Body fat IS healthy to a certain level. The body likes it and wants it for emergencies. At the levels you have it is NO indication of metabolic dysfunction, less is NOT more in this case. To get ripped is mostly an aesthetic choice (or maybe an athletic one if you are a competitive athlete), only recently created as an ideal with no historical or real health reference. Fitness maybe - peak physical performance is not the same as health as in what will drive comfortable, functional longevity. Remember, a lot of top athletes turn to crap when they stop their exertions or maintain uncomfortable levels of âtrainingâ to stop turning to lard. Keto will do its best to keep you healthy for life but not ripped. That will take constant exercise based effort and will probably not be maintainable by a (healthy) diet alone.
Missing My Protein!
I suppose one of the reasons I picked such a low body weight is because I have been a fit 110lbs before and thought I could do with losing 10-15lbs at the time.
This was me at about 112-114lbs. I donât think anyone would have accused me of being too thin, I looked curvy when I would have preferred to be described as athletic despite being very active at the time. And I do still think if I were there again (plan to get back there at least, to my pre-pregancy weight, thats only 5lbs away) I would still think I would look better if I lost 10-15lbs. I just didnât think that was incompatible with healthiness- as I said. I thought it was actually healthier to be thinner.
Maybe it is just a trend to look so slim but I am still a young woman and a vain one at that- I will freely admit. I want to look trendy. My babies health is certainly most important to me though. I do not want to do anything that will endanger it. My husband and I want a large family, 5 kids maybe 6. I donât want to let that be a reason to let myself go though. I want to always look good for my age and at the moment I am still in my 20âs so I want to look as pretty and fit as a young woman should. Not getting too slim for babies sake with 5-6 kids in mind and only 1 down means not getting slim for a veeeery long time though haha! I want a big family more than I want to lose the vanity pounds however so I will do what it takes to stay healthy for all of us.
I have it on my head that you might become less fertile if you become too lean. Maybe something to put on the list for your next doctor visit.
I wasnât as heavy with baby number 2 as I was with baby number one, and it was really so much easier to be pregnant without that extra 30 pounds. Good luck!
First, in a non-objectifying way, I think you look absolutely great and would do 10-15lbs either side of that photo.
However, there are several assumptions in your objectives that are probably not really true. Thinner (to a ripped level) is definitely NOT âhealthierâ. The very fact that it requires so much effort in diet and exercise whether you are SKP or you or Thomas DeLauer should tell you that. The body wants homeostasis at a healthy state without massive exogenous efforts to keep it there (it wouldnât be homeostatic). For health you are much better off avoiding the many toxins of modernity, maintaining a proven healthy diet e.g. keto or paleo (if you are metabolically healthy enough to do that - which you are) and doing limited high-value exercise to maintain CVP fitness, than sweat the abs and focus on body image/weight per se.
These are definitely things but merely cultural affectations not âhealthâ objectives. Historically reubenesque women (much more body fat) were the models of beauty while lean people were seen as emaciated and poor. Remember, the fear of fat that keto destroys with science is also responsible for current standards of body image. It was wrapped up in a âhealth storyâ but we now know that to be wrong so maybe we should question the arbitrary body image standard? If you want to conform to those standards, I donât blame you. There are some social benefits (though maybe less when youâve already found your life partner and are already nesting 
)
As long as you are OK that it is vanity and preference not an objective health goal, then go for it. I wonât judge (how could I with a straight face 
?) and will no doubt be envious of your success 
. It may also make you feel better if you donât achieve it (because it is hard work and you have more important family priorities) because you are not sub-optimizing your health, only your aesthetics. Either way, best of luck with your efforts and keep posting so others in your situation and goals will benefit from your experience.
I wonât judge you for liking Stephanie âbastshit crazyâ Person, I take it your active and working out seeing you want to be lean and following her? If so there is no reason to be afraid of protein unless youâve decided that itâs causing an issue with you. As long as your body has a use for the protein you typically donât have to worry. Not saying to get stupid, but moderate protein doesnât mean âlowâ either. Are you picking that weight goal on visual or something else? Steph Person is all muscle for how little of her there is, and probably weighs way more than she looks like she does, an any case remember itâs NOT about weight, itâs lean muscle mass vs body fat. What the scale says is irrelevant.
@Capnbob
Thanks!
For lots of people not being fat takes lots of effort though. Me included. I was 150lbs in grade school. At 5ft tall. I was dieting from the time I was 12. Staying healthy in any form has always taken effort for me. Not arguing the point just trying to explain where I was coming from. Personally I want to be considered pretty by modern standards but I am not willing to sacrifice my babies health. âŚAnd maybe I already caught my husband but I want to keep his interest 
Do you think I could still stay posting even if I donât decide to stay keto and go back to regular old LCHF/paleo? Though now I am feeling a little confused are you guys trying to talk me out of keto or just getting below my pre-pregnancy 110lbs? Because you guys seem like an awesome and supportive group.
