New to dieting and new to keto

newbies
#1

Hi forum noob here in the UK.

First post so go gentle.

I have just started keto (7 Jan 19). Although I have not seen diagnosed with type 2 diabetes or high cholesterol I know that I am just a cats whisker away from a health car crash…

So this week I have massively dropped my intake of Carbs. Switched from sweetened coffee to no sugar, no cakes, crisps, sweets and all the usual takeaways and booze etc.

If I have understood keto then I have looked at reducing my carb intake to somewhere around 30g a day and this weekend I was aiming to go below 20g to kick-start ketosis.

I have been using the carb values on the food packaging to determine how much I am consuming. But as it is now late on Sunday I still haven’t experienced any of the “symptoms” or tell tale signs of being in keto…

I was wondering where I am going wrong? Then someone said that the carb values between raw/uncooked and cooked can be different!!!

If this is the case then it would explain why I am not getting there…

Could people please advise on this… should I use the values on the packaging (i.e X no of grammes of carbs per 100g etc) or find a resource that gives the cooked values of everything.

Whilst this last week has not been all a write-off as I have managed to cut out all the “bad” stuff all I may have achieved is go from a very high carb intake to a medium to low intake, but not actually into keto.

Any morale boosting comments gratefully received…

(Katie the Quiche Scoffing Stick Ninja ) #2

What makes you think you are doing something wrong?
I weigh everything raw, including meat, when I do.
As long as you are keeping your carbs below 20g a day you can ensure you will enter ketosis.
Download Cronometer to calculate your food intake.

Have you calculated your macros?

(Running from stupidity) #3

Indeed.

Keto is this easy (Keto for beloved noobs)

This is for Phase One - the starter phase. It’s still not complicated later, but this is the really easy to explain version which will help you no end.

  • Eat under 20g of carbs a day

  • Don’t worry about the scale

  • Eat plenty of good food - fat and protein - while adhering to 20g/carbs/day. Don’t worry too much about macros and calories EXCEPT carbs. Keep them below 20g/day. (Prioritize the protein - always start with protein in every meal, but don’t panic about it.) Your job is to get fat-adapted, so give your body the fuel you want it to use. Also, your appetite will vary - it’ll disappear, then it’ll come roaring back. Happens to most people, don’t sweat it.

  • ELECTROLYTES/SALT - KEEP THEM UP

  • Buy the meat you can afford - don’t stress about grass-fed, organic (con), etc… The worst meat is better than the best bread.

  • This site has a search function (magnifying glass at the top of the page) and a newbies section - use them both, you’ll get a better variety of answers to your questions far more quickly that way. SERIOUSLY, THIS IS VERY USEFUL.[1]

That’s as difficult as it needs to be for a couple of months.

My good friend Terence (being friends with a Kiwi feels kinda dirty, but there you have it, keto makes for strange bedfellows) tells me this thing I have described above is called “dirty keto.” So yeah, do dirty keto, kids! :slight_smile:

Lots of Love, DR JUICE

Expanded version is HERE

[1]If you can’t find a useful answer after searching and reading for a while, we can help you a lot more if you tell us relevant data about yourself such as your reasons for doing keto, your weight/height/age/gender, a sample menu plan & any relevant health conditions.

#4

Welcome.

Not everybody gets so called keto flu (or carbohydrate withdrawl symptoms).

Make sure you nail down the carbs. Count them all, cronometer seems to be very popular.

If you don’t drink plenty of water and have plenty of salt you will probably feel weak and dizzy.

I would recommend you don’t change too many things in your life all at once.

I stopped eating sugar, bread, rice, pasta and replaced those with vegetables. This was not a radical change. Crucial to be sure, but a minimal change for me.

The biggest hurdle was knowing things like butter weren’t going to kill me.

I would not recommend launching into a 20 day fast or changing absolutely everything you eat. This is too big a shock to the system.

I would also encourage you to read good keto books or absorb some videos. This forum is great but the extra information will definitely strengthen your mental resolve.

