Keto II (1 Viewer)

[Anarchy99]

Hitting the end of my first month on keto. Lost about 25 pounds so far. While that certainly is a good thing, all it really means is I had plenty to lose to start with. My wife has been very thorough with sticking to the program . . . weighing out her portions, logging every carb, even tracking her caloric intake. She's been extra strict on what she eats and has only lost 5 pounds so far (but admittedly has way less weight to lose than I do). After how long and/or after how many pounds do things get significantly harder to keep losing weight? For what it's worth, I still haven't cheated and have been under 20 carbs each day.

The one area I am probably lacking is eating enough fats. I generally don't care for fatty foots. I like lean meats and cuts of chicken. I can't stand mayo. I've been cooking in butter or olive oil, but in terms of fatty foods I generally only really have avocados and macadamia nuts. I eat a fair amount of eggs, cheese, wild salmon, tuna, and dark chocolate. I ran the numbers with my current weight in a calculator, and my macros say I should have an intake of 130 g of both fats and protein to have a 30% deficit at 1762 calories a day. I haven't been paying attention to calories. Once the easy weight falls off, at some point do you really have to worry about calorie counting?

I'm still having issues with fatigue and stamina when getting some exercise. Tried to cut my lawn the other day and had to quit halfway through. The weather has been oppressively hot and humid, but it took me a good 90 minutes to recover to be able to do anything else. Walks or moderate hikes are fine, but hitting the gym and lifting any amount of weight or going for steady aerobic exercise for 15-20 minutes at a time still saps all my energy. Does your body at some point get used to the ketosis and the body gets more used to exercise without many carbs to burn?

 

[culdeus]

My general update. I think I've basically figured out I have a medium-ish issue with lactose intolerance.  Some of this may have been self inflicted with lots of whey shakes (daily to 2x daily) as a meal sub.  

Taking lactaid with normal meals that have dairy seems to work ok for me, and when I skip it causes problems

I am trying to work with a Casein/Isolate blend which has a fraction of the lactose of whey.  It's going sort of ok. 

I cut down from 183 to 165 or so and now working my way back up doing a 4 day U/L split with a conditioning day in the mix.  Trying to get motivation to have a flexibility day in the mix, but can't find the time just yet.

Still staying with the 5/2 booze plan.  I probably could just cut it out entirely at this point and not look back.

Keto wise I'm probably way out of keto at this point on a semi leanbulk.  Won't really cut carbs back in any meaningful form probably till Feb '19.    

 

[SFBayDuck]

My general update. I think I've basically figured out I have a medium-ish issue with lactose intolerance.  Some of this may have been self inflicted with lots of whey shakes (daily to 2x daily) as a meal sub.  

Taking lactaid with normal meals that have dairy seems to work ok for me, and when I skip it causes problems

I am trying to work with a Casein/Isolate blend which has a fraction of the lactose of whey.  It's going sort of ok. 

I cut down from 183 to 165 or so and now working my way back up doing a 4 day U/L split with a conditioning day in the mix.  Trying to get motivation to have a flexibility day in the mix, but can't find the time just yet.

Still staying with the 5/2 booze plan.  I probably could just cut it out entirely at this point and not look back.

Keto wise I'm probably way out of keto at this point on a semi leanbulk.  Won't really cut carbs back in any meaningful form probably till Feb '19.    

Some people with milk issues do fine on goats milk due to it's superior digestibility.  I know they make protein powders based on goats milk, might be something worth trying.

 

[Tecumseh]

Well, it took basically 6 months to the day, but I broke my first goal of 212.5 a few days ago. Now sitting at 211.4. That's about 39lbs lost, for those scoring at home.

ETA- at this point I’m a little torn on what my ultimate goal is. On the one hand, I’d like to get my weight down in the 185-190 range, which was my goal weight when I started. On the other hand, I’m starting to like the idea of  focusing more on building muscle and getting my bf% down in the 12-15% range. I feel like that is a non-Keto road tho. I also don’t know how realistic that is at my age (45), and history, considering that I have always been either soft or full blown fat.

