new to keto, help???

nabila_rahman94

Hey everyone!

After doing some research I've decided to make a lifestyle change and keto seems the best way for me to go. (I'm a little ashamed to say that Vinny from Jersey Shore might have slightlyyyy influenced my decision). I'm a bit of a jokester but I do want to take my health and fitness seriously. I'm VERY open to any advice or support anyone has to offer. I've gone on to keto calculator and figured out how many grams of each food I should be eating and I've tried plugging in different foods in MFP to obtain that goal but I'm hardcore struggling. If anyone could help me out on making a meal plan or doesn't mind sharing their own, I'd greatly appreciate it. Also anyone starting their keto lifestyle or anyone that has been on it for a while that wants to share some mutual encouragement, please add me. I do live in the Houston area so even meeting up or being workout buddies would be amazing. Btw, my goals are 25g carbs/87g protein/130g fat (how do I increase my grams of fat without going too high on my carbs and protein???). Thanks in advance and hope yall have a great week ahead!

livingleanlivingclean

Why do you think keto is the way to go?

Imo, it's a miserable, unnecessary way to achieve goals. I didn't feel any better doing it, it didn't help me achieve goals in the gym, I didnt enjoy the food (got boring real quick), and I found I had to restrict way too many foods I consider healthy, ie. Vegetables, and fruit.

NovusDies

You should consult a doctor before going that low on carbs each day. When your body goes into ketosis for prolonged periods of time there are a lot of bad things that can happen.

BranaBecky

Hi,
I am not doing Keto myself, but I have a very good friend who is. She and her family came to my place recently for an Easter dinner, so I had to come up with things that would work for her, and things that would work for me too, and that all the others would eat too. So I made a variety of things, like a mini-buffet. I am certainly NOT a Keto expert, but maybe some of these ideas will help you.
I made things for her like Asparagus spears wrapped in bacon; roasted Brussels sprouts tossed with seasonings, coconut oil and Parmesan cheese; I steamed broccoli and cauliflower for everyone, but then made a rich creamy cheese sauce for her to pour over hers to boost up the fats; And I made skewers of mushrooms, peppers and onions, but made her Lemon/Garlic butter to dip them in. And I cut several slices of ham off for her before adding the sweet glaze for the others.

Basically, I think if you avoid most carbs and sugar, you can use heavy cream, olive oil, butter, cheeses and such to add rich flavour to a variety of vegetables and this will increase the fat and protein content.

Having said all that - Personally, I wouldn't recommend the Keto diet as a long-term lifestyle - I really don't think it is healthy or safe. But for a few months to jump-start the weight loss and get yourself on track, then it could be good. My friend had gained a huge amount of weight over the last 10-15 years and nothing else was working for her,so this has been a good thing for her. I think before too long she will tire of this High protein/Hi fat/Low carb diet, but hopefully by then she will have seen enough weight loss to be encouraged to keep going. I hope it works great for you too.

DivineLotus

I have found that Pinterest has tons of helpful ideas from foods to avoid to meal ideas/plans. It’s helpful. I don’t like how high my sodium and fat intake is when I low carb but if you make your diet 75% veggies it should help with that. I tend to grab cheese instead of anything else when I want a snack.

livingleanlivingclean

DivineLotus wrote: »

I have found that Pinterest has tons of helpful ideas from foods to avoid to meal ideas/plans. It’s helpful. I don’t like how high my sodium and fat intake is when I low carb but if you make your diet 75% veggies it should help with that. I tend to grab cheese instead of anything else when I want a snack.

Eating lots of vegies isn't possible, considering they're pretty much all carbs.

kimny72

OP, you certainly don't need to do keto to lose weight if you find it difficult. All you need is a calorie deficit, and honestly, you want to choose a way of eating that makes it easy, not difficult

But if keto sounds like a diet that will help you eat the right calories, check out the Low Carbers group:

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/394-low-carber-daily-forum-the-lcd-group

nvmomketo

The above group is very helpful to newbies" there is also a Keto MFP group that is very good.

If your protein goes up, I would let it. More protein is often better. You could even get fat and protein closer together - both could be around 110 g. I wouldn't force the fat. If you are under in fat, and not hungry, don't worry about as long as you have enough protein. Let your body fat be used for fuel instead of dietary fat.

Unless you have a medical need for ketones, or you find that low level very satisfying, you do not need to keep carbs that low either. You could bump it upwards to 50 g and still be ketogenic all the time, or even higher which would have you in and out of ketosis more often. Do whatever works.

If you do want to add more fat to your diet, whipping cream in coffee, melted cheese on meats and veggies, and butter on foods will add calories quickly.

MonicaRoxxs

I've been doing Keto for a month now and I love it so far. I like that I can still eat variety of foods that I love! Pizza, burgers, wings, casseroles..all that good stuff! Lol It doesn't feel like I'm restricted at all. Be sure to get your electrolytes in though and drink plenty water. Not sure how long I'm going to do it for but it's a great way to jump start weight loss in my opinion. I keep my carbs between 25 and 30g.