Is a Keto diet a good idea when life is hard enough already?

dhtp23
dhtp23 Posts: 1 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hey everyone, I'm Lizzy, I'm 36 and have just moved to the UAE for work. My work is intense and very stressful
Since moving 5 weeks ago, I've put some weight on (living in hotels etc) and my boyfriend is basically telling me i have to do the Keto diet to lose my weight fast. I have always struggled with my weight and my relationship with food and in the last two years I've lost almost 9 stone and did so without giving up any particular food groups but I still have 3 stone to go. I've been trying this diet for just under a week, and I feel awful, I'm drained, emotional, angry etc. I suffer from anxiety and depression as if is and am under a lot of stress. Does anyone have any advice? Thanks in advance for any help 😊
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Replies

  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,953 Member
    If you don't see yourself eating keto, and continue eating keto after you lost your weight then it's likely not for you. The weightloss period is a good moment to re-evaluate how to eat, and how much to eat to keep this up after you lost your weight. If you eat differently just for losing weight then you've not learned anything for the time after and you'll likely regain. Also, any calorie deficit leads to weightloss, regardless of whether it's high fats, protein or carbs. What works for you is individual though. The big secrets to weightloss is finding out what keeps you full, to eat enough while still being in a calorie deficit, and to eat in such a way that you feel happy and not hungry and grumpy.
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,228 Member
    edited July 2023
    The keto diet isn't really a fad diet, it's a therapeutic diet to address metabolic issues like obesity, diabetes and fatty liver as examples. If people like yourself fall into this diet try and take it on just for weight loss, generally it's a fail like most diets, and actually more so, simply because it's very very restrictive and most people miss all that tasty food and it's because tasty food is tasty and our brain especially loves tasty that it's a journey too far. You probably know the diet your on is not sustainable and keto is just too much of a shock to your conscience acceptable limit on what feels and tastes good to eat. Your going to have to make that journey on your own because nobody here is going to be able to do that for you. imo. Cheers.
  • sollyn23l2
    sollyn23l2 Posts: 1,765 Member
    edited July 2023
    You know what works for you. Feel free to ignore your boyfriend's "advice" if it's not working for you (it's clearly not).
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,332 Member
    edited July 2023
    dhtp23 wrote: »
    Hey everyone, I'm Lizzy, I'm 36 and have just moved to the UAE for work. My work is intense and very stressful
    Since moving 5 weeks ago, I've put some weight on (living in hotels etc) and my boyfriend is basically telling me i have to do the Keto diet to lose my weight fast. I have always struggled with my weight and my relationship with food and in the last two years I've lost almost 9 stone and did so without giving up any particular food groups but I still have 3 stone to go. I've been trying this diet for just under a week, and I feel awful, I'm drained, emotional, angry etc. I suffer from anxiety and depression as if is and am under a lot of stress. Does anyone have any advice? Thanks in advance for any help 😊

    You don't "have to" do Keto to lose weight. I have lost about 55 pounds so far. I lost half of that simply calorie counting. I tended toward home cooked meals with lots of fruit and veggies. I switched Keto because even losing weight and eating a "healthy" diet my HA1c was continuing to go up. Cutting carbs to a very low level dealt with that issue very effectively. I actually prefer eating very low carb, so for me it is a win. I missed carbs and sugar for about two weeks at most. Now I can say I don't miss or crave them. I am not 100% keto. I have days, usually special occasions, where I will eat whatever I want of what is provided. That means I don't have to be the guy at family events and the like who acts like everything is off limits, or worse yet, makes an *kitten* of himself like his eating choices are so superior to everyone else's and they should cater to him. All that and I can say other than a small time when weight loss was faster as I dropped water because I was not storing as much glycogen, the speed of weight loss between counting calories and keto counting calories was identical which is basically what the studies I know of have shown. If you control for calories, there is no difference between keto and other ways of losing weight. Do what works for you.

