OT: Anyone do Keto?

Submitted by jimmyshi03 on

My wife and I are starting a Keto diet. She's more gung-ho about it, at least so far, in part because her sister has had some success with it over the last couple of months. Has anyone here been on the diet before? Did you have success? Are there any good recipes you can share? 

DrMantisToboggan

June 14th, 2018 at 3:42 PM ^

Are you doing it for any other reason than to burn fat/lose weight? I do Keto Monday through Friday and also run a significant calorie deficit, then I carb reload on the weekends and one of those days (always Saturday in the fall) I allow to be a total cheat day. I've had better results with the 5:2 Keto plan - I don't like cutting carbs out entirely and I find it easier to stick to if you know that you can get some of the carbs you crave in a few days. 

 

As for recipes - a lot of bacon and eggs and cheese, olive oil...IDK Keto is pretty easy in terms of what to cook. Meat and fat, man, meat and fat. Obviously chicken and seafood are the healthiest common proteins to build meals around.

DrMantisToboggan

June 14th, 2018 at 4:45 PM ^

It makes for some pretty shitty Mondays, but it works for me. I also take a drink that helps your body get back into or stay in ketosis. It's orange flavored (purportedly) and has caffeine, which helps suppress appetite too. It's probably a hybrid keto diet, technically, but my buddy who works for an NFL training staff started me on it a few years back and it's been great for me.

dundun44

June 14th, 2018 at 10:12 PM ^

For people that have built up their bodies to be “fat-burning machines” with how they have trained their bodies and how they have eaten over the years, 5 days on keto and 2 days off won’t disrupt very much.  If your not conditioned to handle in influx of sugar, 2 days of sugar can knock you out of ketosis and it’s more difficult to get back in.

O S Who

June 15th, 2018 at 12:04 PM ^

once you do full-blown keto for awhile, your body will be able to jump in and out of keto more easily.

In my own experience, I noticed the first time I tried to get into keto that it took about a week (using pee strips as testers). Once I was in for a month or so - if I cheated one day, I would potentially not even fall out of keto or I would fall out of keto for a short period of time (like a day) and then come back into keto.

It is common for people who workout to stay in keto while incorporating carbs into their diet (as a daily preworkout boost, or for a couple days a week)

Here are some examples:

https://www.perfectketo.com/keto-diet-types/

offskooring

June 14th, 2018 at 3:51 PM ^

Been doing it for 2.5 years now, was about 60lbx overweight...lost 30 in first 3 months, the rest has slowly trickled off and I’m now back to my 20yo pant size...I had BP in 140s for a decade on lisinopril then added atenolol to the mix, when my blood sugar crept up to 107 on a fasted Lab test I decided to go all in on a “keto” diet...basically keeping my carbs at 30gm/day or less...I’m off all my bp meds with pressures in 110s and my sugars are routinely in the 80s...try it strict for 3 months...you’ll feel great

for info, the ketogains subreddit is great

for recipes, Maria Emerich is great

dundun44

June 14th, 2018 at 10:04 PM ^

What the Health is a misleading documentary.  If you do hard-core research on what healthy food is, you would most likely discover a keto type of diet is extremely safe and very healthy and can prolong life....here is a bit of a rebuttal to “What the Health.”

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.onnit.com/academy/what-the-health/amp/

MGoChippewa

June 14th, 2018 at 3:52 PM ^

Did it for about 6 or 7 months back in 2016.  Was very productive for me, as I think I went from 190 or 195 to about 160 over the course of about 4 months and maintained it for the remainder of the diet.  My issue was maintaining the diet due to enjoying too many unhealthy foods.  I found it hard to commit to for a long period of time.  If you have strong willpower, you will lose the weight you're looking to use.  Would recommend using Pinterest for keto recipes.

MgoHillbilly

June 14th, 2018 at 4:01 PM ^

I love it.  I've lost 20 pounds since January 1, and I've kept them off.  I have significantly reduced health issues I use to suffer from, such as arthritis in my back, skin flare-ups, IBS, headaches, and general fatigue.  It's definitely worth trying.  Be sure to keep the fat intake high.  It's harder than you might think while not overeating.

 

Good luck.

SpaghettiPolicy

June 15th, 2018 at 10:03 AM ^

This is dead on. Keto should be high fat, moderate protein(too much protein will kick you out of ketosis), and very low carb. For the first 3-4 days go 50g-70g carbs. This is actually much harder than you might think it would be. 

 

To get to 50g carbs you're basically eating meat and veggies. No sauces, no add ons, minimal fruit and specific fruits are a no go. What carbs you take in should not be high glycemic carbs, they will kick you out of ketosis. The hardest part of Keto is getting in to ketosis the first few times. You can do it artificially with a drink but those are designed for performance enhancement and I would tell you that the first time you do it, do it without supplementation to prove you can actually follow the diet. 

