keto question

[musclestack]

I'm planning to start a keto diet next month to shed off those last 6-7 pounds before the end of the year. I have a basic diet down, but I'm worried about staying "full" throughout the day while on this diet. If I have all my meals and macros worked out, but I get a bit hungry between meals, can I eat greens such as brocolli like I would if I were just on a normal cutting diet without worrying about the carbs in them? I was told to be cautious even with the greens, as the carbs in brocolli, lettuce, celery, etc. can have an affect on reaching (or staying in) ketosis....

If greens will affect ketosis, is there any other food out there that I might be able to have a bit of throughout the day without having to worry about exceeding macros, or extra carbs that will affect my keto diet?

What do you guys do?

Thanks all.

[Damienm05]

I'm planning to start a keto diet next month to shed off those last 6-7 pounds before the end of the year. I have a basic diet down, but I'm worried about staying "full" throughout the day while on this diet. If I have all my meals and macros worked out, but I get a bit hungry between meals, can I eat greens such as brocolli like I would if I were just on a normal cutting diet without worrying about the carbs in them? I was told to be cautious even with the greens, as the carbs in brocolli, lettuce, celery, etc. can have an affect on reaching (or staying in) ketosis....

If greens will affect ketosis, is there any other food out there that I might be able to have a bit of throughout the day without having to worry about exceeding macros, or extra carbs that will affect my keto diet?

What do you guys do?

Thanks all.

The answer is no. No in a few ways and for a few reasons.

1- I think keto for you is a no in general because 6-7 pounds doesn't warrant a drastic metabolic shift from glucose to ketones.

2- No to foods you can eat indiscriminately to stay full. Most meat and cheese are too high in saturated fat and will bring total cals too high. Even lean protein will be a no-go in terms of eating to stay full because it will throw your ratios off. Some veggies such as broccoli are safe to the tune of 8-10 cups per day or so which is a lot but that's only if you're careful to get almost no net carbs from nuts, dressings, whey powder, etc. If all those other little things are adding up to 15g or so, you'll need to limit to veggies to 1 cup with 2-3 meals and take fiber. Even foods such as lite silken tofu that are almost calorie neutral are gonna be a no-go because ratios are so important and you'd need to sweeten them artificially for them to be edible - and all powdered artificial sweeteners contain maltodextrin as filler.

3- No because everyone who's ever succeeded on a keto diet has come to accept that it involves being hungry 24/7.

Even if that 6-7 lbs. turns out to be 10-15 - Upping the cardio and cycling your carb intake can get rid of it in 6 weeks of hard work.

[gbrice75]

Great advice as usual Damien.

[Damienm05]

Great advice as usual Damien.

Thanks. You dish out some decent info as well my man.

[musclestack]

Thanks for your input, Damien. Your advice is always appreciated. I do have a few questions, however, regarding your post.

1. What stats/goals would warrant a keto diet? I've been researching Top's CKD, and if it is proven to be more effective than a low carb diet while minimizing muscle loss, then why would it be a no-go?

2. I thought that it was a bad idea to be hungry all the time. I understood that when the body is in starvation mode, it tries to hold on to as much fat as possible? Does this rule not apply to a keto diet?

Thanks!

[gbrice75]

Thanks for your input, Damien. Your advice is always appreciated. I do have a few questions, however, regarding your post.

1. What stats/goals would warrant a keto diet? I've been researching Top's CKD, and if it is proven to be more effective than a low carb diet while minimizing muscle loss, then why would it be a no-go?

2. I thought that it was a bad idea to be hungry all the time. I understood that when the body is in starvation mode, it tries to hold on to as much fat as possible? Does this rule not apply to a keto diet?

Thanks!

Hey Muscle, I'm sure Damien will explain better than I can, but I think the idea is that a keto diet would be better suited for a person with a more substantial amount of weight/fat to lose. Somebody like yourself who is looking to get rid of those last few lbs. of stubborn fat might be better served with a more standard diet and plenty of cardio. Remember that in going with keto, you are making a major change in your metabolism (burning ketones instead of glucose) which IMO should be a longer term type diet. Sometimes shifting back to glucose (which for you would only be a matter of a few weeks) isn't as easy and you could screw up your insulin sensitivity, not ideal for gaining LBM.

As for your 2nd question, I am interested in hearing Damien's answer to this as well. My theory is that since your body should be in a fat burning mode (metabolism shift to keytones), it is more likely to continue burning fat as there will be NO glucose/glycogen available. Also, nobody said anything about starvation mode - if you're eating every 2-3 hours as you should regardless of diet type, you will not be in starvation mode, even if you feel hungry at times.

I ran a CKD for a short time and was always hungry, and felt very weak in the gym - it wasn't for me.

Again, we'll await Damien's feedback as I may be off base on both answers.

[musclestack]

Thanks, gbrice. I, too, would like to hear Damien's input. I can understand the concept of screwing up my insulin sensitivity during keto (and after), but what about refeed days? Surely the extra carbs on those days would spike insulin levels again and "shock" your body, correct?? Otherwise, the refeed days would be unnecessary?? Or am I way off?

[gbrice75]

Thanks, gbrice. I, too, would like to hear Damien's input. I can understand the concept of screwing up my insulin sensitivity during keto (and after), but what about refeed days? Surely the extra carbs on those days would spike insulin levels again and "shock" your body, correct?? Otherwise, the refeed days would be unnecessary?? Or am I way off?

Refeeds will definitely spike insulin and shock your body, although the primary purpose is to refill glycogen stores and attempt to maintain LBM. However, a decrease in insulin sensitivity can still occur with refeeds; unless you consistently get insulin in your system (daily for instance), it's possible. A refeed once a week will not necessarily STOP this from happening. Also note that a change in insulin sensitivity is not a DEFINITE - it may not happen to you at all, everybody is different. Just proceed with caution.