Can we please stop repeating the “You have to eat at a deficit to lose weight on KETO” lie?


(Mary Folse) #266

I love the idea of having that KETOVERSARY…
I’m only at a WEEK…I’ve stopped and started a million times.

I’ve had it with that. why do I want to go back to CARBS…I know what it does to me.

THis time is IT!!!
celebrating my dad’s 94th birthday this week…


(Tessa) #267

How long after you increased your calories did you see your weight drop?


(MooBoom) #268

The very next day, and consistently thereafter once sticking to a higher intake.


(Parker the crazy crone lady) #269

Jumping in to say I lost weight within a couple days eating more as well.


(Tessa) #270

Very interesting!! This gives me hope! I’ve been stuck/stalled for awhile now all while trying to keep calories around 1600-1800. Maybe my body will like and needs more?? My weigh in is tomorrow which will be a good day to start increasing fats/proteins and Keep it going for a week to see how the following weeks weigh in goes. Thank you ladies for your input!!


(MooBoom) #271

I hope I haven’t given you false hope- my situation is different to yours (assuming you’re eating daily and trying to eat a set number of cals each day). I fast/feast (alternate day fasting) and was under eating overall.

Having said that I’m absolutely not dissuading you from upping your cals to see if that helps bust your plateau. Bodies are remarkably adaptive if we don’t mix things up a bit and sometimes a change is what’s needed to get things headed in the right direction again. Hopefully all the other great benefits of keto are keeping you focused and strong :slight_smile:


(Joey) #272

Indeed everyone’s situation is different … but the “eat more to lose more” experience is something I’ve also shared recently.

I was comfortably eating around 1400-1500 kcal (2-meals-a-day; about 20g net carbs) and losing weight steadily for about two months (around 15lbs cumulative at that point, not that I was grossly overweight to begin with). Feeling pretty good.

But began to grow a bit concerned - intellectually only - that this amount of daily kcal was at some point going to begin to bring down my metabolism. You know, “set point” and all, etc.

So I consciously made an effort to increase my caloric intake - targeting more like 2000 kcal/day, while staying diligently at about 20’ish grams of net carbs and increasing my fat. Got to the point where I was really stuffed after my dinners, but wanted to make sure I got enough calories to keep my 60+ yr old fairly active body properly fueled.

Know what happened? The weight continued to ease off - slowly but surely - and my waist shrank just a little bit further.

PLUS: My energy level rose further, I felt even better physically, and I seemed to be generating more heat (at night in bed).

Everyone’s situation is different - and my own reaction to higher calories could have differed based on where I happened to be in the arc of my metabolism at that particular time. But one thing is for sure: in my situation, increasing my calories (through additional quality animal fat) did NOT add weight or girth… it came down further.

n=1


(Ellenor Bjornsdottir) #273

I know you aren’t meant to exercise but do you feel good enough to? I’m sort of curious


(Ellenor Bjornsdottir) #274

Insulin. Learn it, live it, respect it.


(Full Metal KETO AF) #275

Where did you get that idea? I have trouble walking long distances at a normal pace, but that’s about it.


(Ellenor Bjornsdottir) #276

I guess I’m asking “if you had all of your limbs, would you be out riding a bike right now?”


(Full Metal KETO AF) #277

I was a big bicycle rider after my amputation about 15 years ago. I have a different prosthetic design now that’s superior for everything except I have a little less range of motion in my knee. This made cycling impossible with the last build but I need to try again with the latest build. I have to get my bike straightened out a bit but intend to get it going and try again soon. :cowboy_hat_face:


(Tessa) #278

Thank you for sharing this info. This sounds very similar to my situation and what I’m trying now. I’ve been around 1600 cal a day and kept macros 75/20/5. Been this way for a couple months and have been losing & gaining the same 3 pounds for the last month. So starting today I’m aiming for 2000 cal while keeping the same macros or less even with the carbs. Hope this does the trick!!
How long after you increased you intake did you see changes?


(Joey) #279

Well, I almost hesitate to answer as I don’t want to create unrealistic expectations that might not be relevant. Everyone is so unique, as are our particular circumstances along the path. But I’ll share more details in hopes you can get proper context…

In my situation, the weight just kept steadily falling (slowly, mind you) without any noticeable pause or change in the rate of decline.

