That crazy keto diet
Lovelylivie
Posts: 18 Member
I just started the keto diet. I have only been on it for 2 days so far and even bought ketostix.
How is anyone surving on less than 30grams of carbs a day?
I've found myself eating a lot of turkey, tuna and eggs, but I'll get tired of that soon enough.
How long until my body becomes a "fat burning machine" like they say this diet will create of you?
How is anyone surving on less than 30grams of carbs a day?
I've found myself eating a lot of turkey, tuna and eggs, but I'll get tired of that soon enough.
How long until my body becomes a "fat burning machine" like they say this diet will create of you?
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Replies
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Lovelylivie wrote: »I just started the keto diet. I have only been on it for 2 days so far and even bought ketostix.
How is anyone surving on less than 30grams of carbs a day?
I've found myself eating a lot of turkey, tuna and eggs, but I'll get tired of that soon enough.
How long until my body becomes a "fat burning machine" like they say this diet will create of you?
You body becomes a fat burning machine due to the increase in dietary fat (greater dietary fat means great fat oxidation). Body fat loss is equal on keto diets as all other diets.
Also, if you are keto, it should be high fat, moderate protein. Excessive protein will convert to glucose and pretty much act as a sugar.8 -
Does this mean if I decide to introduce more carbs back into my diet after I am ketosis, that I will gain back the weight?1
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Just the opposite, keto diets do not cause you to lose weight, calorie deficits do. So long as you stay below you calorie burn you will lose not matter what you eat. If doing keto helps you stay at a deficit so be it.6
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Lovelylivie wrote: »Does this mean if I decide to introduce more carbs back into my diet after I am ketosis, that I will gain back the weight?
You'll gain back water weight when you reintroduce carbs. If you feel like eating keto isn't for you, I'd advise you to go back to calorie counting. From my experience, keto was easy to maintain until I "cheated" after six months. I was never able to go back on it again, I can't deal with that restriction.6 -
Lovelylivie wrote: »Does this mean if I decide to introduce more carbs back into my diet after I am ketosis, that I will gain back the weight?
If you maintained calories, the only weight you would gain back is the glycogen/water weight, that is restored. When you go on low carb/keto diets, your body will reduce glycogen storage (in many case several lbs or more). So the introduction of carbs would reverse that.5 -
Plenty to eat
Breakfasts - eggs Greek yoghurt low sugar protein shakes bulletproof coffee
Lunch/dinner - any meat/fish with some kind of fatty sauce, low carb veg, cheese cream oil
Snacks - cheese, yoghurt, veg, fat bombs, pork scratchings
Have a Google there's loads of blogs and sites
Once you've put in some effort figuring out meals planning & shopping it gets easy. I tend to have little periods were I look up new recipes because I'm bored (this week's experiments were a cauliflower sausage stew and an aubergine and feta bake I'm tired of meat all the time this week) But I also easily cruise along on roast chicken thighs/salmon steaks and aioli/herby cream cheese and steaks with butter, eggs and cheese.
Going out is easy too. I just replace starchy carbs with salad/veg or simply leave aside. I've even stayed in ketosis eating the odd ready meal. I have something creamy like a korma leave the rice (add a spoonful of cream if I'm hungry) plus something green. Easy Peasy and yum
The fat burn is just cico. But I do find it much easier to control my appetite like this. As you leave ketosis you will change your water balance and put back the water + glycogen weight you lost at the start.3 -
But as long as I still eat right and continue to excersise when I do introduce carbs back into my diet, the weight gained will be water weight, not necessarily fat, right?
I'm not so concerned on my weight, just getting rid of this dangerous fat.
The counting calories didn't work for me, which is why I am giving the keto diet a shot. Even though I was only consuming 1000-1200 calories a day, my weight stayed the same or I gained some. I walk constantly for about 6 hours every day, and when I come home, I do some actual excersises here and there, but still nothing.
I really hope my question in the first paragraph can be answered, and I really need this to work for me. I feel like I've been trying so long.
And yes, I've seen a doctor.0 -
Lovelylivie wrote: »But as long as I still eat right and continue to excersise when I do introduce carbs back into my diet, the weight gained will be water weight, not necessarily fat, right?
I'm not so concerned on my weight, just getting rid of this dangerous fat.
The counting calories didn't work for me, which is why I am giving the keto diet a shot. Even though I was only consuming 1000-1200 calories a day, my weight stayed the same or I gained some. I walk constantly for about 6 hours every day, and when I come home, I do some actual excersises here and there, but still nothing.
