Of the two which worked best: Keto diet or counting cals?

Rays_Wife · June 2014

CALORIE COUNTING HANDS DOWN.

Low carb made my life a living hell for 10 years. It was like beating my head against a brick wall. I was caught in a vicious cycle of weight loss and regain. I kept losing and regaining the same 15 pounds, just spinning my wheels because I couldn't keep up with such a restrictive diet. I blamed myself everytime I failed thinking well if I would just have more will power. At the time low carb (keto) was all the rage. Atkins was everywhere. I thought low carb was the only real way to lose weight. I finally woke up a couple years ago when I found MFP. I found sanity when I simply started counting calories and eating all food groups. For the first time in my life I was truly successful at weight loss - over 60 pounds gone. And the best part? I was HAPPY while "dieting". I woke up feeling happy knowing I could eat what I wanted in moderation instead of waking up with dread. I had low carbed so much just the thought of another egg or piece of meat sickened me. Yes I know you can eat veggies too and some fruits....trust me I was the expert on Atkins. But the thought of another meat/veggie meal disgusted me. I was so happy to eat normally. And the best part of eating carbs? I had so much more energy for working out!!!!! I'll never go back low carb again.

hookilau · June 2014

As long as my blood sugars are below 100 mg/dl, I lose weight with a caloric deficit.

A DEEEP caloric deficit....as in so busy with shopping, chasing kids, cooking, cleaning, taking care of dogs etc.
I end up being too busy to eat during the day on a keto diet higher in fat than protein & <20 g of carb per day.

This may be because I'm a small woman and down to my last few pounds (5' tall & currently about 25-28% BF)...not sure yet what my goal is, but when my middle and thighs quit being soft, I'll know I'm there :laugh:

Having been keto-adapted for a year or more, I don't have any trouble progressing at the gym & even though my weight hasn't moved much, I'm wearing smaller sizes. I'm happy with that.

The busier I am, the less I think about it & the more it works.
Don't over-think it.
Get moving, get out there & enjoy life while you're still young enough to do all that cool stuff :laugh:
:drinker:

slk17 · June 2014

I've done both and I've had success with both.

Back in college days I had no difficulty reducing calories and working out and just being very portioned controlled, but it took a lot longer.

I'm older now and I've tried to do the calorie deficit and workout again, but I'm VERY slow at losing. Anymore I have an issue with certain carbs as well, as they make me sick.

So when I DID start Keto I felt better, had more energy, and lost weight. I find the most difficult thing with Keto IS eating enough. I'm just not that hungry. I've gotten really great at making new recipes and trying new things out to help make it sustainable, because I do have the intention to eat lower carb for the rest of my life. Maybe not AS low as Keto when I get to my desired weight, but I don't foresee myself adding in bread, and pasta again. I don't really miss them. If I do fall off the bandwagon(and I have) for a day or so(usually around the holidays when I know certain foods are only a one time thing), the damage of eating stuff I normally don't is never that great, I just pick up and start fresh again the next day.

It's all about what works for you. Keto might not be the best choice for some, while it is for others.

hookilau · June 2014

One of my biggest concerns with doing keto though was what to do when it comes to working out. I enjoy occasional HIIT/cardio and mostly weights. That's something I'll still need to do my homework on.

I think people ease into it. It's been more than a year but I remember working on changing my diet & getting used to my new normal, getting accustomed to my body's responses etc. I think I did that for about a month or so before I continued my lifting program.

I stayed as active as my body allowed me to & tried to respect the changes. It's not sustainable for everyone & if you go back to carbs, you'll put the weight back on and feel sluggish/foggy etc.

Good luck

BachMa2000 · June 2014

Low carb has always worked best for me. It really suppresses my appetite which is what I need to be able to stick to a calorie defecit. I don't feel deprived at all because I am eating foods I enjoy. My problem has always been hunger not really craving specific foods.

I don't believe that low carb is some kind of magical weightloss tool in itself. Eat X calories of anything low carb or high carb and you will probably have the same results weightwise over time. What low carb does for me is appetite suppression. When I eat a higher carb diet I am hungry all the time and it is a constant battle to stay where I should be calorie wise. With low carb I don't have to constantly fight hunger. I feel like low carb is a useful tool that helps me to keep a calorie defecit.