My 3rd option is to just keep doing what i’m doing for another 6 months and see where I’m at. 

 

[AAABatteries]

 After how long and/or after how many pounds do things get significantly harder to keep losing weight?

I’ve done this a couple of times now and just starting a 3rd time  

Anyway, from my experience I lost the first 12-15 pretty fast and then leveled off and consistently lost 2-3 pounds a week until I got to my goal weight.  First time I did it I would have some cheats but exercised a lot.  For the weight loss contest last year I was militant and almost never cheated.

Thankfully this time I don’t have as much to lose - I’m still figuring out how to go to 40-60 g of carbs for maintenance and not 150-200. 

 

[culdeus]

I've taken more interest in Layne Norton lately.  He did a pretty good writeup of the latest research on mortality and macro breakdowns.

https://www.biolayne.com/articles/nutrition/is-saturated-fat-worse-for-you-than-sugar/?utm_source=Downloaded+PHAT&utm_campaign=61d7392299-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_08_14_07_12&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_e3334ffb1d-61d7392299-207996237&mc_cid=61d7392299&mc_eid=c4b9cda3f5

His premise is based around the fact that if you remove something, you replace it at least on a % level with something else. And if there are any priorities to this.   The conclusions are not really all that earth shaking but there is some meat (so to speak) in the section about removing SFA for complex carbs vs. simple carbs.  

I think it makes somewhat more muddy about just taking carbs out and replace with SFA.  But tbh I mean I think all of us knew in some way this was a bit shaky.

 

[BigJohn]

Ok. Jumped in last Sunday. Started at 386.6. This morning, I’m 366. Now I realize it’s all water weight. But it does feel good. Now, I’m the typical beginner Keto-er, where I’m not shy when it comes to meat. Cheese, salads with full fat dressings. I’ve been very meticulously tracking on MFP, and most days I’m WAY under my calorie target. I also need to start working on some fat bomb recipes to hit the 75% fat target. I feel like I’m actually in the beginning stages of the Keto flu. Since yesterday, just feeling crummy. I’m already having the desire to cut back on my meat intake(something I thought I’d NEVER say).  I’m a normal, every day guy with #### to do, places to be. I need some simple easy to prepare meals to eat. I know it’s going to be a long road, and I really don’t want to burn myself out. 

 

[Tecumseh]

Easiest meal that I throw together for work is precooked frozen grilled chicken strips from the grocery store, with some blue cheese crumbles and hot/wing sauce on the side. Put that with some salad greens, and you've got a meal.

I also do frozen meatballs, sliders, kielbasa- basically anything thing that's premade and low carb. I'm sure alot of it is crap, and filled with nitrates, but my focus is on low carbs for quick meals. I eat much more healthy fare when I have time to cook at home, or when the wife cooks.

 

[belljr]

Starting to sound like Otis here.   But went on vacation and stopped caring the last 3 weeks.

I will lose this last 19 pounds by 11/1  DAMN IT

 

[Bull Dozier]

Starting to sound like Otis here.   But went on vacation and stopped caring the last 3 weeks.

I will lose this last 19 pounds by 11/1  DAMN IT

I'll out Otis you; after doing the on again off again dance, I'm officially off keto for the time being. Main reason is that it is just too hard when the kids eating one way, my wife eating another way, and me a third, just too hard and too much temptation in the house. 

I'm doing what my wife is doing (essentially portion control) which takes more willpower, but makes meal planning easier. 

The increase in carbs made a huge difference in my workout routines.  Doing my wife's Beachbody program, I immediately upped the weights I was able to work. Haven't lost much since I switched, but clothes are getting differently. 

This is not to say I've been seated and I'm anti keto. I still like to eat that way if I could but it just didn't work for me anymore. Good luck to those continuing the journey!

 

[Otis]

Proud to see so many of you Otising up the joint. 