Please note that I didn’t face a “plateau” of any sort up to that point. I didn’t increase my calories to solve a problem. Instead, my concern was that, if I didn’t increase my calories, I’d be inviting my body to begin resisting my underfeeding it by slowing itself down.

I wasn’t hungry after meals and I was eating to satiety. But it didn’t seem like enough in mathematical terms, at least based on standard guidelines indicating that a man of my size needed over 2000 kcal/day, not 1400-1500.

I just thought it’d be smart to see if I could consume more calories (i.e, specifically fat) during that same IF eating window (usually 18:6 hrs or so) I’d been comfortably following for the longest time - well before I ever went keto.

And so, when I did “up” the calories, instead of stopping the weight loss, it just continued along the same slow and steady glide path downward. Except I had even more energy than before (!)

To clarify for more context, I’m not a plump guy to begin with; I’m about 5’ 9" and currently hover just under 145lbs. I’m pretty lean and fairly athletic for a 60+ yr old. In fact, I have no desire to be weighing less than I do; if you tried to detect any belly fat on me, you have to pinch around to find it. Otherwise, I’m reasonably “well-toned” for a thin-looking guy - you know, a runner’s physique (probably due to 25+ years of jogging)

I should probably also add that I’m blessed with good health… bloodwork indicates that I’m quite insulin sensitive, the lipids look great (Pattern A), blood pressure is quite low, take no Rx meds… and so those factors may contribute as there aren’t any health obstacles in the way or years of damage to undo.

Hope some of this additional context helps as it may be different than your current situation. Am eager to hear how things go for you!

Best wishes.


(Ellenor Bjornsdottir) #280

You may be able to do it one legged if you have a trike


(Michael - When reality fails to meet expectations, the problem is not reality.) #281

We were talking about so-called ‘bad’ carbs and ‘good’ carbs some time ago. Researching another topic I came across the following. It seems to support my contention that a carb is a carb (at least ‘substantially’ :roll_eyes:). Pull quote first:

You would expect that since the American Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, the American Diabetes Association, and other mainstream medical organizations say that complex carbs are healthy, it must mean that eating complex carbs helps you achieve the cardiovascular and metabolic markers for good health.

In layman's terms, eating these foods should have the effect of better heart health and normal blood sugar levels. But when we actually look at the results of eating many complex carbs, the results aren't so healthy.

There are some general rules of blood sugar health and maintenance we can use as a test to see if complex carb foods are healthy. If the food passes the test rules, it's healthy to eat:

* It's generally recognized by most physicians who treat diabetics that for a person weighing 150 pounds, eating 1 gram of carbohydrate will raise blood sugar 5 mg/dl. We'll use this "normal" measure as our base.

* Normal fasting blood sugar ranges from 70 mg/dl to 99 mg/dl. Some insist that the upper cutoff number for healthy fasting blood sugar is 83 mg/dl. Let's assume we are starting with a baseline blood sugar of 85 mg/dl.

* For good health, post-prandial (after a meal) blood sugars should be below 120 mg/dl one or two hours after the meal. (See original study abstract here.)

As you can see, many of the recommended complex carbs (whole grains, starchy vegetables) really spike blood sugar. The healthy ones all fall into the category of non-starchy, fibrous vegetables.


Realistic about carbs - inspiration
(Michael - When reality fails to meet expectations, the problem is not reality.) #282

And this discussion by Eades. Another China Study.

The actual study Eades is commenting on.


Realistic about carbs - inspiration
(John) #283

I have been following this whole thread and one of the things i see is people that go from 1400 to 1500 cal raising their cal. If I was that low I would probably go in starvation mode at my weight ,size and activity level. Look this isn’t something I want to argue about but it is worth looking at. Yes if all you are looking at is the CICO is all that matters way of eating diet then you will be in for a rough road. What im saying is that If you are eating a keto lifestyle and you hit a wall for a log period of time then maybe you need to check your food intake. nothing more nothing less. The only reason I even keep responding to these type of threads is because I really do believe there is more to it then just eat high fat low carb ,and dont worry about anything else.


(Scott) #284

I call this breakfast.


(Wendy) #285

This just made me laugh. I don’t eat that much for breakfast but I still liked this. :smile: