carbs under 20

ellenkilpatrick

I have been low carbing and in and out of ketosis for almost 2 yrs.. I have lost no weight at all and i need to know how to keep carbs under 20 daily when i am consuming healthy greens like salad, and broccoli, and other non starchy veggies??? Are you all out there counting net carbs??? please respond i only get under 20 if i eat no veggies.. I love eating this way but my weight benefit is nonexistant and that is and has always been a goal!!!!!

ellenkilpatrick

oh I recently cut my nightly wine or spirit consumption to NONE...maybe that was an issue..I also cut out artificial sweeteners

BansheeCat

There are a plethora of reasons why you may not be getting the weight off. Your food journal is set to private so I can't give a thorough answer. I'd be curious to see your caloric intake and macros. Cutting out the nightly wine and artifical sweetners could make a difference but it depends on the person.

Yes, you're correct about going below 20 carbs means essentially no plant matter in your diet aside from leafy veggies. There are a few here who do that including me for a spell but I dropped the idea. I couldn't muster it long term and after some reading it's not a best thing for me and my chemical makeup. I can only do it as a fast here and there. Besides, after testing different macros with little change I might as well enjoy what I mantain to be healthy.

maggiegbrown

I am cut out my wine and it made a huge difference. I am only doing 15 carb. So see how it goes with no wine first. I set my macros at 66% f 5% carbs and the protein and it's working for me. My cals. are at 1200

ellenkilpatrick

i changed my setting to make my diary public...i have been back on MFP only several days so i have not collected alot of nutrtional data

lulalacroix

Right now I am at typically 10-20 total carbs. I do eat veggies, just the lowest carb ones and I limit how much I eat. I really would love to have more veg, but it interferes with my weight loss.

sljohnson1207

Here are a few things I note from your diary this week:

1. Calories may be too low depending on your stats and how fast you are trying to lose. I can't tell if the first couple of days are complete logs or not.
2. Carbs and net carbs are kind of high to expect continuous ketosis. Going in and out of ketosis often can make it difficult to register weight loss because you may deplete your glycogen and water stores for a few days, then refill them. This can be up to 10 lbs up and down all the time. I'd say get into ketosis good, stay there for a while to become fat adapted, then plan little splurges here and there that you can exercise away the carbs so you don't lose state of ketosis.
3. There are still AS...esp. in the shakes and possibly the fat bombs. The whey protein in the shakes can spike blood sugar.
4. I see pasta, peanut butter with sugar, cool whip, berries (not a huge problem, just can make it very difficult to get into ketosis), stir fry (what's in that? does it have sauce? rice?), balsamic vinaigrette (good seasons packet has 2 carbs per 2.4 g of seasonings, and depending upon the ratio of oil to vinegar, balsamic vinegar usually has about 3 carbs per tbsp).
5. The ratios of fat to protein to carbs seems off. The day with 1302 cals, the ratios are 20% carbs, 50% fats, and 33% protein. The usually recommended beginning ratios are around 5% carbs, 65% fats, and 30% protein, and you can adjust from there depending upon results. 30% protein is too high for some folks, and their ratios end up looking more like 5% carbs, 70-75% fats, and 20-25% protein.

Try this calculator: http://keto-calculator.ankerl.com/
Then follow the recommended advice for at least 6 weeks without cheating, and see if you lose weight.

kirkor

Granted I'm new at keto, but I've been following /r/keto's recommendations for macros:
carbs as a limit (<20-30 net)
protein as a goal (0.8-1.2g/lb LBM)
fat to satiety

in other words, not about ratios.

x_Minerva_x

I used to go by net carbs, but decided not to (started stalling when I did that.) Personally, most of my meals I do around 3 oz of protein (unless I've fasted all day - I have to make up calories somewhere,) 3-4 oz of green veggies (depending on the veggie as some have more carbs than other) and a serving or two of Dukes mayo (depends on where the protein count falls for the meal. I always eat more fat than protein.)

sbom1

Lots of good replies...I'm no expert and a newbie but I track net carbs (but I don't eat pre-packaged Atkins type foods so they are carbs from real food; I've read and it makes sense to use total carbs for your goals if you eat those types of pre-packaged stuff). If you look at my food diary you'll see most days I'm under or just over 20 net and I eat veggies (salad for lunch-lettuce, a few grape toms; at least 1/2 to 1 cup of green veg for dinner). Certainly less veggies than I used to eat but you CAN eat veggies and stay around 20 net. I've lost about 1 # / week average. Look at some of the food journals of the uber-users on here-that was helpful to me when I started out.

ellenkilpatrick

thanks and yes i will nix the berries for now along with the spagetti squash... my stir fry was completely non starchy veggies made in coconut oil it was the most keto meal i prepared!!!

x_Minerva_x

As sbom1 said, avoiding those atkins products, and other various LC geared foods (like carbsmart icecream, etc...) is also a good idea. If you're curious, I found this awesome article explaining why in detail that these products are sneaky (e.g. they say only 2 net carbs for example, when really it's much much more than that.)

http://www.phlaunt.com/lowcarb/19059967.php

rprussell2004

My biggest solution would be to make your own meals and foods, quit with the prepackaged stuff. That way you can guarantee that what's in there is ONLY what you want.

Also look for a peanut butter that only has peanuts in it. (Okay, and salt.)

Check www.cavemanketo.com for some excellent recipes.

DAM5412

The only times I can stay under 20g is by severely restricting the veggies. Yes, it seems counterintuitive to what you think you know, but to truly get into and stay in ketosis, you may have to go and stay that low as well. I eat a lot of meat, eggs and cheese. Occasionally some spinach or broccoli and cauliflower. No squash, no meat sauce and never any atkins products. I do miss my protein shakes, but I have yet to find any low carb products and I made mine with fruit. So for now, while I'm trying to be in ketosis, it's no thanks to any fruits and veggies.

hotsungirl

I eat small amounts of blueberries, raspberries or strawberries. I am aiming for 20g net. I started using keto strips for urine testing multiple times a day, 2 days ago, and have measured that I am moderate ketosis all day, and I'm still barely/not at all losing weight on the scales. I do understand part of it my workouts. Having said that, I can see my body fat is moving, so I'm going with this for now. In a few weeks if I'm still "holding" I will contemplate calorie count again and suspect stevia that is in my coffee. I also read about Sugar Alcohols in Dr Stephen Phinney's book (sugar alcohols in Atkins bars) - he said they mess up levels in many people, so don't trust their sugar numbers.