Hey everyone, I am starting a keto weight loss for 2021. I am new to the keto way of things so any support, tips, recipes or any other helpful information would be great! Hopefully I can also connect with some people for support and motivation on this journey. Good luck to everyone on their 2021 goals!
DarbyTischer
Member, Premium Posts: 4 Member
Member, Premium Posts: 4 Member
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I've been in and out of that group for close to 3 years and still find myself learning new things from it.
Grilled Salmon with avacado salsa and asparagus, keto friendly?
1) keep your electrolytes up, WAY up. Salt is your friend (you dump sodium like crazy, so you need to be replacing it, along with ensuring good intake of potassium, magnesium, and calcium).
2) don't get sucked into the myriad myths around keto. This recent review of Gary Taubes' new keto book highlights some of those: https://optimisingnutrition.com/the-case-for-keto-by-gary-taubes-my-thoughts/?fbclid=IwAR2HI_gazeKjbzVprxfvcKdqzYx0chawyuwT4LOgW099wfB3TSWXs-dCUpc
3) Low carbs are the important bit for getting into ketosis, not high fat. You do not need to be chugging fat bombs trying to hit 75-80% cals from fat. Also, many people can eat more than the 20-25g net carbs usually put forward by many keto sites and still be in ketosis (high fat and very low carbs are necessary for therapeutic keto, but not if you are just using it for weight loss).
And yes, your meal appears to be perfectly keto-friendly.
20g Carbs
120g protein
153g fat
1937 calories
I get close to those numbers but don’t reach or exceed them, and it seems like I’m eating all the time. Pickles and olives have been a good snack for me, plenty of salt too? I also cut all soda out and switched to mineral water, says there’s sodium in it. Does mineral water count as water though?
Yes, those are the sorts of numbers keto calculators spit out, and that zealots will tell you are necessary. They're not.
Without knowing your goal/ideal weight (or lean body mass if you know it), I can't say for certain, but your protein seems way too low, IMHO, unless you don't mind sacrificing some muscle mass along with the fat loss. It's complete nonsense that getting decent protein will prevent or throw you out of ketosis. Generally recommended amount during weight loss to minimise the loss of muscle, and even more important if you are strength training, is around 0.8g per lb of ideal/goal weight, or 1g per lb of LBM if you know it.
And as I said, most people can actually eat more than 20g net carbs. It is VERY difficult to get enough non-starchy veg to meet both fibre and micronutrient needs with carbs that low.
Your choice, at the end of the day so long as you are in a calorie deficit, you'll lose weight. But even if you don't up the carbs, I would seriously consider increasing protein and lowering fat to keep calorie goal the same.
FWIW, I don't consider myself to be 'doing keto', but ketosis happens to be a side effect of my current macro split. My macros today are 38g net carbs (I kind of aim to stay under 50, but I'm not going to die if I go a little over on occasion), 70g fat, 119g protein, 36g fibre.
And yes, mineral water is water
I have a goal weight of 190, I do not know my LBM but based on .8 of 190 I am on the low side with protein so I will probably adjust my daily nutrient goals some for that. It’s been a good starting point and I appreciate all the insight!
@lynn1 - this really isn't something you should go into without having done some reading first so you have an understanding of what to expect and how to get through what can be quite a rocky start for some. I strongly suggest joining either the keto group, the low carb group (has people doing various forms of low carb including keto, or both.
The low carb group has a ton of really useful 'start here' info posts at the top of the forum (keto group likely has the same). https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/394-low-carber-daily-forum