I really hope my question in the first paragraph can be answered, and I really need this to work for me. I feel like I've been trying so long.
And yes, I've seen a doctor.
Keto is one of many ways to achieve a deficit. Carbs only affect glycogen balance. If calories are equal the only thing that will change is water weight not fat. If you find keto to be a bit much maybe work with lchf (140g or less). Some people do quite will with fat. Others do well with carbs. In the end, you need to find something sustainable and that will allow you to reach your goal.
As an aside if you do keto you still might have to calorie count (some dont but many do) as calorie counting is a tool to measure intake. There is a good potential that counting didnt work before due to the restriction or possible not being logging daily or using a food scale (the two being the norm for the forums, i havent looked at your diary).1 -
The "fat burning machine" question? Keto doesn't burn extra body fat compared to other ways of eating. It's still all about creating a calorie deficit. Some people like to use keto to get to that deficit.
This chart has some good advice:
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I have been on the keto diet for 46 days and lost 23.2 lbs. the first week I only lost about 4lbs but slow and steady. there are a lot of things to eat. Eggs in real butter, tuna salad, Mcdonalds egg mcmuffins (minus the bread) for breakfast, pork rinds, taco salad minus shells just taco meat on lettuce with salsa (measured) cheese, onions and sour cream, bacon cheeseburger minus the bun, broccoli, cauliflower, sausage cooked and crumbled with pepperoni and cheese (almost don't miss the crust), chicken cooked a lot of ways sometimes cut up and melted with cheese and bacon, lunch meat in a lettuce wrap, hot dogs with a few Tbsns. of chili and cheese and onions on it (no bun but tastes like a chili dog), meatballs, pork chops, fajitas from a Mexican restaurant minus the tortillas but as long as your watching your macros you can have the sour cream, cheese, and guac. I miss how easy it was to just make one meal for my whole family but I feel so much better and honestly I am just now about to start exercising. YouTube has a lot of great videos to watch... I am currently addicted to Katherine Michelle but there are so many good ones. I just last night tried the chocolate keto mug cake and was in love. Also my blood pressure was high and is now in the normal ranges. Keep the faith. It really does work even if just enough to get you into feeling good and then
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If you're finding keto level carbs too restrictive, you could always increase them. I had the same benefits, lack of cravings/appetite,same weight loss etc when i went from around 40g of carbs up to around 90g, I just made sure to keep carbs under 100g. It's just an option to consider.
Have you joined our low carb group yet? Many, many helpful and experienced ketoers who will be able to steer you in the right direction. http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/394-low-carber-daily-forum-the-lcd-group
As for regaining weight if you reintroduce carbs.. I put on a couple of lbs when i switched back to moderate carbs, it was only water weight which dropped back off after 2-3 weeks iirc. If you remain in a deficit you will NOT gain fat weight.5 -
Lovelylivie wrote: »I just started the keto diet. I have only been on it for 2 days so far and even bought ketostix.
How is anyone surving on less than 30grams of carbs a day?
I've found myself eating a lot of turkey, tuna and eggs, but I'll get tired of that soon enough.
How long until my body becomes a "fat burning machine" like they say this diet will create of you?
from what I have heard that ketostix dont tell the real story and arent accurate to tell if you are in ketosis or not(someone will come along and explain Im sure) also if you eat over so many grams of carbs,or your protein is too high it can knock you out of ketosis. everyone is different and some people will enter ketosis quicker than others so there is no set time frame as to when you will enter ketosis.
are you overweight and need to lose a decent amount? or just a few vanity pounds/a little bit of fat? if you are at a decent weight and just want to lose fat,keto may not have an impact on the fat and it will take longer to lose when you are at a healthier weight. so many variables here because we dont have more info on you.0 -
Getting into ketosis only takes a couple of days. Becoming fat adapted (where muscles start to prefer fat and VO2 max increases) takes weeks to months, and becomes a benefit when exercising. Is that what you meant?
And I survive fine on less than 30g of carbs per day.
But you are eating a LOT of lean foods. Go for fattier meat. Have a big turkey leg with skin on instead of a breast. Eat a big bacon double cheese burger, but toss the bun. Google keto or LCHF recipes for more ideas. 5 -
The "fat burning machine" question? Keto doesn't burn extra body fat compared to other ways of eating. It's still all about creating a calorie deficit. Some people like to use keto to get to that deficit.
I am sorry but you are WRONG.
