Need help getting started
GlindaGoodwitch
Posts: 157 Member
I have been reading about ketosis for months now, researching, and planning - I need help getting started though, as I don't want to screw it up and gain instead of lose.
I am my heaviest right now 180lbs, and would like to lose at least 40 lbs by february 2018. Seems realistic, but I'm struggling to get to even 179 right now.
Any suggestions for meal plans? I need something to follow and not deviate from.
I am my heaviest right now 180lbs, and would like to lose at least 40 lbs by february 2018. Seems realistic, but I'm struggling to get to even 179 right now.
Any suggestions for meal plans? I need something to follow and not deviate from.
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Replies
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First and foremost, the only way to lose weight is to take in fewer calories than what you burn. Does not matter if it is the Keto, Low Carb, Low Fat, Paleo or grapefruit diet. The reason some who choose LCHF as their means to lose weight is because the food is great (no rice cakes!) you can eat and feel full (unlike other diets) and LCHF promotes low spiking of insulin so you can burn body fat more efficiently. But you wont gain wait as you fear under any diet if your in a calorie deficit. 40 lbs by February 2018 is doable but you will need to find what is sustainable for you.6
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Getting started is the hardest part... well, thinking about getting started was the hardest for me. LOL Once I actually did it, I found I needed about 2 days of willpower and then it became a LOT easier.
And I'm still like that. I slipped up to LCHF from keto and even had a heck of a time committing to low keto again. Change is hard to dive into for me.
If you want a plan to follow, you might want to look into some keto books. Atkins in the induction phase is ketogenic levels. My diet looked a lot like that but I included dairy.
Protein Power is slightly higher protein than many choose to do but has a good plan.
Keto Clarity has a good introduction to keto but I can't remember if it has meal plans.
Obesity code is a pretty good plan but it includes IF too.
Or you could wing it. Focus on meats, seafood, eggs, full fat dairy (cheese, unflavored greek yogurt, etc), nuts, avocado, coconut (cream, oil), olives, protein powder (if you use it) and low GI vegetables (limiting or avoiding starchy root vegetables). If you stick with those foods you will almost certainly stay low carb, and if you limit your carby veggies, you will probably be under 50g of carbs per day or lower (depending on your goals).
One thing to note, some of us do gain a bit when we change our eating. It's just the body getting used to things unless you really are eating excessive amounts. But if you are calorie counting, weighing food, or following hunger cues (if they are reliable for you) then it will eventually even out.
For example, in late April I switched from LCHF (50 up to 100g carbs) back to ketogenic, but I chose to try all animal products and keep carbs close to zero. I was eating inbetween 1000 and 2000 kcals per day but I started gaining right away. I gained almost 10 lbs in the first three weeks. The weird thing was that I felt like I was getting smaller. My clothes were a bit looser, so I kept with it. Eventually I had a sudden whoosh on the scale and I dropped a few pounds below where I started.
So hang in there if the scale doesn't move right away. Sometimes there are changes happening that the scale doesn't reflect.
Edited to add a link to a thread about this very thing. http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10563240/breakthrough#latest5 -
I've just started as well, I recommend friending some Keto peeps and checking out their diaries for ideas. 2
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When starting out, be sure to have "go to in a hurry" foods on hand such as canned chicken, canned fish, canned olives, hard-boiled eggs, etc. It's easy to…ahem….fudge when one is hungry and heading out the door. Also, a jar of pickles in the fridge is helpful if you end up with a few leg cramps.
One time in my first weeks of keto I let my sodium get too low, ugh. Ever since then I keep a couple of jars of Ortez anchovies on hand. Almost no calories and loaded with salt. If I'm needing a sodium increase but not at the expense of a bunch of added calories I'll have these. I tried several brands and these were the easiest to eat for me. Some sour cream or mustard on them and they go down nicely.
https://smile.amazon.com/Ortiz-Anchovies-Anchoas-3-5-Ounce-Jars/dp/B001G0MC40/ref=sr_1_2_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1497042285&sr=8-2&keywords=ortiz+anchovies1 -
I found that starting with basic food the first week made it easier than following a plan with a bunch of recipes.
Breakfast- eggs bacon sausage ( one of those or a mix)
Lunch and dinner was a meat and a vegetable
Once I got through the sugar withdrawals, i started to add fancier foods when I had time.
