Start with your Why

#151

I was vegetarian for years and tried vegan for about a month. Neither were for me, but I have great respect for those who choose this path. For those interested, the episode of the keto talk podcast this week featured an orthopedic spine surgeon who successfully eats vegan keto. She was very informative and did a great interview. Unusual for a surgeon to be so interested and informed re: nutrition and to advocate this to her patients (not necessarily vegan, but keto). Impressive!

#152

I might have to check that podcast out. I have respect for the lifestyle and the choice to not eat meat, I didn’t for two years or so. It just didn’t work for me, I think it actually contributed to my blood pressure issues although I can’t prove it because other things were going on as well. The only time I absolutely have no respect for a vegan/vegetarian is when they demand that everyone else should follow their lifestyle. Much as how I cannot stand when a meat eater condemns vegetarians.
I caught enough grief when I quit eating meat… funny enough as thin as I am now (thinner than vegetarian me) I wonder how many people would freak when they find out how much butter, eggs, sausage, and bacon I consume. :laughing:

I hope this works out for me. I’ve tried low fat high carb, vegan, vegetarian, none of it worked. I feel better now than I have in years.

#153

I’m 46, my kids are 11, 8, and 7 so I totally get needing the energy. Keep up the good work you got this!!!

(Sophie) #154

I believe I saw a video where Dr. Stephen Phinny stated that in his practice, he had never seen a healthy vegan/vegetarian(?). I’ll look for it if you like.

#155

I felt fantastic… at first.
I really believe that if I had not been so physically active I would have been a metabolic trainwreck.
Yes, if you find that video let me know.

I’m curious as to when you lived in Oburg but I’m smart enough not to directly ask!

(Bunny) #156

My why? I consider keto a way of life not a “diet” so I treat my nutrition as if I already have cancer or diabetes! Recent scientific research,* literature,* and other studies* are strongly indicating that our body was not intended to burn excessive exogenic sugar or refined and processed carbohydrates. I will never ever go back to the way I was eating before or cheat!

*EPIDEMIOLOGY:

EXCESSIVE EXOGENIC SUGAR (glucose) INTAKE including HIGHLY PROCESSED CARBOHYDRATES (gluconeogenesis; including eating more than 3 or 4 oz. of excessive protein per meal) is the core cause of cancer including hereditary predispositions to cancer and other diseases, especially diabetes and others etc. are the root cause of most diseases. In 1931 a German physician/scientist, Otto Warburg MD, PhD, received a Nobel prize for proving that all cancer cells use anaerobic metabolism (burn sugar without using oxygen) to produce energy. The problem (for the cancer cell) is that this mechanism is 18 times less efficient than the aerobic (oxygen utilizing) metabolism that our normal cells use. That means the cancer cells need 18 times more sugar than normal cells to grow and prosper.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTARY:

Recent research* on endurance athletes (T-Low/C-High) in KETOSIS demonstrates that they BURN 23x SUGAR (glucose) and 2x FAT, but that’s only AFTER 3 MONTHS of being in KETOSIS and not completely KETO ADAPTED (ketosis adaptation takes 6 MONTHS) in contrast to Dr. Otto Warburg’s research in 1931 that demonstrates cancer cells need 18x more sugar (glucose) to thrive and prosper.

Interesting?

*RESEARCH:

  1. Metabolic characteristics of keto-adapted ultra-endurance runners - Jeff S. Volek - Nov 2, 2015

  2. The Effects of a Ketogenic Diet on Exercise Metabolism and Physical Performance in Off-Road Cyclists - Adam Zajac, Stanisław Poprzecki, […], and Grzegorz Zydek

  3. Ketogenic diets and physical performance -Stephen D Phinney

  4. Endurance athletes who ‘go against the grain’ become incredible fat-burners Elite performance on a diet with minimal carbs represents a paradigm shift in sports nutrition - November 17, 2015 Source: Ohio State University

KETONES/ENERGY/GLUCONEOGENSIS:

The human body or brain DOES NOT need EXOGENIC (external) GLUCOSE (sugar) or CARBOHYDRATE ingestion TO LIVE and will create (gluconeogenesis) glucose endogenically (naturally/internally) if needed.

The human brain and body can use KETONES as a source of energy permanently the way nature intended!

Your Brain ONLY Needs Glucose (Carbohydrates) is a MYTH!

Dr. Eric Berg explains the brain CAN run on other types of fuel, specifically ketones from our fat stores. Your body ALSO can convert both protein and fat to glucose and does this through a special mechanism called gluconeogensis. So you don’t have to CONSUME glucose, sugar or carbohydrates DIRECTLY to get glucose to the brain.

