First timer... question
mommaporter11
Posts: 56 Member
Hello all! So this is the first time doing the keto diet and I am having a hard time figuring out exactly how many carbs I should be eating a day. I hit almost 30 just by lunch.. how do some of you stay so low?? I've herd of a calculator to get a idea of how many I should have per day but is there a certain one that is more accurate than another? I can use all the help I can get! Recipes, quick snacks, easy dinners. I'd love to see some diaries of low carb eating so I could get an idea of some things! Sorry I feel like i am going to get overwhelmed so I'm trying to keep it as simple as possible!!!
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Check out the information that is stickied at the top. It is very helpful! Welcome aboard. My diary is open, but if you go back several days you'll see I've not been great at logging but if you go back a few months you can see some reasonable data.0
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My diary is open, but I'm low carb, not keto...feel free to browse around anyway...I've been on an egg and avocado kick this week!0
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Thanks I will check out that info!! I'm adding you both!!0
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Generally, the macronutrient ratio varies within the following ranges:
60-75% of calories from fat (or even more),
15-30% of calories from protein, and.
5-10% of calories from carbs.
I have mine set to 60F, 25P, and 15C
It might be easier to start with carbs at the higher end, and then shift them lower as you become accustomed to eating keto.1 -
I do that in my settings? I'll play around with it. I use mfp on my phone I've never tried to change the macros on here
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I find that if I don't eat bread, any wheat products, potato, sugary fruits erc then keeping my carbs under 20/25 isn't an effort at all.
Let us know what you're eating and we might be able to pinpoint what you could cut back on.0 -
I had coffee for breakfast with my creamer which I need to cut out cause I think there's 10carbs just in that but I find it hard to get through my morning without coffee. And lunch today I had salami with pimento an side salad with ranch.0
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I've been just planning on getting my carbs from plants and nuts. This way, it takes the guess work out of it.
Yesterday my day looked like this:
B: bulletproof coffee
L: 2 hardboiled eggs, a pickle, and a handful of pumpkin seeds.
S: a spoonful of peanut butter and a square of dark chocolate
2 slices of cauliflower crust pizza ( I modified it a bit to limit the cheese, because I'm mostly dairy free, but I've been finding that to be difficult on keto) and a salad.
I also had a couple of vodka sodas, because on Wednesday, we play poker.
I'm not sure what the grand total of carbs was off the top of my head, but it is below 50. My goal is to stick to about 5% of my total.1 -
Without sugar, fruit, starches and grains it gets pretty easy to hit a low carb total. Nuts and milk can end up being a bit high, so I watch those, but meat, eggs, green veggies and cheese are my friends.3
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mommaporter11 wrote: »I had coffee for breakfast with my creamer which I need to cut out cause I think there's 10carbs just in that but I find it hard to get through my morning without coffee. And lunch today I had salami with pimento an side salad with ranch.
Drink your coffee - just work on changing what you use as creamer. Consider transitioning to HWC, coconut milk, or none at all. Then there is the add butter to your coffee camp, of which I am a part!2 -
lol I've herd of adding butter, coconut oil, whipping cream. I just am not sure about the taste. I think I'll try some butter an stevia tomorrow morning!!0
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mommaporter11 wrote: »lol I've herd of adding butter, coconut oil, whipping cream. I just am not sure about the taste. I think I'll try some butter an stevia tomorrow morning!!
I can't do the butter thing in my coffee, no matter what I try. But definitely try heavy whipping cream that comes in the carton. I use it all the time to up my fats. There are also flavored liquid stevia out there -- I love the english toffee one!
Also, add me as a friend and you can check out my diary. My eating has been on plan but not "healthy" the last two days. Mainly because I am craving ice cream. And crap. But hey, I'm still in ketosis and under my net carbs
This is my favorite calculator: http://mariamindbodyhealth.com/keto-calculator/0 -
OP, if you use butter or coconut oil or something, make sure to blend it. Either with a bullet blender, a regular blender, or one those frother things. You don't want a giant oil slick in your coffee.4
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Where do you buy flavored stevia!!!!??? I have honestly never herd of that before! See this is why I love being on MFP you learn new stuff everyday.0
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This is the brand I use: http://sweetleaf.com/stevia-products/sweet-drops/mommaporter11 wrote: »Where do you buy flavored stevia!!!!??? I have honestly never herd of that before! See this is why I love being on MFP you learn new stuff everyday.
