New, Confused, Looking for help

itsjustdawn

I started getting serious about this 2 weeks ago from this upcoming Sunday (so... June 2). I have NOT lost anything. I keep losing fractions and gaining fractions. I am not tracking though. I will list the foods I am eating. I do know that I am not really that hungry, but I am certain I am getting enough calories and fat simply from the foods I do eat.

3 eggs, now cooked in 1 TBSP butter, 4-5 slices of bacon

Pepperoni slices & cheddar cheese (1-2oz)

Deli rollups - right now deli buffalo chicken with slices of deli pepperjack cheese (4-5 rollups w/ Ken's Ranch dressing, about 2-3 TBSP total)

I haven't been eating much dinner because the above 2 options are so spaced out that I am not hungry. But I have done baked chicken wings w/ seasonings and this no-carb pizza (hamburger, homemade tomato sauce, and cheese).

I do drink Shakeology which is 11 net carbs, with 2TBSP Smuckers Natural PB, which is 4 net carbs, and unsweetened Almond milk which is 1 net carb. That is where the majority of my carbs come from.

I drink at least 80oz of water a day.

No fruit. Very little veggies (probably a problem).

What am I doing wrong?

tru2one

What am I doing wrong?

Guaranteed best read that you'll have this weekend: Author: Susan Campbell. "Low Carb Diet Strategies You Don't Know About". It's more of a booklet - very short, but ENLIGHTENING.

Free for Amazon Prime members...very negligeable but invaluable pricewise if you actually pay the $3 to download.

I've believed in low carbing for over 15 years now and this information only takes the concept to the most efficient and highest level.

Hope it helps and feel free to friend!

JisatsuHoshi

Just looked at your food diary and these are my recommendations:

- reduced the amount of shredded cheeses until keto adapted. Add other healthy fats instead like evoo, nuts (almonds, walnuts, pecans), butter, mayo.
- add more fiberous veggies with meals (broccoli, asparagus, spinach). Remember fiber dont count towards net Carbs.
- no pasta sauce... Meals shouldn't have more than Carbs per sitting. Use butter instead.
- Too much protein can hinder transition into keto. I say drop the shakeology drink due to it's high carb contents and replace with tuna or grilled chicken instead.

if eating at 1600 calories then macros should be:
(65% fats, 30% proteins, 5% Carbs)

115g fats or more (recommend more during induction)
120g proteins
20g Carbs

itsjustdawn

The Shakeology isn't for protein... it's for everything else and it actually has helped me more than my vitamins ever did.

Reduce shredded cheese or all cheese? The hamburger meal thing was a trial and error recipe, too. Not sure I like it enough to make it again anyway. (That's where the homemade pasta sauce came in)

And yes I was holding back on veggies because of their carbs... I understand about net carbs, but still...

I cannot seem to stay at my calorie goal while doing this low-carb thing either. I tracked one other day and was over by quite a few hundred. I am just frustrated and fighting to throw in the towel. Tomorrow marks the start of week 3.

I have made chicken wings with seasoning... I haven't been eating much dinner. Some days I am just not hungry, so I eat my 2 snacks as meals.

I am trying to do this...

gmansmom2

It is kinda hard to help you with such few days logged. My recommendations would be:

1) Determine your actual calorie needs. Determine your BMR and TDEE and then pick what your deficit will be below your TDEE (but above your BMR).
2) Log everything you put in your mouth EVERYDAY. This is so important in the beginning.
3) On the few days you logged, your macros look pretty good but your calories look really high. Even with keto you still need to eat at a calorie deficit to lose weight.
4) I think it is fine if you want to have your shakeology as long as it fits in your macros and calories.

Are you exercising or being active at all? Walking has really helped me.

Good luck!

afioca

Hello itsjustdawn! I'm a little new to the forums but I want to see if I can help you!

First off speaking from personal experience, I suggest you strongly consider tracking all of your food for at least a few weeks. Unfortunately, if you are new to the keto diet, it can be very strict and specific. It's not something you can really just get into without analyzing what you are eating and doing some research. Carbs can be hiding in places you don't expect!

That being said you want to stick as close as you can to 65% fat, 30% protein, and 5% carbs. If you go into your goal settings and manually change them this can be achieved easily. This is why logging your food is important though, a lot of times over the past two weeks as I've started this diet I've found that it's easy to eat too much protein, which will inhibit your body from entering ketosis.

If I tried to tell you some of what you need to know I wouldn't be able to do it justice, instead I'd like to pass on to you the literature that I've been reading and that has helped me get into ketosis and stay on my diet!

This is a great explanation of how everything works: http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/keto.htm

I used this calculator to help me figure out what exactly I need to be doing (if the ratios contradict the 65/30/5 a little bit that's okay!): http://keto-calculator.ankerl.com/

and I got a lot of helpful information from the FAQ over at reddit's /r/keto: http://www.reddit.com/r/keto/wiki/faq

Don't give up! Weight loss is something you must devote time and energy to, and it can be very difficult. Good luck and I hope this helped!

itsjustdawn

I actually do use that reddit link :-) I think my stats are 60/30/10... I guess I should drop that carb down to 5 and fat up to 65. My diary is public... I am also cutting back on cheese...

itsjustdawn

Today is the start of week 4. I lose and then I gain. My net carbs are in the 20s, usually no more than 25g. I have been tracking all week. There was only one day that I goofed up and ended up about 300 calories over my goal. Very frustrating. I'm not eating as much cheese, and not eating it every day either. I am drinking 80oz-100oz of water daily.

