Does keto matter?

No not really. It helped me with satiety but low carb works as well. Most low carb studies allow for ad lib eating which is basically eating without calorie restriction vs the calorie restricted group and usually the low carb group loses similar weight or more. This is attributed to the satiety found in lower carb diets. Heath markers normally improve as you reduce refined carbs and replace them with more protein and fat generally so there is that. Personally low carb, not keto has allowed me to maintain my weight without worrying about how many calories I'm about to eat. Basically, there's no magic in keto for a dieting demographic.

Not really, I've never been anywhere close to being keto and pretty easily lost 40 Lbs. A lot of people get super excited when they start a keto diet or lower carbohydrate diet in general with the relatively large water drop early on. Each gram of carbohydrate comes with around 4 grams of water, so when you cut carbs, you drop a lot of water weight fairly quickly. After that there really is no difference and when carbohydrates are reintroduced, weight typically goes up, once again due to water.

One of my aunties was epileptic to the point of having to be on a keto diet for most of her life...from her early teen years until she passed away in her early fifties. Personally, it seemed like a pretty miserable way to have to eat and go through life. Lower carb I totally get, but I don't really know why anyone would want to put themselves through a strict keto diet with no other health reasons other than to lose weight.

Releven wrote: »

Go_Deskercise wrote: »

So simple terms, doesn't matter, just do caloric deficit.

Yup. HOW you get into that calorie deficit will depend on what makes you satisfied and gives you energy to live your life. If there are any medical issues that need to be addressed via food choices, those factor in too.

Personally, I can't eat keto. I love my veggies and starches too much. I do have to eat lower carb because of T2Dm but it is easy to reduce carbs and still eat what I like.

First, I think that while you CAN do " stupid things " like eat triple burgers, and bacon.. do you really think you will do that long term. Everyone enjoys the foods which they could never eat on a normal diet, for a little while, but Keto simply means a diet which keeps you in ketosis. You have to decide how YOU do that, and what menu will allow you to stick to Keto permanently. The diet is very low carb, moderate protein, and the rest from fats.

So why not have eggs, cooked in butter and some berries, with maybe a slice of cheese. A salad, with chicken or turkey with cheese,and tomato slices. A 6 oz. filet mignon with onions, and mushrooms on top, or fish, and asparagus?

You could try eating just regular food, which has little carbs in them. Sure, the goal is stay below whatever carbs keeps you in ketosis, and PART of the process, is figuring out what that number is.. NET or TOTAL carbs, and knowing what ketosis feels like. That way if you consume a food which kicks you out of ketosis, you know pretty quick.

Your first question? Yes.. a calorie deficit leads to weight loss.. 1730 calories, if your TDEE is2400 calories, should lead to weight loss.. but try it, and if you lose, then great, but don't just trust a TDEE calculator, or nutrition labels completely.. there is some variance, due to human error, so always look for the results you think you should have, and maybe your results are not as good, BUT, if you don't get results at all, then it isn't working.. a diet is more than simply numbers.

The question you have to ask all these people talking about a calorie deficit as if it is SO easy, and yourself, is if that is ALL there is to it, why haven't we all simply eaten 1730 calories consistently, and become healthy?

CICO works, BUT, you have to be able to stick to 1730 calories ( calories in ), or else you won't get the same results, everything else being the same as well ( calories out ). It appears that many of us don't seem to be able to do this, for some reason.

For me, it was cravings. Sure, I'd have three 600 calorie meals, with what I was told was healthy food, but at 9 p.m., I would be craving food, and not more of the " healthy " stuff.. this is so prevalent, Taco Bell calls it 4th meal.. we have a name for it, because it happens to so many. That blows our whole diet.. and even if we eat great 5 days a week, but have 2 binge meals of 2000 calories...that takes our weekly calories from 12,110 to 16,110, and the average from 1730 to 2301.. which is about your TDEE.. so no weight loss.. if you cheat more, you gain weight over time, and a decade later are up 20 lbs., while thinking .. most of the time I eat healthy!!