I bought it at a local store but I bet Amazon has it or your local health foods store/Whole Foods/Etc.0 -
Coconut cream is a good creamer too. But whipping cream is just the higher fat version of half n half. So, not even a little bit weird since people use half n half all the time for coffee creamer. You can even just use that...1
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Sunny_Bunny_ wrote: »Coconut cream is a good creamer too. But whipping cream is just the higher fat version of half n half. So, not even a little bit weird since people use half n half all the time for coffee creamer. You can even just use that...
Yup. I use coconut oil, half and half and a little Torani sugar free syrup.2 -
mommaporter11 wrote: »Hello all! So this is the first time doing the keto diet and I am having a hard time figuring out exactly how many carbs I should be eating a day. I hit almost 30 just by lunch.. how do some of you stay so low?? I've herd of a calculator to get a idea of how many I should have per day but is there a certain one that is more accurate than another? I can use all the help I can get! Recipes, quick snacks, easy dinners. I'd love to see some diaries of low carb eating so I could get an idea of some things! Sorry I feel like i am going to get overwhelmed so I'm trying to keep it as simple as possible!!!
Are you counting total carbs or net carbs? I am not doing keto yet, but planning to start on Monday and gearing myself up for it. After I logged my lunch I was like Holy Cow! I already have 17 grams of carbs and all I've had are eggs and a salad! Then I went back to look at fiber and my 7.8 grams of carbs in my 1/2 avocado has 6 grams of fiber, Romaine was 3g with 2 of fiber and my cucumber was 4.3g with 1.4 of fiber.
By counting net carbs this dropped my intake from 14+ to around 5.7. I'm not sure what everyone else does and I would like to hear some veterans' opinions on the correct way to count. I currently do CICO and my net carbs fall between 80 and 120 most days usually from copius amounts of vegetables. I plan to start full-on with a goal of less than 25g.
Kristine
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mommaporter11 wrote: »Hello all! So this is the first time doing the keto diet and I am having a hard time figuring out exactly how many carbs I should be eating a day. I hit almost 30 just by lunch.. how do some of you stay so low?? I've herd of a calculator to get a idea of how many I should have per day but is there a certain one that is more accurate than another? I can use all the help I can get! Recipes, quick snacks, easy dinners. I'd love to see some diaries of low carb eating so I could get an idea of some things! Sorry I feel like i am going to get overwhelmed so I'm trying to keep it as simple as possible!!!
Are you counting total carbs or net carbs? I am not doing keto yet, but planning to start on Monday and gearing myself up for it. After I logged my lunch I was like Holy Cow! I already have 17 grams of carbs and all I've had are eggs and a salad! Then I went back to look at fiber and my 7.8 grams of carbs in my 1/2 avocado has 6 grams of fiber, Romaine was 3g with 2 of fiber and my cucumber was 4.3g with 1.4 of fiber.
By counting net carbs this dropped my intake from 14+ to around 5.7. I'm not sure what everyone else does and I would like to hear some veterans' opinions on the correct way to count. I currently do CICO and my net carbs fall between 80 and 120 most days usually from copius amounts of vegetables. I plan to start full-on with a goal of less than 25g.
Kristine
I didn't realize MFP didn't subtract the fiber from carbs already0 -
mommaporter11 wrote: »Where do you buy flavored stevia!!!!??? I have honestly never herd of that before! See this is why I love being on MFP you learn new stuff everyday.
Fred Mayer has it in the Whole Food/Organic Isles next to the gluten free flour. I found it in the baking isle near the sugars in another store. They all seem to put it in different places. I think all the brands of stevia taste different. I like certain things in hot drinks, and certain things in cold drinks. So be sure to experiment.0 -
I don't know why it didn't post my full response lol
But yes I need to go back an check my fiber! I've been doing CICO since September an have lost about 25lbs give or take. But I haven't lost anything in over a week so i hope this jump starts the weight loss again!1 -
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10103966/start-here-the-lcd-launch-pad#latest
That is the one for the jumping off point to figure somethings out... which can lead to other questions, but good to start with.1 -
food_lover16 wrote: »mommaporter11 wrote: »Where do you buy flavored stevia!!!!??? I have honestly never herd of that before! See this is why I love being on MFP you learn new stuff everyday.