Please do in depth research before you start mis-leading people.
"Calorie deficit" is a myth and I can simply prove it. NOT ALL CALORIES ARE CREATED EQUAL.
So how on earth could this make sense?
I am so tired of this calories in calories out and deficit lies.
It is virtually impossible for it to be true BUT there are MANY variables that come into play that the average person trying to lose weight will not take into consideration that influence this lazy mans approach towards weight loss.
Look I understand there are thousands of people that have lost weight doing it but every single case can be explained as to WHY they are losing weight. And in most cases people are eating much less than they should be just to create a deficit. It is the most unhealthy way to lose weight because of the above mentioned variables (to many to list) that people don't consider. In addition to that DO NOT even mention Keto unless you have a very clear understanding of how human biology works (which you obviously don't or I would not be making this post).
If you are consuming 2000cal/day in carbohydrates that make up 75% of your diet vs 2000cal/day in fat that makes up 75% of your diet, you are going to have a COMPLETELY different result. The carb day spikes the hell out of your blood sugar resulting production of the FAT STORING hormone Insulin. The amount of Insulin produced will be different for everyone depending on how Insulin sensitive or Insulin resistant they are (this is ONE of the variables I referred to above and the reason why people who are NOT over weight do not believe carbs are the enemy). They eat carbs, don't gain weight and tell everyone to try something different because based on THEIR experience carbs have not effected them. They are Insulin sensitive, they require a very small amount of Insulin to bring their blood sugar down and as a result they do not store much fat.
Second variable, if you are over weight you need to take into consideration WHY you are over weight to begin with. Eat to much? NOPE, not exercising NOPE.
I will tell you why, you are INSULIN RESISTANT. This means you have been consuming a moderate to high carbohydrate diet for a long time, which has resulted in a high level of insulin always being in your blood. It never gets low enough before your next meal or snack and this puts you into permanent fat store mode. Every simple carb or refined sugar you consume immediately gets stored as fat. Barely eat still I am over weight? Now you know why, it isn't the amount you are eating to little or to much, it is WHAT you are eating (carbs).
(Let me add a little disclaimer because this is where the carb loving people love to jump in and get fired up. Carb people you have been lied to for 50 years by the Sugar industry , we know you love carbs and don't want to give them up. So don't, I am not trying to convert anyone or tell them what to do, I am simply providing correct and accurate information on said topic, I will leave the decision up to you the reader.)
Worth a read: How the Sugar industry shifted the blame to Fat
Unlike every single other "diet" out there, generally speaking Keto is how we are suppose to work. Regardless of whether you eat Meat or are Vegan a high fat, moderate protein and low carb "diet" is how we function and perform our best. To say that "Keto doesn't burn extra body fat compared to other ways of eating" is absolutely ridiculous! It is the ONLY thing you are burning. But most importantly this new way of eating is sustainable, you can continue to do this for the rest of your life. Creating a caloric deficit is not, you will give up and or create numerous deficiencies.
Over weight people listen up if you take anything away from this post, know this.
You need to get your blood sugar under control. This is the key to your weight loss.
Depleting your body of carbs/sugar will allow your insulin level to come down.
No insulin means no fat storage.
Type 2 diabetics this is especially important for you.
Your pancreas cannot produce enough insulin because your blood sugar is to high, and you are taking more insulin to get it under control. Stop eating foods that raise your blood sugar and you won't need insulin!
Or you can listen the the person that made that comment above and believe that if you just simply create a caloric deficit it will all sort itself out....8 -
Medical diagnosis via the internet - awesome!I will tell you why, you are INSULIN RESISTANT.
OP - ignore the carbs are the devil/insulin is the root of all evil/it's a big conspiracy rant.
If you decide to try keto then do far more research. Don't blunder into things blindly.
My advice would be to keep it simple and eat what you regard as a balanced diet composed of foods you enjoy in the correct portion sizes- make it sustainable for you long term.8 -
CharlieBeansmomTracey wrote: »Lovelylivie wrote: »I just started the keto diet. I have only been on it for 2 days so far and even bought ketostix.
How is anyone surving on less than 30grams of carbs a day?
I've found myself eating a lot of turkey, tuna and eggs, but I'll get tired of that soon enough.