Blueblood80

June 14th, 2018 at 4:41 PM ^

I know a few who have done it with success. It’s the same as the Atkins diet.  The weight can go off fairly quickly in the beginning because you are cutting off the carbs so the water weight comes off. However, it will come back as soon as you go back to a normal lifestyle of eating. I’m not a fan of any diet that focuses on cutting out a significant amount of any of the 3 macro nutrients (fat, carbs and protein). Your body needs a good balance of all of them to function in a healthy way.

 I’ve commented a few times on this subject In the past but here it goes again.

The best way without doing crazy off the wall fad diet shit is... eat less than your daily maintenance calories each day (1600 calories for most men and 1200 calories for most women).  Most importantly is keep the correct balance of protein, fat, and carbs.  Load up on the greens.  You can eat tons without drastically affecting your calorie intake.  You will see the weight come off and it will be coming off in a healthy way.  Also, it’s far more sustainable than having an eating plan that is not able to be kept up long term. 

Optimism Attache

June 14th, 2018 at 7:15 PM ^

I've had some success with keto and think the main method by which it helps weight come off is eating a calorie deficit. Cutting carbs and upping the fat just makes it easier to run that deficit without being crazed with hunger. I can sometimes go 16 to 18 hours without eating and not even notice it. 

You really don't "need" more than a tiny amount of carbs in your diet, as millions of people and various societies throughout history have shown. The main downfall is that carbs are everywhere and they're delicious. It's a challenge to make such a big shift in lifestyle given the cultural role of carbs (I'm serious). That said, it works better than other diets for a lot of people.  

NRK

June 15th, 2018 at 8:25 PM ^

Well said. My wife and I went into a “eat healthy” mode about a month ago for the purpose of being healthy and hopefully to lose some weight. We eat a ton of greens now and have found fun ways to make it not boring: spiralizing zucchini, air fried Brussels sprouts (lemon + garlic), etc.

I was overweight, but with the diet and exercise I’m down about 12 pounds in a month, eat less, and feel better. It actually hasn’t been bad at all, and we do allow ourselves an occasional day of not eating by the plan. But because our intake is lower we don’t gorge ourselves.

Double-D

June 14th, 2018 at 4:59 PM ^

I love it. Lose weight and don’t go hungry.  The more you have to lose the faster it comes off.  Make sure to include salad or some vegetables or you will get stopped up. I agree that it’s good to sprinkle in some cheater days. 

teldar

June 14th, 2018 at 5:08 PM ^

I do intermittent fasting. Works as well as keto, in my opinion without the restrictions on what I can eat. The only restriction is when I eat. I typically do a 16 and 8 schedule or an 18 and 6 schedule. I like to eat lunch around 2 in the afternoon which is my first meal of the day and finish eating up by 7 or 8. I drink my no-calorie caffeine beverage in the morning a couple times and no problems. I've lost almost 20 pounds and two and a half months or so. I'm 6-2 and was only 205 to start with.

O S Who

June 14th, 2018 at 5:12 PM ^

i have done it twice. I love it. The food is good, you arent hungry, and after you get past the first week you have tons of energy and increased focus.

If you cheat on the diet, you will feel it. Having a "cheat" day leads to you feeling sick the next day (its called the "Keto Flu"). This sounds like a con, but I see it as a pro. I don't cheat because I know I will feel like crap. You can still drink low carb alcohol like michelob ultra, whiskey, vodka, and gin.

https://fitmencook.com/ has a lot of low carb, healthy recipes for keto. he also has a good video on his experience: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JIknpFMeItE

This is the book I read before doing keto:

https://www.amazon.com/Keto-Clarity-Definitive-Benefits-Low-Carb-ebook/dp/B00MEX9B4C/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1529010600&sr=8-3&keywords=keto+clarity

Both times I quit was because my wife couldn't handle it anymore. She starts craving fried food and slows starts cheating more and more carbs in until she is "doing" keto.. but not. So then we just quit. Our goal is to do it 2x per year for about a month each.

Mgoscottie

June 14th, 2018 at 5:37 PM ^

I've lost 50-60 pounds over about 4 years and I'm fairly confident that as long as you eat less you'll lose weight, it's easier to eat less if you eat more vegetables/fruit and everything else is a scam.  

Wolverine Abroad

June 14th, 2018 at 6:04 PM ^

Yep . Been on it for 4 months now.  Still losing a pound a week this far into it .  Watch out for Keto flu early on.  Loved because it targets fat right away . I cheat from time to time and still lose . 

jsquigg

June 14th, 2018 at 6:10 PM ^

I don't do the keto diet, but I've cut out fast food, I stay out of the middle of the store, don't drink soda pop or energy drinks (just coffee, bai, & water), and I do my best to intermittently fast with the biggest meal at dinner.  I can say it is working well thus far.

