Ketogenic Diet - Powerful Dietary Strategy for Certain Conditions

[Darek]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

I gained a few pounds when I first started KD and then I lost them and some more. But now it seems that my weight is stable, and I am hoping with gaining more muscle mass from the exercise, it will start going up again.

Same here! I started at 72,5kg, gained 76kg after few weeks, than I lost 3kg, and now it's going up again [11th week]. I take 200g of fat per day, 85-90g of protein, plus resistance training 3 times a week for 20min and cold showers every day. It's seems it's impossible to get fat on KD and [from what I see for now] it's impossible to not gain muscle mass with resistance training too. Keep cool

 

[Nienna]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

Hey, guys!
I have been on a ketogenic/Paleo diet for a couple of months and what I have noticed is that I lost weight. Now, that wouldn't be a problem if i was overweight but I was already quite thin.
I live on the country side and my parents actually buy a pig from a grower and slaughter it. So we have plenty of lard and I do consume it.

Now what do you think would be the best way to consume it? I usually just dip the meet in a lot of fat or simmer vegetables in it or eat eags baked on it.

So, is there perhaps a more effective way of consuming fat because I don't want to lose any more weight. ;D

I'm just wondering, have you read the entire threads for both the Life Without Bread and this Ketogenic Diet? There are a lot of things that members have gone through that will answer many questions. We advise not starting on any of the diets without first reading the threads and the links and books suggested. Just doing something because someone else is doing it is not a good idea. First, gaining knowledge about what you are thinking of doing will tell you if you should do it, or not. You also learn what to do and what not to do. :)

 

[wanderingthomas]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

Hey, guys!
I have been on a ketogenic/Paleo diet for a couple of months and what I have noticed is that I lost weight. Now, that wouldn't be a problem if i was overweight but I was already quite thin.
I live on the country side and my parents actually buy a pig from a grower and slaughter it. So we have plenty of lard and I do consume it.

Now what do you think would be the best way to consume it? I usually just dip the meet in a lot of fat or simmer vegetables in it or eat eags baked on it.

So, is there perhaps a more effective way of consuming fat because I don't want to lose any more weight. ;D

I'm just wondering, have you read the entire threads for both the Life Without Bread and this Ketogenic Diet? There are a lot of things that members have gone through that will answer many questions. We advise not starting on any of the diets without first reading the threads and the links and books suggested. Just doing something because someone else is doing it is not a good idea. First, gaining knowledge about what you are thinking of doing will tell you if you should do it, or not. You also learn what to do and what not to do. :)

I am not the kind of person that does things because other people do them.

I am primarily doing this to optimize my health and get rid of all the harmful effects of eating high amounts of carbs and grains. It is a aspect of myself that I am trying to optimize along with all the other aspects (mind, spirit etc.).

And thanks for the advice, I will definetely read the threads, there is nothing more practical and informative then real world experiences! ;)

 

[mcb]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

_http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-10/w-csu100912.php

OK, well, the KD isn't exactly bowel surgery, but this statement caught my eye:

...It is not clear how coffee stimulates the intestine and caffeine appears to have been ruled out by previous studies, which found that decaffeinated coffee, which was not used in this study, also has beneficial effects...

So if caffeine doesn't agree with you and you could use a little help with bowel movements, maybe it would be worthwhile to try decaf.

 

[dugdeep]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

_http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-10/w-csu100912.php

OK, well, the KD isn't exactly bowel surgery, but this statement caught my eye:

...It is not clear how coffee stimulates the intestine and caffeine appears to have been ruled out by previous studies, which found that decaffeinated coffee, which was not used in this study, also has beneficial effects...

So if caffeine doesn't agree with you and you could use a little help with bowel movements, maybe it would be worthwhile to try decaf.

FWIW, I find I get the effects from decaf and regular coffee. I will blend decaf and regular grounds in different ratios to avoid getting "buzzed" and haven't found any ratio to be less effective than another as far as improving motility goes.

But, as has been stated in this thread and the coffee thread, it's important to get a good quality, Swiss Water decaf to avoid the nasty chemicals used in the conventional decaffeination process.

 

[Beau]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

I tried a new experiment, for me at least, and that's tobacco. I could never smoke, it always made me nauseous and light-headed, but I thought with the new diet it would be an interesting experiment to see if my tolerance for it has changed. The first thing I tried was pipe tobacco. I noticed initially some light-headedness but nowhere near what I felt the last time I tried, 2 years ago, and that quickly dissipated so I didn't have any discomfort smoking. Then a few nights ago I tried a cigar. I ended up being able to smoke the whole thing, and really enjoying it too. I have to attribute this to the ketogenic diet, even a few years ago I was on the ultra simple diet I couldn't take more than one or two drags from a pipe or cigar without feeling awful. I haven't tried ciggies yet, as I want to work my way up to the point of inhaling the smoke into my lungs. Right now, I just take some into my mouth but don't inhale, it still burns my lungs. But it's still very encouraging to me that I can tolerate smoking so much better now. I've always liked the smell of cigarettes and cigars but just couldn't ever do it myself, so I"m very happy about this change. Plus, the extra protection from viruses is a nice little bonus! Just thought I'd report on that here, even though it's not strictly related to the KD, I tend to think it's a byproduct of it. FWIW.