How long until my body becomes a "fat burning machine" like they say this diet will create of you?
from what I have heard that ketostix dont tell the real story and arent accurate to tell if you are in ketosis or not(someone will come along and explain Im sure) also if you eat over so many grams of carbs,or your protein is too high it can knock you out of ketosis. everyone is different and some people will enter ketosis quicker than others so there is no set time frame as to when you will enter ketosis.
are you overweight and need to lose a decent amount? or just a few vanity pounds/a little bit of fat? if you are at a decent weight and just want to lose fat,keto may not have an impact on the fat and it will take longer to lose when you are at a healthier weight. so many variables here because we dont have more info on you.
Dietary ketosis is essentially an "in or out" type of thing. For that ketosticks can be useful, when you can't really tell anymore. What actually triggers ketosis is depleted liver glycogen, once that's used up you'll start metabolizing more fat.
A lot of people think "darker is better" or that there's "deep ketosis" which isn't really true. Generally people have way higher ketone concentrations when they start out because their body is kind of inefficient at using them. Eventually that levels off, but there will still be enough ketones in the urine to get a reading.1 -
I started losing weight with keto, because like most misinformed individuals I thought carbs were the devil. Anyways after I realized that I was not going to go the distance I needed to with such a restrictive regiment and with what I learned here, I reintroduced carbs and took my lumps with the glycogen gain (it wasn't as nasty as I expected but it "looked" like a stall for a few weeks on my data). I went on to lose 60 more lbs the humane way, and I have to say; any "diet" is going to work because it (whether you realize or not) creates an energy deficit so you may as well use the one that you're more likely to adhere to long term.6
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Even Atkins wouldn't say "Carbs are the devil," so arguing against that is arguing against a straw man. (Increased insulin is the actual enemy. I don't think anyone would try to deny that.)
I'm reading a lot of oversimplification to score points in some effort to convince people that keto, lfhc, Atkins... Are inhumane and based on conspiracy theories, despite mountains of research and very happy users.
People are different. If your body manages CICO literally, so both CI & CO can be counted by what you ingest & your apparent activity/energy, and you find a CICO diet and WOE best for you, that's great! It worked for me too when I was younger.
But the CICO formula is only as useful as it is true for a given person. i.e., it can be broken by other documented variables, e.g., his or her insulin sensitivity, etc. at that time.
So people have both different needs and different preferences... at different times.
If we care about giving good advice and support, we must recognize and respect that, and avoid approaching them as prospective team members for our chosen religion. The latter is what leads to hyperbole and misinformation.
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I like what the prior poster said:
"I will tell you why, you are INSULIN RESISTANT. This means you have been consuming a moderate to high carbohydrate diet for a long time, which has resulted in a high level of insulin always being in your blood. It never gets low enough before your next meal or snack and this puts you into permanent fat store mode. Every simple carb or refined sugar you consume immediately gets stored as fat. Barely eat still I am over weight? Now you know why, it isn't the amount you are eating to little or to much, it is WHAT you are eating (carbs)."1 -
Even Atkins wouldn't say "Carbs are the devil," so arguing against that is arguing against a straw man. (Increased insulin is the actual enemy. I don't think anyone would try to deny that.)
I'm reading a lot of oversimplification to score points in some effort to convince people that keto, lfhc, Atkins... Are inhumane and based on conspiracy theories, despite mountains of research and very happy users.
People are different. If your body manages CICO literally, so both CI & CO can be counted by what you ingest & your apparent activity/energy, and you find a CICO diet and WOE best for you, that's great! It worked for me too when I was younger.
But the CICO formula is only as useful as it is true for a given person. i.e., it can be broken by other documented variables, e.g., his or her insulin sensitivity, etc. at that time.
So people have both different needs and different preferences... at different times.
If we care about giving good advice and support, we must recognize and respect that, and avoid approaching them as prospective team members for our chosen religion. The latter is what leads to hyperbole and misinformation.
One of the better first posts I've seen on here.10 -
CasperNaegle wrote: »Just the opposite, keto diets do not cause you to lose weight, calorie deficits do. So long as you stay below you calorie burn you will lose not matter what you eat. If doing keto helps you stay at a deficit so be it.
Wrong.....you should probably do alone research into ketosis.2 -
heatherwartanyan wrote: »CasperNaegle wrote: »Just the opposite, keto diets do not cause you to lose weight, calorie deficits do. So long as you stay below you calorie burn you will lose not matter what you eat. If doing keto helps you stay at a deficit so be it.
Wrong.....you should probably do alone research into ketosis.
