New keto guy

(Keto Koala 🐨) #3

@davo Welcome to the Forum. I’m a sort of Newbie too. Been doing this for 3 months and I love it. I asked many questions when I first joined. Don’t be afraid to ask lots of questions. Everyone on here is super duper nice and helpful. Good luck on your journey. I’ll leave the advice to the Keto experts. Just wanted to say good luck and go you, for starting Keto. Be proud of yourself. You have made the first big step to better health.:smiling_face_with_three_hearts::heart:

(Susan) #4

Welcome to the forum, Darrell =).

Reading Dr. Jason Fung’s book was a great start! The link above that @mtncntrykid (Ron) gave you is excellent --they are the creators of this forum =). As Ron and Aimee have both mentioned, if you have any questions, just ask =). We all want you to succeed in your journey and with reversing your diabetes as well =).

#5

T2 diabetic here.

The FAQ on the Reddit group is detailed introduction, although I’d use this macro calculator instead of the one they recommend:

At it’s simplest, keto is just “Minimal carbs. Adequate proteins. Fats as needed (for satiety).”

Before keto, I had an A1c of 7.3 while using both insulin and metformin. Since starting keto over three years ago, I no longer use T2D medications and my A1c has been as low as 5.2 without them. I was able to stop insulin immediately and weaned off the metformin months later.

My boilerplate on foods and recipes:

There are so many low carb options…

There are lots of low carb veggies – mushrooms, cauliflower, cabbage, broccoli, green beans, peppers, sugar snap peas, asparagus, radishes, celery, artichokes, onions, Brussels sprouts, tomatoes, …

There are lots of proteins – eggs, chicken, pork, beef, lamb, fish, seafood, …

There are lots of fats – olive oil, butter, avocado oil, heavy cream, coconut oil, mayo, cheese, …

There are lots of nuts and seeds – walnuts, pecans, macadamia, almonds, chia, pumpkin, sunflower, …

There are lots of spices – Salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, smoked paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, ginger, curry powder, …

There are all kinds of sauces and condiments – tomato sauce/paste, mustard, SF ketchup, SF BBQ sauce, salsa, guacamole, horseradish, SF jams/jellies, tartar sauce, …

There are lots of baking supplies – coconut flour, almond flour, flax meal, psyllium husk, Xanthan gum, extracts and SF syrups, unsweetened coconut or almond milks, artificial sweeteners, …

And so many I left out. Almost an infinite number of combinations.

Some illustrated food guides from the Diet Doctor web site:

Ruled.me also has some handy guides:

I do cheap and easy keto meal preps based on the proteins that are on sale in a given week.

My meal preps are a variation on sheet pan meals, with a nod to slow cooking via crockpots.

Otherwise, my pantry list is mostly geared around lazy microwave recipes.

Favorite meals :

  • Smoked salmon + capers + Jalapeno cream cheese + chopped hard-boiled eggs + diced onions
  • “Everything” omelets
  • Pizza
  • Meat and veggie “dump” soups (includes chili and curries)
  • Joseph’s Lavash Bread or Chaffles can be the start of a lot of tasty items.

Favorite side dishes :

Favorite snacks :

I subscribe to these YouTube channels for all kinds of recipe ideas :

(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #6

Other valuable resources are the Low Carb Down Under and Ancestral Health channels on YouTube. Both groups run conferences with really good speakers. The Public Health Collaboration in the U.K. is also very good and has a YouTube channel. Personally, I find lectures on YouTube a helpful way to absorb the concepts, and all the reliable lecturers provide citations to the scientific literature, so that any point you find doubtful or interesting can be researched further.

Many people with opinions on what we should eat either have an agenda or have products to sell. I avoid paying attention to such persons, even if they are favorable to the ketogenic diet.

#7

I’d worry about going keto before the fasting, fasting can be VERY difficult when your body still expects carbs. Yet it’s almost effortless once you’re in the groove with eating keto. Don’t make stuff harder than it needs to be. Being a T2 and only on pills and not insulin it really shouldn’t be hard for you to make the switch. Only thing you need to make sure you’re on top of is possibly (depending on what exactly you’re taking) throttling your meds as you go. For things like Metformin you’re probably fine as it doesn’t seem to screw with most people when the carbs go away, but there are others that without you artificially jacking up your sugars may have you go too low and you don’t want that.

You have the decision to make like we all do on whether to rope your doc in on this and see if you even care what he says or not or just go at it solo. Many give the default advise “always ask your doctor”, and that’s fine. But for me a doc who already has you on THREE medications instead of trying to get you down otherwise has already shown you the hand he’s playing.

Plus side is you’ll be eating awesome tasting foods and you’ll feel great (minus a hiccup or two at the start). Biggest hurdle for most is grasping the fact that “healthy” things like Whole wheat bread, corn, bananas, watermelon, potatoes etc are more like jelly beans and candy bars than they are healthy food choices. Let the reprogramming begin! Tons of us here, search the forum and most likely any question you come up with has already been answered, PLUS you’ve got all us here to help.

