After a week of only barely fasting (just skipping breakfast) due to a viral infection, I began OMAD again on Sunday night. I intended to do a 48 hour fast starting Monday evening, but around 5pm on Tuesday I noticed that I wasn't feeling very well at all. I checked my blood sugar, and sure enough I was slightly hypoglycemic (69, so not dangerously so).
I'm not quite sure what to make of this. When I first started fasting my glucose was consistently high, usually above 100, even after I'd fasted for many hours. My fasted glucose levels have dropped considerably, and now hover in the low 80s for the most part. (Coinciding with a drop in resting heart rate, from 80s/90s to 60s.) This seems to have coincided with a somewhat less pleasant fast overall -- even when not hypoglycemic I still feel a bit hungrier than I did when I first started fasting.
The hypoglycemia did not recur yesterday and seems like it won't today, with the only difference being that I worked out both mornings (unlike Tuesday). I remain a bit hungry, though.
I've tried to search this subreddit for advice on hypoglycemia, but I didn't see much that was applicable. Has anyone else experienced something similar? I expected fasting glucose to drop over time, but not so quickly / dramatically. Would more protein at mealtime help?
Answer
Your body is used to having to produce a certain amount of insulin to keep your blood sugar regulated. That amount is now too much and it takes time for it to adapt. A blood sugar is 80 is within the normal range. Less than 70 is low but your body shouldn’t produce so much insulin that it drives you down far enough to have actual issues. You’re used to being around 100 so it feels off when you’re lower, but there’s nothing wrong with being lower. It just takes time to adapt and it feels shocking to the body while it gets used to it