To start, not all of these options I'm about to list stress 'healthy fats'. Basically, fats are more a concern for your cholesterol level and contribute to plaque on your arteries if you aren't watching your carbs and continue consuming highly processed foods with nasty chemical additives. Fatty meats really aren't a killer. It's just what you eat alongside it and how your body reacts to the combination. I don't think of fat from an animal as bad fat. I don't think that the hunter-gatherers were obese and unhealthy.

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For a keto-diet that isn't too concerned with the restrictions placed on paleo, butter is just delicious, and aged cheeses are usually a way to quickly up your fat-intake. I know dairy is a touchy subject for those following a paleo diet, so if this doesn't work for you, you have other options. And if you don't like olive oil, I think olives can be fairly nice on the palate when snacking or with salads or in stir fry.

You can choose fatty red meats. When I eat ribeye, my fat grams are much higher than my grams of protein; just pay close attention to your calories when you do this. You can also get pretty high fat from beef stew (meat, not actual stew), and personally, I like to curry it and add some veggies (cauliflower and broccoli).

Most steak, other than sirloin, you'll have higher fat than you will protein typically. And the great thing is: the fattier the meat, usually the lower the price per pound; look for nice marbling. People want lean meat (because we are taught fat is the devil), so you definitely end up paying for the leaner cuts. I eat two slices of bacon in the morning, and it has more fat grams than it has protein. You may also want to look into other fatty pork products and dark meat fowl (keep the skin), particularly duck.

Now, I'm going to skip forward to another grey area. I sometimes eat canned or jarred sardines/salmon in olive oil. I prefer the jarred, because it tends to also be seasoned and taste great on a salad, no dressing required. Plus, it's healthy and super-filling. If you do eat salad and are okay with dairy, you can try any kind of dressing with blue cheese, or make your own vinaigrette with crumbled blue cheese.

Eggs are high in fat, and the protein is only slightly higher. I eat eggs and bacon as a breakfast staple, sometimes adding kale/spinach/mushrooms/jalapenos/cheese, just depending on whether I want to keep it simple and what I have planned to eat later that day. Always plan at least a day in advance to make sure you aren't eating spontaneously or digging through your fridge trying to decide when hungry and frantically calculating without expectations for the rest of the day. Repeat: Always plan in advance.

And the whopper: hamburger patties. You can opt for pre-made (processed) ones--there are some great gourmet selections at the supermarket--but if you are strict with your paleo diet, select your own meat. It's the dirtier of the fresh meats you can buy, but if you are okay with dairy, add some cheese into it and maybe some peppers and mushrooms and spices, just to give it flavor, and then stick it on the skillet. I rarely eat hamburger patties, because I find the fat content is so high that it's difficult for me to balance my ratio for the day when I do consume them whilst attempting to keep within my calorie-restriction, so be careful with this one.

A lot of your fat fine-tuning in a low-carb diet comes in the form of oils, fatty-fish, dairy (butter/cheese) and red meat. For another fruit option, if olives aren't your thing, you can also choose avocado; make it into a spread so that you are getting the benefits without upping your carb intake too much. I have avocado spread once or twice a week currently.

Hope this helps!

P.S. How about some summer sausage? <nudge>

Getting tired of me yet?
To make things a bit easier for you if you are having trouble figuring out macronutrients, I'll give you an example.

You want to stay in ketogensis. My goal is to stay under 30g of carbs per day, and people can be in ketogenesis at this level, but the generic response is that you want to be 25g or under.

So, let's say you are on a 1200 calories diet, which is standard.

25g carbs x 4 = 100 calories

Now you have 1100 calories to divide between proteins and fats.

You weight 165 and decide to have 1g for every pound you weigh.

165g protein x 4 = 660 calories

Now you have 440 calories to devote to fat.

440 / 9 ~= 48.8g fat

To get the percentages:

Carbs:
100 calories / 1200 total daily calories = 8.33%

Protein:
660 calories / 1200 total daily calories = 55.00%

Fat:
440 calories / 1200 total daily calories = 36.66%

I customized my macronutrients to fit my goals, but the above is a standard way to calculate the numbers for yourself. (Note: I'd personally go lower with protein, maybe somewhere around 85g-100g / day, and make up the difference with fat to optimize ketogensis.)

And here's a quote from an article I read:

"Fat, especially saturated fat, is the cleanest energy source available to us. Unlike glucose and proteins, the metabolism of saturated fat doesn’t create any toxic byproducts that need to be eliminated."

Something you need to be cognizant of is to not have a meal or snack without fat being a major contributor to the total calorie count. For example, I limit my carbs to 25 g per day, however I would never just pick up a few pieces of apple (up to 25 g carb max worth), and eat only that. That's a recipe for disaster in a low carb diet, where whether you are in keto or trying to control blood sugar spikes, your body will get a jolt of sugar/carb. To remedy that, I would have almond butter, or normal butter, or coconut butter, with the apple. Another example is the famous chicken breast salad. Seems like everybody on a low carb or keto diet has chicken breast with salad. This is another potential recipe for disaster. Chicken breast, with no skin, and a few leaves of lettuce, and a trickle of salad dressing, can potentially yield calories from 80% protein, and the remaining 20% from fat and carbs. Not good! Eat chicken with the skin, add avocado, add full fat cheese cubes, add bacon, add nuts,....try not to eat a meal or snack with less than 50% of the calories coming from fat.

Something else to look into is learn how to make those luxurious French sauces, like béarnaise or hollandaise. They are made with egg yolks and clarified butter, and really elevate the food in your plate (they are orgasmic :blushing: ). They are extremely fat rich and oh so yummy.

In case you are wondering, I'm on a 1200 cal diet, about 10% carbs, 20% protein and 70% fat. My diary is open to friends, so if you are interested I'd be happy to share.

Good luck.

Bullet proof coffee! It's a great way to get in extra fat, and adds a delightful creamy texture to your coffee. You can use coconut oil or butter, both work well!

Also, if you are like me and don't care for coffee...you can also do the Bulletproof cocoa/chicken broth/tea etc. Don't limit it to just coffee if you prefer other things!!

I personally love chicken broth with the coconut oil, butter, a little cream, a bit of chicken base added in for salt/potassium and a spoonful of my gelatin (dissolves fully in cold or hot and does not gel). It just tastes soooo good to me!!

mamma_nee wrote: »

I am trying to switch to keto from just regular low carb and finding it hard to figure the macros i need . I feel so dumb , can anyone share their diary so I can peak at some menus??

My diary is open. Happy menu hunting!

Winter is coming ..try Bulletproof Cocoa!!! At night ( or anytime) I like to have a non caffeine hot drink with high fat… almond milk (unsweet) with real cocoa powder or melting 100% plain cocoa bar, add butter, and heat. Depending on calories left for my day (Oh yes..I need to limit calories to lose, it is not unlimited fats either)

but satiety with a high fat diet means I can do very well on 1400 or so calories..nothing less.

when I drifted up to 1800 calories and >160 gr fat I just don't lose at all. so LATER I can maintain, but to lose there has to be some deficit going on. for me. younger women with less 'diet history baggage' do better.

I also bought a bunch of 'flavors"..little bottles..and add "Pralines & Cream, "Sugar Cookie" (my favorite for coffee) or Raspberry, or Lemon Merangue" to drinks or cream cheese/ricotta cheese for great added flavors.