So far so good. I’ve never been a person who gets all that hungry which is an oxymoron because I was 5’10 365 2 weeks ago. I just overeat when I do eat and it’s usually between 3&600 carbs a day. The last 2 weeks have been awesome I’m down to 339 today and feeling much better. There are days where almost 48 hours go by where I’m not really hungry but I should eat so I do. My main question is how important is it to test for Ketosis? Can I just continue on aiming for 20g carbs or less a day? I assume what I’ve lost to date is water because it’s slowing way down but between this and my strength training and yoga but really I’d love to just aim at 1 thing, track it, to make sure I’m hitting the target and then continue on like this.
Just started after months of deliberation
Jordan_Smith
(Jordan Smith)
#3
Good deal! I’ve read alot of the forum and I see numerous people testing via strips breath or blood but just wasn’t sure if it was necessary. Next thing is how important is the ratio of fat to protein? It seems pretty important to not eat too much protein and slam fat anytime possible. Will too much protein make us gain weight? Ideally I’d like to make this a sustainable way of life from this point forward. I don’t want to be like 1 toe out of line will through the ratio off causing you to gain weight or just plateau. I’d rather embrace this as keep carbs total less than or equal to 20 and eat a lot of fat.
Just_Todd
#4
My practice of the keto lifestyle is one of a) keep carbs below 20 b) I’m probably pretty close on my fat and protein…but I don’t really know. This is a way of life and not something that I need to obsess over. However, that’s what works for me. Everyone is different.
PaulL
(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?)
#5
There is no keto rulebook; the first (and only) rule of keto is do what works for you.
The advice is to keep protein moderate, because too little or too much can cause you problems. The advice I’ve seen runs from 0.8 to 1.5 grams daily per kilo of lean body mass. (Remember that even beef is only about 25% protein by weight, so this is more than it sounds.)
The important advice is to keep your carbohydrate consumption low, to avoid stimulating insulin secretion. Dr. Phinney, who invented the term “nutritional ketosis,” recommends eating fewer than about 100 to 125 grams of carbohydrate a day; but on these forums we recommend an upper limit of only 20 g a day, because at that level even someone who is highly insulin-resistant can be sure to get into ketosis.
The rest is eating fat to satiety. This sounds counter-intuitive, but dietary fat does not stimulate the secretion of insulin the way carbohydrate does, it is an excellent source of energy, and it is highly satisfying to your hunger. As you learn to listen to your body, it will tell you when you’ve eaten enough for it to heal and take care of itself. This may be a high or low number of absolute calories, but the body will still be able to mobilize and consume its stored fat. The body does quite well burning fat, and what little glucose it needs can be made internally; you don’t actually need to eat any carbohydrate at all.
You will find yourself losing weight without worrying about it, and most especially without having to go hungry. For me, that is the great benefit of the keto way of eating. I’ve been keto for about six months and have lost about sixty pounds so far. I have great energy levels, and I often go six or seven hours between meals with nary a hunger pang. I am even starting to be able to wear clothes I haven’t been able to get into in years. I just drilled a new hole in my belt last week, and now I need to drill another one!
Peter
(Carpe salata!)
#6
Yes it really is that simple. No need to test if it’s going ok. You’re doing great!
Trendy
#8
From what I understand, protein should be no more than 3 oz. per meal unless you’re an athlete. Too much protein raises the blood sugar. Adding anything like sugar to a protein does the same thing. Lots of good videos on You Tube.