Research Studies:

  1. Ketone bodies as a therapeutic for Alzheimer’s disease. ‪https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/‬ pubmed/18625458/

  2. Study of the ketogenic agent AC-1202 in mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multicenter trial.‪ ‬

  3. ‪The ketogenic diet for typ‬e II bipolar disorder. ‪

  4. Dementia, diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, and insulin resistance in the brain: progress, dilemmas, new opportunities, and a hypothesis to tackle intersecting epidemics. ‪

  5. How does brain insulin resistance develop in Alzheimer’s disease?

  6. ‪Insulin i‬n the Brain ‪www.hbo.com/documentaries/the-alzheimers-project-caregiv‬ers

WHAT INTERMITTENT FASTING DOES:

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Understanding blood ketones
#157

Welcome @atomicspacebunny, look forward to you sharing more of what you find.
I’m an endurance runner so definitely a fan of Drs Phinney and Volek. I’ve read their Art and Science of Low Carbohydrate Performance and am roughly halfway through The Art and Science of Low Carbohydrate Living.

If you find any studies that are good reading please link them.

Thanks!

(Bunny) #158

More myth shattering and mind blowing research to come!

(Scotty Blair) #159

I’ve been obese since I was 20. I worked in a restaurant as a cook, and was allowed to eat all the food I wanted. Our restaurant also had a bakery, and the bakery ladies loved me. They brought me all of the white macadamia nut cookies I could handle. I worked there for 4 years, and started at 180 lbs. I gained 60 lbs during my employment, and left there to work a desk job.

Long hours at a desk and poor eating habits led to more weight gain. By the time I was 25, I weighed 280 lbs. I decided to restrict calories and work out, because I refused to hit 300. I got back down to 240, and then left for a 10 day trip. I hadn’t planned my menu and struggled to eat well. I fell off the wagon and couldn’t find the motivation to try again. By the time I was 30, I weighed 315 lbs. I was embarrassed and always hungry and tired. My wife got pregnant with my 3rd child when I was 31, and I knew something had to change. I decided to try paleo, because clean eating made sense to me. I lost 40 pounds on paleo, but that didn’t mean I was getting healthier. I ate lots of fruit and meats and felt better, but still didn’t have a lot of energy.

My wife is a physician, and we moved while I was eating paleo. Two things happened to make me consider keto as an option. The first was that my wife had started learning about this ridiculous diet that was curing type two diabetes and metabolic syndrome. She filled my head with the knowledge of keto

Second was that I had to do a series of tests for our new insurance, and was diagnosed as prediabetic. My A1C was 6.4 and it was suggested that I go on that metformin. I had told my wife that if I was ever diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, I would refuse medication and change my diet. Prediabetes was close enough for me!

I started researching food and this thing called macros and immediately became ketogenic. Within two weeks, I had made it past any withdrawal symptoms and was feeling great! I started at the beginning of your shows, and absorbed a lot of great information to kerp motivated. I turned 32 over the weekend, and was recently tested again. My A1C was 5.7! I overcame pre diabetes in a matter of months, and am starting to test out fasting.

My diet isn’t always perfect, but I am keeping calm, and ketoing on!

(Vicki Stroud) #160

I am tired of being fat and unhealthy. I want to walk my two Giant Schnauzers without having to stop and bend over to catch my breath. I want to fit into that little black dress and watch my husband have to bend over to pick up his eyes that fell out of his head.

(CharleyD) #161

@RandyH Another maverick here. Stick to your guns brother!

I will occasionally fix a keto version of a dish that I know my family usually eats (The Keto Bread, or Fathead Pizza, etc) and I feel that, you know, is one more data point for the wife and kid toward the realization that it’s not all boring, monotonous meat.

I also have to be on guard to not make comments about the sugar/starch/grain content of their food, otherwise risk alienation.

You want to work towards reconciliation! Attract more flies with honey than vinegar… oh, wait, that’s a HORRIBLE idiom now! I can’t use it anymore! I love my apple cider vinegar, and haven’t had honey in over a year! :scream::sob:

(Steve Leverton) #162

Here seems as good a place as anywhere for my first post - so why keto?

Effective weight loss.
Increased energy.
Improved motivation.
Bacon!!!
BUT above all, actually feeling good!!

Started on my latest health-kick/lifestyle change back mid-September, and by the time October had started I had been introduced to Keto by a work colleague, and was well into nutritional ketosis. Since that time I’ve lost 22kg (3.5 stones or 48.5 pounds), but the back end of December has been a bit of a plateau… this is due to being very busy at work, not eating correctly and consequently dropping out of ketosis, and not following the exercise regime I’d set up for myself.

But now Christmas is out of the way, I am back on my A game. Been eating hflc since Wednesday, and my blood ketone level is at 0.4, so I fully expect to get through keto flu and enter ketosis in the next couple of days… oh boy, I can’t wait! To get back to those energy levels again.

Anyway, enough for now, I’ve been a lurker here for a little while, but thought it about time to start contributing.

Also massive thanks to 2 keto dudes, I’m working my way through the back catalogue of podcasts and love that I learn something in every one. Excellent, and honestly, life-changing too!

