To ask about your keto experiences?

[JalapenoDave]

Not an AIBU but usually guaranteed some pretty honest opinions on here!
Been doing keto diet for 2 weeks and I've only lost 3lbs so far. I am not eating any carbs, I'm being pretty on it I think.
Anyone else on here tried keto diet? AIBU to expect a massive weight loss in a couple of weeks?
If it makes any difference I am just under 5ft 7 and weight 12st 8lbs (after the 3lb loss). Overweight I know

When you say you're not eating any cards, what do you mean. It is almost impossible to not eat any carbs. Are you carefully tracking your carbs i.e cheese has carbs. To be in Ketosis they need to be under 20/25 mg per day. If you are carefully tracking everything you eat you may need to up your fat intake.

Also, have you checked your are in Ketosis I.e you will likely have had a migraine type headache followed by no hunger pangs and acetone smelling breath.

@KillingOksana1 thanks for your reply. By "no carbs" I mean I'm not eating bread, pasta, rice, potatoes (and other main sources of carbs). I've been keeping carb intake very very low and bulked up on the fats. Not eating any sugar, drinking loads of water. Trying to stick to it as best I can. But I can't help but think I am going wrong somewhere

I would assume that you are low carbi g rather than keto. For keto you need to be using a tracker to track all you macros not just eliminating the main sources of carbs.

Also, for keto you have to stick to it religiously for it to work.

I've downloaded a tracker now. Thank you for your response!

My default diet is keto. I use it primarily for seizure control but it also makes me feel great. You’d be surprised how many carbs are hidden in foods you won’t expect, so do track. Usually there are pretty obvious symptoms when I go back on keto if I’ve been off for whatever reason, such as lots of urination, lots of thirst, headaches etc. How are your electrolytes? If you aren’t supplementing and you’ve not had a headache, chances are very low that you’ve been in ketosis. My diet is mostly carnivore these days, which makes things easier. I usually lose 7lb or so he first week on keto because of the loss of water retention, then it goes to around 2lb per week (if I’m not eating to maintenance). It’s very effective for weight loss, particularly when combined with fasting, but you shouldn’t do the latter until you are fat adapted (unless you have a desire to make things hard on yourself).

Really, it sounds like you need to do a lot more research.

@Writersblock2 I've been doing research into it and so far I've been eating keto-friendly meals. But yes I must be going wrong somewhere; I was under the impression that weight drops off but sadly it isnt at the moment. I've downloaded a tracker app and will up my research

I've done 8 weeks keto now. 5'7 started at 81kg First 4 weeks were slow. Have now lost 6kg. had hoped for a little more but still going. Don't exercise much. Tend to do two meals. Not hungry at all.bouggt some menu plans. Don't measure foods any more but religiously did at start. Now know what to eat & how much.

Just looked back at my own progress on low carb (~50g per day). Week 1, I lost 4kg, and had lost 6kg in total by the end of week 2. Most of that will have been water loss. I had 'keto flu' for about four days.

What have you been eating? There's a lot of carbs where you wouldn't expect them. Have you got into ketosis? Dipping your urine with a multistick will be able to tell you.

Each person can be different. If you have a metabolic disorder or something else going in then you may respond differently. Sometimes it takes people a few weeks to get going. If your primary goal is weight loss how do you plan on eating once the weight comes off? Like with any other ‘diet’, when you stop, if you go back to a normal diet then it will pile back on.

Two weeks is also a very short period of time to expect significant change.

I usually get a big loss of 7/8lb in the first week (mostly water) and then 2lb weekly thereafter even with my nightly glass of wine. It’s very effective when done right! I’d get some urine sticks to check your actually in ketosis and get an app like carb manager to make sure you’re not having too much protein.

Typical foods I've been eating are:

Red meat
Chicken
Butter/oil
Avocado
Spinach, broccoli, asparagus, courgette
Cheese
Eggs
4 squares of 75% dark chocolate or strawberries, raspberries, blueberries with squirty cream (as a snack/dessert)
Black coffee

Once the weight has (hopefully) come off I plan to stick with a low carb diet. I feel less bloated which is good I suppose.

I don't think I have entered the ketosis state - i felt really rough the other morning (headache, tired, drained) but feel fine again now. Not sure where I.am going wrong. I've downloaded a tracking app so will start logging my food on there.

Any suggestions are appreciated!

You say you are eating keto meals but unless you know how many grams of carbs you are eating per day you can't know you aren't exceeding 20-25g. My keto carb split could look like this:
Day 1 - 10g breakfast, 5g lunch, 5g dinner
Day 2 - 5g breakfast, 10g lunch, 5g dinner
Day 3 - 5g breakfast, 5g lunch, 10g dinner

All would be classed as keto meals but the higher carb meals are balanced by lower carb throughout the day. But, if in one day I had the day 1 breakfast, day 2 lunch and day 3 dinner I would have eating 30g or carbs and wouldn't be in Ketosis.

I would really recommend using my fitness pal app .. you can track your calories and carb intake and keep a record of everything. You can even barcode scan on it.

Usually once you hit ketosis, you will get 'keto flu' i would recommend having electrolytes to ease off the effects.

I'm currently doing it again after losing 15kg over a 3 month period. I always keep my limit at 20g in a day.

For it to really work you should also do a calorie deficit but it won't be a massive one.

I use a website to work out my macros

www.ruled.me/keto-calculator/

I hope this helps.

Remember everyone responds differently to keto.

@Red2017 thanks for the advice - I've downloaded Nutracheck if that's any good?

I’ve been low carbing for 2 months now and lost nothing :( really disappointed as when I low carbed in my 20s I lost a lot of weight. There’s a low carb board on mumsnet which you could check out.

When you are starting off on Keto you need to be really strict about your macros; you can find these out online or via an app such as MyFitnessPal. It's not just about keeping carbs below 20mg- you need to ensure you are having enough fat and protein so that the body starts to burn your fat. Have you tested your urine to prove that you are in ketosis? DH and I have been on Veggie Keto since the end of January. We have both lost well over a stone and maintained our current weight due to a whole lifestyle change. It's tedious at first, weighing, measuring and recording everything, but once you know what you're doing it's easy. Have to go now, as dinner is served- paneer rogan josh with cauliflower spiced rice.

You need to join the Low Carb Bootcamp for advice and support, there's one going on right now that only started yesterday. I did it about 18 months ago and went from 12st 10lb to 10st. I'm the same height as you.

@GreeboIsMySpiritAnimal that is an amazing loss- well done! I have downloaded an app so going to try and track my macros etc. And thank you for pointing me in the direction of the low carb boot camp; will check this out now.

It’s quite normal to have a few steady weeks, then it starts to drop off.
Unfortunately that coincides with me falling off the wagon and having to start all over again!

Squirty cream has a lot of sugar in it compared with double cream. I’d imagine that plus the chocolate is probably pushing you out of ketosis. You have to be soooo strict when you first start. I’ve been keto for over 3 years; I actually do vegetarian keto now! I tracked for the first six months. You can often relax a bit once you get a few months in.

I used carb manager which set me a target of 20 net carbs per day. I lost over 70lbs and have kept it off.

You need to weigh your food and stay within the calorie limit it gives you. You also have to drink plenty.

I do lowish carb now to maintain. I don't think it's the right diet for everyone, but I feel so much better on Keto than not.

following this with interest too OP.. I need to do something ..🌺

@BlueThistles

following this with interest too OP.. I need to do something ..🌺

Let me know how you get on!

@Pangur2 good point regarding the squirty cream. I'll lay off that and just get double cream. Thank you.