Madeleine Hull
Starting a new diet can be exciting, but it can also be exhausting. If you're feeling more tired than usual after changing your eating habits, there are several possible reasons. Firstly, dieting can be stressful, and chronic stress can lead to exhaustion. Additionally, a very low-calorie diet can cause a dip in your energy levels and mood. You might also be experiencing fatigue due to nutrient deficiencies, dehydration, or fluctuations in blood sugar levels. Overexercising, sleep disorders, and underlying medical conditions can also contribute to feeling tired. To combat diet-related fatigue, it's important to identify the underlying cause and make appropriate adjustments to your lifestyle, diet, or seek treatment if needed.
Why am I so tired after starting a diet?
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Excessive caffeine intake | Over-reliance on caffeine-based beverages like coffee and energy drinks can harm sleep and cause fatigue. |
| Lack of sleep | Sleep is essential for overall health, and inadequate sleep can lead to fatigue. |
| Stress | Chronic stress can lead to exhaustion and fatigue, and it may cause structural and functional changes in the brain. |
| Diet composition | A diet low in carbohydrates can cause low blood sugar, dehydration, and fatigue. |
| Calorie restriction | Restricting calories too much can lead to a loss of energy and a dip in mood. |
| Lack of nutrients | A diet lacking nutrient-dense foods like fruits, vegetables, and healthy proteins can contribute to fatigue. |
| Exercise routine | Overexercising or starting a new exercise program can cause initial fatigue, especially if combined with low calorie intake. |
| Internal struggles | Restricting foods or food groups can lead to preoccupation with thoughts about food and a loss of control. |
| Medical conditions | Fatigue may be a symptom of an underlying medical condition or nutrient deficiency. |
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What You'll Learn
You're stressed and anxious
Stress and anxiety can be both a cause and an effect of tiredness and fatigue. Chronic stress can lead to stress-related exhaustion disorder (ED), a medical condition characterised by psychological and physical symptoms of exhaustion. Chronic stress can also cause structural and functional changes in your brain and lead to chronic inflammation, contributing to symptoms like fatigue.
If you're feeling stressed and anxious, it's important to address these feelings to protect your overall health. Stress affects your digestive system, nervous system, sleep habits, and many other areas of your life. It can lead to insomnia, which can cause tiredness during the day.
The pressure to lose weight can also cause anxiety. When you decrease your energy intake, your energy levels can plummet, and if you add a new exercise programme on top of that, it's not unusual to feel chronically tired. Your exercise routine can eventually help you feel energised, but the initial loss of energy can cause a dip in your mood.
To manage stress and anxiety, you can try lifestyle modifications such as regular, gentle exercise, which helps relieve stress and decrease negative emotions. Yoga and meditation are great ways to calm your body and mind. Counselling may also be beneficial if you're facing severe stressors.
Diet can also play a role in managing stress. A healthy diet can help counter the impact of stress by supporting your immune system and lowering blood pressure. Comfort foods, like a bowl of warm oatmeal, boost levels of serotonin, a calming brain chemical. Other foods can cut levels of cortisol and adrenaline, which are stress hormones that can take a toll on your body over time.
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You're not eating enough
If you're feeling tired after starting a new diet, it could be because you're not consuming enough calories or essential nutrients. Calories are units of energy, and your body requires a certain amount of energy to function properly. When you don't get enough calories, your body doesn't have the fuel it needs, leading to feelings of physical tiredness and mental fatigue.
The number of calories needed to maintain a healthy weight varies from person to person and depends on factors such as body size, metabolism, and physical activity levels. On average, people assigned female at birth (AFAB) should consume about 2,000 calories per day for weight maintenance and 1,500 for weight loss. People assigned male at birth (AMAB) should consume around 2,500 calories per day for weight maintenance and 2,000 for weight loss. However, these are just averages, and individual needs may differ.
Undereating can lead to a range of negative consequences for your health and well-being. In addition to fatigue, you may experience constant hunger, irritability, low mood, hair loss, skin problems, frequent illness, and impaired immune system function. In the long term, undereating can also increase the risk of developing mental health issues such as depression and eating disorders.
If you suspect that you're not eating enough, it's important to make adjustments to your diet to ensure you're meeting your body's nutritional needs. Consider consulting with a healthcare professional or a registered dietitian to determine the appropriate calorie intake and nutrient balance for your specific needs. They can provide guidance on how to structure your meals and snacks to promote adequate energy levels and overall health.
Additionally, it's worth noting that other factors beyond your diet could be contributing to your fatigue. For example, stress, sleep quality, underlying medical conditions, and excessive exercise can all impact your energy levels. Therefore, it's important to adopt a holistic approach to managing your fatigue by addressing dietary, lifestyle, and psychological factors.
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You're exercising too much
Dieting can be exhausting, especially when combined with a new exercise program. If you've recently started a diet and are experiencing chronic tiredness, it could be because you're exercising too much.
Overtraining, or exercising too hard without adequate rest, is a common cause of fatigue. Your body needs time to recover between workouts, and if you don't allow for this, you may experience symptoms of overtraining, including fatigue, injuries, aches and pains, anxiety, irritability, and restless sleep.
