It really varies by person as to the exact number that keeps you in ketosis. It depends on so many things including your DNA and activity level. 20g total is certain to put anyone right in and start the ball quickly, tamping those cravings down. Most keto authorities, including Phinney and Volek (if I remember correctly), assert that most people really can be in under 50g total for certain without measuring ketones or worry. Between those is personal preference, really.

Some people report though that if they go over 30g they get kicked out of ketosis, and that may be the case for those who are extremely insulin resistant. You've bounced around in the range without noticeable effect, so I think we can assume that isn't the case for you.

I started at 20g total. And kept that for 6 mo. Many people, including myself, find that number to be very good at almost immediately squashing the daylights out of cravings. Eventually I slowly migrated to 20g net and upward. I'm fairly certain that I can go up to 60g total as long as I'm getting some fiber and still be "in" based on daily weigh-in behavior. It may be higher. Sometime soon I'll experiment to figure out my exact number. I'm doing 50g net carbs right now. I'm trying to get my chronic fatigue to go away completely. So I tweak.

Some people like to act like you get a keto trophy for the fewest carbs. There is no trophy. My advice is start anywhere at 20g total to 50g total. Do it consistently at a set level and see how things go. How do you feel? Is it sustainable? Are you happy with the results? If you find you have more cravings at 50g than 30g, and that bothers you, go down to 30 and stay.

As long as you are happy with your progress and feel well, continue.
Be aware though that just because you have scale pauses now and then, it doesn't mean it isn't "working" any more. The body is going to take pauses. You're upsetting its job at maintaining homeostasis and the body doesn't like that, so the scale will sit there for a bit while the body is thinking about it, or cleaning house by doing other things, like holding water in empty fat cells.

HTH.

If you're just doing it for weight loss, then it's correct that I don't think it matters how deep in ketosis you are. If you're maintaining ketosis for other purposes, then you'd want to invest in a blood ketone meter to get actual numbers, anyway, for more precise measurements.

I believe in personal experimenting. If you're achieving your goals at 50g, then that's great. No reason to change anything.
In my experience, I tend to notice more hunger and even some sweet cravings if carbs start creeping toward 40. I also think I am able to lose weight more predictably and can get lower calories when I go very low to under 10g, but I have difficulty maintaining that level for more than a week. 20g seems much easier to me, but then I seem to maintain the same weight for longer periods of time before losing and I seem to eat slightly more calories... As far as ketone urine or blood testing, I keep very steadily in the moderate range. Very rarely dropping to small, only when carbs go up. I haven't quite figured out how my patterns make any sense, but I go from 20-30g to 5-10g in cycles, and it seems to mostly work for my goals right now.
Ultimately, it just has to work for you. Doesn't matter who's definition it fits into. And you may be able to go higher or lower as you progress.

SamandaIndia wrote: »

@baconslave thanks for the helpful responses and @macchiatto thanks for articulating a query i also had, so well. @Sunny_Bunny are you talking total or net? If total, any tips from you or others on dodging days of Constipation?

I am talking total. It's just easier nothing wrong with choosing to allow more carbs to accommodate veggies, but I would just count total for simplicity no matter what.
I have been experiencing constipation with this WOE for the first time in the last few weeks and I really think cheese is to blame for me. I am cutting back on it to see if it helps. I just did 66 hours of fasting because I basically refused to put anymore food in until some came out. Lol
Feeling much better now. Just need to prevent that from happening again.

@Sunny_Bunny_ Can I just say that you're looking smokin' in your profile pic? Keep up the awesome work!

Sunny_Bunny_ wrote: »

SamandaIndia wrote: »

@baconslave thanks for the helpful responses and @macchiatto thanks for articulating a query i also had, so well. @Sunny_Bunny are you talking total or net? If total, any tips from you or others on dodging days of Constipation?

I am talking total. It's just easier nothing wrong with choosing to allow more carbs to accommodate veggies, but I would just count total for simplicity no matter what.
I have been experiencing constipation with this WOE for the first time in the last few weeks and I really think cheese is to blame for me. I am cutting back on it to see if it helps. I just did 66 hours of fasting because I basically refused to put anymore food in until some came out. Lol
Feeling much better now. Just need to prevent that from happening again.

mucho coffee usually solves that blockage problem for me. When I drink it on an empty stomach, it's almost like pressing a button.

I'm not surprised that the starbucks stuff did it for you. Theirs is usually a little stronger than what I brew at the house, especially if you get one of my favorites which is the Americano.

They definitely hit the spot