Ivy,
Welcome to reality… There are MANY paths to ketosis and healing yourself. TBH, there are many levers you can pull to move YOUR body in different directions, I’ve written a long post about that…
Since you are new, and you want some guidance, you come here. And, everyone, myself included, are full of advice. And our advice comes from our experiences, and we are all trying to help you get where you are going without making the mistakes we made.
But now you are looking at 100 View Points forming a confusing collage of details. As you expressed in your post… Sorry it is confusing… Know that WE ALL CARE and that’s why…
You are opening the door to a whole new world. May I recommend that you find 1-2 gurus that resonate with you, and follow them. Only stray from them, when their advice does not fit your situation? [Personally, I recommend you find someone who you believe lives a situation close enough to you, and came through the other side (healed themselves) and represents where you want to be!] I will do this exercise aloud, for myself, using 4 of my favorite Keto People.
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Dr. Ted Neiman - Actually tweeted me that I could afford to lose another 10lbs based on my height, and to add more protein. He is tall and naturally lean. The proposed weight is probably the healthiest weight I have EVER achieved while wrestling in High School, 3+ decades ago.
[Not a great fit]
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Dr. Boz - A Female doctor, probably good looking, and mostly fit her whole life. Learned all of this to help her mother fight off cancer. (read both her books: Anyway you can, and the Keto Continuum). Really cares about others. Really Geeks out on the science. Really teaches “Flying by Numbers”. Is Quite Human, and shows it. The value of her second book cannot be overstated. If you follow one book this could be it (Keto Continuum). Comes at this and adapts it to her approach to medicine. Blows me away. Very human approach. Her continuum aligns perfectly with my “learned experiences” including “nothing sweet, regardless of calories”…
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Dr. Cywes - Here in FL, I’ve seen him. He admits he is a “Fat Guy” with food addiction issues. He has a view of every person who walks in based on how they “probably” came to use food to comfort themselves. (Says: “Most people have an Emotional Toolbox that is Carbs or Cobwebs”, meaning we don’t know how to de-stress). He aligns with me. My Struggle is stress. He realizes the need for a mostly carnivore approach for many. He also believes that Diet Sodas are okay since they do no harm by having no calories. [If I do diet sodas, I go from 1 per day, to 2-4L per day. They are addictive to me, I must avoid them.] Recognizes addictive eating. Admits he struggles. Has good advice for dealing with this… He’s a bariatric surgeon, and I believe specializes in children…
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Dr. Ken Berry - In TN, not taking new patients. Was Healthy, then fattened up as a doctor to about the Morbidly obese level. Did what the books said, and it wasn’t working for him. Heartburn, Eczema, Psoriasis, and Rosacea. All went away as he progressed from Paleo to Carnivore. Now he is Carnivore and “fails” to keto / ketovore. PERFECT Fit for me. I’ve met Dr. Berry in person, and his wonderful wife, when she was pregnant with their first child at a Denver Keto Conference (and Carnivore Conference).
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Mikhaila Peterson - Catch her story on Rogan. It resonated with my massive inflammation problems, and strange reactions to food so much, that her story moved me to try Carnivore, and to “Wake up” from the haze I was in, and eventually causing me to find everyone else… I’ve met her as well, briefly at the Carnivore Conference… [You think I was looking fore lifes answers, wouldn’t you?]
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Dr. Jason Fung - Another Guru. While Never obese, and probably never needing his own level of fasting, he does it to test it with his clients. His business partner (Megan Ramos) was TOFI, and leveraged the methods. Met them both. Dr. Fung is Pure Genius. His early videos on the cause of Obesity being Excess Insulin was Earth Shattering. The speed at which they have cured/revered T2D is AMAZING. I was their client shortly after finding Carnivore. Because I was afraid to do fasting do to Societies Messages (Implanted by Big Ag) that fasting was dangerous, versus perfectly natural. The Obesity Code and Cancer Code are highly recommended reading.
Pick One. Read their material study their approach. practice it WHILE being kind to yourself. Learn how to de-stress in ways OTHER than eating/drinking…
Everyone of them has key points that are correct. And each has a different approach. Because they each have their own life experiences, and they each treat different people. The highest overlap is probably Dr. Boz/Dr. Berry.
I’ve pulled a LOT of information from each of them. Slowly, over time.
Forgive me, but your job right now is to go through the steps and educate yourself. You need to learn about your WHY, and your many questions. Like “Why does it matter if I have a cheat meal?” Dr. Boz answers this with a college study showing that those who had done a 5 day lowcarb program w/free weekend vs strict weekend, lost weight, but lost MUSCLE vs those who did not have the “free/cheat” weekend.
Dr. Cywes understands psychology (and his own), to a degree that at Thanksgiving, his wife makes his plate. He has proven to himself, he cannot be trusted to make good decisions among such a minefield! That takes AMAZING Courage.
I don’t know you well enough. But I would start with Dr. Boz. She covers the female hormone issues and ALL of the basics. IF you did nothing but follow here, you would be successful. So start there.
I included the other reviews to show you the spread of “opnions” out there. And there are a ton more…
BTW, the other reason I love Dr. Boz, is she explains that when you fall off the wagon, you MUST re-assess where you can get back on the continuum at (you don’t get back on where you left off, that tends to lead to more failures, or putting it off until “monday”). Instead, the instant you realize you fell off the wagon, you backup a few steps to what you can EASILY DO.
Also, Megan Ramos (The Fasting Method/Fung) recommends a FAT fast. High Fatty Food consumption for 2-3 days, ONE food, ONE flavor, but as much as you want, to get back on the wagon. I use THIS approach, and it has NEVER failed me. Because it tastes great, and it overwhelms my carb cravings.
Good Luck. Sorry again for the novella…