Why I’m Quitting Keto - A Post For Myself

(Teri) #1

This isn’t going to be a likable post, but it’s going to be honest.

I began keto 3 months ago (and did well, staying in ketosis for the entire 3 months), and I headed in with the intention of doing it long term, for a couple of reasons. The first being it was recommended to me by my neurologist to control my epilepsy, the second being that it would be a diet which would help me with my eating disorder/OCD. It did neither.

My seizures didn’t get better, they didn’t get worse, they stayed the same. Which is often the case with keto, as it doesn’t work for all epileptics. When it came to the eating disorder however, I found that not only did a more controlled, restrictive diet make my compulsions worse, but I just added new ones. Like keeping a food diary and counting micro nutrients, which I had never done before.

And to top it off, I didn’t gain weight once I switched to keto. Which I suppose is kinda the point of this WOE, but I assumed since I upped my calorie intake that I would… but no. I increased muscle mass, but I wouldn’t have needed a complete diet makeover to do that. So what I was left with was a diet that cut out enjoyable foods, left me constantly monitoring my food intake, and got no results that I was seeking.

I’m not saying keto can’t work to lose weight, because I know it can, or to help with medical issues, again, because it can… but I do believe that for some there are ways to do these without restricting yourself. Without having to find food hacks for the foods you once loved. Without those God awful shirataki noodles.

Maybe I’m lucky. Maybe I can eat whatever and not gain weight. I don’t know. I lived on a high sugar diet and carbs before doing keto, my health was great. I lived on fat during keto, again - my health was great. My weight never changed. Maybe this is just the weight I am supposed to be. But I’m not willing to see a pizza and long for a slice only to stop myself because God forbid I get out of ketosis. Life is short and honestly, I want both bacon and pizza, and I’m not settling for just one or the other.

I know how this sounds. And how it probably makes others feel who are struggling to lose weight, and make it through every day with this diet. But I also don’t think life should be a struggle. If you don’t love yourself for who you are now, 10lbs, 20lbs, even 100lbs of weight loss isn’t going to change that. And enjoying your life and experiences are part of what makes you love yourself and others. And once I came to the conclusion that this diet was not something I loved, or something that made me happy, I realized that I was honestly wasting my days, which we are given so few of, on something that was doing nothing but putting boundaries up when I once felt free.

(Janelle) #2

I wish you luck! 3 months in, I’m a “slow loser” without all of those NSVs people rave about. If it wasn’t for the weight loss (even slow), I might be where you are.

I have a friend who is a Yale researcher who is an amazing mom and friend and controls her grand mal seizures with medicine. It works for her.

Peace to you…

(Cindy) #3

While others might not like your post, I think it’s wonderful! People need to know the good and bad of a diet change. When I first got my lapband, no one would talk about the negatives…as if all negatives were forgiven because it helped with weight loss, when that’s just not true. At the time, the Lapband was the safest WLS available, but I wish I knew then what I know now.

As you’ve said, people should be enjoying what they do. If they miss certain foods too much, then other benefits are overshadowed. Or if the gains they’re hoping for are not there, then it’s maybe not worth it.

It sounds like you have a good understanding of your goals in life, and keto isn’t fitting into those goals. So good for you to recognize that and make changes again! It’s all about “n=1.”

(Scott) #4

There is no shame in diving into keto to see if it fits and deciding it doesn’t. We are all along for this ride until we get off the train. Me, I am in a happy place with this WOE now but only time can tell where it leads.

#5

Yeah, maybe. It took me two years to up my set point by 1 1/2 kg - long time but it can be done.

But if keto is not for you then it’s not for you. Good luck.

(squirrel-kissing paper tamer) #6

It’s good to know yourself and you gave it three months which is long enough to know if you can live with it. I’ll admit, I’m a bit surprised. You sounded so enthusiastic about it not too long ago. I understand living a life you love and for many (for me) this woe has enhanced my life, not been a burden. We’re all different with our own challenges and I get what you are saying about logging. Maybe it was a good stepping stone for you in the recovery process. All the best to you!

(Jennibc) #7

Interesting. My son’s OCD disappeared when we took him off grain and after we removed sugar his ADD resolved itself. While I don’t worry about being in ketosis, I usually am and don’t have to obsess over it. But yes, every BODY is different and if you found no benefit then that’s your experience. BUT I will say being 100 pounds lighter has turned out much more rewarding than eating pizza. That’s the one thing about your post that made me bristle a bit. Until you have walked around this planet being obese, and faced the discrimination that we have, you will never be able to understand what that’s like. I have spent my adult life as a slim person, a height weight proportionate person, and overweight person and an obese person. It’s much easier to find employment if you are HWP than overweight and once you hit morbidly obese, forget it. People come up with all sorts narratives for who you are before you have even opened your mouth. They assume you are lazy or you have no self control or you have emotional eating issues.