@lfod14 Haha she is nuts but I more like her results than her per say. Though she seems nice she is a little nutty. Mostly I watch her for inspiration because she looks fantastic and she is an older woman. Its a good âno excusesâ sort of reminder for me. Ruth May is 100% the coolest nicest and down to earth person though.
As I said I picked the weight goal based on the fittest and thinnest Iâve ever been. At the time you could clearly see the line between my abs and I had a VERY faint one across. I still needed to lose 10ish lbs if I wanted to see them fully. At the moment I can only see a VERY faint line down the middle.
I donât work out much now, I want to get back to the fitness routine I had before baby, when I was my healthiest . For example, that pic was taken post 2hr hike, a sprinting session and a refreshing swim. A typical weekend workout for me at the time. Weekdays I would also do a quick body weight regimen, +1hr minimum walking + I never sat. That was a goal of mine at the time- never sit. I was planning on working my way back up to all that. At the moment I do 30min walks +2hr ish gentle hikes on weekend days. Iâm a little bit of a potato at the moment.
Also wanted to add that every time I lost about 5ish pounds I felt healthier for it. like a noticeably energized feeling from 5lbs ago. When I went from 115 down to 110 I was amazed at the difference and I thought âif I feel this good from -5lbs how good will I feel if I lose another 5 or even 10?â So I thought if I felt soo much better that I would keep feeling better and healthier if I were thinner.
My wife was LCHF/Keto her entire pregnancy. She only gained 10 lbs. and had a healthy and lively 6lb 11oz baby. Itâs 8 weeks later and sheâs already down 20# from her PRE-pregnancy weight! She was definitely not concerned with weight loss during her pregnancy, it just happened and the baby was growing normally so all of her Drs were happy (and astounded). She said she didnât really get any crazy cravings and just ate when she was hungry. If you focus on keeping carbs low the rest will likely fall into place. But to do that youâve got to have some body fat. The baby will either get itâs energy from your diet or from you.
Wow! Do you mind me asking if she was overweight? Doctors want different weight gains for healthy vs non-healthy weights. Iâm surprised doctors were cool with keto while pregnant. Most warn against low carb.
I donât know her exact numbers (obviously) but she had some bodyfat to burn. When we went in for our first appt with her new OB, her Dr asked about how she ate. She was ready to respond with âguns a blazin!â but when she told her Dr "Keto"she said âok, sounds goodââŚlol She never had any push back. He Dr also advised they do hba1c testing instead of the glucose test for gestational because obviously it would be terribly inaccurate and would not go over well.
Feel free to post. There are some more paleo folks here and the more lean members working on vanity lbs or long-term maintenance would benefit from your experience.
Not trying to talk you out of keto, just that keto wonât solve your self-inflicted âproblemsâ since it does what your body wants not what your mind does. There is NO basic state of fitness model ripped-ness that any diet will give you without all the effort of your role models. Naturally lean diets make you skinny/emaciated, super strength diets make you âfatâ - see all world class heavyweight powerlifters. If you follow SKP you may well achieve the same results with the same effort and âbatshit crazinessâ and that is strict keto with calorie restriction, and lots of working out etc. OR not⌠she and other role models may be genetically blessed.
I think what we are saying is that you donât HAVE TO do what you are planning⌠for âhealthâ. âFeeling betterâ at 5lbs lower smacks very much of mental effects from the placebo of 5lbs loss (which can be muscle, fat, water or a couple of big 
and any combination of these). It is highly improbable that a random 5lbs of body weight has any significant physiological impact, even at your low weight. Do what you want, just know what you are really doing and why you are really doing it. I guess if you want to tell yourself it is for health to keep you compliant to whatever routine you select, then that is fine too.
Itâs not eat to satiety. Itâs eat fat to satiety. A 16 oz steak is mostly protein and, like carbs, people find they can easily binge on protein.
I think youâd actually be fine with more protein. Especially if you do some sorts of physical activity. I recalculated your info as:
110g fat (eat this to satiety, itâs okay to go over, itâs not a limit)
20g carbs (this is a limit)
72g protein (soft limit. Going over sometimes isnât the end of the world.)
O, give me a pound of cream bleu and a knife and I can eat to âsatietyâ 1500 calories later. Itâs easier with carbs or protein involved but itâs not essential. 
Okay so, do that then. 1500 calories of fat to satiety and the rest in mostly protein mild carbs? Sounds fine.