(Jane) #8
(Marianne) #9

I would just say, get your macros (free on simplyketo.com), make a list of the macros in your the keto friendly foods you will eat most commonly (eggs, butter, bacon, heavy cream, cheese, broccoli, lettuces, dressings, meat, fish, chicken, etc.), and then develop a simple meal plan that is delicious and satisfying to you. Stick to around the fat and protein macros, and keep the carbs as low under 20 g./day as you can. Beyond that, don’t overcomplicate things. You are in this for the long haul, or at least several months. There is no “perfect” keto. Using the above guidelines, it is whatever works for you. Drink lost of water, get plenty of salt, try not to consume anything with artificial sweetener (or limit it), and enjoy your food. Keto is easy and delicious - probably unlike any “diet” you have ever been on. It is completely satisfying and sustainable. It is not rocket science.

Good luck.

(darrell vollrath) #10

Thank you. I have seen some Keto books with hundreds of recipes. I am not a recipe guy, just want to keep it simple. I don’t want to go out a buy tons of ingredients .Your comments are encouraging.
Keep well.

(Jane) #11

No need and some of the substitute ingredients are expensive!

My 86-yo dad has lowered his a1c down to the normal range with a low carb diet (not keto). I just sent him this for cabbage spaghetti:

“Walmart has a package of shredded cabbage called Angel Hair coleslaw. (Produce section). It isn’t the cole slaw mix with carrots- this is just cabbage and sliced much thinner.

I’ll brown some hamburger in a skillet (don’t drain the fat off) then toss a bunch of cabbage on top - just a layer - and mix with the hamburger and juices until it wilts. Then I add half a jar of Rao’s marinara sauce and stir until heated through. I don’t miss spaghetti anymore and it takes about 15 minutes to cook and only one skillet to wash. I top with grated Parmesan and eat it in a bowl.

Rao’s is found with the spaghetti sauces. It’s a bit pricey but the lowest carb sauce I’ve found because of no added sugars. You can get 4 meals out of one jar if just you eating it. “

I calculated 2 servings for the above and 7 g carbs for one serving - most from the Rao’s sauce but if you have a hankering for spaghetti this is damn good!

(darrell vollrath) #12

Sounds delicious, I will try it. I am in Canada, I’ll check Walmart here

(Jane) #13

Easy, delicious, few ingredients, one pan and one bowl to wash. My go-to when my turn to cook!!

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(Jane) #14

I get 3 or 4 meals out of a bag of shredded cabbage. Brown some hamburger and throw in curry or tandoori or masala spices with the cabbage and you have an exotic Indian dish.

(darrell vollrath) #15

awesome, thanks.

(Marianne) #16

Oh my gosh, this sound so good! I love hamburger and the fact that we can use the fat - same with bacon grease. So delicious. Got all the ingredients at home. You just helped me with tonight’s dinner!

#17

I do an Alfredo similarly:

Microwaved Cabbage Alfredo

  • Slice up 3 to 4 cups of cabbage, about the width of fettuccine noodles
  • Add some sliced onions, about the same width slices as the cabbage.
  • Top with butter and spices (smoked paprika, ginger, hot curry powder, …)
  • Microwave until soft, about 5 minutes. It will reduce to about a cup or so.
  • Mix with some Alfredo sauce
  • Top with meats/cheeses (poached eggs on top are the best!)
(Dirty Lazy Keto'er, Sucralose freak ;)) #18

Hello David. Welcome. I’ve been doing Keto for about a year. Love it ! Best way of eating I’ve ever tried.

My best advice, is to keep it really simple. But by FAR the most important thing is that you keep your carb intake down really low, preferably 20 gm’s a day or less. That’s really the only thing you need to count. If your not sure what foods have a lot of carbs, just download one of the phone apps that you can quickly look stuff up on the fly.

Then give it some time. In a couple months you can start try fine tuning things as far as protein / fat balance… Eating different types of fats, intermittent fasting… Etc, but none of that stuff is as important as just keeping your carbs really low.

IMPO, a lot of people make Keto far more complicated than it needs to be.

(UsedToBeT2D) #20

Do it. Don’t worry about counting everything exactly. I have stopped all insulin and other drugs 16 weeks on Keto. I have been T2d for 12 years. NO MORE!

(Susan) #21

All of us on the forum that are over 40 and have already lost a lot of weight on very a strict adherence of the 20 grams or less of carbs a day would totally disagree with you— I am 55 and have lost 67 pounds so far doing that --and plan to for life --and most of us on the forum are over 40 --so … yes…

(Susan) #22

That is awesome, Lance, congrats =).

(darrell vollrath) #23

I am in bed, may have keto flu. Tired, nausea. I am tempted to eat carbs to feel better. Does keto flu happen this fast, 3 days on keto? How long will keto flu last?