I’m new here but heard a lot about Keto as weight loss remedy and thinking about to start it. Do you guys think it would be better to start on your own or get some help from a professional dietitian? Please share your experiences about how do you guys actually started at first?
Saying hello to Ketos
Janet3
#2
Welcome Allen.
For me keto will be a permanent woe. I started almost a year ago. When I began, I was very overweight and was just diagnosed with T2D. I did not know what keto was, but I knew my diet needed to change. I reduced sugar and processed food. I began to eat primarily vegetables and protein. I lost about 30 lbs.
Later, I learned about keeping carbs under 20 grams a day. As I put this into practice I lost another 50 lbs. This is the easiest “diet.” I’ve ever done. I’m never hungry. I enjoy my food. I feel younger, more energetic and more upbeat.
Like I said for me this is not a diet but a way of eating for life.
Regarding seeing a dietician, there are many experts on this site that you can ask for guidance. People are very helpful. All the best no matter what you decide to do.
Shinita
#3
I don’t care about dietitians the slightest, how could they know what is good for ME? 
I am a hard-headed one, nope, I do my own things 
And experiment on myself.
I actually started with low-carb. Well I started with paleo but it was very high-carb and I still ate a ton and I quickly noticed it’s not the right thing for me… I somehow arrived at my ~80g net carbs low-carb and it was great and east and I lost fat without a problem but only until my energy need was over 2000 kcal…
As time passed, I went lower and lower. I had keto on/off years and then carnivore on/off years (I can’t stick to such low-carb for long. my keto was 40g net carbs, way too little for me all the time. only my body loves as little carbs as possible but I have other parts and circumstances)… And it’s the right direction and I got benefits. I trained and experimented and learned things about myself and now I know how to lose fat. If I can manage to do it, we will see. I don’t like to restrict myself so I don’t restrict myself, I train myself into a version that wants just what is ideal for me.
Since the time I went low-carb, I know there is no way back. Short visits, sure but I am physically, mentally, emotionally unable to go back to some really carby lifestyle Good thing we don’t need any carbs to stay alive (even though a few is inevitable)… Oh yes I didn’t eat meat on my original keto, I obviously do it every day on carnivore (I think I had one meatless carnivore day in total this far… once I run out of meat and was stubborn. not good) and it helps tremendously. And I thought vegetarian keto (with 40g net carbs) wasn’t hard… It’s WAY easier with meat. I can go super low with carbs. I have a “lot” of carbs to spend on whatever if I get tempted as my normal food needs little… And the right meat is tasty, satiating and can be eaten galore… I always must stop at my 12th egg, rarely reach even that and eggs lack a few essential nutrients (or have too little of them, at least). Meat is near perfect.
But I could do vegetarian keto if it was a must, I wouldn’t enjoy it nearly as much as I did originally though. Keto has such a big variety… It’s one thing it’s still not enough for me all year long but close and I actually could stick to it if I was motivated. It wasn’t a big deal in my first 7 weeks (I never went off until fat adaptation) and I had no meat!
Good luck!
Shortstuff
(Allie)
#4
I cooked and ate meat on its own to save time and realised I was losing fat effortlessly, then found it was an actual thing after a few successful weeks of doing something I didn’t know I was doing. Always do my own research, don’t trust anyone else to tell me what is right for my own body.
Rebj
(Rebecca )
#5
Welcome!
I have learned mainly from here…I have never consulted a dietician or medical professional concerning what to eat. You can and will learn a lot here! Wishing you the best!
gingersmommy
(Marianne)
#6
I don’t believe you need a dietitian, and you’d be really fortunate to find one who actually supports the keto way of eating.
Get your macros, meet or slightly exceed the fat and protein macro and keep the carbs as low under 20g/day as possible. Eat clean, one ingredient foods. It’s okay to combine them, but I’d stay away from anything processed. Don’t count calories, don’t restrict your intake, eat to satiety and let the days pass comfortably. If you are hungry, increase your intake at the next meal. I’d start with three meals a day with no snacks. Make a list of all the staple foods that will comprise your new way of eating and record their fat, protein and carb macros. This will give you a better idea of what foods you can eat to reach your daily macros. Check out dietdoctor.com and do some light reading about how to do keto, how it works, questions you might have, etc. They also have informative, understandable videos you can watch.
Good luck! Hope to see you here.
robintemplin
(Robin)
#7
@allen Welcome! Members of this forum have found success. But few experiences will be exactly the same. Your best bet is to keep it simple. Try to stay below 20 total grams of carbs. From there, the rest will fall into place.
As you eliminate foods, you’ll notice your body’s response and literally follow your gut.
Worry less about the scale, pay attention to your clothes and how you feel. If you want to measure your progress, start with a tape measurement. Often inches loss are much more dramatic than pounds lost.
Enjoy the ride, it’s a good one.
You got this!
PaulL
(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing)
#8
I am fortunate that my doctor believes in the ketogenic diet, so no problems there. Unfortunately, however, most professionals are required to promote the standard governmental dietary guidelines and can get into trouble if they don’t. It doesn’t help that in the U.S. (and, I believe, Australia) the dietitian’s association was founded by a devout Seventh-Day Adventist, so the way they train their members is “meat bad, carbohydrate good.” To find an enlightened dietitian who is familiar with the actual research can be a challenge.