My wife convinced me that regardless of the weight loss (which is indisputable, it has worked for me in the past), this is not the healthiest way to live, and it's also very difficult to sustain.  She has been suggesting what so many others have, which is eat healthy, don't eat junk food, and portion control.  Basically, be a reasonable human being and mindful of what you eat, and get into good habits that you can sustain.

First order of business is a short term alcohol weaning -- I'm convinced that's 75% of my problem.  We drink way too much, it's not healthy in so many different ways, and we're consuming thousands of extra calories each week in just alcohol (and that's not even counting all of the bad decisions that follow in terms of junk food usually).  That needs to stop.  And when it does, as in the past for me, I suspect I'll shed 10 lbs nearly instantly, and be then just 10lbs within my goal weight.  We'll see.

Still, GL to the Keto dudes.  This crap works. 

 

[pack100]

Ok. Jumped in last Sunday. Started at 386.6. This morning, I’m 366. Now I realize it’s all water weight. But it does feel good. Now, I’m the typical beginner Keto-er, where I’m not shy when it comes to meat. Cheese, salads with full fat dressings. I’ve been very meticulously tracking on MFP, and most days I’m WAY under my calorie target. I also need to start working on some fat bomb recipes to hit the 75% fat target. I feel like I’m actually in the beginning stages of the Keto flu. Since yesterday, just feeling crummy. I’m already having the desire to cut back on my meat intake(something I thought I’d NEVER say).  I’m a normal, every day guy with #### to do, places to be. I need some simple easy to prepare meals to eat. I know it’s going to be a long road, and I really don’t want to burn myself out. 

Screw the fat bombs. At 366 it appears there is enough fat in your system to keep you running. Stick to under 20 carbs, get enough protein to keep your muscle base and eat fat until full. No need hit the 75 percent everyday. I am not a pro, Been keto/lowcarb for one year in September. Welcome aboard. Stay consistent and the weight will melt off. 

I am on MFP     Pack100 if you are looking for a friend. 

Good luck John

 

[The Gator]

My wife convinced me that regardless of the weight loss (which is indisputable, it has worked for me in the past), this is not the healthiest way to live

Referring to keto? 

 

[pack100]

Proud to see so many of you Otising up the joint. 

My wife convinced me that regardless of the weight loss (which is indisputable, it has worked for me in the past), this is not the healthiest way to live, and it's also very difficult to sustain.  She has been suggesting what so many others have, which is eat healthy, don't eat junk food, and portion control.  Basically, be a reasonable human being and mindful of what you eat, and get into good habits that you can sustain.

First order of business is a short term alcohol weaning -- I'm convinced that's 75% of my problem.  We drink way too much, it's not healthy in so many different ways, and we're consuming thousands of extra calories each week in just alcohol (and that's not even counting all of the bad decisions that follow in terms of junk food usually).  That needs to stop.  And when it does, as in the past for me, I suspect I'll shed 10 lbs nearly instantly, and be then just 10lbs within my goal weight.  We'll see.

Still, GL to the Keto dudes.  This crap works. 

I respectfully disagree, your wife is wrong. 

This is not the healthiest way to live = Why not? What makes it unhealthy? I can list many healthy "Side effects" 

and it's also very difficult to sustain.  = One year and counting, No cravings. EZ PEAZY. I just need to Basically, be a reasonable human being and mindful of what you eat, and get into good habits that you can sustain

She has been suggesting what so many others have, which is eat healthy, don't eat junk food    = (Umm Junk food is mainly CARBS),      

and portion control.  Basically, be a reasonable human being and mindful of what you eat, and get into good habits that you can sustain. =  I tried this for 46 years. I am a yo yo . Does not work for many people. Look around. 

 

[AAABatteries]

My wife convinced me that regardless of the weight loss (which is indisputable, it has worked for me in the past), this is not the healthiest way to live, and it's also very difficult to sustain.

