the same thing constantly can obviously impact appetite, but this one is a little more distinctive this time around. (It’s worth noting I doubt this is the shake in particular as I’ve already done a couple of long experiments with it as the only constant.)

However — There Are Other Possible Suspects

• Stress? I have been under more stress than normal. As I’ve hinted at before, I have some Big Things in the works that I’m not at liberty to discuss — but it requires some high powered meetings and prep for them. Moreover, I have two outstanding experiments being done by friends that are in their final stages (one of which wrapped today). Lots of moving parts.
• Timing? With the other experiments, I usually have a longer, more comfortable run up. On this one, it is getting necessarily squeezed between two events.
• Straight up sick? Maybe I just have something transient like a mild cold. Hopefully, it will just pass shortly.
• Micronutrition change? Like all meal replacement shakes, the Ketolent shake is nutritionally full spectrum. As such, I drop off my usual supplements in favor of those of the shake to maintain the constant (and not supplement overload, of course). But it’s possible something (or several things) added or subtracted is making the difference — or perhaps more likely, my body hasn’t gotten used to this different composition just yet.

Considering a Reset on the Washout Stage

I haven’t decided yet, but I may do a shotgun change if I don’t feel 100% tomorrow morning. I’d swap out the shakes for some combination of eggs, heavy whipping cream, and a meat along with my usual vitamin regime. From this, I’d create a less distinctive constant, but still remaining pretty simple.

Eggs also have a particular benefit of better sleep with me. Anecdotally, I find I can rest easier when having a lot of eggs, although I’m not sure why that is (maybe some nutritionist will chime in). My hope is that if I make this change, I won’t have to worry about the broken circadian rhythm and its potential impact on my data.

Of course, the obvious downside is that I’d need to completely reset the Washout Stage. Blech! The entire last three days would need to be effectively ignored while I load in this new constant for the revised Washout Stage.

Oh well… we’ll see how I feel in the morning.