Keto for women - differences?

(James Shaw) #1

Hi. I’m 3 weeks in, and my wife is just a little behind - she wasn’t being strict when she started but now she’s getting on board. She’s not here, but she did ask if there were any differences for women.

  • Is it harder for women to get into ketosis or fat-adapted?
  • We have a ketonix; mine is current 8, hers 5. I’m assuming we’re not quite there yet. But would numbers mean the same for a woman?
  • Are carb grams guidelines the same for women? I’m keeping as low as possible - <20g. But I’m 240, she’s 170… does she need to keep lower and be stricter?

Thank you Ladies for any tips/tricks I can pass on.

(Dustin Cade) #2

My lady and I have been keto for about 5 months, I’m continually losing wieght with little effort. She is not and she is much more strict on her macros than I am. She hit a rough patch between week 3 and 8, her depression hit hard. We’ve got through that, though she’s not losing wieght the way she wants, she still keeps close watch on her macros with my fitness pal… so yes keto can be harder on the ladies.

(Christine J) #3

Yes. Women have a lot of hormonal healing before we start seeing those big weight loss rusults initially. She is absolutely not alone in this. Assure sure it’s working in other ways and she will see it soon. If anything she will start feeling better before seeing it.

#4

You didn’t mention protein intake. Yes 20 g net carb seems like a very good start. But, perhaps limiting to 1 g protein per kg lean body mass is equally important.

(Sarah Elam) #5

My husband and I have been doing this for about five months. His first 28 pounds dropped off in a heartbeat. But then he stalled out & is still stalled. I definitely had some hormonal stuff in the beginning and some surprise menstrual cycles, but now my weight-loss is very steady and I have actually surpassed my husband since he hasn’t done anything to unstall.

(Michelle) #6

Slow and steady wins the race!!! I feel like men (due to higher testosterone) get out of the gate faster with getting their insulin, gherlin, leptin in control. Women will steadily lose, but men lose it faster up front. My opinion on what I’ve seen and read. No science to back that up.

I feel IF or extended fasting gets anyone (men and women) past sticking points.

I’m happy with 1 pound per week. That’s fine for my body, size and where I’m at. Good bye fat (not just water weight!)

(Amanda Burton) #7

My husband has been keto for over 5 months and me a little less than 5 months. It is a much tougher start for women. I started out much more over weight than my husband, but he’s lost around 40-ish pounds almost effortlessly and I’ve lost (a very hard-earned) 12 pounds.

From what we’ve researched it is largely due to hormonal differences. I actually noticed that despite eating the same all month, I always went out of ketosis around my cycle. Honestly, fasting and monitoring my protein intake had helped me tremendously.

(Newimprovedme ) #8

I started seriously on keto January 1st. Before that I was doing low carb and IF with minimal results. With keto I’ve lost 13 pounds in the last month also incorporating alternate day fasting and 2-3 day water fasts once a month.
I think as a woman the fasting really helped me to lose those pounds. I have about 13 more to go. Also I find that nuts, dairy and too much protein cause me to stall. Not getting enough sleep also seems to effect my weight loss.

(melartweaver) #9

I started this WOE May, 2016, and my husband joined me a month later. To date, I’ve lost 22 lbs & he’s down 60 lbs. He’s also a full foot taller than me, and had more to lose. Sure we have more to lose, but we both look at it like it’s a preventative health lifestyle that’s maintainable indefinitely. Neither of us worry about weight gain anymore. We work in the film industry where there’s always carb/sugar-laden food. It’s so much easier to navigate that when we’re keto. (We’re in our early 40’s–I’m 5’4", 155 lbs, husb is 6’4", 220 I think?)

(carl) #10

Make sure your wife listens to this episode we did with @kim and @Brenda about women’s experiences of the ketogenic diet.

(KCKO, KCFO) #11

I have to watch my protein, too much disrupts things. I also have to make sure I get enough sodium, magnesium and potassium to keep from feeling sluggish, in all ways.

