What to Expect When You Take a Break from Keto

(Jane) #142

Good example of how you can eat keto and not eat “clean”. Glad you found your way back home and good luck with your journey going forward.

(ace0e4c1b96473136b25) #143

Well said and I’m in total agreance :joy::joy:KEEP KALM AND KETO ON

(Ivonne) #145

This is so important, thank you

(Judy Williamson) #146

I’m on and off keto all the time, I come off for events (holidays,birthdays etc) but will go straight back on afterwards. The thing is the food does taste good, I tend to go for cake or chocolate as these are the things I miss/crave (I hate dark chocolate :woozy_face:), but no matter what I tell myself I still fall off the wagon, I know it’s all psychological and I need to change my mindset but don’t know how :slightly_frowning_face:

#147

Kate, well done on pulling up and getting it together to get back on track!

#148

I find that there are now so many fantastic Keto recipes that substitute those old treats so well, @Judy_Williamson. I too dislike dark chocolate, actually if I’m being really honest I loathe the stuff, but have found some fantastic sugar-free milk and white chocolate options that I always keep in the cupboard in the event I feel like I want to cheat. Because for me, cheating just a little always rapidly falls back into cheating a lot. Those carbs are sneaky little critters! Preparation and planning helps me a lot to stay on track.

(Judy Williamson) #149

I so agree about carbs being sneaky little critters! They do seem to creep back in! I didn’t think of having sugar free milk chocolate, will check that out. Thanks for your advice.

#150

Well Naturally No Sugar chocolate is my favourite…especially the peppermint chip and coconut delight! :blush:

(Pandemonium) #151

Thank you for taking the time to do this. I’ve fallen off the wagon after losing 10 kilos, and now I’ve developped a sort of binge eating disorder? So i got back 15 kilos. EH.
I’ve recently started swimming though and ohgod I need to do keto or I won’t survive! Can’t believe I did this to myself but like they say, breathe in and keto on!

(squirrel-kissing paper tamer) #152

Welcome back to keto. Not everyone does their best on their first attempt. Maybe you needed the lesson to put your heart into this attempt. We’re here if you have questions or need support. Best wishes!

(Pandemonium) #153

Thank you <3 my first attempt was pretty good and I had a strong willpower. But got lost along the way with “Comfort foods” and feeling sorry for myself (+ anxiety/depression medication) -.- Good thing is, there are foods which I totally refuse to eat now which is good. But sometimes I overindulge in rice for example, or sometimes bread (damn you portuguese bread >: | ) .

(Debbiejo Lederer) #154

Oddly enough I went in and out of low carb and keto for a year or more but never committing all the way, at least one day a week i ate carbs and not the good ones but like the ihop ones, lol. I have tons of allergies and do have aches and pains off and on. I am now convinced to move to Carnivore as I only get hungry once a day for the most part and a good chunk of meat satisfies me. I just wish the whole world wasn’t 98% carbs, everywhere you go all the goodies abound. I am going to try adding hypnotism to my regime to help my mind. I have not lost weight yet but like I said I was never fully committed till a week ago. I do feel better on carnivore for the most part. I was reading about Kelly Hogan and she said that it can take up to 6 months for the body to heal what is wrong with it first on carnivore then you go down on weight, she actually gained 20 in the beginning !! Another lady said she did too then later started going down. One thing i know, it really helps the blood sugar !