I kind of agree with the 2nd part because it’s not how many people eat so it’s tough.  I don’t really agree with the first part - you can eat “healthy” Keto, nobody says you have to eat cheeseburgers sans buns.

 

[Galileo]

 Keto is low carb, but low carb is not  Keto.  There is a definite distinction that can easily be lost as is evidenced by some of the discussion here.

 

[culdeus]

Going 5/2 on booze for me has been nbd at all.  Helping sleep and recovery at the gym.  I'm working out mornings now so that helps.

 

[Otis]

 Keto is low carb, but low carb is not  Keto.  There is a definite distinction that can easily be lost as is evidenced by some of the discussion here.

Yeah, my wife just thought I was unnnecessarily avoiding some good, healthy, hearty foods while being on keto, and replacing them with too much red meat and dairy, both of which are harsh on the digestive system.  She's probably right.  Hell, I believe that probably vegetarian or vegan is probably the healthiest diet of all.  I just hate vegetables...

 

[eoMMan]

I respectfully disagree, your wife is wrong. 

This is not the healthiest way to live = Why not? What makes it unhealthy? I can list many healthy "Side effects" 

and it's also very difficult to sustain.  = One year and counting, No cravings. EZ PEAZY. I just need to Basically, be a reasonable human being and mindful of what you eat, and get into good habits that you can sustain

She has been suggesting what so many others have, which is eat healthy, don't eat junk food    = (Umm Junk food is mainly CARBS),      

and portion control.  Basically, be a reasonable human being and mindful of what you eat, and get into good habits that you can sustain. =  I tried this for 46 years. I am a yo yo . Does not work for many people. Look around. 

The extremes (super low carb and super high carb) are bad according to this:

https://www.cnn.com/2018/08/17/health/low-carb-high-carbohydrate-diet-risk-of-death-intl/index.html

 

[AAABatteries]

Yeah, my wife just thought I was unnnecessarily avoiding some good, healthy, hearty foods while being on keto, and replacing them with too much red meat and dairy, both of which are harsh on the digestive system.  She's probably right.  Hell, I believe that probably vegetarian or vegan is probably the healthiest diet of all.  I just hate vegetables...

I don't believe this but if you are eating nothing but big steaks I could see why she might think that.  I think health and someones diet is extremely complex and there's no one correct answer for a group of people.  What I do know is the way you seem to have done Keto in the past isn't a good way to judge whether it's healthy or not. 

 

[AAABatteries]

The extremes (super low carb and super high carb) are bad according to this:

https://www.cnn.com/2018/08/17/health/low-carb-high-carbohydrate-diet-risk-of-death-intl/index.html

My wife sent that to me.  My take has always been to use Keto strictly to lose or regulate and then gradually increase carbs to a maintenance level once you reach a goal weight.  I think what most people struggle with that do Keto is going from very low to moderate carbs.  They start introducing bad carbs when they should probably introduce more ok carbs (like maybe a sweet potatoes, rice, beans, some veggies, etc.).  I think the people saying it's not healthy to eat steak, egg and ranch dressing all the time are probably correct.  Just make better choices with the carbs you do eat.

 

[pack100]

The extremes (super low carb and super high carb) are bad according to this:

https://www.cnn.com/2018/08/17/health/low-carb-high-carbohydrate-diet-risk-of-death-intl/index.html

Yup i am going to die. High carb was killing me, Low carb is going to end me too. If I do moderate carbs.....Nope that would guarantee high carb for me as i eat a lot of carbs I eat all the carbs. I have many issues. Pick your poison I guess. Thanks for the article.

