Anyone follow keto? I have questions if you have a second.

[ThewrathofBethDutton]

I don’t want this to be my next bloody disaster diet because I’ve done them all. Every single one.
Im still fat, perimenopause has intensified weight gain and it is almost impossible to shift an ounce.

But I read of the huge health benefits and it intrigued me.

Middle age of course brings health awareness and prevention of chronic, reversible disease to the forefront so I’m keen to do something.

I get along with intermittent fasting, it does absolutely nothing for weight loss but the insulin stabilisation is of benefit so I’m carrying that on.

I don’t eat red meat. So that in mind, can you hit me with your go to meals, lunches, dinners and in between snacks. (No avocados either)

How long did it take you to get into the groove?

Anything to think about? (Constipation etc??)

Eating out, rules of thumb? Everything is bread, pasta, rice, potatoes.. do you find it tricky?

How do you feel on keto? Has it helped sleep? mood? Exercise tolerance ?

Any top tips?

Thanks x

I did it and I found myself craving salads and crunchy fruit. Crunchy anything really, and any fruit!. Snacks are difficult, eating out is difficult, eating at friends/family's houses even worse! It didn't help that I don't like the veg that is permitted so I went eating that. I was very strict and lost a LOT of weight, but put most of it back on when I stopped... it's good in that you don't feel as hungry, but as you can eat as much as you like of the permitted foods it doesn't really train you to eat less - if that helps.

Thank you.

Had a working lunch with colleagues yesterday and there was zero keto other than a lettuce leaf with a slice of tomato on top of it.

I was starving as I had been fasting so ordered a bloody cheese sandwich!

Have to accept that eating out will be challenging.

I worry about how to vary the choices, it’s very restrictive so boredom will very quickly settle in.

I’ll give it a go for a couple of weeks.

Have you looked at the Low Carb Bootcamp threads on here? There's loads of information, recipes and ideas from people who have been doing it for years. Or google Freshwell for an NHS recommended plan and app.

I've done it on and off for many years and always feel great when on it but it's hard to sustain over more than a few months. A lot of people do stay on it for life and feel great though.

The main thing about it is that you have to be very prepared. For example, in the working lunch scenario above, I would have brought my own food, something like low carb crackers with peanut butter, a low carb cheese muffin etc.

I do feel very well on keto. Less bloating, more energy, much better sleep. There's lots of delicious food you can eat, including butter and cream. As pp said, look at LC Boot camp threads, there's a wealth of knowledge there, and tons of recipes!

I've read back my original post and it does sound negative! It's not all bad - you just have to think ahead. I used to buy those packs of mini cheeses and always carried one or two of those and some nuts in my bag.
You can adapt recipes so they are keto - when I was making lasagne for the family I would substitute marrow for pasta in mine. I would serve curries and casseroles with broccoli for me rather than rice. I used almond flour to thicken things. I enjoyed a gruyere omelette for breakfast and a HUGE steak for my evening meal, with some mushrooms usually. But going out to eat was a trial as there is only so much ham and eggs without the chips you can eat and you end up spending a lot just to get enough to eat once you remove the carbs from your plate.

I did keto for a good 6-8 months then low carb for around a year. (About 4 years ago now)
I stuck to 20g carbs a day when on keto and the weight fell off. I used the free app carb manager to track. I stopped as my cholesterol shot up.

Eating out can definitely be challenging. I used to rely on bunless burgers with salad tbh. Sometimes fish. At home I found it quite easy as like cooking and made a lot of keto alternatives including baking.
Sleep - I actually got less sleep but felt good. Very alert and switched on mentally though sometimes felt quite physically tired. Constipation was an issue as carbs so low so I used to take psyllium husk capsules which really worked.
I wasn’t exercising at the time (asides walking) but my husband used to go to the gym and I know he felt he just didn’t have the energy or stamina to sustain his workouts.
One unexpected benefit was my psoriasis that I had for 30+years cleared up.
Food wise I used to have things like omelette for breakfast. Lunches were almost always salads of some kind and dinners would be things like curry, bolognese etc with cauli rice or courgette noodles. Cauliflower featured heavily if I remember rightly!
I used diet doctor a lot in the beginning for recipe ideas.
I now eat a high carb diet but have kept the weight off.

@Girlintheframe
Really interested that your psoriasis cleared up on keto .
Do mind if I ask please were you virtually gluten free ?
I’m desperate to do something about my flare ups .

TIA

I didn’t find eating out difficult. I obviously don’t know what was on the menu but usually there is steak, a cooked breakfast, wings, halloumi fries, burgers, chicken etc.

You can't eat any wheat, oats etc on keto so it is totally gluten free. You could certainly try it to see if it helps you?

Yes gluten free. Quite interesting though is that I now eat high carb so much more gluten and although some psoriasis has returned it has never returned to extent I had it before. I now just have small patches on elbows and knees.