(Susan) #155

I read all 152 posts on this thread and didn’t find the solution I used. I had been on keto 4 months before going home for Christmas and was PARANOID about having to go off keto. I’ve got a SWEET TOOTH. I prepared large quantities of fat bombs and put the whole recipe (not the individual pieces) into an old peanut butter jar, froze it and wrapped it up in a T-shirt in my luggage. I also cooked coconut flour cookies and bread muffins to take with me (I hate almond flour). I took most of my flavored stevias with me as well as lots of truvia packets. I took my homemade vinaigrette with me. I had no trouble in restaurants, though we choose steak and/or seafood restaurants because of me (no complaints from my family on that choice!!) On the way to my mom’s from the airport, I bought a rotisserie chicken, eggs, bacon, lettuce, HWC and my favorite cheese (Havarti). I went out to eat as little as possible and offered my food to any family that wanted to try it. On restaurant trips I took my own dressing and a small container of fat bomb. As others ate their pie and ice cream, I slipped the fat bombs out of my purse. The staff never said anything as I’d already said I was on a medical diet for my diabetes and they knew I had ordered the burger/steak/etc. without the fries. I didn’t make a fuss (other than no Thai food, my favorite type of restaurant of all time), and just did what I needed to do. Also, just bacon and eggs for restaurant breakfasts, even on Christmas day! Preparing ahead made my 2 weeks of Christmas with family remain keto and chill. KCKO

(Susan) #156

You did really well, Susan, awesome planning =).

(Nick) #157

I can really appreciate your post. Having achieved life changing weight, confidence and more importantly all the mental health benefits , My two weeks turned in to 18 months.
I’d mastered 7 day fasts, weight training, IF and all that goes along with the journey of keto. By June 18 Thanks to the 2KD
I’ve investigated and learnt more and more.
Yes I’ve failed to pursue the journey due to life changing events that have happened but unlike any other ‘fad diet’ I understand what this is and why it works and that is half the battle that will take any newbie months to learn. This is a journey.
In the 18 month sabbatical I have managed to balloon by 15 kilos to 94.5. Not massive by many standards but at 50 the gym machine says I’m 65. Wake up and smell the BPC I said to myself so now I’m back on the horse and focussed on one thing at a time.
I’ve rejoined the gym but I’m not pushing too hard until I’m fully keto adapted and im Not going to measure everything because i already know the macros from before. Mentally I’m ready and it’s been a breeze for 3 weeks so far. I IF ABOUT 5 days a week and my carbs come from. Avocados. My protein is possibly too high but I’m not beating myself up because I polished off a 24oz rump last night with two eggs and I may do the sane tonight … because I can !!! My partner had a small gammon and chips felt bloated and tired but I felt great and could have ate more ! I also ate her rind from the gammon ! I’m now feeling more alert. My sleep is terrible because I have two kids under 3 bit actually I’m coping better than my partner who loves sugar !
I stopped smoking 5 years ago and I that actually took me 4 years to stop associating alcohol with cigarettes so I guess this could take longer given my history of carbs. God I remember stuffing myself with chips crisp and toast as a kid so I hope I can get to my goal weight which is around 75kg subject to muscle.

(Susan) #158

I had fruitloops (90-100% sugar) every morning for breakfast and my dad (who didn’t pay much attention to us anyway) was a pediatrician. Never said anything about it. As I say, I came by my diabetes honestly. Sigh.

#162

I’ve read this whole thread a couple of times, it’s so helpful - thank you. After almost 4 months without a carb binge, but with some definite carb creep here and there… I had a real blowout yesterday. I bought and ate all my old binge foods until I was unpleasantly full: proper icecream, hot chips, potato crisps, a bowl of ravioli pasta, Reese’s PB cups and a glass of soft drink. I am trying to think through all the causes so that I don’t repeat them:

  • I was hungry and tired after a weekend away
  • I’d had a panic attack while away, on top of nearly constant low-level anxiety, and am childishly, reluctantly struggling with the idea that I’m probably going to have to give up or drastically reduce coffee (my most dearly beloved and one remaining vice) - a feeling of deprivation-in-advance which is quite the eating trigger
  • There was nothing in the fridge on arriving home
  • I had resisted a lot of things over the weekend, it had taken some effort; my willpower muscle was weak and finally, safe at home, I gave up and gave in
  • I didn’t pack, prepare or plan for things properly, either while away or arriving home, and was entirely dependent on my environment and other people for satisfying foods
  • I was unexpectedly staying in a bit of “food desert”, as it turns out, and a friend with very little food at home - after walking for half an hour in the pouring rain to find a cafe that might serve me some bacon and eggs, I ended up instead with a very unsatisfactory Atkins bar and dusty packet of mixed nuts from a pharmacy, and felt vaguely cheated for the remainder of the weekend
  • Probably, though I am loathe to admit it- carb creep over recent weeks? The flexing and relaxing of my personal boundaries to allow frequent berries, a bite of toast, a taste of real chocolate, a couple of fruity mocktails; all dismissed as completely harmless.

