Question about calories

(Tricia Roth) #1

Hello! So I’ve been doing low carb for 4 weeks.
SW: 224.3
CW: 218
I’m 5"5’ and 46 years old. Have lost weight on calorie restriction several times. Gained it back and then some every time. Tried Atkins in the 90s for about two weeks. Missing bread made me too sad.
Im shooting for 85g of protein, and I’m hitting that based on my weekly averages. I’m probably ranging from 50 to 110 per day, so not hitting daily macros.
I’ve been stalled for just over two weeks.

I called it keto in my head, but really, my carbs were too high (average total carbs around 50, net 30 to 40). Today might end up being my first real keto day. I’m just at 14 total carbs, and this is really my first day below 20.

I understand this isn’t CICO, but I also understand if my calories are too low, I’ll see a stall. I’m using the lose it app, and it’s got me targeting 1606 calories a day. The various calculators I’ve used mostly give me the same number, so I’ve been using that. Now, I’m not weighing and measuring everything, but I am measuring things like cheese and nuts. I think I’m typically hitting 1500 to 1800 calories per day.

I’ve been listening to 2 keto dudes, reading this forum, just read the Big fat surprise. You’ve maybe seen me post a little, too. I’m also googling various topics like, “how to tell when I’m fat adapted” and “can fat adaptation be measured?” And this is how I ended up at “common sense keto.”

That keto dude suggests a TDEE calculator. I’m sure he said to set it for maintenance. That has my calories at 2200. Here’s my pickle. If I eat to satiety, I may get to 1800 calories, but I definitely won’t get to 2200, and I understand that I shouldn’t eat when I’m not hungry and not snack. Even though I’ve been doing keto light, I’ve seen such benefits of appetite suppression and the ability to ignore office donuts.

I think I would like to get to 140, although that seems very aspirational as I type it. I think that’s what I put into the calculators. 170 is probably perfectly realistic.

Given all that, can I get some help understanding what my calories are suppose to be?

Thanks so much!

(TJ Borden) #2

In my opinion…

It’s possible your metabolism has already slowed based on previous attempts at caloric restriction so your body is just adjusted to working with fewer calories.

I’d say just stick with it, and focus on fat. Don’t sweat the protein. That’s fine as more of an average and it looks like you’re doing fine. If your metabolism has slowed, it can take a long time to adjust back up. In the mean time, don’t be afraid to push satiety a bit. I did that a while back to break through a stall.

As crazy as it seemed, eating a little past “content” but not to the point where I couldn’t stuff anymore food down my gullet (which was what satiety meant to me pre-keto), actually caused the scale to move down.

(LeeAnn Brooks) #3

Good advice above.

One thing I like to do is to have a low and high day each week. So one day I may only have 1200 calories and a few days latter I have 2000, but most days I’m around 1600. I don’t let my body get used to the same thing day after day. I feel this keeps my metabolism guessing and therefore working better.

(Troy Anthony) #5

All great advice above. I’d also add that it’s not just about how much you eat but frequency matters. The studies on long term IF and calorie deficit aren’t extensive yet, but early studies suggest IF doesn’t have the bounce back weight gain that comes with traditional restriction. I like the advice above about mixing it up. Big meals will speed up the metabolism of a metabolically healthy person, and that will continue even once the calories aren’t there, and lead to weight loss, hypothetically. I think working on getting to less meals a day works on making you more metabolically healthy by reducing the insulin response throughout the day, and also in speeding up the metabolism for those already metabolically healthy. I added this because I have found that balancing hormones is more important initially to weight lose then calorie count, but calorie count should be considered only as far as to get the hormones balanced and speeding up metabolism. To this means frequency is very important.

(Ron) #6

My suggestion is that you are to low on caloric intake and have slowed your metabolism down.
It sounds as if you have your app set in the lose setting and not maintain level. Until you become fat adapted you need to eat to your TDEE as you stated and allow the body to go through the transitions required to start utilizing fat as its fuel source instead of glucose. There will also be healing and inflammation that the body prioritizes before weight loss. This usually takes 6 to 8 weeks of not going over the 20g net carb limit. Here are some links that might help.




(Tricia Roth) #7

Thanks. I did just change my goal to maintenance in the app. I’m a little apprehensive! But it makes sense.

(Alec) #8

Tricia
I am not much different to the advice above, but my main message is trust your body signals. If you are hungry eat more, if not, don’t. You need to get good at listening to your body. This is a skill that only comes with practice. If you are hungry, eat more fat.