Fred Mayer has it in the Whole Food/Organic Isles next to the gluten free flour. I found it in the baking isle near the sugars in another store. They all seem to put it in different places. I think all the brands of stevia taste different. I like certain things in hot drinks, and certain things in cold drinks. So be sure to experiment.
I don't think we have a Fred Mayer here! I'm going to check Kroger and if there's none there ill make the drive to Whole Foods they are sure to have it! I'm excited to try it
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mommaporter11 wrote: »I don't know why it didn't post my full response lol
But yes I need to go back an check my fiber! I've been doing CICO since September an have lost about 25lbs give or take. But I haven't lost anything in over a week so i hope this jump starts the weight loss again!
I started 8/8 with CICO, lost 17 pounds by 9/30 and have been stuck at the same weight ever since. So I, like you, decided that going keto would help to jump start the loss again.
I've seen somewhere that there is some formula you can do to make MFP subtract the fiber but pretty sure it is only on the desktop version, not the app. I don't find it that hard to just subtract it myself.
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food_lover16 wrote: »http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10103966/start-here-the-lcd-launch-pad#latest
That is the one for the jumping off point to figure somethings out... which can lead to other questions, but good to start with.
Thanks! I have read pretty much everything in the launch pad.1 -
mommaporter11 wrote: »I don't know why it didn't post my full response lol
But yes I need to go back an check my fiber! I've been doing CICO since September an have lost about 25lbs give or take. But I haven't lost anything in over a week so i hope this jump starts the weight loss again!
I started 8/8 with CICO, lost 17 pounds by 9/30 and have been stuck at the same weight ever since. So I, like you, decided that going keto would help to jump start the loss again.
I've seen somewhere that there is some formula you can do to make MFP subtract the fiber but pretty sure it is only on the desktop version, not the app. I don't find it that hard to just subtract it myself.
So we're in the same boat! Keep me posted on how it is going for you!! I'm going to add you!0 -
I just park my fiber count immediately after my carb count then it's easy to see the difference in my macros lineup at the bottom of my diary. I do this strictly with PC though, or through browser on my tablet. I hate the app.
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I count total carbs - I find it much easier and less room for error. I do keep the fibre column handy, but its only to make me feel better if my daily carbs are too high...
I'm LCHF, not keto, but this is the calculator most people recommend if you are doing keto: http://keto-calculator.ankerl.com/
Supplementing is key to making it an easier transition.
The general rule of thumb is carbs are a limit, protein is a goal, fats to satiety. If you haven't already, the launch pad is a great source of info.
Artificial sweeteners are a huge trigger of cravings for some people. It takes some experimentation and you may want to tread slowly.
You don't EVER have to give up coffee
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@kimberwolf71 I have been scrolling through the launch pad there's some very helpful info that I didn't know! And I am a huge coffee drinker I couldn't give it up if I tried lol I have read a couple of post saying the artificial flavors are giving a lot of cravings so I might try the bulletcoffee drinks first before I turn to them!0
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mommaporter11 wrote: »@kimberwolf71 I have been scrolling through the launch pad there's some very helpful info that I didn't know! And I am a huge coffee drinker I couldn't give it up if I tried lol I have read a couple of post saying the artificial flavors are giving a lot of cravings so I might try the bulletcoffee drinks first before I turn to them!
I suspected you might be using flavored creamers based on the carb number you mentioned! You may not need BPC... if you are just looking for taste, switching to a heavy cream and a dash of flavored extract (even just vanilla) might be a good start. At least the bottles of extracts are small... I have yet to find a less-than-huge sugar free syrup!
I'm thankful I have ve always preferred my coffee black, but I do enjoy a BPC in the mornings when I'm hungry and not up to solid food!1
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