Samstan101 · June 2014

Do whichever you think will give you a sustainable lifestyle. If its a diet and you go back to the eating habits that led you to want to diet in the first place you'll just put the weight back on. Better to find a routine you can live with and eat the same as you will when you get to target. For me that doesn't include cutting out whole food groups - I'm learning moderation. Others may be able to live with low carb forever but I like rice, pasta etc.

jasonmh630 · June 2014

Do you have some kind of illness or other problem where you would need to go on a specific diet plan? Personally, I don't like these kind of diet's that eliminate certain foods while bulking up on others. It a multi-billion dollar a year industry--that promises fast weight loss, and with our experience today, we now know that these diets make people fatter. A person loses a lot of weight quickly, only to see it gained back twice as fast as they lost it, plus 20 or so pounds.

Our genetics over the past few hundred years are based around protein, carbs, fat, and sugar. By eliminating one or the other starts to mess with our genetics, and the pay back are extra pounds.

So in my opinion it is best just to eat less and move more. A calorie is a calorie regardless if it comes from carrots or cookies, protein, carbs or fat. Albeit it is wise to incorporate healthier eating into any weight loss program.

Myself, I just do portion control. Two pieces of bread turned into one, a piece of cake is now a sliver, and I count my calories thru MFP--and I sync my daily activity with Jawbone UP--so I can not only tell how many calories I am consuming but with Jawbone UP I can tell how many calories I am burning during the day.

That's what works for me.

Congrats on finding what works for you. THAT is the key to sustainable weight loss. But keto being a lose weight fast scheme is a fallacy. People say it's unsustainable and unsatisfying, but the truth is (if done right) it can be VERY sustainable and VERY satisfying. Given that non-complex carbs are what's making a person feel drained and whatnot, like me. I keep my carbs very low because they make me feel like crap about an hour afterwards without going overboard on them. By the way, I'm talking about carbs like pasta, bread, (alot of) sugary snacks, etc... I'm not referring to carbs that have alot of fiber in them as well.

sunnyskys2013 · June 2014

Be prepared for a thousand "answers" that basically just condemn you for wanting to try.

That being said, I will state first off that I am Type II diabetic. I have always tried the calorie in/out. It has "worked" in small doses but I never kept with it, because the losses were so small I gave up. I would literally lose 3 or 4 pounds a month. Some people would say that's enough, but it wasn't enough to keep me at it.

I haven't tried keto...it seems difficult.

But I am now out of necessity on a low carb/low sugar and it's working amazing for me. I keep my carbs under 100g per day and my sugar I am aiming for 6-10g per day. The sugar is hard, but I'm doing it. I keep my carbs balanced through the 3 meals. So, if I have 30g at breakfast, I aim for 30 at lunch and dinner. Snacks I keep around 5g. Always have a carb with a protein, even a tablespoon of peanut butter counts for the protein.

I find I'm never hungry, and the diabetes symptoms I was having are clearing up. 30 pounds in 2 months, and it doesn't feel like I've really done anything!

I walk an hour a day, at a fairly slow pace. And the thing with limiting carbs is that it's kind of a built in way to not go over calories.

I was wondering when you say 5-10 g of sugar is that all sugar or added sugar? Is it natural sugar like in fruit and milk and stuff or do you only count the add sugar honey? I am about 80# overweight and have high blood sugar and I am still trying to figure all this stuff out. Thanks

sean_d33 · June 2014

Keto with Intermittent Fasting has worked wonders for me! I count my calories still, but honesty, I could not count and be fine. I haven't eaten for 16 hours and I am still full from last night. People who try it and say it doesn't work after 3-4 days didn't experience any of the benefits, just experienced the worst part of Keto.

chilledbeast · June 2014

once you lose the excess water with a keto diet sustained FAT loss will only occur with a deficit anyway. It doesn't work in some kind of magic alternative manner.

hookilau · June 2014

I was wondering when you say 5-10 g of sugar is that all sugar or added sugar? Is it natural sugar like in fruit and milk and stuff or do you only count the add sugar honey? I am about 80# overweight and have high blood sugar and I am still trying to figure all this stuff out. Thanks

If you have high blood sugar....sugar is sugar.

Whether it's fruit sugar, agave, date, brown, honey etc. Bread/starch is also sugar...to your body anyway.

If you have difficulty regulating your blood sugars, starch=sugar to your body in terms of response.

check out www.bloodsugar101.com

the amount of starchy carb (ie: starchy carb=sugar) that one can handle is different for everyone. I, for instance would LOVE to be able to handle more than 5 g of carb for ALL of my meals, but if I do that, my blood sugars go outside of the range that's safe for me.

I, personally can only handle a TOTAL of up to 20g per day....and fat keeps my sugars really low

also, as someone mentioned earlier, it keeps me from being hungry, so I can stay within a caloric deficit if I'm trying to lose.

So, as a diabetic, I use both methods, keto + caloric deficit

tennisdude2004 · June 2014

They will both only work if you are in a deficit, so it's personal choice.

