Keto not working for me


#61

Never heard of it…google here I come :slight_smile:
Thanks


(Kathy Meyer) #62

I have lost 75 pounds since March, but not with Keto alone. I believed (by reading Gary Taubes and Jason Fung) that insulin resistance was my primary challenge, and so worked toward lowering insulin. I started with short IF, but now usually fast every week for 2-5 days. I’m hoping that once I get to my goal weight, I may be able to do fewer fasts and gain some insulin sensitivity. It is the ketogenic diet that makes me fat adapted, that makes me able to fast easily.

The diet alone does not lower my insulin enough for me to access my fat stores, it’s just a fact I’ve learned to live with. I find Keto a wonderful way to eat, however – very satisfying, and will probably be my maintenance WOE for life.


(Rhett McJunkin) #63

That link does not appear to be functional, at least not for me.


(Kerri Hines) #64

Hmmm. Google novacares free ketone meter and see if you find it. Are you in the US? I think it’s a US offer


(ketohealthclub) #65

Are you saying you do something other than keto, or just that you added fasting? Fasting is a normal part of the ketogenic lifestyle- particularly for insulin resistant people like us. If you’re doing something else, I’d love to hear about it. I think I’m doing fine but I’m always curious about what others do.


(Kathy Meyer) #66

I do a pretty typical Keto diet of less than 20 carbs, less than 50 grams of protein, and fat to keep me satisfied. Since I do a lot of fasting, I may eat a little more protein and fat on some of my non-fasting days, but nothing crazy. I do try and pay attention to those foods that raise insulin, which is why my protein is relatively low, and I don’t do anything like whey protein or sweeteners that are supposed to spike insulin.


(ketohealthclub) #67

My protein is around 60g, and I do Alternate Day Fasting. I’m hoping to see an improvement in my A1C the next time I check.


(Jenn W) #68

I’ve learned over time that I won’t lose weight if I don’t eat enough.
Now, let me clarify that because this is a spot that I got hung up on.
This doesn’t mean fasting!
I had to stop my IF for a while because I noticed that my weight loss slowed and ultimately stopped. After a long time of playing with numbers and food I realized that my problem was with the non fasting days. I just wasn’t eating enough. The body needs food and nutrients for it to work properly. Once I figured this out my weight loss picked back up. I aim for 1500 now. Not always getting that high but it’s a general goal to always make it past 1000 and close to that 1500 on a regular day.

Hope this helps a bit


#69

I’m in the same boat. Been on keto since Dec 18th and initially lost 1.5 lbs. No cheats all through the holidays until NYE when a friend brought pizza and champagne to my house (just 2 of us, close and kind friend who doesn’t understand keto, so I felt compelled to eat/drink). That caused a 2 lb gain that I can’t shake. Yesterday I decided to kick start the process and ate just under 1000 calories, way less than 20 carbs…and it didn’t do a thing! I have been a vegetarian prior to this for several years and before keto, I could lose weight fairly effectively by eating under 1000 calories. I’m 67 y.o., walk 2 treadmill miles at a fast clip 3-5x week, pilates machine 4-5x week. I track religiously on MFP. At this point, I’m VERY discouraged and considering quitting keto. If I don’t see any benefit, what’s the point? Advice welcome…


(Guardian of the bacon) #70

Sounds like your metabolism is damaged. Under 1000 calories is a starvation diet. Keto really need to be approached as a lifestyle not a quick way to lose weight. Typically our bodies have underlying factors of why we are overweight. These often must be healed before much weight loss can happen. It takes time.


(Larry Lustig) #71

May I gently, but clearly, suggest that perhaps your expectations are not realistic? You ate ketogenicaly for less than two weeks, then stopped. You then ate a ketogenic diet for one day and expected to see the scale move.

A more common profile is to lose a small amount of water weight in the first week or two, followed by an extended period (four, six, eight weeks) of fat adaption (sometimes more for women) at which point body shape starts changing for the better. Then, weight loss.

The metabolic syndrome that ketogenic eating can help correct is not something that happened overnight. Fixing it, while considerably more rapid than getting it in the first place, is also not immediate – but is also a long-term solution instead of a short-term fix.


#72

I understand. I’m just used to being able to see some improvement when I put in 100% effort. Thanks.