 

[3DStudent]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

I have my updates on the diet to post, as I'm on week 5. But I'll post that when I have more time.

For now, I just had a question regarding refreezing bacon. I have refrozen the same pack of bacon twice now after making pate with it. I let it thaw in the fridge. The pate seems to have always given me diarrhea, as I no longer have been eating it an I have normal bowel movements. Maybe it was just the transition symptom? And the amount of fat I calculated to about 50%, so I wasn't loading too much fat.

The bacon is USWellness Meats uncured bacon with just salt added. I was reading the Nitrate myth article by Chris Kresser that was linked earlier. And there was a part about contracting a pathogen in pork called trichinosis. I also heard that curing meat helps to prevent botulism.

So I was kind of worried maybe that my uncured bacon might have too much bacteria on it after refreezing it twice. Although botulism dies at 240 degrees F, I think frying is higher than that. It's only about $5 worth of bacon, so this is mostly an emotional issue of tossing good bacon out. I don't like wasting food, but sometimes it happens if I cook too much. Any ideas on the safety of uncured bacon, especially when refrozen? Thanks for reading.

 

[theos]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

So I was kind of worried maybe that my uncured bacon might have too much bacteria on it after refreezing it twice. Although botulism dies at 240 degrees F, I think frying is higher than that. It's only about $5 worth of bacon, so this is mostly an emotional issue of tossing good bacon out. I don't like wasting food, but sometimes it happens if I cook too much. Any ideas on the safety of uncured bacon, especially when refrozen? Thanks for reading.

I can't really comment on the safety of uncured bacon but you may want to try separating the bacon into single servings when you first buy it and then freezing it. It'll save you the trouble of freezing, thawing and freezing again. However, I have thawed meat then frozen and thawed again with no bad results. I just try not to make a habit of it.

 

[mcb]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

So I was kind of worried maybe that my uncured bacon might have too much bacteria on it after refreezing it twice. Although botulism dies at 240 degrees F, I think frying is higher than that. It's only about $5 worth of bacon, so this is mostly an emotional issue of tossing good bacon out. I don't like wasting food, but sometimes it happens if I cook too much. Any ideas on the safety of uncured bacon, especially when refrozen? Thanks for reading.

I can't really comment on the safety of uncured bacon but you may want to try separating the bacon into single servings when you first buy it and then freezing it. It'll save you the trouble of freezing, thawing and freezing again. However, I have thawed meat then frozen and thawed again with no bad results. I just try not to make a habit of it.

That's what I would do, rather than thawing and refreezing, to preserve the quality of the meat. I normally buy in bulk, and only buy enough for the week, and I don't freeze it.

Trichinosis has always been killed by cooking pork thoroughly, although it is supposedly pretty much nonexistent in the food supply today. It was something we were warned about when I was growing up. If there is any issue with uncured pork and trichinosis, I would think it would be with handling the raw meat, rather than with the cooked bacon. Personally, I treat all raw meat as if it were contaminated.

 

[nicklebleu]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

I don't think that refreezing meat poses any health hazard, as long as you thaw it in the fridge and don't leave it outside for more than a few minutes (that is according to the USDA). It does reduce the quality a bit because freezing and thawing pulls water out of the meat. I try to avoid it if I can, but don't sweat over it, if I have to do it.

Trichinosis is not a big problem in commercially produced meat, as it has to go through an inspection which amongst other things probes for possible trichinosis. Trichinosis is mainly a problem in game meat. Freezing meat for over 3 weeks kills trichinosis in most meats (with the exception of bear meat, which needs to be irradited - yuck!). But thorough cooking also destroys trichinosis, so if you do both you should be on the safe side.

 

[osher]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

So, after a month of reading i got to the end of this thread and i want to share my experience with ketogenic diet.
I almost don't eat carbs for about a year. But I've been drinking some beer, thats a lot of carbs, stopped completely few weeks ago.
There were 3-4 times when i stepped out of protocol this year (apart from drinking some beer) and i got sick every time. It was: chcolate (got depressed before falling into this), potatoes/chips/pancakes and fruits. This was enough to make me sick for week(s) every time (flue/cold like).

How lucky you are, poeple who can buy or even get for free beef bones, buy grass-fed cattle products!
I live and travel around different cities in Poland and it is hard to get beef bones at all (pork bones are generally available, though yoou have to look for them also) and grass-fed beef is unavailable.