 

[BigJohn]

The extremes (super low carb and super high carb) are bad according to this:

https://www.cnn.com/2018/08/17/health/low-carb-high-carbohydrate-diet-risk-of-death-intl/index.html

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-livin-la-vida-low-carb-show-with-jimmy-moore/id324601605?mt=2&i=1000418304546

 

[culdeus]

My wife sent that to me.  My take has always been to use Keto strictly to lose or regulate and then gradually increase carbs to a maintenance level once you reach a goal weight.  I think what most people struggle with that do Keto is going from very low to moderate carbs.  They start introducing bad carbs when they should probably introduce more ok carbs (like maybe a sweet potatoes, rice, beans, some veggies, etc.).  I think the people saying it's not healthy to eat steak, egg and ranch dressing all the time are probably correct.  Just make better choices with the carbs you do eat.

I'm just not sure that's the right interpretation of the current meta on this topic.  

There appears to be a growing trendy consensus to isolate SFA (Saturated Fatty Acids) as a core keto component versus a limited SFA diet (Think avacado, fish).  The results so far are showing LCHF diets may be sub-optimal if your HF component is mostly SFA.  

Furthermore when you compare SFA vs. starch and grains, SFA loses again even if the carbs kick you out of ketosis.

Prior studies did an exceptionally poor job of highlighting the risk of SFA, this was due to any number of confounding factors like smoking, alcohol, etc. and they did a poor job of isolating SFA versus ALL fats.  And long term studies are really unreliable on this topic.  So take all of this with several grains of salt and all that.

Right now if I had to say where I stand on the topic is that I am going to try to avoid dirty fat when possible if a clean carb source is available.  I think deep down we all know that makes the most sense.  If you can end around your digestive system burning the SFA, they still difficult for your body to deal with.  And that's trouble imo.

 

[BigJohn]

Alright. Bought some Keto urine strips. I realize that blood is more accurate, but I was curious. I’m reading 4.0+ by the strips. I’m reading that .5-1.5 is optimal. Is there any concern with being that high?

 

[Tecumseh]

Well, it took basically 6 months to the day, but I broke my first goal of 212.5 a few days ago. Now sitting at 211.4. That's about 39lbs lost, for those scoring at home.

ETA- at this point I’m a little torn on what my ultimate goal is. On the one hand, I’d like to get my weight down in the 185-190 range, which was my goal weight when I started. On the other hand, I’m starting to like the idea of  focusing more on building muscle and getting my bf% down in the 12-15% range. I feel like that is a non-Keto road tho. I also don’t know how realistic that is at my age (45), and history, considering that I have always been either soft or full blown fat.

My 3rd option is to just keep doing what i’m doing for another 6 months and see where I’m at. 

204.4 today. Don't know why I dropped so fast, but 7lbs in two weeks is super fast for me. My suspicion is that I've only been able to make it to the gym once in that time period because of my work schedule, and prepping for my swim event in September. My guess is that the lack of weight work is leading to expelling more water, and possibly a small amount if muscle wasting.

Still haven't decided what my ultimate goal is. I think what I'll do is try to get into the 190-195 lb range, and then focus on adding the muscle. Honestly, I just want to see my abs/six pack. I may end up signing up with a trainer, make that happen, take some pics to prove I did it, then go maintenance mode.

 

[pack100]

Alright. Bought some Keto urine strips. I realize that blood is more accurate, but I was curious. I’m reading 4.0+ by the strips. I’m reading that .5-1.5 is optimal. Is there any concern with being that high?

Nope those are excess ketones that are  pissed out and exhaled out. Do not live by the purple stick. Eventually your body is  gonna figure out how many ketones it needs and not waste so much. thus less of a reading on the old piss stick.  

 

[Tom Skerritt]

My employer-based health screening is coming up in 5 weeks. I missed my BMI goal by 1 point last year, and I am determined to reach that goal this year. Will save me several thousand dollars in health insurance premium discounts, so there is $$ incentive.

Last year, my target BMI was 27, However I recorded a 28.1. I had gone from 215 lbs down to 192 at the time of my weigh-in. This year I am right at 200 lbs, so I need to get down to 185. Have developed an aggressive weight-loss program for the next 5 weeks, and I am already in ketosis.

Will post periodic updates.