#73

I have received so much fine advice on this forum. I have upped my calories to1400 (not that I track calories, but it gives me a basis for rough percentages of my macros). I have lowered my protein to around 50 gms., and I always keep my carbs under 20 grms. I am keeping heavy cream and some cheeses, but am ditching any other dairy. Annnnnnnnnd, I am only going to weigh myself on the last day of every month, cuz that scales messes with my brain more than any other thing in my life😛


(Jacquie) #74

Good plan! :slight_smile: I’ll be curious to know how it goes for you.


(G. Andrew Duthie) #75

With keto, 100% effort includes TIME.

Lowering calories isn’t part of keto, and may in fact be counterproductive, as it can lower your basal metabolic rate, and make it even harder for you to achieve your goals, not to mention potentially making you feel cold and tired.

Keep carbs to <20g per day, consume enough protein to maintain muscle (general guidance is 1-1.5g per kg of lean body mass), and fat to sateity. Most of your calories will be coming from fat on the ketogenic WoE.

You commit to doing this for at least 6 weeks, if not longer. Any less than that and you cannot be sure that you are fat-adapted.

Once you have become fat-adapted, if the needle is still not moving for you, you could try adding in either intermittent fasting (one IF plan would be eating in a 4-hour window each day, meaning you’re fasting for 20 hours a day), or even extended fasting. For example, I was struggling over the holidays with a little weight gain, so I went on an extended fast (I’m on day 5) with just some supplemental fat to keep me going, and I’ve dropped around 6 pounds in 4 days, after having gained that much over a couple of weeks.

And while I would encourage you to continue what sound like excellent exercise habits, be aware that exercise is really not a primary driver of weight loss. It’s great for your health, but with minor exceptions at the edges in terms of glycogen depletion, it doesn’t drive ketosis. What you eat does, and whether your body is fat-adapted.

I wish you luck, and I encourage you to be patient. It won’t happen overnight, and for some people it takes some tweaking, but keto DOES work. Hang in there!


#76

Thanks. I was using IF yesterday, which was why my calorie count was low. I’ll stay the course for the time being. But I even remember back in the day with Atkins that it was faster than this.


(G. Andrew Duthie) #77

If you’re only two weeks in with Keto, it’s too early to be doing IF, as you are probably not yet fat-adapted.

And if you do IF, you should still be consuming the same number of calories that you need to support your basal metabolic rate, plus activity.

And depending on how long ago you did Atkins, it’s no surprise it was easier. Weight loss gets harder as we age. I did Atkins in the 90s and dropped 30lbs almost effortlessly. It’s much harder for me now, hence the need for occasional extended fasting. I find that frustrating, but it is what it is.

Keep things simple. Do keto (not IF, not extended fasting) for at least 6 weeks, with the basic parameters I described. If you’re still not making progress at that point, come on back, and we can help you figure out what you might need to tweak.


#78

Thanks. Great advice and I’ll take it! I appreciate your time.


(G. Andrew Duthie) #79

You’re very welcome.

KCKO!


(Jo Lo) #80

Hi folks,

This is an interesting thread with many useful remarks. I would like to add a few things based on my experience doing LCHF and keto for about 2 years, reading everything in sight, and consulting with a brilliant keto doc.

First, staying in nutritional ketosis is really pretty difficult to maintain, I think more so than is implied by many “keto” people on the web. Historically it was closely monitored by health professionals who made all the decisions about diet and testing. And while chasing macros it is so easy to default to consuming lots of butter, meat fats, olive oil, exogenous ketones, and fat bombs (all low nutrient density), which may get you to high fat % and keto numbers but you are unlikely to loose weight this way, much the opposite.

Second, it is a big enough deal for your health that it’s a good idea to find a good LCHF doctor and go to them for a full physical, and also advice about diet and exercise. So, living in Seattle, I went to Dr Ted Naiman and got a full blood panel done plus CAC scan. All came back with nice results (zero CAC at age 60!), but since I was a little high in body fat (25%) he prescribed eliminating all added fats until I reached a lower fat percentage. This was a surprise to me because I had been pumping added fats to stay keto! But it had apparently been increasing my body fat by several percentage points over a year or so. I think this is one possible answer to those who say they are not losing weight, IMO. Ted advised just eating real LCHF foods (eggs, meats), which conveniently tend to come with the correct fat/protein ratio.

I no longer stress about staying keto. If you eat a careful KCHF diet and exercise you will go in and out of keto. For most of us, that might be good enough.