How do I know if I'm doing this right?

(Elizabeth Joanne Quinones ) #1

Hi everyone! Just looking for a little support on my keto journey, glad to have stumbled onto this forum! Couple questions…

  1. How do I know if keto is working? Its only been a couple of days since I became serious about the intermittent fasting ( I do 14 hours) and my diet. I haven’t noticed any changes yet.

  2. I’m using the app carb manager, does anyone know how accurate it is with the food information? I’ve been adjusting what I eat according to this app and the ratio it says I’m consuming. I just worry that although the app says I’m getting the right ratio that I am not eating correctly.

  3. How long will it take to notice changes in my weight?

Thanks in advance!

Elizabeth

(Full Metal KETO AF) #2

There are lots of factors to that third question that we can’t begin to answer without more info about your height, weight, age, medical history basics, and what you are eating. :cowboy_hat_face:

(squirrel-kissing paper tamer) #3

Welcome Elizabeth. It depends on your stats (age, gender, starting weight, diet beforehand, level of activity, etc). Many people notice water weight loss on their scale within the first week or so but actual fat weight loss can vary from zero to a couple of lbs per week on average. Some choose to weigh daily, some weekly and some not at all, preferring to use a tape measure to note the body changes, rather than just weight.

You could be building bone and muscle mass which will throw off the scale throughout your journey. There is a difference between losing fat and losing weight. And weight loss isn’t linear, it goes up and down depending on stress, sleep, meds, hormones and many other things. The biggest disappointment we see people have here is pinning their goals on the scale, it will disappoint you.

I recommend doing a search for NSV (non scale victories) to gauge how you’re doing. You may notice things like clear skin, better sleep, clear head, more energy and less chronic pain before you see a number change on the scale.

(Cancer Fighting Ketovore :)) #4

Hi there Elizabeth!

I use CarbManager and I find it fairly reliable, although some of the “user added” entries may not be. User discretion is required.

How long have you been eating keto? What are the macros you are aiming for? What are you actually eating, foodwise and macro-wise. Changes take time, and sometimes its from the inside out (not visible like weight loss) first.

(Elizabeth Joanne Quinones ) #5

Makes sense:
Im 43, weight 230 and 5ft6in height.
Example of what I have planned to eat today:
1 piece bacon
2 eggs cooked with kerrygold butter
Keto pancake
1 sausage patty
3 celery sticks with almond butter
Mct oil [2] with black coffee
1 grass fed plain hamburger
2 pieces of chicken thighs with skin browned in avocado oil
1 cup turnip and turnip greens
Lots of water

#6

Just being in ketosis is no guarantee of weight loss. That comes from caloric restriction, which is a slow process. For most, ketosis makes caloric restriction easier.

Most short-term weight fluctuation is going to be a simple change in water retention and digestive tract contents, which can be large early on.

(Full Metal KETO AF) #7

Elizabeth, I would guess that if you just got below 20 carbs in the last couple of days and you are being tight with that everyday you will probably experience a whoosh of water weight loss in the next week or two, if you continue staying under 20 carbs daily you should begin actually burning some
fat after that if you aren’t consuming too much with your food. You can only cut back on fat so much before you run low on energy as you’re only able to access a limited amount of body fat daily for energy needs. It a balance between what you burn for energy and what you add through diet, and the amount of body fat you have to spare. It gets a little tricky as your body fat percentage drops towards the end as you reach your projected goal weight. @OgreZed said it simply. :cowboy_hat_face:

(Cancer Fighting Ketovore :)) #8

DON’T restrict calories, just focus on keeping carbs low.

(Marianne) #9

Welcome, Elizabeth. I am 5’6/5’7 and started at 230 lbs. as well. I did track and try to meet macros for the first month or so, although the more I read here and the longer I was on this, I gave up tracking and eating to macros after that.

I guess the most important things I would tell you are to keep the carbs as low as possible (def. under 20), make sure you eat enough food so that you are not hungry, try to eat “clean” if you can, don’t count calories and don’t snack in between meals. Eat three meals if you need to - no worries. If you are eating enough of the right foods, the time will come when you don’t want to eat three meals a day. You may decide to go down to two or even one, but it will be a very natural thing because your body won’t be hungry and telling you to eat. Also, I don’t use the scale except when I get weighed at the doctor’s office. The scale is an evil thing and not a true measure of progress. Good luck.