I gained 120 pounds going on SSRI’s in the mid 90s. It was the biggest mistake of my life to take that medication and stay on it for a decade. Thank goodness I saw the light and thank goodness I found this way of eating so I could get back to the old me. It sure took a long time, but it’s good to be back!

#8

It will be interesting to hear how you feel physically and mentally after going back to your old eating habits in a month or two. You might find that the benefits of keto were subtle, gradual improvements which you’ve since become blasé about. You might end up feeling worse off keto.

But I wish you all the best, would be nice to hear from you in a few months with an update how you feel post-keto.

(Carl Keller) #9

God bless you teri. I wish you nothing but the best.

I was also one of the lucky ones for most of life. It wasn’t until recently that that carbs and sugar started undoing my good health. Now when I glance back, after all the research I’ve done, it makes me angry that so many trusted medical organizations and doctors lied to me (and countless others) about what a healthy diet is. This anger motivates me to not want ice cream or pizza. I don’t pine for a bite when I see someone else eating those things. I honestly feel sorrow for them. That’s not to say I expect you to feel the same way. I just wanted to say, even if we are lucky for however many years, we still need to understand that most of what’s out there for us to eat is a slow poison for way too many. So please let moderation be your guide and don’t end up like me. :wink:

Best wishes to you.

#10

This, x1000. I’ve fortunately not been “off keto” or gone through any side effects of excess carb consumption, but I did get into a mental pattern of forgetting how much I appreciated keto. It’s hard to explain but essentially when I was starting out, the benefits, NSVs etc were much more obvious and I could feel a lift in energy, a drop in hunger, and so on. Fast forward many months and it was easy to slip into forgetting that this was my new powerful baseline and I’d get too focused on what was happening on the scale and to body measurements.

I’m not sure what the moment of realisation was but I quickly came to understand that so many of the things I was now taking for granted (running up stairs, getting through days solidly with little sleep, being able to skip meals when appropriate without feeling irritable) were all attributable to my way of eating and not to be forgotten.

What affects ketone blood levels?
(Sg) #11

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(Running from stupidity) #12

You need to quit with the melodrama. It’s just tiring, all of the victim complexes people are desperate to achieve.

I’m a very beginner on keto myself, actually only had been on keto for 10 days, or so…don’t know. But it’s been kind of enough time to start realizing things…What I’ve been starting to notice is that it is a VERY restrictive diet, why? well, you need to keep reading and analyzing food’s nutrition value and INGREDIENTS almost with a

Ah, that’s not what “restrictive” means in any way. A cursory glance around this site will show how ridiculous that claim is.

No, that’s not how it works. You need to read more about it, it seems.

(Laurie) #13

I’ve always been interested in food, what’s in food, the health effects of various food components, etc. I’ve always checked out the ingredients in everything I buy (although that hasn’t stopped me from eating poorly), and I’ve read nutrition labels ever since they started having them. I forget that some people aren’t used to analyzing food or don’t like doing it!

(John) #14

I don’t much worry about labels because most of the food I eat doesn’t come with them. I’ve lost over 40 pounds in a little over 3 months, feel great, and am eating a wider variety of much healthier foods than I have in years. It’s working very well for me.

Also - no real need for a major dramatic exit. This isn’t a club where you paid dues and people will wonder where you went. You can just stop posting and quietly change your eating choices at any time without making a big announcement.

#15

Hey bud, glad you are working on what is best for you. Have a brother in law with epilepsy and Keto was the savior for him, but I think it took longer than 3 months. Think took him about 6 months to see results in that stage. Either way, good for you and glad you know what works for you. Keto has been great for me so far, but I understand that it is not for everyone. Best of luck!!

(Sg) #16

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#17

Is that what you’re after? Seems an odd way to go about it.

(Sg) #18

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(Running from stupidity) #19

What a drama queen. Why would I hate you or love you? You’ve got tickets on yourself.

Spotlight? Just bizarre.

(Hyperbole- best thing in the universe!) #20

No. Restrictive means limited. Which keto is… but not very. We still get a wide variety to choose from. What you described was “being informed”, reading labels is not the definition of restrictive.