Keto calculators online are a necessity for me to figure out what I should eat.3 -
Thank you everyone!!0
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You've found the right place. LOTS of super smart folks here who really get low carb diets. (I'm not really one of them, but that doesn't matter!)2
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When I got started with trying a keto diet instead of a more general low carb diet, I found this in my search for information: https://www.ruled.me/ketogenic-diet-food-list/
It's a pretty lengthy page, but I found it was a good start for me getting my head wrapped around a plan and figure out what kind of food choices I wanted to make. That site also has recipes, general guides, etc.3 -
Westman, Phinney & Volek's New Atkins for a New You is a great, practical intro to keto (with sample meal plans) by genuine experts.2
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When I got started with trying a keto diet instead of a more general low carb diet, I found this in my search for information: https://www.ruled.me/ketogenic-diet-food-list/
It's a pretty lengthy page, but I found it was a good start for me getting my head wrapped around a plan and figure out what kind of food choices I wanted to make. That site also has recipes, general guides, etc.
This list just made my day - can this be true?! I can eat Brie cheese?! ❤️0 -
For what it's worth, I've only been doing Keto for a couple of months. So far, I'm keeping it very simple, I once made mug bread to have a hamburger but other than that I've just eaten meat, veggies and cream in my coffee. I did try bullet proof coffee but it didn't seem to offer the satiety others have suggested. So, rather than use up my calories on extra butter and coconut fat, I'm having my one coffee with cream. So far, this has really worked for me.2
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GlindaGoodwitch wrote: »When I got started with trying a keto diet instead of a more general low carb diet, I found this in my search for information: https://www.ruled.me/ketogenic-diet-food-list/
It's a pretty lengthy page, but I found it was a good start for me getting my head wrapped around a plan and figure out what kind of food choices I wanted to make. That site also has recipes, general guides, etc.
This list just made my day - can this be true?! I can eat Brie cheese?! ❤️
You MUST eat brie (provided its triple cream).
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food_lover16 wrote: »I found that starting with basic food the first week made it easier than following a plan with a bunch of recipes.
Breakfast- eggs bacon sausage ( one of those or a mix)
Lunch and dinner was a meat and a vegetable
Pretty much this, although when I decided to cut to keto levels I was reasonably experienced with lower carb eating. But for me it's much more difficult to try to follow an eating plan and just starting with a planned breakfast and template for the other meals was easy. Then as you know what you are doing, get fancier and explore keto-izing things you might miss, maybe.
My template is quite similar to food lover16's -- I do eggs + vegetables (usually in an omelet with feta cheese) with smoked fish or bacon or plain greek yogurt or cottage cheese for breakfast. Then for lunch and dinner I do some kind of protein (usually meat) and vegetables (often avocado).
And then, as I often have extra calories, cheese is a great dessert.
I tend to come in a bit higher in carbs than some aim for, so you'd get started and then adjust, perhaps.2 -
When I first began my LCHF journey, it took me a good 8 days to get through the withdrawal from sugar and grains. I was pretty miserable. I stuck to eating pretty basic foods meats, LC veggies, eggs, cheese, nuts and HWC for my coffee. I drank a lot of water. In that first week, when I had hunger pains I would first drink down a glass of water, if it still persisted I would have a few almonds or hard boiled egg. A lot of that initial feeling of hunger is more from habit of previously eating every few hours, so I made sure I had good compliant snacks on hand. Once I got past the withdraw period, my cravings and desire for food lessened and I knew I was on my way.
Stick with it, it works. You will wake up one day and realize you slept like a rock, your knees don't ache and you haven't had to pop an antacid or an Advil in days!
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PaulaJSchiller wrote: »A lot of that initial feeling of hunger is more from habit of previously eating every few hours
This is so true. That goes hand in hand with being used to eat a given volume of food to feel full. Changing to LCHF, I had to learn to eat much slower so my brain would get the message that I was full with much less volume. Fat and protein are more satiating than carbs. This has to do both with the different hormones released and with the amount of time needed for them to pass through the stomach.
It is common in parts of Japan to teach the kids to only eat until they are 80% full. I think this is great advice, especially with this WOE because I find if I can do this, I realize about 20-30 minutes after I stop that I am actually 100% full.1 -
I'm new too. two months in. Here is what I know from my experience.