Some people find calorie counting, whilst still eating a high percentage of carbs difficult and therefore the keto (or even a standard LCHF) diet, where just carbs are restricted. This helps regulate the calorie intake and generally most people can eat until they are satisfied, without logging calories.

Some people love there carbs so will restrict the calorie intake of all the foods they eat.

What works for one, will not necessarily work for the other.

Try both and see which fits you!

BachMa2000 · June 2014

once you lose the excess water with a keto diet sustained FAT loss will only occur with a deficit anyway. It doesn't work in some kind of magic alternative manner.

I don't think most people who eat a keto diet or just low carb in general are saying that. Low carb is a tool that helps to create a calorie deficit. In many people like myself it helps suppress my appetite so it is not a constant struggle to keep under a colorie limit. For me the level of carbs makes a huge difference in my hunger. For those who say low carb is unsustainable in the long run plain old calorie counting was unsustainable for me. It was a constant battle against being hungry and I felt deprived all the time. And I was eating 1800 - 2000 calories and feeling this way.

Different things work for different people so you have to find what works for you. And by that I don't mean that the mechanics of weightloss are different from person to person but rather what people consider a sustainable diet varies. We have different tastes in food and different reactions to feelings of hunger and fullness. I think its important to realize this when putting together your diet. You need to eat at a proper calorie amount in the way that leaves you feeling the best.

LovelyVegetarian · June 2014

I find low carb works really well for me. And you'd think it would be difficult given that I'm a vegetarian (though I eat fish, cheese and eggs). Not so. Also I do IF and it works really well. I eat all my food between 12 pm and 6/7 pm. I feel great all day long with just a black coffee to last me until I have lunch. It's only tricky when I eat out. But I usually use those times as the days I indulge a bit and then get right back on track.

I find I have much less hunger when I keep my daily carbs to 60 gr or lower. I've had to play around with the number and this seems to be the magic one for me. I find I'm energetic, and really clear minded. It's been a real eye opener for me. I feel free and for me it's a lifestyle - it's not that I am eliminating certain foods and that I will reintroduce them at a later point. I just simply don't eat them. Just as I don't eat meat. I get my carbs from vegetables and some fruit. I feel great and have no health issues.

enigmaneo · June 2014

Yeah, I'm not hungry as much. The only downfall is that when I need to do a tremendous amount of activity sometimes I run out of energy. My stamina is pretty high but I notice the difference.

AsaThorsWoman · June 2014

Neither worked for me.

But keto did make me sick and miserable.

ladymiseryali · June 2014

Calorie counting, while consuming high carbs and low fat did NOTHING. Actually it made me gain(no food scale back then. so that could be a part of it as well). Low carb and high fat made 30 lbs shed from my body and kind of quickly too, even though I wasn't overweight to begin with. I know 10 lbs of that was more than likely water weight, but the rest was fat because my measurements went down as well. I can see arm muscles, back muscles and a glimmer of abs. So yea, keto worked for me and I like eating this way. I don't feel sluggish like I used to when I eat a bunch of carbs. In fact, if I have a cheat day I feel hung over the next day, even if I was sober the day of the cheat.

croooz · June 2014

Takes most people a month to almost three months to use ketones as the preferred fuel source. Turning the ketostix purple is no guarantee you are in ketosis and therefore cannot rightfully claim to be in nutritional ketosis or following a ketogenic diet. Calorie counting is a no brainer and requires little effort other than logging everything. Following a ketogenic diet will require buying a glucose monitor with ketone strips and taking daily readings or at least weekly. If you have metabolic syndrome a ketogenic diet is the way to go. There is more at play than simply creating a caloric deficit. If our bodies mimicked a bomb calorimeter then a simple deficit would work for everyone however our bodies are more efficient at using carbs, fat, or both. For a growing number of the population we have become what Vonek & Phinney describe as "carb intolerant" and therefore require to substantially limit our carbs. So while it may not be fair that I should not have an Oreo it doesn't mean I cannot, it only means I will have to deal with the consequences. Once you are primarily using ketones as fuel going back into ketosis does not take weeks nor even days but perhaps a day.

If you are serious about following a ketogenic diet then do yourself the favor of reading a copy of "The Art & Science of Low Carb." After reading it you will better informed than the average clinician on ketogenic dieting and can make an informed decision of whether or not you will give it a try.

http://www.artandscienceoflowcarb.com

kdiamond · June 2014

Counting calories - keto is not necessary for the average joe, it's really only needed for body builders and other athletes needing to lose water weight for events, completely unnecessary. Just count your calories and be diligent.

Of the two which worked best: Keto diet or counting cals?

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