Myself, I learned about this way of eating (which is what “woe” usually stands for on these forums; I always find it hilarious when people post about their “keto woe,” since I find keto to be anything but woeful, lol!) from lectures by Dr. Stephen Phinney on YouTube. He is one of the original researchers into this diet and has amassed a lot of data about how it works, along with his research partner, Prof. Jeff S. Volek. Other prominent researchers are Dr. David Ludwig, Dr. Richard Feinman (note the different spelling!), and Prof. Benjamin Bikman. The food activist, Dr. Robert Lustig, started out as a paediatric endocrinologist at UCSF, treating obese children, became aware of the toxic effects of sugar, and now promotes a real, whole food diet. His lectures are also well worth watching. There are a couple of science journalists who have seriously investigated nutrition science and a ketogenic way of eating, namely Gary Taubes and Nina Teicholz. Their books and lectures are well worth investigating, too. And I don’t want to forget the citizen scientists, David Feldman and L. Amber O’Hearn, whose talks are always well thought out and data-driven.
If you look for lectures and interviews with these people on YouTube, you will get recommendations for material posted by other prominent ketonians. I trust the people I have mentioned, because their presentations are always accompanied by citations to the scientific literature, so I can go look up the references and evaluate them for myself. The indexes to Taubes’s and Teicholz’ books alone are a pretty comprehensive index to the literature, in fact.
Fangs
#9
start on your own. it is food we eat and IF ONE goes clean Keto and adheres by the guidelines of ‘20g’ carbs you will get results without extra bucks being spent on someone to show you this. Key being put your kept hard earned dollars for your food menu!!
key being who are you on weight loss? what ya need to lose and what are your goals and how miserable is your life as an overall well being from your health now? We all walked this big question!!!
You are right here with those that live it, got all kinds of health rewards and changes and have experience, heck we ALL could be that person who you might send $$ to in a way 
Start. Do the plan. See who you are on changes. THEN re-evaluate it later. Money towards your Keto food and info from this well versed Keto Plan forum will help you easily…(unless since we don’t know ya well you ‘feel’ you need structured organized on hand real person guidance’ and if that, you do you for sure!)…there is nothing ever wrong with doing this if you require it ya know. But those here walked this path so we can guide, but remember, you are you and how much to lose and how many ‘diets’ that failed ya been on and more come into play’ for each of us moving forward as we must!
wishing you only the best way forward to suit you 
dfossey
(Shannon)
#10
I had no idea this was true. That is crazy! (but explains a lot)
I first heard of Gary Taubes on a podcast many years ago. His story is interesting and he exposes much of the “unscientific” research that led to the American Heart Association recommendations and other standard diets in the US.
Fangs
#12
@allen
any thoughts, lol… we gave alot and wondering now where your thoughts are at on how you want and need and desire to ‘change you’? 
allen
#13
haha, I’m just reading and absorbing knowledge from the experts here and also searching for the apps to track daily activity and which foods have low carbs but are high in fat and are suitable for keto.
Thank you, everyone, for sharing your experience and helpful tips. It means a lot.
J_Nieuwland
(J Nieuwland)
#14
Hii! Glad you found this forum. People here are very nice and they help a lot.
When you start Keto, you’ll find that loosing weight becomes a sidequest. This diet means so much more and brings so much more than just weightloss, think of a clearer mind, higher energy, no sugar dips/rushes, more stamina, a more stable life in general, and a whole lot more.
I decided to take it a step further and go carnivore. This brings me even more benefits than Keto, but for both diets counts that it’s a whole switch. Once you’re used to it, and been through the first period of weird side effects of your body adjusting, things will get better very fast. These side effects can be really annoying, like diarrhea, headaches, muscle pains, etc.
I wish you the best, and a lot of good dishes!
Shinita
#15
Keto gives me no benefits but being close to carnivore was a game changer Benefits came immediately, sadly no higher energy and mine is quite low, I need that, maybe if I can stick to it longer…?
And it helps with carbs, no need to worry about them much (unless you really need to go low and even animal carbs matter, I noticed it’s irrelevant to me. I am on the fence about lactose but I have other good reasons not to go overboard with dairy) if you base your eating on animal food and only add carbier items in tiny amounts and the really full sugar/starch ones not at all but they are super easy to spot, they can’t hide it. But even them are easier to squeeze into my life now that my normal food barely has any carbs and they don’t seem to count anyway… But they are tricky so one should think over what to allow…
marklifestyle
(Mark Rhodes)
#16
Welcome. Start with the podcast 2 Keto Dudes Episode one and listen to all 200 or so episodes. It is all there. Many of us started right along with Carl and enjoyed the witty and fun banter between @carl and @richard . Since then my keto journey has flourished and blossomed into “come for the weight loss, stay for the health benefits”. Both are still accessible on the forums and FB.
The community here is very open and caring. You don’t need to pay but it would be nice if you found value here to become a Patreon to help support the costs of keeping the forums open. We do ourr best to eliminate Trolls. Support and Science are key here.
So, no, I do not believe you need “professional” help. Most of the professionals you see out there started right here and then tried to monetize what was given to them freely. We believe in carrying the message of health and recovery via a low carb/keto or carnivore diet. Ask questions but first search the SEARCH query. over the years it is highly likely someone already asked and there is a wealth of searchable answers.
PaulL
(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing)
#21
LOL! There aren’t many other people I’d be willing to share my bacon with! 