I find bone broth essential for nutrition, if i don't drink it every day i quickly start to feel malnourished.
I make it like this: wash bones, into pot, cold water, fresh ginger, vit. C from grocery wholesale (i buy 1kg two times a year), boil whole day (add water when needed, eat when want to), into refrigerator for the night, boil whole day, and so on for a few days until finished. I add salt into the plate/cup together with (not always) black pepper, turmeric, lovage, fennel.

Other things i eat are mostly the fattest pieces of pork (dewlap/collar) with marjoram, turkey liver with or without onion, italian lardo (polish is cruelly bad), eggs on clarified butter and i always have cod-liver oil and flax seeds oil in refrigerator. I am not happy with vitamines added to cod-liver oil (A,D,E, can't find one without additives) and not sure about flax seeds oil. But it was when i started drinking flax seeds oil (like two years ago) the first time in my life i stopped feeling hungry all the time!

Taste for salt changes with KD - i almost didn't use salt before, now it's as much as i can handle in my mouth. Things like potatoes if i fall for them don't taste like food at all, rather like cotton wool with some flavour.

I had some problems when transiting but now most are gone. The worst were diarrheas but i found that i cannot use any other form of magnesium than aspartate and no vit C other than some added into bone broth before cooking. Other was terrible eye dryness and redness - gone (i now think it was maybe mostly because of the beer). Of course some tiredness and cravings - mostly gone.

I am a bike rider and find it not very healthy as i always have high pulse rate for long time after ride, but i love it and magnesium/potassium aspartate helps. More resistance trainnig needed though.

As for the coffee - i find yerba mate healthier (far less gut sensations and general excitation).

I find it necessary for me to use tryptophan, i tried to quit like two weeks ago and got very depressed.

Hals a year ago i stopped using nose drops which i used for a long time wtih the help of two herbs (was taking them for about two months): Boswellia and Devil's Claw.

I experimented with DMSO and find it very useful externally, especially with magnesium chloride, but is for a different thread.

Summarizing, most of the inflammation gone, worst was the nose and joints, some supplementation nedded still.


Guys, don't freeze anything twice! And someone wrote about using cayenne pepper - it's inflammatory!

 

[Ollie]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

So, after a month of reading i got to the end of this thread and i want to share my experience with ketogenic diet.
... and not sure about flax seeds oil. But it was when i started drinking flax seeds oil (like two years ago) the first time in my life i stopped feeling hungry all the time!

...

If you search for Flaxseed, possibly by Psyche, you'll find that it is not recommended.

This may help, or not.

 

[Gaby]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

Flaxseed oil is one of those things where a person can see benefits at the beginning of the diet, when they are laying off the SAD (Standard American Diet) and their bodies are in need of any good essential oil.

As the dietary changes progresses, then your body starts to become more sensitive to all seeds, and then you start noticing inflammatory reactions to flaxseeds. Not everybody, but the idea being that there are better oils than flaxseed oil.

Flaxseeds have ALA (alpha-linolenic acid) which is the queen of the essential fatty acids and the mother of Omega-3s. Animals transform ALA into the Omega-3s in an easier way than we do. Plus, some of us don't have an enzyme to make the conversion. So it is better to get our essential oils from animals (i.e. fish or organic meats).

Osher, beer contains gluten unless specified otherwise, so you should see more positive results as the months go by as you stay away from it.

 

[Darek]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

I live and travel around different cities in Poland and it is hard to get beef bones at all (pork bones are generally available, though yoou have to look for them also) and grass-fed beef is unavailable.

I bought 6 kilos of beef bones in the local Intermarche market yesterday (0,35$/kg).

 

[mcb]

Re: Ketogenic Diet - Path To Transformation?

I adjusted my carb intake back up into the 20 g/d range, to see if it made a difference with the morning (pre-breakfast) daily headache I developed at 0 g/d, or with abdominal pains I experienced at that level. It did -- the headache went away within a few days, and the abdominal pains seem to have lessened over a period of a week or so. 20 g/d is still well down in the ketogenic range, and my fat burning seems fine. I do plan to try 0 g/d again.

My fasting glucose is not low: it's in the 90-100 range whether my carb intake is at 0 or 20. It goes down into the 80-90 range after eating, and I wonder if that is a vestige of my problems with hypoglycemia.

I have also lowered my fat intake slightly, to see if that will nudge me over into burning stored fat again. While I am back down to my four-year low, and only 3 lbs. "overweight" by the BMI charts, I remember feeling better when I was about 12 lbs. below where I am now. It's too soon to tell whether it is working, or whether I am still at a plateau. If it is a plateau, my thyroid test results (which I should receive by the end of next month) could help to explain it.