I can identify with @KetoKate ’s comments above - being pleasantly surprised yesterday by how undelicious the old carb foods are (chips in particular, of both kinds, resembling dry, salty cardboard; the icecream was not high-quality, and oily and nauseating in its sweetness), and not finishing every bite… and thus feeling a little complacent as a result. I’ll not be tempted by those things again, right…!?

I am sleepy and lethargic this morning. I am vacillating between “one binge doesn’t hurt at all”, and a sense that serious and drastic correction is needed. For me, personally, what that looks like is a proper grocery shopping and meal planning session. It would be all too easy at this time of the year to talk myself into (or simply, passively, think myself into…) taking an extended break from keto. For my mental health and my recovery from disordered eating, I really cannot afford to do that.

Thanks for listening. Good luck everyone.

(Laurie) #163

@Camellia I’m sorry to read about your binge! I understand about the emotional side and various pressures, that’s for sure.

On the practical side, in my travels I’ve relied on canned sardines (did you pass a dollar store or grocery store in the rain?), plain burger patties from fast food outlets, and – as you say – eggs in a restaurant.

I also know what it’s like to be trapped in a food desert. Better to be prepared, even if you have to live on canned salmon for a few days.

Sounds like you hit a rough patch there. But you learned a lot from your adventure, so it’s a good thing, right?

(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #164

You can also usually find pork rinds, pepperoni, or beef jerky in convenience stores, as well. Not necessarily the best ingredients (depending on the brand), but better to binge on them than on sweets and starchy snacks.

#165

Nowadays I make sure I have food on me on all time when I might need it. Even if I go away just for 6 hours but at the time when I normally have my meal(s). Fasting is always an option but not nice when I get hungry (still loads more comfortable than eating too little or too carby, I get super hungry then while my well-fasted hunger is soft and often non-existent. I can still be weak and dizzy just because I am not hungry… So I better than food).

It would be very hard for me not to eat off if I only can depend on convenience stores. I just can’t eat much processed stuff - at least not most of them (and I am not like some savages who can just buy raw meat and eat it ;)). I probably could do it with super fatty ones (dry sausage or smoked, very fatty pork) but getting 1600-2000 kcal from pork rinds or cheese, that’s not something I could do (it would cost a fortune anyway in the first case and I doubt either could satiate me). I think I would be better with a stick of butter and properly eat when I can, later…

It’s quite useful for me to know these and be prepared or have a list what to buy. When one is hungry, these decisions don’t work as well, at least for most of us, probably. I still couldn’t eat extremely off, I need my normal food first but if I have little chance to get it, things may get problematic. What I ate wouldn’t be as big a problem as what I didn’t but for many people eating off is very bad already.

So it’s good to be prepared, physically and having lists in mind as well, I think.
And if we can fast, that helps a lot, I have my limits, I usually need to eat every day and hunger may come any time during the afternoon. So I am prepared accordingly.

I understand many points… Being disciplined among tempting food for long, being unsatisfied, tired, hungry, already Christmas feeling here and there…
We can get better at things if time passes (sometimes not, sometimes it’s harder when the novelty wears off but we still can form new, better habits) but sometimes things just happen, lots of unfortunate ones at the same time. It’s life, I guess. It’s good to learn from it and try to do better but it’s very normal not to be perfect. We still should try our best IMO but if we do that most of the time and don’t give up, it sounds the right direction even if we do it worse than others. We only compete with ourselves.

Empty fridge, I can’t even imagine that (though I have 60 eggs in my cupboard, that would help me out for 1-2 days along with my other items. not ideal but not so bad) but I find it important to have food for months (not so much for keto but still, we wouldn’t starve). One should plan and avoid the dangerous empty fridge. Unless they have proper food elsewhere. A pantry full of canned meat or something.