 

[Tecumseh]

So back in February, one of the main reasons I started back up on keto was because I was knocking on the door of a 42" waist. Today I had to go shopping for size 36" waist shorts. For ####s and giggles, I decided to try on a 34". It wasn't comfortable, but I got them buttoned. 36's are comfortable to loose. I can take 38's off without unbuttoning them. 

In the back of my mind, I've always felt like the difference between 34 and 36 was the threshold of fat/not fat. Getting so close...

Also, the wife wants me to stop- says I'm getting too thin. I still have #### and a belly, so that's not happening.

 

[Tom Skerritt]

My employer-based health screening is coming up in 5 weeks. I missed my BMI goal by 1 point last year, and I am determined to reach that goal this year. Will save me several thousand dollars in health insurance premium discounts, so there is $$ incentive.

Last year, my target BMI was 27, However I recorded a 28.1. I had gone from 215 lbs down to 192 at the time of my weigh-in. This year I am right at 200 lbs, so I need to get down to 185. Have developed an aggressive weight-loss program for the next 5 weeks, and I am already in ketosis.

Will post periodic updates.

So much for periodic updates. I've been working on my plan with my BIL. One week to go until my weigh-in. I'm down to 193# this morning. If I can get under 190#, I should reach my BMI target. Been fasting for most of this week. Had a chicken caesar salad today. Gonna fast more the remainder of this week and up to Tuesday.

 

[AAABatteries]

Been hardcore for about 12 weeks now.  Down 32 pounds.

Like before my lips are chapped like a mother####er.  Easily the worst part for me.

I do some serious yo-yo dieting and I have to stop.  Wish me luck.

 

[ragincajun]

 Back on the saddle again.....

 

[Judge Smails]

Been hardcore for about 12 weeks now.  Down 32 pounds.

Like before my lips are chapped like a mother####er.  Easily the worst part for me.

I do some serious yo-yo dieting and I have to stop.  Wish me luck.

Yeah - you got down to wearing medium t shirts last year for the Exchahge. Gain it all back and then lost it again? 

 

[Peak]

Back into it, and this time the wife is joining. Really hoping she sticks with it.  We're both in need of dropping some pounds.

 

[Tecumseh]

I've been off and on for quite awhile now. Typically keto style + IF during the week, and eating whatever on the weekends. I'm meeting with a personal trainer tomorrow and if I sign up with her I will go into cut mode until the end of the year or so. probably not keto, because I'll be doing alot more weight lifting than before, but we'll see.  Right now I'm still carrying too much fat, but I don't feel like there is much muscle behind it anyway. The trainer I am talking to is the one who trained the national winner of the Gold's Gym 12 week challenge. https://www.goldsgym.com/blog/2018-challenge-winners/ The guy in the upper right won the whole thing. He's a year older than me. 

 

[Anarchy99]

Not that anyone really cares, but I just hit my 3 month mark on a keto plan. Down 40+ pounds and 6 inches off my waist. My labs all came back great and within normal range for everything (I had elevated sugar and A1C issues). 

Side effects have included needing an entire new wardrobe. Literally nothing fits anymore. Been hitting up second hand clothing stores and finding some great items cheap. You'd be surprised what you can find. Picked up some stuff that people purchased and never wore,  design names with department store price tags still attached. Saved a boatload of money that way, and I look way better in appearance and am actual a lot more stylish now.

Unfortunately, the wife didn't take as well to keto and hasn't really stuck to it religiously. It makes for a complicated existence, as she wants to shop for and eat what she wants (both at home and at restaurants). Not all meals are keto friendly, so on occasion I have to make myself another meal or eat someplace else. I tried a couple times to go out for drinks with her and ended up puking my brains out, so not a huge fan of that as an activity.

I suspect we will have some squabbles, debates, and heated exchanges with the upcoming party and holiday season. She has already announced she is going to eat whatever she wants and I am going to look like an idiot drinking bottled water and watching everyone else pig out on junk food and holiday desserts. I didn't realize how difficult it is if spouses are not on the same page for food intake and beverage consumption.