    Let me add. You have what is commonly called the Keto flu. It is largely caused by the fact that when you start keto you drop a lot of water weight and that pulls electrolytes out of your body. A good electrolyte replacement that doesn't contain sugar and have magnesium, potassium, and sodium would likely help a lot. Many keto dieters I have spoken too say drink some dill pickle water, but I would rather have an electrolyte blend personally.
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,953 Member
    On the note of eating what you enjoy: I don't know where you're from originally, but the selections of fresh produce in the UAE (and everywhere in the region) are a-ma-zing! I still miss it.
  • Mike90028
    Mike90028 Posts: 5 Member
    Keto helped me get over anxiety.
  • paperpudding
    paperpudding Posts: 9,286 Member
    thats great for you Mike!

    but it is adding to OP's anxiety and doesnt seem at all a good fit for her.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,999 Member
    Any diet that makes you anxious or uncomfortable shouldn't be your diet.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 35+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
    9285851.png

  • crb426
    crb426 Posts: 661 Member
    Find food that you love how it tastes AND how it makes you feel. My breakfast, for example, is often a piece of avocado toast with a fried egg on top with a side of fresh tomato. It has the fat, protein, carbs, and TASTE that make me happy and feeling full for a long time. Today for breakfast I have leftover rice and am super excited to create an Asian rice bowl with cucumber, avocado, and seaweed wrap (torn into bits) topped with a little spicy mayo and sweet soy sauce that I will eat with two eggs on the side for extra protein.

    Value the quality of food (while keeping calories in check) and you will be able to eat foods that energize you throughout the day.


  • mrmota70
    mrmota70 Posts: 533 Member
    Hey looks that for the last 2 years you had found what worked for you. Try to distress a bit from the recent changes you’re dealing with and slowly get back on track with what you were doing as it seems that it was getting it done. As a few have pointed out diets is not usually the best suited for long term success and mileage varies from one person to the other. You need to get into a lifestyle that works for you nutrition wise. And be aware and don’t let it hit you to hard when weight creeps back up. It’s all part of the cycle. In your initial post you’ve stated dropping 9 stone and boyfriend saying loose it fast by going keto. One thing that wasn’t said is health. You physical and mental health with a lifestyle that helps keep those in check is what you should try to come up with. Pound sand to the boyfriend if he’s pointing you in the direction on something that may have worked for him. If looks is what he wants from you well review the previous sentence. First two words should be sufficient. Slow and steady will get you there. Good luck.
  • jessalittlemore
    jessalittlemore Posts: 65 Member
    edited August 2023
    As someone who has lost a lot of weight with Keto and low carb, three pieces of advice:

    1. Keto will not make you lose any faster than any other CICO diet. Speaking from experience having one failed attempt at Atkins years ago and now my success with Keto, it's not a magic bullet, some people will even say you can just eat low carb and not count calories and it'll all work out but that's far from the truth. Calories in, calories out is the factor that makes you lose weight, everything else is just finding out what keeps that deficit sustainable for you. What makes you feel satiated, what foods you can live with and live without, what gets your motor running for exercise. It will be slow going, especially as you get closer to your goal. The important thing is to do something sustainable, not a quick fix. Quick fixes aren't permanent fixes.

    2. It sounds like you're not having a sustainable experience on Keto, so I wouldn't recommend continuing purely based on that. Keto can be harder on some and easier on others. I do low carb because I legitimately feel better when I eat low carb. I have terrible cravings, headaches and other negative physical reactions when I eat sugars. For me it was a natural fit based on foods I enjoy eating. The biggest difficulty for me personally has been managing my fiber and electrolyte intake, because keto can cause deficiencies in these. So if you're planning to stay on Keto, keep this in mind!

    3. Mindset is 90% of the struggle. Stress can derail your plans for yourself, often beyond your ability to control it, so be kind to yourself if and when that happens and accept it as part of life. Just remember you don't have to get it perfect every day. If you have a hard day go ahead and forgive yourself and let it go, try again tomorrow.

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