I’m 48 years old, 5’11, male, starting weight was 244.5lbs. I haven’t cheated, followed macros 70 fat, 25 protein, 5 carbs, 2250 calories a day. Weight has been as low as 239. Today 243.5. Sometimes I gain 2lbs in a day. I feel like and look like I’m losing fat. Seem to be constipated. Hardly go at all. Check urine and breathe. Urine is around 4 lately and breathe around 3 to 4. Today breathe was 9.95. Should I be worried? I feel fine
One month in, not much results
Madeleine
#2
There’s often a bit of recomposition on Keto so you can be losing fat without a ton of movement on the scale, but eventually the scale should start to move. Once you’re fat adapted (you should be there or close by now) you probably want to drop your fat intake so that you can use the fat on your body for fuel instead of the fat on your plate! The macro you want to watch daily is carbs - sounds like you’re doing great there - and just keep an eye on protein to be sure you’re in a good range for your goal lean weight.
OgreZed
#4
Percentages are next to worthless. Your protein needs are not proportional to caloric intake. And 5% of 2250 calories is 112.5 grams calories of carbs. That’s FAR from slightly more than the 20 net carbs per day threshold usually set for keto.
Most daily weight fluctuation is a simple change in water retention and digestive tract contents. True weight loss is a slow process based on caloric restriction. A lot of people drop a bit of water weight early on as their glycogen stores dwindle, and the water bound to them is flushed out of the body. Your carbs may not be low enough for that to be as pronounced?
The urine strips only measure one type of ketone body, as an excessive production of them is excreted. The strips are intended for T1 diabetics to check for ketoacidosis, not to check for nutritional ketosis, which primarily creates two other types of ketone bodies when fat adapted. I’m guessing if I say maybe the higher level of carbs made it take longer to produce ketones in quantity?
On the keto Reddit group, the dogma is that measuring ketones is a waste of time and money. It’s pretty much a guarantee that you will be in ketosis within a few days if you keep to 20 net carbs per day.
And, BTW, being in ketosis is no guarantee of weight loss. Calories still count.
At least for me, a big advantage of keto is that I’m no longer ravenously hungry all the time because carbs and insulin are no longer creating a false sense of hunger.
KetoCancerMom
(Cancer Fighting Ketovore :))
#5
You have no need to worry about that level of breath acetone. It doesn’t correlate to urine or breath.
Breath levels can fluctuate with fat burn. It can change depending on what you ate and when you test (and how you breathe into it). I’ve found mine to be more frustrating than helpful.
OgreZed
#6
BTW, when I use this keto calculator, I get these macros when I assume 20% body fat and sedentary lifestyle, setting calories at a 20% deficit for weight loss:
| 1760 | kcal Daily Calorie Intake |
|---|---|
| 20 | g Carbs (5%, 80 kcal) |
| 157 | g Protein (36%, 628 kcal) |
| 117 | g Fat (59%, 1052 kcal) |
If that were accurate and you’re consuming more calories than that, weight loss would be tough. The break-even point on the calculator was 2200 calories.
Personally, the only thing I take away from most calculators is the guesstimate of the proteins macro, which should be based on lean body mass. So upping the estimate of body fat can reduce the amount significantly.
Ideally, I would want my need for fat to be determined by hunger. I wouldn’t eat to meet the guesstimate of the fats macro above, because my body can (and preferably would) use stored body fat as part of my fats needs.
I see keto as “Minimal carbs. Adequate proteins. Fats as needed (for satiety).”
When I determined my own proteins need, I plugged my goal weight and goal body fat percentage into the calculator. I figured lean body mass shouldn’t change much between that and my being morbidly obese, unless I actively worked at increasing muscle tissue. What should be changing is how much fat is being carried around my lean body mass.
adorfaru
#7
5% of 2250 calories is 112.5 calories from carbs, which is actually more like 28-30 grams carbs a day. If you’re in that range, it might be okay, depending on metabolic health.
Not seeing much in terms of weight loss is something I have been dealing with since I went back on LCHF about a month and a half ago. Before my last pregnancy weight loss was fast. This time, not as fast. However, my body composition is definitely changing. If you feel healthier, then that’s great! Focus on that.
