Calories really matter...maybe you are eating too many of them in general, even if you aren't over your carb macro.

I wonder if you're getting too much protein and not enough fat. Tuna and chicken are high in protein but not high in fat.

I've been keto since January 2017 and when I was eating 1300 calories I was in a weight loss stall, I started to lose hair and energy too. I ate at minimum 1500-1800 calories, 20 total carbs, 52-83 grams of protein and 120-160 grams of fat. If I wasn't doing a hard hitting work out then I kept my macros to the lower side of this and if I was doing a heavy lifting routine I'd do the higher side of this.

My best suggestion is to lower your proteins and increase your fats.

Kerschel wrote: »

okay. so thinking through this great advice, I do the bullet proof to get the MCT (I cannot eat coconut oil :-( makes me gag). But I can quit that Keto coffee. Doesn't too much protein generate glucose?

Gluconeogenesis is mainly demand driven. The liver will not make extra glucose unless it's needed.

High levels of protein will boost glucose a small amount, but we're talking well in excess of 200g of protein before that happens. Not many people get that high, and even then it is only a problem for those who need high ketones for medical reasons.

If you like BPC, you can always cut back on the MCT oil a bit. I think the true BPC recipe calls for a few tablespoons of fats. You can cut that down to a teaspoon to save calories. Or truly fast by consuming no calories in your coffee. Or add protein powder to your coffee to truly make a meal of it.

Don't worry too much about ketone levels. They just reflect how much fat you eat and how few carbs. It does not reflect weight loss at all. Eating MCT oil will raise ketones if you want ketones for health reasons. It's pretty typical to have lower ketones first thing in the morning and have it rise throughout the day.

I have never checked ketones, but I check blood glucose. My protein goal for the day right now is 150 g, and I try to exceed that. I have not found that for me a meal with 70 g of protein has any more or less impact on blood glucose than a meal with 20 g of protein. I am with @Sunny_Bunny_ on the fats. That is where I create the deficit. I keep carbs under 20.

When I first started keto in 2016, I would have chicken breast for lunch and find myself hungry by 4. I found that a tablespoon of mayo or a couple of cheese sticks with that would give me a little fat with the protein and manage the hungries. I do add 2 tablespoons of HWC to my first cup of coffee in the morning because I like it and it fits with my macros. I have never done MCT oil.

My goals in all this have been weight loss and controlling blood glucose. I am T2D. I have lost 134 lbs and my last A1C was 5.6 with no meds for 6 months. Just where my ketones are is a mystery because I don't check. I have gotten feedback from the glucometer, the scale, the measuring tape and the sense of wellbeing.

I did not experience the rapid loss of water weight when I started - probably because I was on a BP med that had a diuretic. It was more or less a pound a week lost with some long (like 6-week) plateaus. Once the plateau broke, I would see 2 pounds a week on the scales until I "caught up."

Obviously, even thus far in the thread, experiences and opinions differ. If you read enough about keto (or any diet) you will find that expert opinions vary and all can provide significant research to substantiate their expert opinions. Find your own N=1 though certainly asking questions is beneficial so I'm not knocking your request for insight.

My N=1 is this: calorie deficit for weight loss. Macro balance/selection for satiety, adherence to calorie deficit, fitness and health goals.

My weight/fat loss (60+pounds) happened without "stalls/plateaus" over 53 weeks via a calorie deficit (MFP established) that happened to be low carb since I eliminated/severely restricted the foods I tended to overeat (cookie, cake, candy, ice cream, Fritos, Doritos, Cheetos, etc).

Later in maintenance I trialed keto of <20 carbs (and low protein) for reason other than weight/fat loss. I successfully continued to maintain on well establish maintenance calories. No weight loss, no fat loss, etc. All my weight and fat loss occurred previously with a deficit.

The benefit for me for that 52 week trial was satiety. I was no longer hungry all the time like I was eating higher carbs and lower fat. For that reason, I have remained LCHF (compared to MFP default macro percentages) with no emphasis on ketotsis. Ketosis does not cause weight loss to my knowledge. There ARE overweight Epileptics who eat a highly ketogenic diet. Ketogenic diets are well documented to provide hunger/craving suppression for many people and that has been my experience. Satiety alone make compliance to calories much easier (IMO).

I highly favor low carb and/or ketogenic diets though it may not always appear to be the case

I agree w Sunny_Bunny on this one.

I wouldn't worry about upping the protein as our body needs it plus it helps you to feel full longer. I tested lower protein and higher fat for one month and lost 7.9 pound of lean mass quickly. That isn't a good thing at all for my build. I upped my protein to 40% and lowered the fat down to 55% while maintaining 5% carbs. I test my blood sugar levels regularly and my readings are exactly the same as before. Keto blood readings are the same. The focus on this needs to be the Carbs.

Kerschel wrote: »

yes, I'm focussing on the carbs. for sure. I stay within 20-25, but because my weight loss is so very very slow (6 lbs in 2 months) compared to what others are reporting, I was wondering if it was a fat or protein issue. My calories per day are @ 1350. Perhaps I need to lower my calorie intake. If so, your advice is that I lower my fat intake? I do not have a problem with hunger or snacking. Wine is my most challenging temptation :-)

I think it could be a too high fat and too low protein issue, try increasing the protein and reducing the fat, don't reduce calories, you aren't having that many anyhow but you are feeding fat into your body so it's not having to use your body fat for fuel. good luck by the way!