My husband and I are planning to start keto. Our top issues are 1. we have kids so they like carbs etc also they take ADHD meds so they need to eat a lot of carbs etc to keep weight on. 2. Its hectic and it seems like this takes a lot of prep and time. I am just hoping to pick peoples brain. Im not sure where to start and it feels very overwhelming. Im also a sweets/ carb/ meat and potatoes sort of gal so its super hard for me to lose pretty much everything I enjoy. Especially because sadly I started to enjoy food once I quit smoking. The lack of smoking is still intnse lol I dream about smoking sometimes. Im so open to hearing thoughts and ideas. Also is red meat still ok? Is pork? Thanks ahead of time!
Newbie- so overwhelmed
gnomesb
(Naomi Brewster)
#2
Hi @roxchic - welcome. It is overwhelming to get started. I remember how confusing it all was and so much conflicting information. Good luck wading through it all.
Hereâs the food list that I got from âGo Keto with Caseyâ (a youtuber) who in turn got it from Dr. Westman. I used it as my food guide for the first few weeks - if it wasnât on the list, it wasnât allowed. As I have gone on it has become easier.
Also there are tonnes of recipes on this forum to search through and see whatâs on offer. My advice is to keep it simple until you get your legs under you and are through the transition. And ask questions - people on this forum are happy to help. Good luck.
Hi and welcome here,
The generic guidelines are quite simple:
- Very low carb (limit vegetables to green leaves and moderate amounts of what grows above ground like zucchini, cauliflower).
- Moderate protein (meats, hams, saussages, bacon, eggs, hard/blue/goat cheese are all OK, look at labels to be sure, you should have <2g carb per 100 g serving which is the typical amount you want in a meal)
- High fat (olive/coconut/avocado oil, avocados, butter, lard, heavy cream, crème fraÎche + fattiest meat cuts if you enjoy them).
You can use an app to track carbohydrates. Myfitnesspal and chronometer allow you to scan bar codes and get the full information, at least if you live if some countries like the US.
You can have a look at a large number of low-carb recipes here: https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/recipes
The same site has also a two-weeks starting meal plan if you just want to disconnect your brain and get into it.
Swickimik
#4
Try it for two weeks. Any one can do anything for two weeks. You will see how amazing you feel and how much you can listen. You will stop feeling hungry all the time and you will lose your cravings for carbage. Your kids can benefit from this lifestyle and will want to eat more bacon and eggs along with you. You can boil eggs or Scramble them. No diet has ever been easier. Good luck to you. Check out keto transformations in instagram.
HeatherD
(Heather Miller)
#5
@roxchic it is not as hard as it looks! Start out by cooking simple meals. Grilled meat with a cooked veg and / or a salad. Add some healthy fat on top (butter or olive oil are easy ) for keto, then add rice, potato or bun for the kids! Donât get complicated to start. Bacon and eggs for breakfast. Salad for lunch with a small bit of cheese, egg or meat for protein. Hardest part for you will be still having the carb foods around for the kids, but this is good for them too, so they can transition to what you eat with extra fruit and maybe some starch sides occasionally. Good luck and happy learning. My daughter is adhd and finally at 20 years old she is learning thst she does much better without so many carbs!
JustPeachy
(Sophie)
#6
Just eat meat and vegetables period. Itâs not difficult. No processed crap, no fake food, just real meat preferably cooked in animal fat, and unprocessed vegetables cooked in the same. Our grandparents did it.
Not sure they ate a lot of meat⌠potatoes/lentils/etc. were the common dish for the poor (the vast majority). Maybe depends on country and location (city/countryside).
Actually, Iâm talking of post-war France (until 1955 approx) and Chile (until the 1980s) for what I know. TBH, lentils and potatoes are much better than the garbage that is eaten nowâŚ
atomicspacebunny
(Bunny)
#10
A basic outline and primer for a frame of reference on how to conceptualize keto:
How to get into Ketosis quick:
This is what I do and never had any problem with it, and it is fast and frugal:
Drink 1Tbls. Apple Cider Vinegar & 1Tbls. Lemons Juice (preferably organic if possible) to a glass of water (everyday) this will prevent the formation of calcium oxalate stones in gallbladder, bladder or kidneys. CANNOT STRESS HOW IMPORTANT THIS IS! (I say this a lot but, it will save you a lot of future problems, trust me!) There are many other profound and astonishing benefits to this mixture but I will not get into that hereâŚ
When Shopping always look for carb and sugars amounts/numbers, 0 sugar means less than a gram (still has sugar and unavoidable)
Menu:
Make Keto Fat Bombs, eat one after each of these mealsâŚ
Or Bullet Proof Coffee (burns fat faster; according to research)âŚ
Breakfast:
Turkey Bacon or Bacon Bacon (try to find with less than a gram of sugar 1 or two grams is ok though): 2 slices
Eggs: 2
Avocado 1 whole or half
(No bread, add 1 slice of bread after three days).
Lunch:
1 small can of Tuna or Roast Beef etc. (no more than 4 or 3 oz. of protein) with (3 cups) salad (choose wisely, non starchy, low glycemic index) and 2 Tbls. of Mayo! Put/ Drizzle Hollywood Safflower Oil or MCT Oil & Apple Cider Vinegar on salad too, you can skip this if you use keto fat bombs) ! Chia Seeds and Nutritional Yeast (non-fortified) and Wheat Grass {baby wheat} (preferably grown in Utah on ancient sea beds) and grated Natural Cheese (e.g. Cracker Barrel) to sprinkle on Salad!