I also like LeeAnn’s advice to mix it up. This is good advice.
Cheers
Alec

#9

I think good advice, do not remember where I heard this, but stop looking at daily calories and start looking at them more of a weekly or monthly number. This simple adaptation can give you back some freedoms in your diet and stops the stressing over your daily eating. I keep losing inches, and have not counted one single item, not been on a scale, and not tested urine or blood. This is a life style not a diet so as long as limiting bad carbs, eating lots of good fat, and not eating out of a box I feel the results will follow and they have.

(Troy) #10

Same w the others

For example, my last meal before this current fast, about 53 hours or so right now :thinking::grin:

I had about 2600 or so calories in my OMAD
Stuffed!!

Prior as others mentioned to mix it up , I had 2MAD , 1000 or so calories each meal

Another day, 800-900 and 800

Another day, OMAD at 2200-ish

And so on…

I do log. Just for the sport of it😁
It’s fun for me
Not logging to count calories

So I’m not truly “ counting calories “ …lol, I already know just by the food, portions, and repititiveness already engraved in my KETO Clarity brain :rofl:
Well, pretty close at least
And I’m a boring KETO eater. Stick w many of the same foods

I’m fat adapted , just to mention for the above info

(Tricia Roth) #11

Ok, so I’ve committed to eating more, and the whoosh effect has started. I did eat a little more on Tuesday and Wednesday, and I’ve lost 4 pounds. I don’t think the increased calories led to the whoosh, though. I think my body was just ready to let some water go.

Anyway…I’ve eaten big breakfasts both today and yesterday, and both days I get hungry around 9:30. Maybe it’s from too much protein. Maybe I should swap sausage for bacon. Any other suggestions? I really don’t want to snack.

Know what else? Im waking up with the sun. So breakfast was around 6 am. Not sure I’m a fan of this phenomenon. Not sure it’s related to keto.

I’m going to Iceland for a week mid June, and I hope I don’t stay awake the whole time!

(Alec) #12

I find I need less sleep on keto.
Cheers
Alec

(Alec) #13

Tricia
My opinion is if you are hungry (at any time) eat fat. Some others on here prefer the no snack advice, but I prefer the no hunger advice. Good news that the whoosh has started. I would say it is because of increased intake. But we’ll never know😄.
Cheers
Alec

(Tricia Roth) #14

So my calories are increased. I’m not losing or gaining. This is fine for now. My appetite came back. I was having trouble getting to 1700, now 2200 hardly seems like enough. I guess this means something. Something good hopefully.

(Chris W) #15

As your body starts restore services it has not used you will most likely get even more hungry. Let it fix things and it will start to bleed off energy, you should hopefully start to see loss soon. Every once and while add extra fat to your day in particular MCT’s or SCT’s like coconut oil, EVO or cream. Your overall energy should go up as well, if you start to loose your hunger earlier in the day go with it. At around 5-6 weeks I really started to IF, and by 8 weeks it was every day and that was a major turning point. If you exercise do it before you eat if you can, and then eat within an hour or so if possible.

(Alec) #16

Tricia
I think this means your body is hard at work. Help it out by feeding it fuel when it asks for it. I think this is a great sign of a repairing metabolism.
Cheers
Alec

(Tricia Roth) #17

My energy did go up just this week. I wasn’t tired all the time, just tired a few hours before bedtime. Now, I just get tired at bedtime. And I’ve been getting more done in the evening as well.

(Alec) #18

Tricia
Me too… come 9pm I am done. Trouble falling asleep, I don’t think so! I reckon on average it takes about 30 seconds! :laughing:

But I do early starts… 5.30, 6am. Loads of energy… “Let me at ‘em!!”
Cheers
Alec

(Chris W) #19

I will say when I was a carb burner falling asleep could be troublesome, and waking up was even harder, but now even if I am not tired falling asleep is a little too easy at bed time like 2 minutes and out. I sleep 11-4:30 every day I never lack for energy in the morning anymore either. The odd thing is it does not matter how hard or lack of hard my day is short of real physically strain in which I am sore more than tired still.

(Tricia Roth) #20

Yes, it’s like that for me. I go to bed and go to sleep quickly,.then wake up around 5:30. I never went to sleep quickly before, so if this is a side effect of keto, I like it.

(LeeAnn Brooks) #21

I too find falling asleep much easier. And I sleep deeper too. Even my FitBit shows this.

However if I don’t give myself at good 7 hours at least (like this morning for instance where we had to get up extra early to go to my son’s baseball tournament out of town), then it’s VERY hard to get up.

The sleep is just so deep it’s hard to shake it if it gets cut short.