One of the main benefots of Keto, if you stay in ketosis, is reduced appetite.. now, people will say.. I still had cravings, but I find they are usually the people who set out with a goal of having 1 less gram of carbs, than they could consume, and STAY in ketosis.. but it's not that simple.. nutrition labels round off, and people get kicked OUT of ketosis when they try to hit their max amount. That's if they even got into ketosis, because they read something like they could eat 30 grams of carbs and be in ketosis. maybe they can't. We all vary. I find most people are in ketosis, if they stay under 20 TOTAL carbs, but some people CAN have more, but some people need LESS. Keto is not simply following numbers. You may need to stay at 15 grams a day, or 25 grams.. only trial and error will let you know, and one sign is cravings.

To answer your second question.. NO carb minimum is TOO low.. you don't need ANY carbs to survive. You probably want some carbs, and if you want to stay in ketosis, you can have some, but your FAR more likely to eat too MANY carbs, and get kicked out of ketosis. You should worry about THAT, if you plan on sticking on ketosis, and getting the full benefit.

ALL that being said.. 25 lbs. in a month and a half is excellent.. so why not just keep doing Keto.. even if you continue eating burgers and bacon.. 3 months isn't going to be a problem.. or 4-5, as weight loss slows.

The real question you should be asking yourself, is if you like the diet. If you don't, and switching to just regular food isn't the answer.. you simply want more carbs.. then while I might ask why, the answer is you won't stick to it for much longer.. not if the idea of switching is already in your mind. I don't have any other diet I know of which drops 25 lbs. in 45 days.. maybe someone else can suggest something with those results, to transition to, but you should be looking for a diet you can just make part of your life.. if Keto, in any form, isn't that diet, then you should, and will do something else.. we simply don't do things we dislike for long. right?

I like eating 5 Total carbs a day, most eggs and cheese, no fruit & veggies, so I am biased, because it is working for me.. I've lost 29 lbs., in 35 days, although I have a lot more to lose than 25 more lbs.. BUT, this diet is not for everyone.

So lastly, I would also say that you might be able to lose weight on low carb, at a higher rate.. it really comes down to what level you can eat, and not have cravings, and easily maintain the proper number of calories. It may not be Keto, but it could be lower carb.. maybe even include legumes, more fruit, and veggies, lots of leafy green, buts, cheeses, wine at times.. even Atkins had a carb ladder, so when people hit goal, and simply wanted to maintain, they could UP carbs slowly.. to maybe 50 or 75 grams a day.. paying attention to WHAt carbs you eat.. potatoes, grains, noodles, bread etc., may not be part of what you can eat, and maintain, but that still leaves 80% of the foods out there.. look at Tom Brady.. sure he doesn't eat bread, but he eats quite a few carbs, and he is healthy.

Keto is simply so low in carbs, it makes it easy.. for those who aim to get carbs as low as possible, they aren't playing with the line of max carbs to get into ketosis, so people like me, simply eat 5 grams a day, enjoy some aged cheese, and 3-4 eggs a day.. it's easy to stay in KETOSIS that way, BUT, you DO NOT need to be in ketosis, to lose weight and be healthy. Some people eat junk, and can stay at their 1730 calories.. others can do moderate carb.

So understand Keto, and how strict it is, and if you plan to keep on it, even just until you lose another 25 lbs., stop thinking of it as a cool way to eat burger and bacon, or aim at the max carb amount. Just eat good food, and maybe aim for 15 grams a day, so if you decide to have 2 ozs. of cheese or a handful of olives as a late snack.. you still stay below 20 grams.. BUT, before you work on what KETO is, and how you should do it.. decide if you even NEED to be on KETO.

Keto makes being in ketosis easy, but staying on Keto isn't for many people.. the best diet is useless, if you don't stick to it. So basically ask yourself if you could do this for the next few years, and enjoy it?? .. if not, maybe try upping carbs, expanding carb foods you eat, and see if you continue losing, just a bit slower, have no cravings, and enjoy your new diet much MORE.

Do what works.. you know unlimited carbs does not, and what you are currently doing DOES.. incredibly well, based on results.. BUT, there is a LOT of choices between those 2 extremes. Maybe trade slower weight loss, for a more enjoyable diet, with a few more healthy carbs?? Trust me, if I could eat kidney beans, onions, and mushrooms, with my ground beef, without cravings, and still lose weight, I would.. lots of carbs are tasty.. but I can't.. you may be able to though.. experiment a bit. Add carbs back in slowly, as long as you continue getting the results you have on keto. You may be surprised at how high in carbs you can go, and which carbs you can eat, not allowed on stricter LC diets, but OK for you.

