How to get lean on the keto lifestyle?

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#1

Hi all,

I hope this topic hasn’t been covered before - apologies if it has, but I haven’t found an exact answer to my question yet :slight_smile:

I am currently on the ketogenic lifestyle for 3 months and I’m loving it. Lately I have been really getting the hang of it, because I have lowered my protein intake (really works! thanks for all your advice on this forum). I am feeling great, have a lots of energy and my ketone strips often color purple. I have started the diet to reduce my inflammatary responses for my eczema and injuries and to feel more energized - and it works.

However… Since I have injuries (knee & shoulder), I also would like to get more lean with this lifestyle. I want to achieve a certain body physique, but it seems to be going very slow and I barely see any progress in photos. I am already quite skinny (160cm tall and lowest weight recently measured is 46,5kg), but I am not very lean. I do not know my exact body fat %, but I guess it’s somewhere around 17-20%.

What I’m currently doing:

  • tracking all my macro’s and kcal: less than 15gr carbs a day, ~110-120gr fat a day and ~40-60gr of protein
  • IF 16:8 3/4 times a week (love it, because it really increases my mental clarity)
  • I recently incorporated HIIT into my exercise routine for 3-4 times a week (I am limited in HIIT workouts due to my injuries)
  • I walk a lot, swim once a week for half an hour, ab exercises and some very low resistance training to heal my injuries. In total I workout 6 times a week, often before I have breakfast (if I have any)

So far, I have lost about ~3kgs (I guess mostly water), my belly outline decreased from 71cm to 66cm and my legs from 49 to 47cm. I took some before and after shots, but I don’t see much difference in getting lean. I am trying to achieve some similar results as Ruth May - don’t know if any of you know her, but check her out. Her video’s are very helpful and she’s inspiring (and got extremly lean!)

My questions are: am I just too impatient? Or should I spice things up? Maybe eat more or less calories? Up or decrease my fats? Is it only possible to achieve getting lean when I do resistance training? (which is currently not possible)

Also wondering: am I eating too much fat, which doesn’t allow my body to tap into it’s own fat resources?

Hope you guys can help me out, thanks :smile:

#2

Hi, I totally understand you. Your story is somewhat similar to mine. I have also started the keto because of my inflammations and Health issues and that part is working great. I am completely asymptomatic for over two months now. But, since I am also involved in sports and fittnes - I would like to see some progres in that area, too. Sorry to say, but I think that bf of 17% percent is kind a lean?? I am 172cm and around 61,5kgs recently (didn’t lose much weight with keto) and my measures are exact the same as yours (66cm belly outline, legs 45cm), and I saw Ruth May on instagram :). I would like to see your pics. I have seen many people in my gym that have lost significant amount of fat with keto but I think that they are most of the time very hungry :slight_smile: - and I am simply not sure that this is sustainable approach. Also, I have read that long term keto gradually is contributing to body recomposition and that is the thing I am aiming for. I hope you understand what I just wrote :). I go to the gym 3-4 times a week and lifting heavy. In the meantime I do yoga and I am walking a lot + running weekly.

(charlie3) #3

I’ve been keto for three months, same as you. In that time I reduced body fat by probably 10 pounds. I do 3 steady state cardio sessions and 3 whole body lifting session a week. Another thing I manage is to walk 10,000 steps 5 days a week. At my 150 pounds that burns 80 calories per mile. It adds up. Try adding walking. If you have unlimited data use youtube as your talk radio to pass the time and learn more about keto and exercise. Mostly it’s the scientists and a few practicianers who are worth listening to. Consider also that if you are exercising may be some increased muscle mass is offseting fat loss, just what you want. I focus on what I see in the nirror and waist size, not the scale.

I skip breakfast and do 16:8 5 days a week and skip three meals, eat nothing, one day a week.

To get the weight loss I tracked calories and restricted them 300 per day. Keto purists seem to frown on that. My calculation was I might not get fat loss unless I restricted calories or went to 20 total carabs. I didn’t want to mess aroound for months to find out. I do stay in the low 20’s for net carbs.

#4

Happy to hear that the lifestyle has helped you with your health :slight_smile: 17% is idd kind of lean, but I wish to be more lean like Ruth May. I am truly wondering how she got that done, it’s insane - right?
I have idd also read that long term keto is contributing to body recomposition… Aiming for that as well I guess.

I also try to walk more idd. I will just keto on and try to do my best :). We could maybe share photos, please send me a PM.

#5

Thanks for your advice :slight_smile: And congratulations on decreasing it with 10 pounds, thats a lot!

#6

I was kinda stalking :smiley: Ruth’s May instagram yeasterday and I am wondering the same. How she got that done? I watched some of her “what she eats in a day” videos and my conclusion is that she’s not eating much. And she also is a runner (marathon), right? So, my opinion is that this (Maybe. Maybe I am wrong, I don’t want to judge) extreme and this is, after all, instagram and we don’t see the truth. At least I think so. And what Works for somebody - doesn’t mean that will work for you.
I had the period last summer when I was eating straight paleo (and that means a lot more carbs then now_) and got extremely ripped with just one extra run per week. And I was eating much more food than now but my health issues were all over the place because of that extra carbs. From the other hand, at this point my health is so much improved (and I think that is because of all the fat and low carbs) but to be honest, I didn’t lose an inch :smiley: or lower my bodyfat. My workouts in the gym are getting better and better, my run is improving (stamina) but I don’t see any kind of visual progress. So, to wrap this up :slight_smile: - I think that I would see the visual progress if I start to eat less - and I think that this is the case with Ruth :slight_smile: - but I am simply not ready to do so because I think that I still am not fully adapted because from time to time I got extremely fatigued. Mostly in the evening now - it’s like somebody pulls out my plug :). And I have to go to sleep or I am unable to move.

#7

I would idd also asume she is not eating much. If I look at how she replies to comments or answers questions in videos, everything is only positive and she mentions she doesnt know her own bf % - which I can hardly imagine, looking at the way she tracks everything. She mentions she is never fatigued, had no keto flu etc. Seems a bit too much of a positive story… She also tells that she achieved such a body in 3 months or so? Seems impossible. Nevertheless, she motivates/inspires me.

I have the exact same thing with eating less. If I eat around 1000kcal or less (if I would listen to my body and I’m in optimal ketosis, that would be enough), however, I do get fatigued. Sometimes really bad - walking to the toilet or having a conversation costs me a lot of energy. So I feel I need to add a bit more kcal and fat in order to not get fatigued… When I keep it at 1300kcal, I’m good - which is still not much though.

What do you feel about adding more or less fats? Do you think adding more fats leads to your body tapping less into your own resources? I am quite unsure. Wondering if lowering my fats will get me more lean. On the other land, less fats leads to being more hungry… And in the end to more eating/kcal. Some say more fats lead to more fat burning :disappointed_relieved:

#8

I really dont know. I am wondering and trying just like you. I have some great days and then some bad days. For example, I ate prosciutto today and my ketones were 0.4 few housr later and it seems like I ate too much protein. And I feel my hands lightly stiff which is one of my symptoms and I feel bloated. I think that the ideal for me will be much less protein . I will try to recalculate my macros tommorow and see. I didnt track so far, just measuring blood kerones.