Calories?

Do you count calories on your LCHF diet? Do you feel it has affected your weight loss, or does it matter? I'm also curious as to how long it took any of you to get into ketosis? How many carbs did you eat per day? Did you exercise, and did it speed up the process? I am just starting and I have a lot of questions! Thanks!

Replies

sljohnson1207

Yes, I count calories on m y LCHF diet because if I ate as much as I want (and I've tried this), I don't lose weight. Seems I have no "you're full" button.

I feel it has affected my weight loss in a positive way, and I have lost more because of it.

It took me about 5 days to get into ketosis when I started in June. To become fully keto-adapted/fat-adapted can take weeks, though. I stuck to 20-25 NET carbs (carbs - fiber - sugar alcohols = NET carbs) per day, and have only recently inched them up to 25-30 because I'm 1 lb. from goal.

I did not exercise in the very beginning other than some light walking. I felt weak until keto adapted. Then, I increased intensity, and actually found that using fat for fuel is great for exercising. I do not think exercise increases weight loss. I do not eat back my calories. I actually believe that a lot of exercise tends to stall my weight loss, and there are lots of others who will anecdotally agree, I am sure. If you already exercise a lot, give yourself a break or reduce the intensity way down for the first few weeks, then ramp it back up. Weight bearing training can't hurt for trying to maintain lean body mass.

eddiecastro77

It took my a good 5 days to get back into Keto after slipping out. I second sljohnson1207's comments about working out and net carbs. I still follow Myfitnesspal calorie recommendations and because I track steps with fitbit, I do eat back some if not all calories but always try to stay under total calories allowed and near my original calorie allowance if possible. Good luck.

tru2one

fatcity66 wrote: »

Do you count calories on your LCHF diet? Do you feel it has affected your weight loss, or does it matter? I'm also curious as to how long it took any of you to get into ketosis? How many carbs did you eat per day? Did you exercise, and did it speed up the process? I am just starting and I have a lot of questions! Thanks!

I count carbs first, then look @ calories, but I don't stress out over the calories so much right now. If I'm hungry, I eat appropriate foods in whatever qty needed for me to not be hungry. If I'm not hungry, I don't eat as much. I'm really trying to keep my macros at around 5% carbs/20% protein/75% fat. Focusing on keeping carbs down/fat up has probably been the most important thing, as my body naturally cuts off calories at a certain point if my macros are met.
I've been doing low carb since the late 90's, so my body tends to slip back into ketosis very readily, usually 24-48 hours after I begin eating for a ketotic state (around 20grams total per day for me)
I'm keeping TOTAL carbs to around 20 per day but I don't freak out if I go a little over because of veggies or a high fiber addition like flaxmeal.
I've had two significant weight losses while low carbing. First time I did NO intentional exercise, but because my energy levels were so much higher I found myself doing more things like intensive housecleaning/DIY projects and LOTS of gardening which burned fuel. Lost 60 pounds and maintained for years. Gained about 20 pounds back, got honest w/ my WOE again and added exercise in the form of Curves, lost another 40 pounds in about 4 months...maintained for years. Got sloppy w/ my WOE and wasn't doing any intentional exercise again while working a sedentary deskjob, and SURPRISE (not), gained back about 60 some pounds. This is the LAST time I plan to be in this place. I'm currently focusing on eating right as the priority while recuperating from a foot surgery, and will then add resistance/strength training w/ cardio I enjoy like hiking and dog walking as I'm able. I know that I don't HAVE to exercise for this to work, but I want to feel as fit and lean and strong as I was in the past, so that is why I will add it back in when able. Exercise will not necessarily make the scale go down faster, but it WILL make very positive changes in your body in the form of definition and inches lost. That is because muscle is denser and will take up less room than the equivalent weight of fat. Think a pound of butter vs. a pound of marshmallows...which one will take up more space on the counter? They both weigh the same, but their density is different.

