Are you overconsuming fat on Keto? - Dr. Eric Westman

#21

Thanks @Roberta_Worley, I agree.

Fat is definitely better for us than we’ve been led to believe the last 50-odd years, and I surely consume a lot more fat now then I did before eating keto.

You’re right, we’re all unique, and it’s upon us to figure out how to dial it in and find what works for us as an individual. I think for most, just finding out that fat is okay and getting away from processed foods is enough. Fat is an important component to a healthier dietary lifestyle, but if all we’re preaching is Fat, FAT, FAAAATTT, then keto becomes nothing more than just another fad diet.

(Tracy) #22

I wish I had a nickel for every time I heard someone say, “Keto is all about the fat!”

If a person is serious about getting healthy they will keep on truckin’ until they get to know their own body, listen to it, do some research, question what their doctor tells them, and eventually it becomes a lifestyle they don’t even think about rather than a struggle. I remember the days when I would resolve to lose weight, it would have to start on a Monday, and I’d do a bunch of shopping for the right foods. If I was lucky it lasted 2 miserable weeks. For me Keto means don’t be afraid of fat, know how to find hidden carbs and eat as little of them as possible. I don’t pour a stick of melted butter all over my food or add coconut oil to my coffee. That’s just how I do it. It works and I’m happy. If someone wants to eat 10 fat bombs a day and it’s working, I say do it.

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #23

I don’t know where that idea comes from. Keto is all about low, low, low carbohydrate intake, moderate protein, and fat to satiety, not beyond. I suppose, on second thought, that people have spent enough time trying to get people to eat enough fat that their listeners heard “eat lots and lots.”

The idea that pouring fat down our gullet beyond reason does any good for us is just plain silly.

(Tracy) #24

I have a theory: Most addicts trade one drug for another. In this case, since they can’t overeat carbs, they overeat fat.

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #25

That does sound likely. At least fat has less effect on insulin than carbohydrate does!

(JJ) #26

Yes! That sounds like a reasonable idea.
As you begin to tolerate more fat, you are able to eat more of it and potentially over do it.

(Karen) #27

Seven things that might be stalling your weight loss. I looked at these things suggested in your link

Bulletproof coffee- I do add 1 tablespoon of heavy whipping cream
Nuts-Rarely
Cheese-Probably 2-3 slices daily
Processed low carb and keto foods-Never
Added fats-Maybe I should look at this one. I do add butter, And I do not take the skin off my chicken, or trim my meat.
Alcohol-Never
And homemade keto treats-never

I live with my husband who can eat whatever he wants whenever he wants, as can his entire family. They’re all very very thin. Clearly unicorns. So I am struggling.

Good article though.

#28

I am being more selective than I was in the type of fats I eat, lowering my Omega 6s cause I have a problem with inflammation.

(Bob M) #29

I think keto - or potentially any diet - is more about satiety. What causes you to eat less? Things I know I will overeat:

  • bacon
  • nuts
  • yogurt
  • sweet things
  • certain types of fat

These are things I try to avoid. I will have them sometimes, though.

(Kirk Wolak) #30

I find pepperoni is a trigger food. I’ve eaten 3lbs in a single day…
I can eat it all day… [My taste buds literally switch between the pepper flavor and the fatty taste]…

But I know that protein is far more satiating than fat. I can whip up a quart of HWC with some Egg Nog flavoring and literally drink it in one sitting and want more. [Now I am simulating Fatty + Sweet, and I am DRINKING my calories, not eating them].

But I used to plow through a FAMILY size Mac & Cheese by myself. Eating it all.
But a smaller box + 1 can of tuna… And I could not finish it. I remember that so well.

Protein fills me up, and it stops me from eating… Far better than fat does.

I air fry my fat trimmings from Brisket, it doesn’t last. (But that is reduced down).

I have also SMOKED it. If I salt it well, I can plow through a lot of it. But at a certain point,
I lose the “taste” for it [eating vs. drinking the fat]. The fat starts to feel overwhelming and monotonic.

It’s absolutely crazy, but it just proves a Calorie is NOT a Calorie. Different calories affect us differently.

(Kirk Wolak) #31

I have met people who cannot tolerate dairy and lose weight well.
but it honestly takes a few days of abstinence to see if it cleans up.
And yes, just the tablespoon of HWC in a coffee was enough.

I am one of those people.

#32

I’m just the opposite. I can eat protein, protein, protein all day long and never feel satisfied. If I eat a lot of fat tho? BAM! Full. Can’t even think about eating. Everyone is different.

(GINA ) #33

Add me to the list of folks that never felt satisfied with the high fat lower protein recommendation of keto from a few years back.

When I mentioned it in a keto group (I don’t remember where) I was told that was impossible. If I was not satisfied, eat more fat. If that didn’t work I was just an emotional eater and needed to get myself straighted out.

(Kirk Wolak) #34

And THAT is the key takeaway for EVERYONE who reads this forum!

We are all different. Our bodies compensated in different ways.
We damaged our bodies in different ways. Inflammation is a huge problem for me. I was getting massive inflammation from pork belly… Until I discovered that the place I got it from fried it in Vegetable Oils. Duh.

But then, frying it myself in Lard… I got “less” inflamed, but still inflamed. Turns out, there is something about Pork and Pork Fat that is not good for me. Now I took Pork Loin (Lean) and ground it up with BEEF Fat. And I still got inflamed. LOL. I can not win. I actually LOVE the taste of pork. But it’s something I have to have sparingly.

It’s a long journey of learning and exploration… I am trying to make the most of it!

(Allie) #35

Yup, me too.

(Doug) #36

:slightly_smiling_face::+1: Nice post, Kirk. It really is a heck of a trip.

(Bob M) #37

Pork and pork fat = high PUFA. That’s one possibility.

I think this is why many people (particularly carnivores) do well on beef. Beef is low PUFA, no matter whether it’s grass fed or otherwise. (Grass fed is lower in PUFA than is non-grass fed, but because cows have rumens, they convert PUFAs to saturated fat; pigs - and chickens - can’t do that.)

I wonder if it’s genetic? Or maybe the type of fat cells? Or the damage we’ve done to ourselves? Or something else…

I am going to go back to eating lower fat, higher protein to see what happens.

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #38

Just for the record, a ketogenic diet is not a low- or high-protein diet. It is a moderate protein diet. You should eat enought protein to give your body the building blocks it needs—i.e., amino acids—to make new proteins for building lean tissue. Fat and carbohydrate are energy sources. We ketonians prefer to use fat as the energy source, so as to keep insulin levels low.

Some people have a higher need for protein, others need less, and we need to experiment to find where we fall on the spectrum. But then we fill in with enough fat to satisfy our hunger.

Fear of saturated fat has been inculcated in us, but it is not insurmountable, especially once we learn how little science there is to back up the claim that fat is bad for us. I think that some people work so hard to convince people not to fear fat that we sometimes give the impression that a ketogenic diet is about the fat. But it is not; it is about lowering insulin, and about how fat has almost no effect on our insulin level, whereas carbohydrate exacerbates it greatly. If you are hungry, eat more, especially fat. If you are not hungry, you certainly don’t need more fat.

(GINA ) #39

Sure, that is what we say now, but I m not talking about now. Don’t you remember the “Protein just turns into sugar! You might as well be eating pie!” days? I don’t necessarily mean on this site, maybe it was elsewhere on the internet, but it was said, for sure.

(Allie) #40

Yep, and many still believe it… :face_with_raised_eyebrow: