In Ketosis without counting macros?

#1

:nerd_face: I keep seeing bloggers who say they are ketoers, but do not count macros. Is that even possible? Just because one loses weight doing what they are doing doesn’t necessarily mean the are in ketosis. Some of the menus I see are more in the lines of Atkins, so I was curious on thoughts about this.

(bulkbiker) #2

Ketosis is almost guaranteed (there will always be outliers) if you consume fewer than 20g of carbs per day… that’s the only thing you really need to monitor. Other macros can be useful or not depending on your view and personal experience. I record mine but don’t really build meals around them.

(Allie) #3

Easy I’ve been doing it for ages. Keto is about paying attention to your body and being aware of how it reacts to different foods. Some people need to also count numbers but it’s not necessary when you’re sufficiently in tune with your body.

(Frank) #4

I tracked my macros when I started and also when I stall for at least a month. Other than that I just ate more or less what I did when I tracked. For me it reduced the time I needed to spend on this woe and therefore reduced my stress about it.

(Banting & Yudkin & Atkins & Eadeses & Cordain & Taubes & Volek & Naiman & Bikman ) #5

Eat Atkins Induction style, and most people will get into and stay in ketosis. No macro counting. Just 2-3 cups of salad greens and a cup of other non-root veg, ad lib protein and fat.

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #6

It is, if you keep your carbohydrate low enough. Some people measure their carbs at the beginning, to get a feel for how much they are eating; then once they know what 20 g looks like, they can eyeball it from then on. Also, some people have a higher carb tolerance, so if they go over a bit, it’s not as crucial for them as it might be for someone else.

Remember that the point of a ketogenic diet is to keep insulin low enough to allow the fat cells to shed excess fat, and that the real goal is to become fat-adapted, so that all that excess fat can eventually be burned away. If you keep your carbohydrate low enough, that is over 90% of the battle, right there. We advise a reasonable amount of protein, and most people have no trouble eating the right amount almost automatically. The rest of a ketogenic diet is eating fat to satiety—so we don’t have to count fat at all, if we don’t want to, just eat till we’re no longer hungry, then stop. If the body has excess fat to burn, it sets our appetite at a level that allows it to burn that excess fat, as well as the fat we eat.

I can tell from certain ways that my body behaves whether I am in ketosis or not, and if not, I generally know what I ate that I shouldn’t have, lol!

(mole person) #7

Yes, it’s very possible. I only ever track for a few days at a time if I think I’ve been slipping up somewhere. In general I just do what I know keeps me in ketosis and check with a pee stick about once a week to ensure that all is well. In general, I’m always in ketosis when I think I am.

(Katie the Quiche Scoffing Stick Ninja ) #8

I don’t care about ketosis as much as I do as staying fat adapted.
Keto means lots of things to different people and just because they don’t count their macros does not mean they are not as serious as the next person. We make it work for us.

#9

I wasn’t implying they weren’t serious, I hate counting everything and just wanted to make sure this was doable as much of what I read talks about keeping macros in check. Just asking a question, not trying to offend anyone.