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Keto means not counting calories

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  • Wheelhouse15
    Wheelhouse15 Posts: 5,575 Member
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    psuLemon wrote: »
    AnvilHead wrote: »
    I've been keto for the past 4 months: [1] I don't pay any attention to calories. I eat at my TDEE: 2200/day and continue to lose weight. It's NOT calories in/calories out. I belong to several Facebook keto groups and many of my friends on this site are doing keto and post their food diaries. Most of us eat at our TDEE-- that's a shitload of calories. I don't exercise-- many do. I continuously lose. So do almost all my keto contacts. I'm working with my endocrinologist. I'm not diabetic and don't want to be--so this works for MANY people. People are comfortable with CICO. But ultimately, when you look at the success rates of low calorie diets: they don't work for over 90% of people long term. We've been taught our whole lives to eat less, exercise more. [3] Keto throws that to the wind. Eat fewer carbohydrates, but EAT. [4] We are never hungry: which low calories diets cannot claim. You can certainly add exercise: we all need it for well being, muscle strength and endurance, and basic life. I won't argue that. But I will argue and I have plenty who will back me up: keto is not CICO.

    [1] If you don't pay any attention to calories, how do you know you're eating at your TDEE?

    [2] Feel free to post any legitimate studies/statistics showing a higher long term success rate with keto over any other diet.

    [3] No, keto does not throw CICO to the wind. This is an example of the ridiculous claims made in keto propaganda. There have been countless scientific studies conclusively proving that energy balance is the driver of weight loss/gain/maintenance.

    [4] More keto propaganda woo. There are plenty of people eating non-keto, calorie-restricted diets who enjoy excellent satiety. That it works for you doesn't mean that it works for everyone.

    Keto
    Is
    Not
    Magic.

    AnvilHead, you don't have to agree, but these are my experiences. Propaganda is for a specific purpose: I have no other purpose than to answer her questions. I don't pay attention to calories: at the end of the day I look and see where I am-- I don't have to try to stay under. Feel free to research how few people maintain weight loss with CICO. Have fun with that.
    People (like yourself) are vehemently apposed to keto-- that's fine, it's not for everyone. But it works and it's not nearly the fad people think it is. There are many endocrinologists that would disagree with your claims that CICO is the be all end all. I would never say keto has better success than every other diet: my ego isn't so big that I need to claim things I don't know. But I do know that people do not have to eat at a deficit to lose on keto. I do know food is more of an indicator of how much weight people will lose is than exercise.

    Most doctors are not training in nutrition and while some are more specialized (like endo's) they are still not scientists. Doctors assess the science (often wrongly), diagnosed and prescribe. If you actually want to know how the body works, you go to a PhD that is educated and trained in nutrition.

    Sadly, many doctors conflate variability in energy balance (things that influence TEF, TEA, and NEAT), personal adherence to diets and modifications in macro distribution to address medical conditions (i.e., low carb to address insulin issues) to drive the belief that CICO doesn't matter. And they would be wrong. There are thousands of metabolic ward studies proving it. Failure to understand that, makes people uninformed.

    http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/95/4/989

    I won't speak for doctors, but neither does the poster you quote. It's more than likely she is either quoting a specific endo, that we know well and has been debunked, or misinterprets what endos are saying. An endo would understand how hormones affects the CO side and perhaps the CI side as far as usable calories, but except for a few known exceptions I haven't heard any say that a specific diet works better than anything else. That just isn't supported by the research and they know it.
  • fb47
    fb47 Posts: 1,058 Member
    edited January 2018
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    I have an autoimmune disorder and have been told by ketovangelists that a keto diet can control or even cure said disorder, despite there being NO evidence whatsoever of this, no studies have been done to show this and in fact the only dietary study done in relation to this particular disorder has indicated (only indicated) that a high fat diet may actually speed up degeneration. Didn't matter to these people, they firmly believed it was a cure all. I've also seen people with the same disorder told to go Keto on this forum, and it really irks me.

    No one should be giving another eating advice in a

    Not even a healthcare professional can tell one that any diet can control or even cure any disorder. It boils down to an n=1 self study

    Are you seriously suggesting disregarding the advice of a professional in favor of self-experimentation?

    I can tell you that some professionals give very poor advice simply because I am pretty sure they don't want to explain to their clients how CICO works, so they say "Here is a meal plan, just avoid carbs and you will be fine." It's easier for them to tell their clients to remove an entire macro then to explain to their patients that they should weigh their food and count calories. Let's face it, people prefer the easy way out of restricting something than doing any work like weighing food.
  • MixedFarmer75
    MixedFarmer75 Posts: 2 Member
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    Calories in matter. I have only been Keto for 3 weeks, but find it easier than just cutting carbs, and eating low fat. I have been using this app on and off since 2012. When I watch calories I lose weight, but if I don't I go back to my bad habits. The keto is nice because your blood sugars do not fluctuate thus that ravenous feeling never gets overwhelming. I have also noticed that the chronic inflammation in my lower back and knees has decreased almost to zero. As far as weight loss goes, as usual the first 10 lbs come off fast. It is still coming off but slower, although still faster than normal. Have lost 13 lbs over the 3 weeks that I have been watching what I eat. I will say this I seem to be able to eat more calories on Keto and still lose weight. Just my experience. There is solid science behind this keto, it is not a fad. Been around since the 1920's. It is not magic. It is just another tool. For some, especially those that are insulin resistant, find it very helpful.
  • Carlos_421
    Carlos_421 Posts: 5,132 Member
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    JerSchmare wrote: »
    JerSchmare wrote: »
    I’m late to this party, but it’s fascinating. I have a friend who talks exactly like the OP, and even uses the exact same statistics, I.e., 90% of people on non-keto diets fail. Weird. It must be a cult or something.

    Anyway, I honestly feel bad for these people. They ignore facts.

    The woo tang clan...

    OP is actually on the CICO side but was settling a debate with someone, who is no longer talking with them.

    There have been a few that are trying to refute CICO.

    No. OP said she eats at TDEE, but she doesn’t. She eats far below that. So, she’s losing because she’s in a deficit, not because of Keto. She denies that CICO is relevant.

    That wasn't OP.
  • H_Ock12
    H_Ock12 Posts: 1,152 Member
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    In order to lose anything more than water weight on keto, you need to also be running a calorie deficit. Many of the keto foods are high calorie, so I would suggest tracking your calorie intake so you aren't unknowingly in a surplus.
  • Carlos_421
    Carlos_421 Posts: 5,132 Member
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    Also, be sure you don't eat too much protein on keto or it will be converted to glucose and you won't be in ketosis anymore.