My saving grace...

[1shott]

I wish you nothing but the best GED,

I did keto for a few months in 2018, lost about 50 pounds, ended up in the ER one night with one hell of what turned out to be a kidney stone. Doc said it was brought on by my diet and coffee intake.

Be careful with that diet.

 

[DRC458]

Congrats, Evan! Sounds like a helluva good start to me!!!


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[Glock 'em down]

I wish you nothing but the best GED,

I did keto for a few months in 2018, lost about 50 pounds, ended up in the ER one night with one hell of what turned out to be a kidney stone. Doc said it was brought on by my diet and coffee intake.

Be careful with that diet.

I appreciate that. So far I seem to be doing ok. Eating mostly "modified" foods, such as tacos without the shells. A sorta taco salad if you will. Burgers without the buns and peeling the toppings off of pizza and tossing the crust. Plus I grill a lot...steaks, pork chops, chicken, burgers. I'm staying away from dogs and sausage for the most part, and having bacon and eggs for breakfast 3-4 days a week. The rest of the time I'll do a bowl of Cheerios.

I found Mt. Dew Baja Blast in the zero sugar the other day.

 

[wawazat]

I am finally back into ketosis after 6 months of food debauchery. Extra virgin olive oil (2Tbsp per day) can really help manage cholesterol levels while eating keto. It took me a while to find an oil and vinegar based dressing that had EVOO as the main ingredient that I liked the taste of. There are quite a few veggies that are safe and celery is a great way to get some fiber in and ease the snackiness. Water intake is critical while staying in ketosis. There is a heightened risk of kidney stones so a gallon a day of water is the minimum.

 

[AKguy1985]

I'm not doing keto, but I am trying the military diet, so far I have lost 8 pounds by doing that and walking. But, now it's too hot to walk in the evenings. I think I have hit a plateau too. I just want to be 220-230 again so I need to lose roughly 50 pounds.

 

[KOPBET]

I am not a doctor, not did I sleep at a Holiday Inn Express last night but here is my take. If you are not a type 2 diabetic yet, odds are you likely will be. I may be preaching to the choir here, but ditch the cheating with chocolate chips, milk (lots of sugar) and saltines. If you must, try unsweetened almond milk and if needed sweeten it with a monk fruit sweetener or another keto friendly sweetener (not artificial junk!). There is no need to go hungry, especially since you say you are a carnivore and healthy fats will help with that hunger immensely.

Insulin is the fat storage hormone, guess what happens if you have too much of it. I'm guessing a bit here, but I would bet you have insulin resistance (your doctor can test) and adding not only carbs, but sugars are a disaster for you and both will raise insulin levels. At this stage you should avoid them at all costs. Healthy fats will not cause you to gain weight nor prevent you from losing it, quite the opposite. Use them to your advantage. Keto is more than just low carbs. Your body needs fuel, and giving it lots of healthy fats are what keto (hence ketosis) is all about, switching from burning carbs to burning fat for fuel and providing ketones for your brain. Cheating will kick you out of ketosis and slow your progress. Diet pop can be almost as bad for you with the artificial sweeteners like aspartame or sucralose. Ditch them too. Carbs are pretty easy to cut out, just watch the labels and avoid the starchy veggies. Watch the hidden sugars too! No bad cooking oils like corn oil, vegetable oils, canola, safflower, sunflower, margarine or other science project butter substitutes, etc., you get the picture. If you can, start walking, work up to a couple of miles a day. Intermittent fasting is also f'n awesome. Start with a 16/8 regimen (8 hour eating window) and work up from there.

Changing your life style is part of the process of losing weight. I was not your weight, but I had to make the changes or possibly die a slow and painful death. Diabetes will wreck your body and your life. It killed my brother at 64. It's your choice too. If you haven't already, see a doctor, know where you stand. I would also ask to be checked for a fatty liver, which can be reversed as well, but will eventually lead to a nasty, bad outcome if not addressed.

My two cents. Sorry if I'm too blunt, but that's just part of being retired and getting older.