If you want to see weight loss, staying under 20 grams would probably be ideal, that’s what Dr. Eric Westman recommends. Being mindful of how much fat you eat is helpful, too. However, the draw of this diet is not necessarily needing to count calories to succeed and that is what I have been doing.
I am trying to trust that for me, I am probably building up muscle again because I am eating more red meat again. I am also probably having some organ fat loss while other fat is being redistributed elsewhere. For example, I think my chest is filling out again, which is where us women SHOULD have fat.
You may not be constipated. You may actually just being going less because you don’t have all the bulky fiber filling up your bowels. If your stool looks normal and it doesn’t hurt to go, I think you’re fine.
Also, I fall into the “weigh everyday” trap but avoid it if you can. Mine also fluctuates by a few pounds a day depending on what I ate and how hydrated I am. I got so discourage early on last month that I went off it for a week and reversed the weight loss I had and then some! Since going strict again, I am down a net of 7 lbs. I was still disappointed and my husband was like “that’s great! you gotta think, some people struggle to lose 7 lbs in a month.”
If your clothes are fitting differently, there is probably some redistribution happening and your body is trying to switch to fat burning mode. Keep up the good work and I would wait to adjust for a little while longer! Let us know how it’s going!
SomeGuy
(Joey)
#10
@rjm6969 Was going to craft a reply to your original question, but it’s clear you’ve gotten great input already, so I’ll simply welcome you and wish you luck in continuing on your path!
Wow, this is a pretty cool tool. Don’t want to geek out too much (or place over-emphasis on models that work on average but perhaps for no one person in particular) but this is a fascinating calculator.
Really enjoying myself, taking it out for a spin to explore how various inputs interrelate. Thanks!
David_Stilley
(Full Metal KETO AF)
#12
If you’re looking thinner and clothes are looser you are loosing fat no matter what the damn scale says!
The salt fix! Many issues are caused by not enough sodium on KETO. We flush it out faster than people who eat carbs and retain water. Issues low sodium lead to are cramps in the limbs, dizziness, headaches, flu like symptoms, fatigue, and constipation. We need about 5,000mg of sodium per day. This is 2-3 teaspoons or 10-15g of salt per day depending on how much sodium is in the foods you eat. Get your salt in, salt is the KETO fix for most issues we have. It’s always the first thing I try and 95% of the time that was the problem.
Good luck with your KETO efforts. 
SomeGuy
(Joey)
#13
I’ll attest to the fact that I was super diligent about getting sufficient salt (and H2O) into my system during my first week of keto-conversion. FWIW, I suffered no “keto flu” whatsoever.
Of course, everyone is different. But I have the strong sense that had I allowed myself to skimp on the salt (which is easy to do in this age of “high sodium fear”), things would not have gone as smoothly as they did.
YMMV, but I do like the "“get your salt in” credo.
PaulL
(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing)
#14
If you are not moving your bowel every day, that in itself if fine. On keto, the frequency of bowel movements is normally less. But on the other hand, if you mean you have to strain when moving your bowel, eat more salt. Between 10 and 15 grams/day of table salt (sodium chloride) is a good level, including salt already present in your food. Also drink enough liquid throughout the day to slake your thirst (don’t go overboard; too much can cause as many problems as too little).
BTW, if you should happen to notice that you are very much the opposite of constipated, cut back on the salt a bit!
SomeGuy
(Joey)
#16
Went back to revisit this fascinating calculator, but now with the thought that - if focusing on calories is a fool’s errand when it’s all about hormones, like insulin - are the formulae driving this calorie calculator just a silly exercise?
Or, perhaps because there seems to be some consideration about mix of macros (fat vs protein vs carb), could this calculator have some validity to it after all?
Hmmmm?
OgreZed
#17
Like I said, the only thing I take away from most calculators is the guesstimate of the proteins macro.
Because the carbs macro is pretty well fixed for keto – 20 grams net carbs. Which is handling the insulin issue directly.
And, ideally, hunger would be telling you how much fat you need to eat.
So, really, nothing directly to do with calories there. 