(Elizabeth Joanne Quinones ) #10

Hi there!
I only started to really delve into keto seriously for about a week. No carbs is really a lifestyle for me anyways because I have celiac. Just a little history on me, In august of 2017 I found myself with a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes and had to start taking medication for it. At the time I weighed 275. I recognized I really needed to change. Being 41 with sleep apnea, type 2 diabetes, hypothyroidism and celiac it hit me that my weight was the issue (not sure why it took me so long lol). By the time I married in September of 2018 I weighed 201. Lost a whole lot of weight, back then I was just restricting my calories and fat, revisiting my doctor discovered that I didn’t need to take my diabetes medication or use my cpap machine any longer. We went on our honeymoon to santorini and the next thing I know I’m back up to 230. I have not really changed the way I eat, my whole life has been a yoyo.
Currently on keto I stay under 20 to 23 net carbs. My diet is healthy I just feel like I’m not doing enough. My job has me walking constantly back and forth (I manage a retail store) we dont have enough time to sit down and eat so I eat in short 2 minute sessions when the pace allows it. I drink water constantly, occassionally a diet Pepsi and an unsweetened tea. I work anywhere from 45 to 50 hours a week, mostly at night. When I get home I’m completely exhausted so I relax on the couch and sip Johnny Walker black. Sleep until about 8 or 9 am then don’t eat anything until about 230 pm. Not sure other than not much exercise, other than the 8 miles of walking while working because I’m just too tired. Not sure if I’m doing anything wrong.

Thanks for all the info!

(Susan) #11

Welcome to the forum, Elizabeth. Exercise is not really important to do at this point for losing weight, (you are probably getting a lot with all the walking you do at work anyway). If you are eating he 20 or so carbs, that is great, and the water. It is important not to have any sugar at all, (and some people find even the artificial sweeteners can mess them up, I am one of these people, I have had to cut them out completely, at least for now). The other thing is to eat enough proteins and healthy fats. The turnip could be too high in carbs, I have avoided all squash and turnips, etc. You might not be eating enough calories. Another thing you could try is longer fasting, like a 48 hour time frame, this can often help reset your body from the yo-yo dieting too.

(Cancer Fighting Ketovore :)) #12

Are you getting full on your meals? If not, maybe up the fat.
I’ve been eating keto for over a year, and I’m at the point where I can easily do OMAD (one meal a day). It can be hard to wrap your mind around eating lots of fat and not restricting calories.

(Elizabeth Joanne Quinones ) #13

I have not tried the 48 hour fasting yet. Sounds like it would be a tough one, but something I could do. Are the only things allowed during fasts water, coffee and tea? Could I do like a hot ginger water, or apple cider vinegar water?

(Susan) #14

Yes you can do both of them as long as you don’t add sugar or calories =).

(Marianne) #15

Don’t forget - it you find you get too anxious or hungry doing your 48-hour fast, break it and eat something. I don’t think fasting should be stressful. This is not a failure; you can try it again any time you want. Have you been on keto long enough? For me, I didn’t try fasting until probably 3-4 months. Just didn’t want to do it before then, I think because I may not have been ready physically and emotionally. I just don’t want to do anything that smacks of “diet.” My years of dieting almost killed me.

(Elizabeth Joanne Quinones ) #16

I have kind of slipped away from the keto currently, my doctor put me on diet medication and told me to do 22 hour intermittent fasting that was 2 days ago. I’m excited to see how this works for me.

(Susan) #17

I agree with this, Marianne. It is only beneficial if it is voluntary not if you stress yourself out with it!

If you read my accountability thread, you will see I can totally relate to this as well.

This is about a lifestyle change, not another yo-yo diet to bring us back into anorexia/bulmia/binging, I agree.

(Susan) #18

Welcome back Elizabeth.

I do 20:4 IF --I eat lunch at 1pm and then supper before 5 and do a 20 hour fasting window daily.

(Elizabeth Joanne Quinones ) #19

Is it hard doing fasting that long? Today is my first day trying the 22 hour fasting, I find the medication he put me on really helps, I have not felt very hungry at all and I’m going into my 9th hour. I’m guessing the rest of it will be smooth sailing since I have to sleep soon then be at work at 5. Once I’m at work there is not really time to think about eating with all the chaos.

(Susan) #20

I started Keto in February, at the very beginning I did 3 meals a day and did atleast 12 hours from supper from when I ate the next day. Soon I switched this up to 2 meals a day, doing lunch and supper but more like 11am and 5pm so a window of 18:6 and I did that for a while, before I did 20:4. I found it easier to adjust the times, according to my body changing and getting less hungry and wanting a longer fasting window daily.

Don’t pressure yourself to do longer times if you aren’t ready to do that yet. You should never have to feel hungry or feel sick, if you need to eat 3 times a day (meals) do that. It is better not to snack, inbetween the meals, this has to do with your sugar levels in your body spiking. For most people starting, doing 2 or 3 meals a day is a good start =).