Longisland2NC

I am new to Keto myself - but what I did notice on your diary is that you are set for 21g of Carbs a day total.....but your shakeology shake alone is 21 g ....so that is basically your ENTIRE days worth - so anything else you have during the day with carbs puts you over. It probably stands out to me, because I try & keep mine really low.....


Like I said, I am new - so I am sure others here will be alot more helpful - but I figured I would just mention what jumped out at me.

Good luck!!! There are alot of Keto people here who can help motivate you!!!

kiramaniac

Here are a couple of ideas:
1 - increase your fats. Many of us see better results with higher fats for macros. Personally, I target 70-75% fat / 20-25% protein / 5% carbs.
2 - Drink a minimum of 12 8-oz glasses of water a day
3 - Drop the shake.
4 - Eliminate / reduce the deli meats. Lots of articles that nitrates might cause diet stalls. Deli meats are full of nitrates.

One or all of these might be the source of your slow progress. Personally, I'd adjust all of them. If things improve, then decide if you want to re-introduce any of these - but do it one at a time so you can figure our which of these might be impacting you.

itsjustdawn

I am new to Keto myself - but what I did notice on your diary is that you are set for 21g of Carbs a day total.....but your shakeology shake alone is 21 g ....so that is basically your ENTIRE days worth - so anything else you have during the day with carbs puts you over. It probably stands out to me, because I try & keep mine really low.....


Like I said, I am new - so I am sure others here will be alot more helpful - but I figured I would just mention what jumped out at me.

Good luck!!! There are alot of Keto people here who can help motivate you!!!

Net carbs.

itsjustdawn

Here are a couple of ideas:
1 - increase your fats. Many of us see better results with higher fats for macros. Personally, I target 70-75% fat / 20-25% protein / 5% carbs.
2 - Drink a minimum of 12 8-oz glasses of water a day
3 - Drop the shake.
4 - Eliminate / reduce the deli meats. Lots of articles that nitrates might cause diet stalls. Deli meats are full of nitrates.

One or all of these might be the source of your slow progress. Personally, I'd adjust all of them. If things improve, then decide if you want to re-introduce any of these - but do it one at a time so you can figure our which of these might be impacting you.

Not dropping the shake. It's my vitamins and minerals. Net carbs are only 11. I'll cut the deli meat if I can find something else to eat while at the beach or something. My fat is already 65% and I can't seem to eat LESS protein. I'd have to sit there and eat butter or something.

TomfromNY

First off, congratulations on your determination to eat healthier and lose weight. From your log, you look very serious and are putting in good effort.

Secondly, lose the shake. By eating that much sugar and protein in the evening you are slowing your fat loss considerably. Think about it this way - all day long you are eating fat and protein which your body is using for energy and to maintain muscle. If you skipped the shake, at night you would continue to burn fat for energy - and it would be body fat. By having the shake, all of that sugar and protein will boost your insulin, shutting down your ability to burn fat.

The shake is really just sugar and whey protein (and lots of little things which supposedly are good for you - you could replace them all with a multivitamin). ALso, looking at their website, the whole thing seems a bit dodgy - given all of their outlandish claims, I wouldn't be surprised if the carb/protein levels were much higher than they advertise.

If you really feel a need to drink it, I would drink 1/3 at breakfast, 1/3 at lunch, and 1/3 at dinner - at least all of the carbs/proteins won't hit you at once.

You should also probably eat more non-starchy vegetables. By having them with butter, olive oil or low-carb salad dressing, you can boost your fat - this is a good way to boost fat without eating too much protein.

Best of luck.

itsjustdawn

First off, congratulations on your determination to eat healthier and lose weight. From your log, you look very serious and are putting in good effort.

Secondly, lose the shake. By eating that much sugar and protein in the evening you are slowing your fat loss considerably. Think about it this way - all day long you are eating fat and protein which your body is using for energy and to maintain muscle. If you skipped the shake, at night you would continue to burn fat for energy - and it would be body fat. By having the shake, all of that sugar and protein will boost your insulin, shutting down your ability to burn fat.

The shake is really just sugar and whey protein (and lots of little things which supposedly are good for you - you could replace them all with a multivitamin). ALso, looking at their website, the whole thing seems a bit dodgy - given all of their outlandish claims, I wouldn't be surprised if the carb/protein levels were much higher than they advertise.

If you really feel a need to drink it, I would drink 1/3 at breakfast, 1/3 at lunch, and 1/3 at dinner - at least all of the carbs/proteins won't hit you at once.

You should also probably eat more non-starchy vegetables. By having them with butter, olive oil or low-carb salad dressing, you can boost your fat - this is a good way to boost fat without eating too much protein.

Best of luck.

I'm not new to weight loss or putting in the effort. I am trying keto. That is all. ShakeO has done some positive things for my health in the past 9 months, more than my many vitamins ever did, so no I am not giving it up. I thought I would give keto a try, so if it doesn't work then I will go back to Paleo and clean eating. I will take your suggestion to eat more non-starchy veggies w/ butter or oil. I hadn't thought of that as a way to eat fat without all the protein. Thank you for that.

kiramaniac

If you really feel a need to drink it, I would drink 1/3 at breakfast, 1/3 at lunch, and 1/3 at dinner - at least all of the carbs/proteins won't hit you at once.

Excellent advice. And definitely, don't drink after 9 pm. I suspect the late consumption of this is as much of a problem as the shake itself. Even drinking the whole thing in the morning or lunch time would be better than after 9 pm. The Beachbody website identifies that the Shakeology Program involves using this as a meal replacement (not a snack). So try doing it that way instead of as a late night supplement. The benefits they promote (curb cravings and increase energy) are also benefits that are probably better for consuming this earlier in the day vs later.

Test with ketostix to assess if you are in ketosis.