Eight weeks in now.. have just started losing really well the past week and my appetite is so suppressed , I truly can't believe it. It took me eating on induction for this long for it to take firm hold. So, please stick with it..don't expect huge losses at first I lost four pounds to start and then gained a half pound the third week. But, I decided to stick with it..so glad i did.
I'm doing Atkins old school..not the new Atkins 20. Some LC plans you have to count calories because it isn't as strict on the low carbs like Atkins. From my view..once you're firmly in ketosis you eat less without thought. AT first.. I ate tons of egg salad..deviled eggs.. was really eating a lot of food ..but it did get me into ketosis which now has me eating way less.
I truly can't believe how the fat is coming off my body.. i've been counting calories..exercising and even did intermittent fasting with the same 7 pound loss regain hamster wheel scenario for YEARS. Now I feel encouraged that I can find a new final path to fitness.
Good luck to you (also low salt is the reason for the "kept or atkins flu" you need more salt on this diet which is weird..but it will take away those symptoms. i eat a dill pickle spear when I start feeling it coming on).4 -
Someone provided a link to the "Go Keto with Casey" site just the other day. I've not looked at the site in its entirety but it includes the pdf in the link below. The pdf is from Dr. Eric Westman's approach to ketogenic eating and if you follow Dr. Westman you'll frequently hear "If it's not on page 4, don't eat it". It is not a "meal plan" but it certainly is a simple approach and I love-simple. This is about the best printable version I have seen so thank you to whoever posted the site originally.
https://caseydurango.com/page-4-food-list/
I woke up chuckling to myself the other morning thinking I will coin my "diet" The Retro Diet. I'm 63 years old and with 3 years of maintenance under my belt and experimentation with various things including keto during the 3 years, I now have settled into eating (mostly) like we did when I was a kid which was way back in the 1950s and 1960s, thus The Retro Diet.
Meat, fish, vegetables, dairy, fats, eggs, some fruits. Way back then, our Christmas stockings were filled with apples, oranges and nuts. Maybe some penny candies. Those things were a treat! In my family, a treat was just that-a treat. It was something special and enjoyed on rare occasion. It was a time where we didn't snack because Mom didn't want us to spoil our dinner. We ate 3 square meals a day and if there was such a thing as fasting, it occurred naturally from after dinner throughout the night until break-fast in the AM.
I digress. Eat real food. For meals, make tasty combinations from page 4.
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I totally agree - a treat should be a treat. Unfortunately, since becoming an adult, I have totally abused the definition!0
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Breakfast: eggs (hard-boiled or fried); bacon; sausage; maybe some spinach or peppers or farmer's cheese thrown in
Lunch: big salad with Ranch or blue cheese or real vinaigrette (make sure very low carbs) with steak, or salmon or chicken or salami or prosciutto, cheese, maybe cucumbers or a few tomato slices or olives. If eating out, Five Guys burger in a lettuce wrap--loaded but not ketchup or BBQ sauce.
Dinner: "Grill and greens" is my mainstay. Grilled chicken, skin on, or beef tenderloin, or ribs (low sugar sauce). Broccoli or kale or spinach or coleslaw on the side--whatever very low carb greens you can get in. Also grilled peppers, maybe guacamole or cauliflower rice. Green beans, but not too many. (Obviously not all these veggies at once--choose one or two)
Hints:
Buy big and grill or cook big (I boil a dozen eggs every week, cooked a 5 lb tenderloin tonight--it's not just me--ha--feeding a family), that way you have leftovers to grab when you need something quick.
Use more butter, olive oil, coconut oil than you would normally. Use more salt than you would normally (it really helps you not get the 'keto flu'). Drink more water, seriously, a lot more. Take a magnesium supplement if you do start to feel not quite great, or even better, drink pickle juice or warm up some broth.
Track your macros but also keep in mind that not all are net carbs. (I stay below 30 carbs net but often exceed that in my daily count b/c not tracking net).
Read this board, it's massively informative.
Good luck--it feels different, hard to describe but just more solid, less at the whims of food/mood swings, etc.1 -
You can get the hang of it pretty quickly with eggs and bacon for breakfast and meat with leafy greens for lunch and supper. When I started, I would more frequently eat a snack of an ounce of peanuts mid afternoon. I have some that are 1 net carb per serving.1
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(manners....!)0
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How's @GlindaGoodwitch doing now? FTR, I've never felt better!!0
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