An aspect of keto I don't quite understand..

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StrongCurves
StrongCurves Posts: 31
in Food and Nutrition
I've read a lot about keto and seen some fantastic weight loss results in people on this diet. However there's just one thing I'm having a bit of trouble understanding and that's consuming between 25-50grams of carbohydrates a day. There are 11 grams of carbohydrates in a banana, even my vegtable smoothie which consists of variety of green vegtables has 5 grams! I assume there's possibly something I'm not quite understanding about this type of diet. I understand how it works but I don't quite understand how it's possible to consume so few carbs.

My goal is to lose fat and gain some lean muscle. However I'm consuming perhaps 100 grams of protein a day and find it difficult to integrate a lot of fat into my diet without consuming over the recommened amount of carbs a day for keto. I'm new to this and get quite confused and find it difficult to wade through all the diet fads and find out which information is correct as so much of it is conflicting.

Would love to hear about peoples experiences/success stories who have done keto!

Replies

  • Keep_The_Laughter
    Keep_The_Laughter Posts: 183 Member
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    I'm not doing keto, but as I understand it you are on the right track. Stick to green veggies and small amounts of lower carb berries to get your daily fiber intake. If you are having issues getting the appropriate amount of fat without carbs, perhaps you could try eating fattier cuts of meat, using drippings to cook and investing in some coconut oil for seasoning roasted nuts, frying eggs and so forth.

    http://ketodietapp.com/Blog/post/2014/01/29/Complete-Guide-to-Fats-Oils-on-Low-Carb-Ketogenic-Diet

    This link might help a bit :flowerforyou:
  • StrongCurves
    StrongCurves Posts: 31
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    Thanks! According to this article I am indeed on the right tracks! R.I.P to my wallet though. All this fresh veg and meat isn't student budget friendly!
  • ladymiseryali
    ladymiseryali Posts: 2,555 Member
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    I've been keto-ing since July. I gradually decreased carbs until I got them down to a comfortable level, which to me is under 30 a day, 20 if I can help it. What helps me is fiber intake, as well as eating as much fat as I can. Basically my diet consists of eggs, cheese, bacon, butter, peanut butter, cream cheese, heavy cream, spinach, broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, seeds and nuts.
  • RobsGirl_lds
    RobsGirl_lds Posts: 211
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    Butter, all cheeses, coconut oil, high fat meats, and nuts will bump your fat intake up to the level you need with a min amount of carbs. Stay away from most fruits and starchy veggies. Keep your veggies to the leafy/fiberos(sp?) kind.
  • Keep_The_Laughter
    Keep_The_Laughter Posts: 183 Member
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    Thanks! According to this article I am indeed on the right tracks! R.I.P to my wallet though. All this fresh veg and meat isn't student budget friendly!

    It certainly seems like it could be tricky to do properly on a budget, but my first thought is eggs and cheese. Might not be a fancy meal, but it does provide a fair amount of protein and fat. Maybe a good place to start if you are in a financial crunch.

    Maybe this reddit thread would help. Apparently the keto community is very active over there.

    http://www.reddit.com/r/keto/comments/1d9zxi/cheap_keto_foods/

    Best of luck!
  • HauteLlama
    HauteLlama Posts: 21 Member
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    can you get bulk frozen veg? They contain just as much nutrition as fresh. Also, Romain lettuce for wraps isnt as bad on your wallet as you think. They stay fresh for 2 weeks in a bag. Mayo, peanut butter, butter, and coconut oil are good to have on hand. You can get some cheap cuts from your butcher. Look for pork belly. I think I spent 6 dollars on 3 servings. Not so bad. TUNA salad too. It can be done on a budget. :) OH! I set my goals for on MFP for 70% fat, 25% protein, 5% carbs. Good Luck. x
  • EllieB_5
    EllieB_5 Posts: 247 Member
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    Are you tracking carbs or net carbs? There's a huge difference in how it affects how many carbs you can eat.

    total carbs - carbs from fibre = net carbs
    eg 10g carbs - 7g fibre = 3 net carbs.
    You can eat as much fibre as you want which is why dark green veggies are key. Stick to low carb, high fibre veg and fruit and you'll do fine.
  • HauteLlama
    HauteLlama Posts: 21 Member
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    Oh, yeah, I subtract the fiber from the total. but I don't eat fruit. One piece is your total carb intake for the day sometimes. :( x
  • yarwell
    yarwell Posts: 10,477 Member
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    A banana is perhaps the last thing you would eat on a keto diet, it's the highest carb fruit of them all. Grapes are next, and after that a group of things with half the carbs / sugar of a banana.
  • selfepidemic1
    selfepidemic1 Posts: 159 Member
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    The point is you don't, you eat a vegetables and meat. Not fruit.
  • aeb09
    aeb09 Posts: 424 Member
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    Cooking with butter or ghee, oils (I use olive oil and avocado oil most, but coconut oil is also great), mayo, full fat ranch dressing on salads, cheese, meat (85% beef, salami, pepperoni, sausages, etc), fatty fish like salmon, avocados, natural no sugar added peanut butter and things like full fat sour cream and cream cheese is how you hit your high fat macro daily. You essentially cannot eat fruit if you are doing keto, only a small amount of fibrous berries infrequently or you'll throw your body out of ketosis. Most of your daily carbs should come from vegetables (spinach, mushrooms, broccoli, asparagus, green beans, cauliflower, etc.). Stay away from anything that says low fat/no fat and try to buy unsweetened everything, if possible. I found there was a definite learning curve when I was trying to add fat to everything and that you need to add some kind of fat to every meal. You also need to drink plenty of water! Here are some great resources that really helped me as I've started:

    http://www.reddit.com/r/keto/wiki/faq
    http://alldayidreamaboutfood.com/
    http://www.ibreatheimhungry.com/
    http://holisticallyengineered.com/

    Send me a message/friend me if you'd like to get some ideas for meals or have any specific questions. I'm still relatively new but I've done an incredible amount of research the last month.

    ETA: I stick to under 18g total carbs a day (and try to net under 15g) so it's definitely possible. I do not feel deprived or hungry, completely the opposite actually. I've felt better the last month than I have in years, to be honest. :)

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