Hope that helps! Feel free to friend if you have any other questions or need support. :-)

radiii

fatcity66 wrote: »

Do you count calories on your LCHF diet?

In the first week or two I didn't care about calories at all. The first couple weeks can be difficult. Just staying full and getting into ketosis and avoiding the carb cravings is a success. For me that meant eating a lot at times, but totally worth it.

After that, I counted religiously for awhile. I cannot count calories forever and remain sane, so I go in and out on this. I absolutely find that when I am counting calories I do lose weight faster most of the time, but its just not something I can do 365 days a year.

No matter whether I'm counting calories at the time or not, I am always aware of exactly how many carbs I'm eating. ALWAYS.

My goal is set at 20g net carbs/day. I come in under that more often than I go over, but I know by now that I can hit 25g or 30g net carbs and not have a problem, I just like the baseline to be lower than that.

Did you exercise, and did it speed up the process?

I did no exercise at the start. I felt awful the first few days, and I'm the type of person who can frequently push myself through feeling like crap to get to the gym.

In fact, I did no exercise for 6 months. Like Sljohnson mentioned above, my weight stalled when I started exercising. It stalled for a solid 6 weeks, but I was losing inches during that time so clearly positive things were still happening.

fatcity66

Wow, some great responses! I am in my first week of LCHF eating, so I'm not going to worry about calories at this point. I will be keeping my total carbs under 50g/day (30-35g net) for now, and so far, I have continued my usual workout routine. I will be adjusting things as I go along, but so far, I am loving it! The first day was actually the hardest. I really wanted carbs, and I got a slight headache, but I feel much better today, and I had the energy to do the elliptical for 35 minutes, as well as some push-ups.

fatcity66

Oh, does anyone know why this post is not showing up in my Recent Discussions? I also starred it, but I'm not getting notifications when someone replies. I get them for all the other threads, so I'm not sure what the problem is.

hippygirl325

Do you count calories on your LCHF diet?
Yes, my goal is to be under 1895/day. Right now I'm around 260ish lbs so that's around a 20% deficit from maintenance calories. I think it definitely matters for me because I will usually be tempted to binge eat if I don't have a limit. (Although I'm really not that tempted to do that with this WOE.)

Do you feel it has affected your weight loss, or does it matter?
Yeah, I know some people who can not track calories and still lose a lot, but they are probably naturally eating less calories. You have to have a big enough deficit no matter what you eat.

I'm also curious as to how long it took any of you to get into ketosis?
For me, like most others have said, about 5 days, and I assume that because day 5 was when keto flu was gone and I started feeling awesome all the sudden.

How many carbs did you eat per day?
I have been keeping under 24 net.

Did you exercise, and did it speed up the process?
I haven't done much so far, but the past couple days I did do some light/moderate exercise on the elliptical and treadmill at work, mostly out of boredom. Can't really say how or if it will effect anything. I'm sure burning more calories through exercise probably would accelerate weight loss overtime. It may stall it temporarily just because you are retaining more water and possibly putting on muscle depending on what you're doing. Probably would see more of a physical change than on the scale.

photo_kyla

I definitely count my calories. My goal is 1200 cal a day and 15 g of carbs or under. I might go up to 20 g of carbs on occasion but I try to keep that under control. My metabolism adjusts really quickly and I have been known to plateau or even gain at 1200 cal a day pre keto. My goal now is that even if I have a splurge day (Thanksgiving or Christmas etc) I don't obsess about the calories on that day but I definitely still try to keep the carbs under 20.

annieboomboom

Oh yes. the "P" word and the "even gain" concept is really enough to drive you mad.
I need to exercise for my head. I lift some weights , walk and occasionally do the eliptical but without these, I am not at my emotional best. I am now becoming obsessed with the Keto distix and run them 3-4 times a day. Yes, they are showing I am in Ketosis, morning noon and night. And so I think, what's the problem with the damn scale.?