HELP! My Fiance is not in Ketosis

#1

So my fiancé and I have been doing keto for 3 weeks, and its going wonderfully… for me…

I think I am fat adapted, I wake up easier and fall asleep easier, I am losing inches and life is good. My fiancé, who eats about the exact same stuff as me each day (sometimes in larger portions) is not. We both use a breathalyzer thing to measure our ketones, and I am blowing .16-.25 and he is always stuck in the 0.00-0.08 range.

He eats about 1200-1800 calories/day, usually is around 100g fat, 115g protein and >10g carbs

I don’t want him to get discouraged, so maybe does anyone have any tips?

He is 5’11", 160 pounds, and pretty lean - he doesn’t have much weight to lose, but I know its tough that he’s not registering. He also doesn’t really register in ketosis on the ketostix (which we stopped using).

Any suggestions?

(Carl Keller) #2

It sounds to me, given the amount of time you’ve been on keto, that you are doing well at adapting to fat but I would not quite call it fat adapted. The difference is that in the absence of ingested food, your body is able to use body fat for fuel. This means you can go for days without eating and still not experience more than slight hunger, you will have consistent energy, no cravings and still sleep like a baby. This generally can take a month or two or longer in some cases, depending how stubborn your hormones are.

To be honest, the low end of his calorie range does’t seem like much food for someone of his size. If he’s finding himself constantly hungry then it’s likely he needs to eat more food. I’m sure it won’t hurt him to increase his fat intake by at least 40-50 grams to reenforce the idea that his body should be taking advantage of this potential fuel… but tell him to not stuff himself and more importantly, don’t undereat.

Someone as lean as you BF may not need ketosis for weight loss but for sure there’s plenty of other benefits that can improve his life like better energy, mental clarity, less inflammation and just the act of eating whole foods is way better for him in the long run. So, i think the key is to make sure he gets plenty of fat now, to help convince his body to use it for fuel, and later so that too little won’t encourage his precious body fat to be used up for energy.

#3

Ya, have him crank up those calories and put some weight ON! 5’11" @ 160? How does he have weight to lose? That aside, the generic breathalyzers that are designed for people drinking aren’t the same as ones calibrated for acetone, yes it’s all alcohol but they’re not that precise and not an indicator of much. If he’s eating good foods, has energy, feels good whats the prob? 3 weeks is way too early to judge how it’s going. Stay the course.

#4

Thanks Carl,

The problem is we both work sales and are on the road constantly, we both easily do a 16/8 fast (usually more like 18/6) and he tries to eat more but just can’t.

I will definitely tell him to try all of your suggestions, I hope they work! :crossed_fingers:

#5

Our breathalyzer thing is for ketosis and measuring acetones. He doesn’t have much weight to lose, just a bit of stubborn fat that he is uncomfortable with.

There isn’t really a problem, I just want him to be as excited as I am.

(Carl Keller) #6

Some ideas to increase fat without it being a lot of food:

add butter to his protein and veggies
add a dollop of sour cream on the side with an omelette
cook vegetables in bacon grease, olive oil or coconut oil
more cheese in the salad or a chunk with his meals
choose fattier cuts of meat (pork is really fatty)
heavy cream or coconut oil in the coffee

#7

Thank you!!

#8

Breath Acetone levels are measured in PPM, your measurement is the standard BAC% style reading. If you paid under $100 for it, pretty safe bet it’s a re-branded standard breathalyzer. Fine for watching trends when you get a hold on your typically levels, but not really for troubleshooting.

#9

Oh I didn’t know this. I bought a brand called KetoHealthCare, has anyone had any bad experiences with it?

Guess I should have done my research a bit more…

(Karim Wassef) #10

100g fat and 115g protein wouldn’t work for me. That’s more like Atkins high protein.
I needed to be 80% fat to get there… that means 200g fat 40g protein, 10g carb.

Avocados, eggs, macadamias, butter, mayo, heavy cream, blue cheese, pecans, pickled olives, brazil nuts, bacon, sour cream, lamb chops, cream cheese, goose liver pate, chia seeds, tahini…

I also prioritize high fiber since fiber is converted to fat through gut fermentation.

Also - there are lots of processed foods that are basically “keto” on the package but really not. Even some Keto bars are really full of artificial sweeteners and other hidden ingredients (msg for example). I had to stop all processed foods to get properly into ketosis.

For testing - get a keto blood test. Breath tests are not very accurate.

#11

Oh wow, 200g seems a little unattainable :flushed:

I will definitely start trying to sneak some of those into his meals though.

Thanks!

(Lonnie Hedley) #12

I’m 6ft, 140ish. If he’s already fairly lean, he might try exercise. I found that diet only got me so far. Also, maybe testing is stressing him out, causing a rise in cortisol, which is keeping him from burning fat. I didn’t test ketones until after two years.

For 2000 calories a day, I do about 90-95g protein 150-160g fat, incidental carbs. Since I’m only an inch taller, these would probably be a pretty close estimate for his macros.

(Karim Wassef) #13

The foods I listed are high in fat and you can construct a plan at 70%-80% fat
If he can’t increase his fat, then he needs to reduce the protein.

I only needed 0.4g / lb of lean body weight for maintenance anyway… that’s 65g for him unless he’s body building (then I used 1g / lb).

– update – ok, I went back to check my numbers. The 70%-80%fat is in calories, not grams… sorry :slight_smile:

I’ll admit when I’m wrong… So it’s more like 150g fat, 110g of protein and 10g of carb…

so pretty close to what Lonnie said

#14

It really does look like he needs to eat more, and specifically more fat.

When I need more fat I go for Italian sausages (five for about $5 from Trader Joe), and 80%/20% ground beef, which can be used for burgers or Texas (no-bean) chili. Nuts (pecans are affordable, low carb, and low-glycemic) can also help.

If you want to go really crazy with fat, do butter pecan ice cream – my go-to for desert when I have lean protein (like salmon) for dinner:

Two servings, about 600 cal each:
1 cup heavy whipping cream
mix in a jar with 1tbsp erithrytol
1 tbsp melted butter
1/4 cup pecans
1/2 tsp salt
Seal jar, shake vigorously for five minutes, freeze for about 3 hours. It’s almost heaven.

Based on the chocolate/vanilla recipes here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aujs8wR4rHA

#15

I would say stop worrying so much about it. If he is lean and feeling good he may be burning those ketones I am not sure but it people seem to get different readings from same things so it is all individual. You two will have different paths. Hopefully he still qualifies as your fiancee.

(Omar) #16

some people do not blow to the last breath where the ketones are

shallow exhaling can give wrong indication