I still want to lose another 40-50 pounds and am resolute and committed to moving forward, pressing on, and sticking to keto. Not sure I can make it that far weight wise, but certainly want to lose another 25 or 30 pounds.

 

[Galileo]

Keep up the good work, @Anarchy99  No, it isn't easy when everyone is on a different page, but it can be done.  

 

[kutta]

I'm hopping back in. I've been slacking lately. I stopped doing MMA training because the coach I really liked left for another gym. The last year I've just been working out lightly and eating rather poorly.

I am 6'0", 52, and was a really lean 195 a year ago and in really good shape.. I was 214 last night, and not liking it one bit.

So, here we go!

 

[Tom Skerritt]

So much for periodic updates. I've been working on my plan with my BIL. One week to go until my weigh-in. I'm down to 193# this morning. If I can get under 190#, I should reach my BMI target. Been fasting for most of this week. Had a chicken caesar salad today. Gonna fast more the remainder of this week and up to Tuesday.

Had my health screening today. BMI target was 27.5, and comes with a $600 annual insurance premium discount. Last year I got down to 28.1 BMI. So close!

So today I measured in at 5’ 9+1/4”. My whole life I’ve been 5’ 11” (and last year I measured 5’ 10+1/4”), so I’m apparently shrinking too. Weighed in at 191.8# on the scale. That comes to 27.9 BMI.  WTMF?!?! So close, but failed again!

However, in the fine print, there is a footnote related to the BMI... 

"Waist measurement automatically corrects elevated BMI due to lean muscle mass, even if you fail the BMI goal. Female <= 34.5 inches, Male <= 37 inches.”

And my waist measurement is 35”. SO I MADE IT!!! ??? (not sure how it’s possible, but last year’s waist measurement was 39”)

 

[ragincajun]

Not that anyone really cares, but I just hit my 3 month mark on a keto plan. Down 40+ pounds and 6 inches off my waist. My labs all came back great and within normal range for everything (I had elevated sugar and A1C issues). 

Side effects have included needing an entire new wardrobe. Literally nothing fits anymore. Been hitting up second hand clothing stores and finding some great items cheap. You'd be surprised what you can find. Picked up some stuff that people purchased and never wore,  design names with department store price tags still attached. Saved a boatload of money that way, and I look way better in appearance and am actual a lot more stylish now.

Unfortunately, the wife didn't take as well to keto and hasn't really stuck to it religiously. It makes for a complicated existence, as she wants to shop for and eat what she wants (both at home and at restaurants). Not all meals are keto friendly, so on occasion I have to make myself another meal or eat someplace else. I tried a couple times to go out for drinks with her and ended up puking my brains out, so not a huge fan of that as an activity.

I suspect we will have some squabbles, debates, and heated exchanges with the upcoming party and holiday season. She has already announced she is going to eat whatever she wants and I am going to look like an idiot drinking bottled water and watching everyone else pig out on junk food and holiday desserts. I didn't realize how difficult it is if spouses are not on the same page for food intake and beverage consumption.

I still want to lose another 40-50 pounds and am resolute and committed to moving forward, pressing on, and sticking to keto. Not sure I can make it that far weight wise, but certainly want to lose another 25 or 30 pounds.

I care....

 

[pack100]

I care too, Keep it up! Alcohol hurts me as well but I still indulge. Bourbon is my new friend.

Well I promised an update with pics. I am a little over 13 months in. Started kickoff of last season at 265, I am now hovering around 193.

Pants size from a 44 to a 34. I still have some work to do but finally starting to uncover 35 years of hidden muscles.

I hate to do this to you all but here it goes:

https://imgur.com/a/bFQ3PZX

 

[ragincajun]

Fell of the wagon yesterday.  Conference in New Orleans and the restaurant we went to at lunch did not have any options.  I decided to go all out and ate a quesadilla and ice cream at night.  Back on the wagon today.

starting weight 295 10/7(?)