There are plenty of people who are not losing on nutritional ketosis diets. You still have to address energy balance... meaning you must eat in a deficit to lose weight. In fat, ketosis is not amy more benefit in terms of fat loss over other diets. In isocaloric, isoprotein studies fat loss was equal. Where ketosis is beneficial is for the subset of people who a satiated with fat.4 -
K. I gave up on keto diet because I was miserable. No, I am not insulin resistant, I have PCOS, so that's why the calorie counting didn't work. I mean, Ive been doing this for 5 years now and trying different things. I did the Keto diet for 5 days and I didn't feel good at all and felt it wasn't right for my body.
Will continue to exercise.0 -
If it want right for your body, you could have been experiencing "keto flu" which is temporary and due to an imbalance with electrolytes (due to loss of water weight) in the early stages. The folks in the low carb group will have some really good suggestions to help minimize the impact.
If it's not right for you because you like to eat carbs, then go back to a caloric deficit. There are plenty of folks with PCOS and hypothyroidism and other conditions losing weight (like you and me)--it's totally doable!2 -
Lovelylivie wrote: »K. I gave up on keto diet because I was miserable. No, I am not insulin resistant, I have PCOS, so that's why the calorie counting didn't work. I mean, Ive been doing this for 5 years now and trying different things. I did the Keto diet for 5 days and I didn't feel good at all and felt it wasn't right for my body.
Will continue to exercise.
Maybe it would be more beneficial to restrict carbs. Going low carb and slowly transition down towards keto might help. Many women see success with PCOS and maintaining carbs at 120g or less per day.
Also, you probably had the keto flu, which could have been driven by not enough sodium. Where you getting between 3000-5000mg per day? Did you eat foods high in potassium/magnesium?
Side note, there is some science that would suggest that PCOS + carbs = lower RMR, which could make it harder to hit a calorie deficit, which will make counting calories and finding that sweet spot more difficult. Ultimate, counting is just a tool for accuracy. Finding that sweet spot is what is difficult.1 -
Lovelylivie wrote: »K. I gave up on keto diet because I was miserable. No, I am not insulin resistant, I have PCOS, so that's why the calorie counting didn't work. I mean, Ive been doing this for 5 years now and trying different things. I did the Keto diet for 5 days and I didn't feel good at all and felt it wasn't right for my body.
Will continue to exercise.
Maybe it would be more beneficial to restrict carbs. Going low carb and slowly transition down towards keto might help. Many women see success with PCOS and maintaining carbs at 120g or less per day.
Also, you probably had the keto flu, which could have been driven by not enough sodium. Where you getting between 3000-5000mg per day? Did you eat foods high in potassium/magnesium?
Side note, there is some science that would suggest that PCOS + carbs = lower RMR, which could make it harder to hit a calorie deficit, which will make counting calories and finding that sweet spot more difficult. Ultimate, counting is just a tool for accuracy. Finding that sweet spot is what is difficult.
@Lovelylivie This is spot on. Your sodium most likely became low due to water loss. I imagine you experienced fatigue, headaches, nausea, muscle spasms or soreness? These are symptoms of electrolyte imbalance.
BTW, PCOS is considered by many to be a form of insulin resistance of the reproductive organs. LCHF diets will probably help with it even if you don't go to ketosis levels0 -
Keto curbed and blunted my cravings so I could successfully reduce calories without feeling constant cravings. Even after I stopped keto my body has somehow healed itself. I can eat low carb for lunch and have "healthy" low glycemic carbs at dinner in combination with with protein and fiber and still not get cravings. It was freedom for me. It takes a while to get keto adapted. If you are already in past the hardest part which are the first two weeks IMO, then stick it out a bit longer to get the benefits. Otherwise if it's not for you, try to gradually add carbs back and play with macro portions to find your happy place. I get carb cravings if I go up to 50% carbs but am fine at 30-40%. That is the beauty in that you can adopt the method that is enjoyable for you!1
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Keto was the only diet that really worked for me, I was pre-diabetic, insulin resistant, and I have PCOS so a simple calories in calories out wasn't working. I always felt like I was starving all the time. Turned out eating high carb and low fat foods just made me gain more weight because by body was turning it all into glucose and storing it all as fat and I needed more of it to feel satisfied. I needed less food to feel satisfied on Keto by eating the higher fat foods.
You do have to watch your electrolytes when following keto like others have mentioned, which means eating pickles or drinking broth of some sort. I take a magnesium supplement every day and I should be eating lots of avocados to get my potassium in, I need to work on that.
Do what works best for you, it will take a lot of research and experimenting.2
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