If you start eating a food, say you decide you might try bananas, or LC bread.. trying to push it a bit, and start having cravings, overeat, and start gaining weight.. just cross that ffod off your food list, drop down 10 grams a day on carbs, until you are losing again, and then go back to trying other carbs.

Good Luck, I hope you figure out what works for you, and you enjoy whatever you do, and the food, so becoming healthy is easy, because that way, you stick with it, and stay healthy, which is really the goal.. not being on THIS or THAT diet.

Sory, but
Go_Deskercise is not right. KETO diet is different. it does not work for caloric deficit. You, actually, can overeat your daily allotment.
Of course you can. You can overeat your "daily allotment" on any diet.

Keto acts on hormonal level. Keto diet keeps your insulin hormone level at minimum, and by doing it allows you to loose weight, to decrease blood pressure, to feel mental clearety, to release Human Growth Hormone, to activate sertuins (hormones of longevity), to stimulate mTor and MPK, activate ketones, special bodies of fragments of fats which caries information to body tissue to rebuild, to survive and live longer healthies life.
What do these terms mean? Honest question, I don't understand these.

As you see, that processes are much more complex than simple CICO. Many people refuse accept the truth. They told that its too complicated. Off cause, the CICO much easier to understand, but it does not mean it is correct. Keto is not a simple caloric deficit, it is a whole much more than that. If you enter KETOsis even sometimes for short periods of time , say 2,3,4 days you already doing eccellent job for your body, for your health and longevity.

The main thing to shift back and forse from keto to carbs. The goal is flexibility of the body to shift from fat burning to carbs burning
Again, what does that mean? I'd like to understand, but I'm not following this.

I don't adhere or promote a keto diet, just low carb but always interested in all dietary nutrition on all fronts.

https://academic.oup.com/milmed/article/184/9-10/e538/5382216?login=true

Okay, a few clarifications.

No matter what, weight loss is always CICO.
HOWEVER, the CO part of the equation is what can be modulated by what you eat.

So for example. If I eat 1700 calories of donuts every day I am going to lose less weight than if I eat 1700 calories of nutrient dense food that allows my body to enter ketosis.

Why? Because the nutrient dense foods and the ketosis will give me a ton of energy (ketones make me hyper) and give me zero cravings, and the donut-only diet will make me lethargic and obsessively craving more sugar and fat. The more energy a diet helps you expend, the higher the CO part of the equation.

These apps don't have an accurate way to evaluate the calories you actually burn in a day, so that's why people think CICO means that eating the same amount of calories will produce the same results no matter what those calories are.

Not true.

What CICO really means is that no matter what you eat, if you produce the same deficit at the end of the day, you will get the same amount of weight loss.

Okay cool.

So what does that mean for Ketosis?
Well, that depends on how ketosis affects you. I don't eat keto, but I do 18:6 IF, which means I spend a lot of time in ketosis, and wowza, my energy is much higher and my appetite during my fading window is non existent.

So the benefit for me of ketosis isn't some magical fat-burning chemistry that seems to defy physics. It's pretty simple, it raises my CO by giving me way more energy, and it keeps my CI low by essentially eliminating cravings.

If keto doesn't have these benefits for you personally, then maybe consider something else.

The key, as someone else already said, is to find something sustainable, enjoyable, and healthy, that makes your body feel good, that generates and maintains a healthy weight over the long term.

For me, IF isn't primarily for weight loss, it's for digestive problems, pain management, and to combat fatigue, so for me, this is a long term lifestyle.

I generally don't have weight targets, I have healthy lifestyle targets, and a healthy weight is a natural byproduct of living an optimally healthy life.

So sure, do keto if it feels like your healthiest, most sustainable option. If it isn't, then do something else. Do the thing that is best for YOUR body, and that thing is likely the lifestyle that produces the best CICO balance.

Keto works
If you have a calorie deficit.
I don't do keto and probably never will because it's too restrictive and let's face it carbs are delicious 😁
But I do try to limit processed carbs as much as I can - because they are high in calories, easy to overeat and do not satiate me.
I have most weekends off plan and I often fall into a carb hole which sabotages my midweek efforts!
Carbs trigger something in me that makes me over eat.
So I can understand why people do Keto.
But I don't think it's sustainable in the long run.