Weight 10/12 - 284

1. Thoughts on sweetnes for coffee etc?

2. Do Keto strips really expire?  I have some that said they expired in May.

 

[Tecumseh]

I use liquid stevia for coffee.

 

[culdeus]

Fell of the wagon yesterday.  Conference in New Orleans and the restaurant we went to at lunch did not have any options.  I decided to go all out and ate a quesadilla and ice cream at night.  Back on the wagon today.

starting weight 295 10/7(?)

Weight 10/12 - 284

1. Thoughts on sweetnes for coffee etc?

2. Do Keto strips really expire?  I have some that said they expired in May.

If anything the strip expiration date is probably optimistic. 

 

[pack100]

Fell of the wagon yesterday.  Conference in New Orleans and the restaurant we went to at lunch did not have any options.  I decided to go all out and ate a quesadilla and ice cream at night.  Back on the wagon today.

starting weight 295 10/7(?)

Weight 10/12 - 284

1. Thoughts on sweetnes for coffee etc?

2. Do Keto strips really expire?  I have some that said they expired in May.

I use sweet and Low in my coffee without issue,

Splenda naturals stalled me bad...Weird?

Piss on them and find out...?

 

[ragincajun]

I did.  No change.

 

[pack100]

RC,

You fell off the wagon on Wednesday. It is going to take a few days to get in to Ketosis. Especially early on when you are first starting. The Ketostix will not change color in this case. 

 

[AAABatteries]

Yeah - you got down to wearing medium t shirts last year for the Exchahge. Gain it all back and then lost it again? 

Think it was large but your point stands - I’m a #######.

I haven’t lost it all yet but I have a different mindset.  Im not on a diet, I’m not even in any hurry to lose.  I just know how much better I feel when I cut out the carbs.  I’ve been harping on sugar in the PSF and how it’s killing all of us.

 

[ragincajun]

RC,

You fell off the wagon on Wednesday. It is going to take a few days to get in to Ketosis. Especially early on when you are first starting. The Ketostix will not change color in this case. 

Thx Pack.  I peed on the stick a few days prior to my splurge day.

 

[AAABatteries]

I'm just not sure that's the right interpretation of the current meta on this topic.  

There appears to be a growing trendy consensus to isolate SFA (Saturated Fatty Acids) as a core keto component versus a limited SFA diet (Think avacado, fish).  The results so far are showing LCHF diets may be sub-optimal if your HF component is mostly SFA.  

Furthermore when you compare SFA vs. starch and grains, SFA loses again even if the carbs kick you out of ketosis.

Prior studies did an exceptionally poor job of highlighting the risk of SFA, this was due to any number of confounding factors like smoking, alcohol, etc. and they did a poor job of isolating SFA versus ALL fats.  And long term studies are really unreliable on this topic.  So take all of this with several grains of salt and all that.

Right now if I had to say where I stand on the topic is that I am going to try to avoid dirty fat when possible if a clean carb source is available.  I think deep down we all know that makes the most sense.  If you can end around your digestive system burning the SFA, they still difficult for your body to deal with.  And that's trouble imo.

I wanted to revisit this.  For me, this would just be eating a "cleaner" Keto and not eating a big steak with butter on it every night or chicken skin, or processed meats.  I mean, just because something high in SFA is worse than starches and grains doesn't mean they are healthy either. 

I need to read up on this part as I don't really know but aren't the harms in SFA heart health and weight gain?  If I'm leaning more towards SFA than grains and I'm losing weight and my cholesterol levels are dropping is the SFA still a big issue?

Generally speaking, I've tried to cut out all processed food but I'm still guilty with processed meats - I've gradually tried to reduce that too and opt for things like turkey bacon vs. sausage or fish vs. steak/chicken.  So, I agree with you about keeping an eye on SFA, I just don't think the answer is to start each more starches and grains.