Repeat Lunch for Dinner or:
Less than 4 Oz. of Protein and veggies or salad with avocado!
If your not losing weight: Balancing protein intake and fat intake is very important!
Organ meats have every vitamin that exists in them!
Bone Broth fasts have so many benefits too!
Inttermittent fasting works fasterâŚ
Hope this helpsâŚ
PugsDigMusic
(Donna )
#11
Iâve never heard of adding a slice of bread after three days of starting Keto diet. This puzzles me. Do you stay under your 20 grams of carbohydrate this way?
atomicspacebunny
(Bunny)
#13
Preferably no bread, because bread not used after being milled within 48 hours has no nutrional value and causes diabetes in laboratory Rats, but I am a stickler and question research variables!
All my knowledge and all the astronomical countless bits of information; theories, hypotheticals, scientific research, medical physiology and biomolecular physics books boils down to me eating a cheap lunch meat (less than a gram of sugar) samich (because I know what it is going to do) with a slice cheese (natural cheese, not processed), a slice of lettuce and pepper! (donât try this at home 
) And an avocado on the side! Body burns it like itâs nothing! I control my glucose and ketone blood levels at will with surgical precision!
That is keto believe it or not! 
Capnbob
(Rob)
#14
Typical white bread slice is anything from 12-25g of carbs (little fiber) so it does not fit in a strict Keto regime when there are many incidental carbs from healthy foods to fit within the limit. It is a quintessential empty calorie carb and hardly a good source of immediate carb nostalgia.
Capnbob
(Rob)
#15
ASB has tons of good advice in her post but really, there is no need to follow that menu. It feels more like a classic restriction diet full of unappetizing stuff (sorry ASB) 
.
There a plenty of more or less complex meal plans on the web that you can customize to your tastes. Create a menu that appeals to you within the approved foods. Initially, consider stepping down carbs (to 75, then 50, then 30, week by week) rather than just jump straight to 20g net. It is amazing how much easier I found it with just a few extra carbs in the early weeks e.g. I kept the croutons on the Keto salad in week one, halved them in week two (crushed to spread the crunch) and cut them in week 3. This will reduce chance or severity of âKeto fluâ and get you in the swing of things more easily.
A tip that worked for me was to pre-make a bunch of my favorite protein things that were already Keto e,g home made burgers, marinated chicken thighs, nice sausage, etc. and have them in the fridge or freezer to reheat with some Keto veggies (microwave steamed broccoli, green beans, sprouts, etc.) so total meal prep time in the week was 5-15mins per meal.
In the early weeks I would have 2 burgers or 2 thighs etc. for a meal but pretty quickly, I found that I only wanted one per meal so I reduced the pre-prep even more.
If you canât eat things you like, you wonât stick to it. Ironically, your appetite reduces, you pick the things you like, you start to intermittently fast (naturally because you just skip meals) and suddenly food goes from overwhelming to almost trivial and fun (have that nice steak). It really doesnât take that long.
Obviously free nutrition tracking apps like LoseIt, MyFitnessPal or Cronometer are really helpful in planning and tracking food/meals and checking labels becomes second nature. Thereâs No need to be a slave to the âmacrosâ. I started protein heavy to begin with and adjusted as I learned new strategies to incorporate more fat into my diet. Now it is intuitive. Stick at it for a few weeks and you will probably feel benefits quickly which will in turn reinforce more confidence and ambition on your part. As we all say KCKO (it is so worth it).
Becky
(I want abs... olutely all the bacon)
#16
Welcome! red meat and pork are fantastic for the ketogenic way of eating. Keep it simple in the beginnine is key. My two 9 year old LOVE their carbs, thatâs okay. They are not insulin resistant like me and weâll help them stay that way.
One of my favorite threads for beginners:
atomicspacebunny
(Bunny)
#18
Little more clarification (for those who do not know this) needed on my ealier commentary, as I did not spend to much time writing it, when you are fully keto adapted, usually after 6 months, carbs can be increased (even before full keto adaption) up to possibly 100 grams (per day) or more depending on metabolism e.g. using keto urinalysis strips will test in the negative after six months or being fully keto adapted and even though you are fully keto adapted, if you are not aware of this problem, it can make one assume they are not in Ketosis, if they are not using a blood ketone meter!
The reason for carb allowance increase, more specifically after full keto adaption is because the metabolism has adjusted to burning fat and glucose at a much much faster rate (even before full keto adaption), and most likely much faster than existing research indicates*!
âFat adapted (partial utilization of ketones for energy) not the same thing as opposed to being âfully keto adapted (complete utilization of ketones for enegy).â âFat adaptionâ is only the precursor to becoming âfully keto adapted.â
*note: level of physical activity is also a factor.
LizinLowell
(Liz )
#19
Any time someone posts about it being fine to eat something like bread, I try to add a note that some of us are eating Keto because eating a single slice of bread would plunge us down an addiction hole so deep and unforgiving it could be life ruining.
So I respectfully request if you are going to suggest these non-Keto ideas in the forums, please note that it may be something you yourself can do but that itâs not a universal truth for everyone and it could be super harmful to some.
Personalizing your response makes more sense anyway since we are all just telling our own experiences and have no idea if the things that worked for us will work for anyone else. Thank you.