To combat this, it's important to listen to your body and give it the rest it needs. Make sure you're getting enough sleep each night, and allow for rest days between your workout sessions. You can also try active recovery, which involves participating in low-impact, low-intensity exercises like walking, swimming, or yoga on your rest days.
In addition to rest, proper nutrition is crucial when increasing your exercise regimen. Make sure you're consuming enough calories and a well-rounded diet that includes complete proteins, fruits, vegetables, and carbohydrates. Carbohydrates should make up about 40-60% of your caloric intake if you're an aerobic athlete and 30-35% if you're an anaerobic athlete. This will help maintain your muscles' glycogen levels, which are depleted during exercise.
Finally, make sure you're staying hydrated. Drink plenty of water throughout the day and during your workouts to prevent dehydration and muscle fatigue.
If you continue to feel fatigued even after making these adjustments, consider consulting a healthcare professional to rule out any underlying medical conditions or medication side effects that could be contributing to your fatigue.
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You're not eating enough of the right carbs
Carbohydrates are the primary source of fuel for our bodies. Slashing your intake of carbohydrates can have a major impact on your energy levels. Carbs are converted to energy more efficiently than protein or fat, so it is natural to feel sluggish throughout the day when on a low-carb diet.
According to a 2020 study in Frontiers in Nutrition, weakness and fatigue, sometimes called "keto flu", are common side effects of a low-carb diet. The 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans advise getting 45-65% of our daily calories from carbs. Consuming less than 80g of total carbs each day can slow down your metabolic rate over time.
If you are exercising a lot, your body will need more carbs to metabolise body fat. To increase your carb intake, try adding a piece of fruit, bread, or half a cup of whole grains to a meal eaten straight after exercise.
When your body runs on fatty acids instead of carbs, it releases ketones through your breath as acetone, which can cause bad breath. Nutritional ketosis may also bump up uric acid levels, leading to kidney stones or gout flares.
If you are feeling tired, it is important to get to the bottom of what is causing it. In many cases, fatigue can be remedied by lifestyle or dietary modifications, correcting a nutrient deficiency, or treating an underlying medical condition.
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You're not getting enough iron
If you are feeling tired after starting a new diet, it could be because you are not getting enough iron. Iron is important for transporting oxygen in the blood. When you don't have enough iron, your bone marrow can't make enough haemoglobin, the molecule in your red blood cells that carries oxygen. As a result, you might feel tired.
Iron deficiency can lead to iron depletion, iron deficiency, and eventually iron deficiency anaemia. Iron depletion occurs when haemoglobin levels are normal, but your body only has a small amount of stored iron, which will soon run out. This stage usually has no obvious symptoms. Iron deficiency occurs when your stored and blood-borne iron levels are low and your haemoglobin levels have dropped below normal. You may experience some symptoms, including tiredness. Iron deficiency anaemia occurs when your haemoglobin levels are so low that your blood is unable to deliver enough oxygen to your cells. Symptoms include tiredness, pale skin, breathlessness, dizziness, and fatigue.
You can increase your body's iron stores by eating an iron-rich diet. Examples of iron-rich foods include meat, eggs, beans, leafy green vegetables, iron-fortified foods, whole wheat bread, enriched white bread, rye bread, bran cereals, and cereals with wheat. If you follow a vegan or vegetarian diet, look for iron-fortified breads and cereals, and increase your intake of plant-based sources of iron. You can enhance your body's absorption of iron by drinking citrus juice or eating other foods rich in vitamin C at the same time that you eat high-iron foods.
In addition to dietary changes, you can also see your healthcare provider regularly so they can monitor your iron levels and overall health. If you have extremely low iron, your healthcare provider can recommend iron supplements or infusions.
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Frequently asked questions
There are many reasons why you might be feeling tired after starting a diet. Firstly, if your diet involves reducing your calorie intake, your energy levels can plummet. This effect can be exacerbated if you are also increasing your exercise routine. Secondly, if you are eating fewer carbs, you may be experiencing low blood sugar, which can make you feel tired and irritable. Thirdly, if you are eating less red meat, you may be deficient in iron, which is key for strength and stamina. Fourthly, if you are drinking more coffee to compensate for lower energy levels, you may be disrupting your sleep cycle, which can lead to fatigue. Finally, chronic stress related to the pressure of dieting and weight loss can lead to exhaustion.
To reduce fatigue while dieting, try to eat lean protein, whole grains, and healthy fats. Snack early and often to keep your blood sugar steady and avoid going long stretches without eating. Make sure to eat a protein-packed breakfast to balance your blood sugar and provide a steady stream of energy throughout the morning. If you are eating fewer carbs, make sure to eat fibre-rich carbs like fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.
Feeling tired after eating, especially a large or calorie-rich meal, is common and may be due to the production of serotonin, which can induce drowsiness.
Aside from diet, there are many other reasons why you might be feeling tired. These include not getting enough sleep, insomnia, chronic stress, nutrient deficiency, and underlying medical conditions.
If you are experiencing frequent fatigue, it is important to identify the underlying cause and make appropriate lifestyle and dietary adjustments. You can also try incorporating more nutrient-rich foods into your diet, such as fruits, vegetables, legumes, and healthy protein sources. If you are concerned about your fatigue, consult a trusted doctor to rule out common health conditions that may be contributing to your symptoms.