#5

Firstly, thanks for the replies and it’s reassuring to know that I am on the right path.
Think I was being a little impatient and possibly expecting to “feel” somehow slightly different.
I have read the piece by Juice and it echos other reading material I have looked at.
At this early stage all I am looking at is the carbs… the rest I can hopefully learn from here and other resources.
I will look at Cronometer - thanks for the tip.

Secondly, have woken up this morning with a really dry mouth and a fuzzy head - almost like a mild hangover (but have consumed no alcohol).

(Allie) #6

The only thing you’re doing wrong is expecting instant results. Be patient and give it time to work.

(Carl Keller) #7

Hello and welcome Chunks.

I won’t reiterate the good advice already given but i will say in regards to this:

I think it’s best to invest your trust in single item whole foods. Labels can’t always be trusted to be 100% accurate (for example they can round .9 carbs down to zero or even fudge the numbers a little to appear healthier) and if you are eating say broccoli, a steak and a small salad, an app like cronometer.com can give you a much more accurate tally of what’s in what you are eating. There are no surprises in single item whole foods if your app is dependable (cronometer is).

Electrolytes. Adequate water (around 2 liters) and salt should clear that up. About 8 grams of salt should suffice, spread out over the course of the day. We don’t retain salt very well when we keep carbs low and salt is very important, yet often wrongly demonized.

(outlawpirate) #8

Dr. Juice, that’s great advice for noobs! I’m so glad we have this forum. :grinning:

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #9

First, welcome to the forums! The adventure has only just begun! :+1:

What symptoms or signs of being in ketosis are you looking for?

The keto “flu” is a lack of salt in the diet, if you are getting enough salt, you won’t experience it.

Most people who exercise notice a drop in performance when they first start eating a ketogenic diet, and performance doesn’t return until they become fat-adapted, six to eight weeks later (or sometimes even longer). The good news, however, is that once they are fat-adapted, they return to or even exceed their previous performance. Fat-adaptation takes a certain amount of time and can’t be hurried, because their are hormonal and biochemical adaptations at the cellular level that just take a while.

Weight loss depends on a number of things, such as how much you need to lose, whether you are a man or a woman (it’s much more complicated for women), how close you are to your goal weight, how insulin-resistant you are, and that sort of thing. People who are enormously obese usually lose a large amount fairly quickly, but even they slow down as they approach their goal. Also, the initial loss tends to be mostly water, and fat loss tends to take a bit to get started.

The body enters nutritional ketosis pretty quickly after carbohydrate intake is sufficiently reduced, within two or three days, at the latest. We recommend eating no more than 20 g/day, because at that level, everyone but the most metabolically ill can get into ketosis. Your personal threshold might be different, but we recommend waiting until you are fat-adapted before experimenting to find your actual limit.

The more processed food is, the less likely it is to be helpful to a ketogenic diet. A well-formulated ketogenic diet relies primarily on whole foods and healthy fats. Our definition of healthy fat is different from the rest of the world’s, however! We mean butter, ghee, tallow, lard, bacon grease, fruit oils (avocado, coconut, or olive)—fats that are primarily saturated and monounsaturated. Processed foods generally contain a great deal of polyunsaturated fatty acids, many of which are actually detrimental to metabolic and cellular health. Welcome to the rabbit hole!

Feel free to ask more questions at any time, and keep ketoing on!

#10

Thank you Paul. My diet has changed from all the bad rubbish to leafy greens, vegetables low in carbs and meats. Adding in the things like olive oils and butter.

I’ll keep going…

#11

Congrats on the new title!

Welcome Chunks, you got a heap of great info!

(John) #12

I follow a somewhat moderate approach, similar to what Mark Sisson describes in his blog here:

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #13

You’re going to do great! Just keep on doing what you’re doing. :+1:

(Full Metal KETO AF) #14

Welcome Chunks, You will find helpful carb info in this pdf, it’s great to have as a quick reference in your phone to look up a carb value without going online. It has info about cooked and raw veggies and just about everything commonly eaten by many people.

#15

Thank you all for the words of encouragement and welcome. Also thanks to those that have provided a link to further resources.

#16

Sounds like lack of water and salt. Check colour of wee wee - is it clear-ish or dark and orange in colour?

I have to make a real effort to ensure I get 8+ glasses a day