(Madge Boldt) #163

Welcome @KetoLevvy ! I agree that the podcasts are great. I binge-listened starting in October and have actually caught up to real time.

You have made amazing weight loss progress. Congratulations on that!

(Shayne) #164

Long story short (I hope). I used a protein only diet to lose 120lbs in 18 months in 2005/6 and then shifted (spontaneously) to intermittent fasting. A therapist in 2007 diagnosed me as “non purge bulimic” and told me to stop. Weight fluctuated in the high 170s to low 190s (for me that’s a size 8-10) for a few years. Hurt my back in 2010/11 (not positive on the timeline) and started taking a multitude of pain meds - gabapentin, ibuprofen, percoset and prednisone… by mid 2013 I was back up to nearly 300lbs. I tried repeatedly to use the same diet to get it back off and I failed every time… I HATED it so much, chicken breast and pork loin are absolutely awful.

But I was determined. This (2017) was going to be my year. I was going to stick to that diet if it killed me. I lost a few pounds. Then I discovered the beef only diet and I did that for a month and gained it all back and then some. Those beef only people were ragging on keto something fierce, so I decided to check it out. I guess I started in March - basically I did a modified fat fast and added some protein to it. I got off my bp meds that I’d been on for a couple of years, and I got off metformin. I got down to 265 (for some reason I can’t get past 265 these last two years) and then put it right back on.

Overall, I’m off my meds, but have lost a net 10lbs for the year 2017 and 2 inches off my waist.

Why do I keep going?
My BP is phenomenal!
I’ve learned that I DO have an off switch when it comes to eating - and sometimes I actually listen to it (something I’m still working on)
I have PTSD and keto is good for mental health. It has certainly helped lower my hypervigilance.

Changes I’m making for the new year - first off, I found a Functional Medicine doctor. Just waiting for Duke to hand over my records so he’ll know where to go from here.

I’m eliminating dairy and sweeteners (mostly there already, just going the extra mile), adding alternate day fasting and scheduling some exercise - easy and slow at first so I don’t hurt myself. It’s probably safe to assume that I’m very insulin resistant the these are the tactics I’ve learned are good for lowering that resistance.

So much for short. LOL

(Madge Boldt) #165

@smsherbert you have quite a story. I wonder why you were able to lose so much on high protein, but have stalled out on keto. Hopefully since you are feeling better healthwise you will remain patient and the scale will move. It is slower for me now as well but I am happy with the progress given my effort (could be better!)
I have never heard of beef only eating. I’m glad it led you to keto. Keep up the good work. I hope you are able to break through your stall.

(Jane Lapointe) #166

My why? I have been struggling to lose 10 pounds for years. this may not sound like much to some of you, but I am a tiny person. When I was young it seemed that if I put on a couple of pounds all I had to do was think about it and I would lose it. As I have gotten older my weight has gradually increased and so has my blood pressure. My A1c is 5.5. I realize that is within the normal range but it’s getting up towards the top of that normal range. These are all concerns for me. Ketogenic diet seems to address most if not all of these issues. I started keto on November 13th. I have lost eight and a half pounds since then. That is 6% of my body weight and takes me to within 4 lb of my current goal weight. More importantly my blood pressure within 4 weeks of starting Keto is back down to a textbook perfect 110/ 70. My dad had very high blood pressure and was on medication for the last 20 to 30 years of his life. His mother died of a massive stroke before they had medications to control blood pressure. Clearly, this is something that I need to be concerned about in the long run.

My mother lived to be nearly 101 years old. If I have a lifespan like that I want to be healthy, active, and have all of my faculties. my children have not had children yet, but if they do I want to be able to play with my grandchildren, and be a part of their lives. Even without the grandchildren I want to have an active role in my own children’s lives and be able to travel and take part.

(Shayne) #167

I suspect that the pain meds I was on for close to two years made my IR much much worse and that’s why I’m having so much trouble with the weight loss. My doctor also suspects a much worse case of magnesium deficiency than I thought, so we’re testing for it. I go to get the blood drawn tomorrow. My doctor is keto friendly, so I suspect we’ll be working together to dial it in to heal my body and then the weight loss will come.

(Madge Boldt) #168

A keto friendly doctor is a wonderful thing to have!

(Merete C) #169

Thank you for your post.
Since you do not mention it I will: Look at your sleep, breathing and stress management. I can recommend this book “The Oxygen Advantage: Simple, Scientifically Proven Breathing Techniques to Help You Become Healthier, Slimmer, Faster, and Fitter” by Patrick McKeown. You can absolutely sabotage all the good things you ARE doing by over breathing and by triggering cortisol through stress. Good luck

(Paula) #170

My why is I was fixing to have to buy bigger clothes than when I was pregnant, on blood pressure and thyroid medicine and was depressed. I want to live longer and enjoy my husband and two sons! Now I am down 49 pounds and 33 inches, off blood pressure medicine and thyroid medicine at lowest amount and no longer depressed!