How do YOU Keto?

darlingdani83

Hey all!

So I got to thinking today, it seems like a lot of people have their own, unique way of doing this diet (or lifestyle, whatever you want to call it.) That's the great thing about it, is that it really is customizable for each person and their way of living. Anyhow, I'm curious....how does everyone here find that Keto works best for them? Are there any foods you just know you can't have, or any certain philosophies you adhere to? I thought that could be fun to share, and who knows, maybe we can get some great tips from each other

For me, I've found that (I think) I really can't have too much cheese because it slows me down. I do Paleo Keto, so basically I don't do anything processed. No shakes, no substitutes.....I thought it would be hard at first, but I've come to find that it's really enjoyable, and oddly enough I don't really get hungry anymore. I don't really get cravings either, except for out of the blue yesterday when I swear I could have KILLED somebody for a Caramel Brulee Latte! (Curse you Starbucks and your delicious Christmas drinks!) Also, I keep hearing about people doing "fat fasts" but I'm kinda intimidated by that idea, and I don't really understand how it works anyhow. Has anyone had great success with a fat fast? I'd love to hear about it!

So tell me, how do you Keto? What do you love about this diet, and what drives you up a wall??

Chris_B62

The most difficult part for me so far (newbie since Mid-Oct) is rewiring my brain. Going from "fat bad" to "fat good" sounds easy to process until you begin to cook. That's when you have to fight your urge to leave all the fatty goodness out of what you're cooking. I LOVE good salads but used to eat them rarely because when you add in all the good stuff the calorie count got high. Now, I put on green and black olives, green onions, celery, pecans, and FULL-FAT dressings. Heck, last night I added a Tbsp of regular Mayo to the concoction just to drive up my fat macros a little more.

Lucky for me, I like to cook. I am currently experimenting with several recipes, usually on the weekends when I have more time available. My favorite so far is a thick cream cheese sauce w/ butter, cream, and spices. I am able to put it on all types of protein and drive the fat macros. I would soon like to open up another keto topic just for recipes that people have created and would enjoy sharing with others.

But my favorite has to be the freedom to eat Bacon & Eggs for breakfast every day!

sixpacklady

I am close to ending week 2 of keto. And I love it so far.

I can finally try all those fatty things that I never thought I would be able to eat, how awesome is that.
I am finding that I can do with just lunch and dinner and skip breakfast without any issues. Normally, I would be thinking about food all the time. Now I force myself to eat. Now, during the first week, it was a different story. I was hungry all the time, but I see the gradual shift during the second week. I don't crave carbs as much, but I am a big sugarholic. But surprisingly, I am finding that the sweet cravings are also dying down and the need to have something sweet after lunch /dinner is also going away.

To keep me motivated on the keto diet, I try something new every week. Last weekend, i made ribs with reduced sugar BBQ sauce and I keep trying new recipes. Have been avoiding ribs bcos of the fat. Next week will be a sausage overload

I am having full fat cream cheese, mascaprone, other cheeses etc. Not sure if this is gonna kick me out of keto, but will see. I have a blood ketone monitor and this week I was at 2.1 which is a good point to be at for ketosis. The monitor also helps me motivated to stay keto. I will testing again next week. If any one is interested, NOVA MAX sends free glucose/ketone meter. But you will have to buy ketone sticks separately which is quite expensive. So I do testing once a week.

Hoping to hear more from others.

fangirlish

I've been eating low-carb for nearly four years and strict keto for about six months now. I found that keto is much better for me in regulating my blood glucose levels (I'm diabetic) and also for weight loss. It isn't "melting" off me like some people claim, but I am seeing a steady and slow weight loss.

My macros have changed over the years. When I first started, I was at about 65% fat - 20% protein - 15% carbs. Today I am at 85% fat - 10% protein - 5% carbs and these seem to be the right proportions for me. I also enjoy the high energy of burning ketones, which I did not get until I upped my fats to the 85% mark. I'm even exercising for the first time in years! Don't have a ketone meter but every day I calculate my ketogenic ratio via an Excel formula and as long as the result is over 2 I'm happy and figure I'm in ketosis.

No carb cravings at all anymore but have a harder time with protein cravings and am thinking of upping the protein a bit, as I seem to gravitate more toward about 12 - 13%. It was hard to wrap my head around the idea of 'saturated fat is good for you' idea at first, but once I did, it's awesome. Being able to eat full-fat products and add all those delicious foods like keto cheesecake, keto fudge, chocolate & gelatin whips - oh my, my mouth is sooooo happy! And so are my glucose readings.

I've found that eating keto is much easier if you like to cook. That way you really do have good control over your diet. Virtually everything I eat is home-made from scratch, even the mayonnaise.

Sorry for the length. I'm known for my wordiness.

vampirequeen1959

I love being on lchf. I have the same problem in that I can't get my head around fat being good. I've been taught the opposite for my whole life. I try to keep to 10% carbs but eat more protein than many. However it's working for me atm so I'm happy with it. If/When I plateau I'll start to tweak the fat/protein percentages.

ea101367

.....and add all those delicious foods like keto cheesecake, keto fudge, chocolate & gelatin whips - oh my, my mouth is sooooo happy! .

Ohhhhhh...I'm intrigued. Do you share recipes? I'm only in two weeks BUT the occational keto friendly yummy should be ok.

fangirlish

Always happy to share recipes! Many of mine have been adapted from recipes others have shared with me.

Do we have a thread in this group for recipes?

sb4480

I tried paleo a few months ago and missed dairy too much, so this go around I'm allowing it. I haven't noticed whether it interferes with my losing or not because I'm only a few weeks in. It does give me some digestive upset, so I will likely start to taper off of it as I progress with the program. But yea, during induction I need something that I'm used to and comfortable with. I try and stay under 15g (5%) net carbs/day and am pretty successful. I'm also trying to do this within an established calorie goal. That's where I'm finding the most trouble. If I eat my fat macros and hit my carb then I'm like 300-400cal over/day.

darlingdani83

sb4480 interesting that you'd say that, I haven't seen anything strictly prohibiting dairy for Paleo. Or maybe I just (conveniently) interpreted it wrong LOL. I have the same issues as everyone else seems to have regarding the fat issue. I had a convo with someone last week about the diet and found myself fending off questions of, "well, you're eating GOOD fat, right?" So yeah, I don't think I'll be bringing up the diet in conversation again anytime soon. It's funny (in a sad way) I found myself thinking about how convoluted our information about fat and nutrition is in this country. There are articles and "papers" out there that I've read which literally say in the same paragraph that cholesterol in the blood doesn't come from dietary sources but from the liver (which produces it from sugar, NOT fat) and yet they still warn against the consequences of eating too much fat. But then again, it's not as though we're known for being the most scientifically literate country there is

Was that a rant? I think that was kinda ranty. Sorry! I'm glad to be part of a community full of people like you guys though, who are well educated on the issues and help me learn new things every day. You're the best!