What am I doing wrong


(Susan) #1

Hi all!

I am now two weeks into stating the Keto diet. I eat less than 20g of carbs a day, and have cut my calories quite a bit from what I was eating prior to the diet. I eat 75% fat every day, or some days even more.

The first three days I lost two pounds, which I know is water weight. But four days in, those two pounds were back (I started my monthly visitor around this time)… that time is gone now but I still haven’t lost anything.

Could I be doing something wrong? Shouldn’t I at least have lost a few from water weight?


(Emma Cohn) #2

KCKO. Sounds like you are doing it right. The monthly visitor usually makes me gain 2-5 lbs but it will drop off again quickly. Just give it time and focus on how you feel, how clothes fit. Losing fat takes time and the loss isn’t linear


(Alex Marco D'angelo) #3

Couple things to look into… You didn’t mention the protein amount you are eating, it’s is quite important to not eat to much, especially in the transition phase.

Second you said “cut callories quite a bit”, do not lower your required caloric intake more than roughly 500 callories. Drastic reduction will have undesirable results (this is quite different from fasting).

So my suggestion would be to go back to the calculator and figure out exact amounts of macros and calories. Than at least for the first couple weeks do track strictly what you eat and make sure it falls into the numbers from the calculator. Once you become fat adapted you’ll be able to do more lazy and intuitive keto without the need to tracking.


(Banting & Yudkin & Atkins & Eadeses & Cordain & Taubes & Volek & Naiman & Bikman ) #4

There is no need to cut calories during the induction/adaptation phase.


(Alec) #5

2 weeks is too early to be concerned. KCKO. If you’ve lost no weight after 6 weeks, then post what you’re eating and we’ll troubleshoot.

Keto is not a fast weight loss plan. It can take time, depending on how deranged your body is.
Cheers
Alec


(Jay AM) #6

You provided little information that we can work from so, I’ll give you my general recommendations. Feel free to give us some food logs to look at and also tell us if you are supplementing electrolytes as well as your general stats like age, height, weight.

We have a few sayings here, “keep calm, keto on” and “trust the process.” Keto isn’t a quick weight loss diet. It’s a health gaining way of eating with fat loss as a side effect. If the scale is an unhealthy obsession, put it away for a couple of months or give it to a neighbor you don’t like.

There are two phases to ketosis and a ketogenic lifestyle.

Nutritional ketosis is phase one. Your body begins to produce and uptake some ketones while dumping the rest. It will still search for glucose to use as fuel. In this phase it’s not an efficient process. It has to work actively to get rid of stored glycogen, clean up excess blood sugar, and turn on the ability to use ketones.

Fat adaptation is phase two. Your body is efficiently producing ketones from intake and stored body fat and is also using them efficiently for energy. It takes around 6-8 weeks of strict keto to achieve for many but not all.

The basic “rules” I go by and many others can agree with especially for beginners are:

*20g net carbs max (you might tolerate more but, starting out, 20g net carbs or less will get you into ketosis.)

*Moderate protein (1g-1.5g per kg of lean bodyweight is a good goal based on the 2 Dudes recommendations.)

*Fat to satiety (add fat to every meal and, if you are hungry, eat more fat. Don’t be afraid of fat. It is energy.)

*Do not restrict calories

*Do not exercise excessively

*Drink plenty of water

*Get plenty of sodium and other electrolytes