Birdman

June 14th, 2018 at 6:18 PM ^

https://mouthwateringmotivation.com/2018/02/21/fudgey-keto-brownie-cookies/

 

This site has the dessert man definitely good for the cravings

and basically everything else there is really good.
 

https://www.gnom-gnom.com/gluten-free-paleo-keto-bread/

Its hard initially but that is when you need to be the strictest. It works, but requires a concerted effort to have food and snacks prepared if you want to be successful. Get used to wine and miller lite though. 

CarrIsMyHomeboy

June 14th, 2018 at 6:46 PM ^

The diet type does not matter if you maintain a calorie deficit. By all means move to keto if it works for your tastes and lifestyle (or if avoiding carbohydrates is in your interests for other reasons). But if it succeeds, please know that it was the calorie deficit and not the style that made the difference.

- one of your resident physician-scientists

JohnnyBlue

June 14th, 2018 at 7:08 PM ^

my wife and I have been strict keto since the new year.  with good to great results, great for my wife, she was 200ish 4ft 11 and PCOS, which is a recipe for disaster for losing weight, she tried many normal diets and exersize over the years with limited results,on keto she is currently in the upper 130s with nothing more than walking for excerzie and the keto diet.  I have been following the same plan as her, bit less walking do to my job, and bit more food because i'm a tall guy down to 320 from 410 in january.  My wife is close to her goal, I have prolly another 2 years to get to my goal of being below 200lb, but i'm going to get there. I only have cheated once, my wife had a couple cheat days.

We found a lot of keto recipies just aren't worth it.  not as good as the carbed versions and just make you miss what you can't have.  embrasse what you can have and you'll be more sucessful, lots of steak, ground beef, dark meat chicken, fatty pork cuts, lots of eggs and cheese.  lots of green veggies and califower.

MGoStrength

June 14th, 2018 at 7:49 PM ^

Out of curiosity are you using a keto approach because you want to or just being supportive of your wife and getting healthier?

 

There are a lot of dieting strategies out there from keto, intermittent fasting, carb backloading, tracking macros & calories with various counters, using portion sizes ala Precision Nutrition templates, etc.  They all work by simple thermodynamics.  They are using different strategies with the same goal in mind of reducing calorie intake.  I would just caution you that although keto can be effective there is no magic to cutting carbs and it is not superior to any other strategy that involves the same amount of calories that include any combination of carbs, proteins, and fats.  This is supported by research and if you want some I'd be happy to provide you some.  The reason cutting carbs is so effective because it's a lot easier to over consume calories from carbohydrates than protein or fats because they are not as filling and foods high in carbohydrates tend to be higher in calories.  But, if you want to keep your carbs and find other ways to cut calories don't feel like you have to cut carbs in particular.  If for example if you are active, play sports, or like to workout cutting carbs all together can be challenging.  If it works for you that's great.  It can be effective.  I however, would never want to cut carbs completely and think there are much easier ways to create a caloric deficit. 

 

You have to ask yourself if you can follow this approach long term.  If you plan on only doing this "diet" for a period of time, then go back to the way you were eating before, I would not recommend that strategy for you.  All the research says not only will you gain all the weight back, you'll likely gain some extra pounds than you had before you started dieting.  Instead you want to find a long term sustainable approach to how you eat rather than a short term diet.  if you can't see yourself doing it long term your results will likely be short lived.

 

 

MGoStrength

June 15th, 2018 at 7:09 AM ^

I would simply focus on improving your food choices and getting enough variety.  I like the 90/10.  If you follow sound nutrition 90% of the time, you can pretty much eat whatever you want the other 10% of the time without having a negative impact on health, performance, or body composition.  So, 90% of the time I would focus on eating regularly spaced out meals every 3-4 hours with each meal containing a whole food protein source like lean red meat, chicken, fish, eggs, low/non fat dairy, nuts, or legumes.  Then, I would focus on consuming mostly whole grains and try and get a variety (think lots of different colors) of fruits and veggies (frozen or fresh are both fine), and drink plenty of water.  If you do this you will likely get most of the vitamins you need, adequate fiber, enough protein, and the sort of carbs that will keep your blood sugar and energy levels fairly consistent throughout the day.

DC Wolverine

June 14th, 2018 at 8:11 PM ^

I started 3 weeks ago as a way to lose my gut. So far, so good. Avoiding carbs/sugar is hard, but I like eating meat and eggs and veggies.  

I haven't given up drinking entirely, but cut it back and have switched to gin or vodka and soda. The one side effect is that you get tipsy a LOT quicker . . . 2 big gin and sodas and I'm buzzed.  

cdc46

June 14th, 2018 at 8:20 PM ^

Started this year Jan 15. Weighing 315. As of today I'm 237! Discipline was my approach with absolutely no cheating.  Keto reddit is great. I'm also doing intermittent fasting. 18 off 6 on. I'm typically eating lots if lettuce and chicken with cheese and fats. Early on my biggest huddle was fast food cravings. Mrskinnypants.com keto fast food guides will help! Good luck to you!