I loss on 20-50 net cabs. If I go under ,I do not lose, but some people I know need to be near 0 carb. She will just need to play with her macros to find her sweet spot. Good on two for doing this together.

All the best on your Journey.

(Kel Ta) #12

A few things I’ve observed with women and keto

  1. dairy and nuts can create impediments to weight loss- drop these to move through a stall
  2. a shorter eating window will facilitate fat burning (e.g. extend time in morning before eat first meal)
  3. eat the bulk of carbs (e.g. veggies etc.) in the last meal of the day
  4. eat when hungry only- assess whether snacking is hunger or boredom related
  5. eat fatty meats not excessive fat
  6. assess weight with some skepticism 1 week prior menstrual cycle
(Ashley Crandon) #13

Thanks for the tips! I feel like I need to try some of these ideas. I’ve been Keto for over 6 months and have only lost 4kg where my partner lost 12kg really quickly. I feel great overall so it’s been easy to stick too but my weight loss goal is still another 10kg’s so hopefully if I mix things up a bit and skip the diary and nut for a while I might beat this plateau.

(JennyBelle ) #14

At first I was weighing every morning, wondering if I 'd drop a pound or 2. Still only a few weeks in, and I don’t care about what the scale reads anymore. I have noticed other parts of me which are changing and looking slimmer. I just turned 41 and I feel as though my body is going through a change on its own as well. It might be harder for us women to lose the weight as fast as our counterparts, but I believe that’s what drives me to be stronger and keep on pushing through:)

(Kathryn) #15

Hi James,
We have the Ketonix as well. I am wondering when you wrote that it seems like you are kinda low in the numbers. The Ketonix will demonstrate when you are in Ketosis. The yellow is a good sign! You do not have to get to the red but you may see that on some days.
I have been doing Keto since June and lost weight that had been sticking for years after being diagnosed with Hasimoto.
I feel so much better now and do have to exclude dairy. She may find that may help her too. But please do not compare. The journey is for health, and that is an individual road for us all.
Best to you both,
Kathryn

(Kathryn) #16

Oh! For sure on the sleep. And put the other “s” in there “stress”! That can be a deal breaker on weight loss.

(Amanda Burton) #17

Yup, I went out of ketosis (blue on the ketonix!!!) during my last fat fast. It was four days of coffee+coconut oil and broth+butter+salt. The only thing my husband and I could think of causing that was my HUGE amount of stress that week.

Although, if anyone else has any ideas about what may have caused that… I am open to them.

(Jan) #18

“Boys have bigger motors.” That’s how a lecturer on leptin put it years ago. Males burn fat easier & faster than females. Females tend to conserve fat for reproductive reasons. That’s why women who are unhealthily lean stop having periods - they’re not healthy enough to support a pregnancy. Biology is all about reproduction.

(Kathryn) #19

Rats! Amanda. Good for you to be checking because that is how we can learn. I had a stressful week back in January filling in for a sick co-worker. My resting heart rate went up 10 points (I wear a Fitbit) and I gained weight. :confused:
But I knew it would come off again after I could relax and focus on my healthy eating and getting enough sleep.
Hang in there, you will see the color change soon!
Kathryn

#20

I have read a number of posts/articles on how women may expect an initial water loss drop and then a slow down / plateau or healing period. I am assuming this like everything else is individual. My own experience the last few months i was doing a HCLF diet with occasional
Binges …with an over all deficit I was losing but it was miserable hence why I’m back here :heart_eyes: to LCHF… I’m assuming that those women who have the stalls initially or healing period may have insulin resistance or other metabolic/hormonal factors? I understand not all calories are created equal but theoretically if one was losing weight on 1500 low fat high carb calories is it plausabile to stall out on 1500 high fat low carb calories? This is probably a dumb question so I apologize in advance but I just want to clarify.