The ketogenic diet is pure magic (weightloss thread?)

[CaptainCool]

Geez, it's been a while, FAF...

5 months ago I set a goal for myself: Finally stop being a fat bastard!
A few years ago, before I became a vegetarian, I weighed about 123 kilos. That's about 271 pounds for those of you who hate units of measurement that make sense
So yeah, I was pretty freaking fat. And it really started to have a toll on my body. My feet would hurt when I came home, I was out of breath really easily and when I was squatting down to take photos (I'm a photographer) I was struggling to get back up.
When I stopped eating meat I also stopped eating lots of very fatty, processed foods so I lost a few pounds there.

But in late August I read about the ketogenic diet. Cutting out almost all carbs, eating just a bit of protein but a lot of healthy fats.
And oh boy did it work! During the last 5 months I have lost about 31 kilos, or 68 pounds, very steadily. I am now at a healthy weight again and I feel so much better in every way.
I was sceptical at first, how can you lose weight if 80% of your diet is supposed to be fat?
It makes sense though. If you cut down carbs to about 20 grams per day your body thinks it's starving and will produce ketons from your body fat to use as a source of energy. You are also supposed to eat healthy fats like MCT oil which is metabolized directly in your liver.

Here's a little before and after shot, featuring my lemur-friend Athene:

Before I started this diet I was just about ready to give up. I thought I'd never get rid of that weight again.
But then I lost it in 5 months. Without lifting a finger. It's ideal for those who don't have much time to go to te gym every day or who don't want to count calories.
You still have me mindful about what you eat. Those evil carbohydrates are everywhere!

I still am totally out of shape but hey, let's worry about that later XD

If I can do it you can do it as well It's way easier than I thought.
Sure, you won't be able to eat any regular sweets anymore. I tamed my sweet tooth with Coke Zero and Erythritol, an artificial sweetner that basically tastes like regular sugar. I just put it into some non-sweetened yoghurt in the morning, along with some MCT oil to get my liver going.

So what are your weightloss goals? Are your new years resolutions going well or have you abandoned them?
I'd highly recommend that you try this diet, it really does make losing weight a walk in the park!

 

[Yakamaru]

On May 2017, I had set my eyes on losing 33kg in total, but I didn't specify any set date. I started at 123kg. Around Christmas the same year, I weighed 116kg, and I had lost 7kg in total. As the pieces in the puzzle started falling together and I worked towards my goals, started talking walks eating healthier, my weight started to drop at a consistent rate.

And back in May 2018 I set a goal for myself: Hit 90kg before Christmas, and lose 33kg in total. I was at 100kg at the time. That goal was achieved on the 22nd of December 2018.

Spoiler: Goal achieved

I did not go vegetarian nor did I cut out meat or the like from my diet. I did however cut out a lot of soda, energy drinks, pizza, kebab and other high calorie and/or carbohydrate containing foods and drinks. My diet often have chicken or pork in it, and high-grade beef at times. Salad and vegetables on the side as well which I've integrated into my normal diet.

My end goal for weight is at 80kg, which is inside the average BMI for my height. At which point I will start properly building abs and muscles. As of this moment I am sitting above 92kg due to Christmas and just relaxing for a bit before I start going down seriously again. I will take things slow and consistent so my body have time to adapt to the changing weight and health.

 

[Keita Lemur]

Nice work fellow lemur man! Lookin good!

Last summer I experienced a huge loss in my life that affected me greatly. I started eating (more) terribly since I had no energy or concern for my health or well being. I didnt care about anything except doing the basic bare minimum to keep going. I was basically eating ice cream and string cheese and started getting very sick and I ended up in the hospital. After that I decided to go to the doctor because something had to change. I went to a new one since my former doctor wasnt that good. Turned out new doc is great and changed my life a lot. I weighed 244lbs which was the most Ive ever weighed and my blood pressure was like 140/100 (ish, I forget). That was a wake up call for me as it had always been 110/60 since I get a lot of exercise/work out with the work that I do. My doctor told me I had to lose 10lbs in a month and I went on medication for depression which I swore I would never do but it worked. I changed my diet to just fruits and vegetables with occasional protein/good fats. No refined sugar at all and only water to drink. In that month I lost 22lbs and felt fantastic, tons of energy and I even was sleeping better which had always been a problem for me. My doc was stoked with the progress and my bp was down to 120/80. Since then Im down to 210 as I kinda fell off the wagon for the holidays and my job is seasonal so I get a lot less exercise this time of year. My goal is 180 that I hope to reach by April or May.

I dont have before after pics handy and if I find any Ill post them.

Losing weight and taking care of yourself is great. It will change your life and if youre thinking about doing it then do it now. You wont regret it!

 

[Asher Grey]

About a month ago, I finally accepted that I was okay with being fat. I mean, I'm attracted to other fat guys, so if I find them hot, wouldn't someone feel the same about me? I'm happy with how I look right now, for the first time in over a decade of hating my body(to the point of trying to saw off fat) and I don't spend time in social circles where people are douches about looks. It took me about a day to realize that, as a fat guy, I'm actually? Almost hot? Being in the furry community has changed the way I look at bodies a lot, and to see large guts or heavy arms being drawn as something attractive, even desirable, has done way more for my self image than any bullshit self help books or activities. "Dad bods" are hot, and if I find them attractive on everyone else, I think maybe mine can be as well.

I'm a cook by trade so I end up eating a lot but it's all healthy, hearty food-- sugary food doesn't taste super good to me and greasy food gives me a stomach ache so it's all vegetables, a lot of white meat, and fresh baked breads. I go on walks as my exercise, which are challenging with my asthma, but it's something. None of my health issues are correlated to my weight, and the ones that have popped up in the past have been taken care of. I can like how I look.

Two days ago I found out from my doctor that I have to lose 1/3 to 1/2 of my entire body weight or I won't be able to get a surgery I need. I have two years to do it or getting insurance coverage will be so much harder to get. It's just the standard rule since fatty tissue causes complications during surgery and recovery. I understand this, but it's heartbreaking for me. I got to enjoy almost an entire month of self acceptance.

I'm 192 lbs, have very little free time with school and work, and what I eat generally is just what I make for others. I've spent the day looking up weight loss methods and exercises and most of it looks either unsafe, shady, or impossible considering my circumstances. I'm considering starting with a liquids diet, to detox and get my system cleared out, but I really don't know where to go from there.

 

[Firuthi Dragovic]

I've had eating problems since I was a kid. In high school, my family had me in dual sports. In college, I swam competitively. Something happened in that last year to make me despise exercise, however, and I wound up gaining a whopping 60 pounds (a little over 27kg). Weight that I haven't been able to lose in the decade since, due to what is essentially a binge eating disorder.

Fast forward to about three months ago, and I finally get talked into going on a much more strict weight loss program. My mother was on one where the food was all sent to her, and she didn't think hers fit me, so she put me on NutriSystem. Now, the first week of that is essentially a crash diet of shakes and meal bars, but after that it's a passable variety of foods shipped home combined with some vegetables and one or two meals outside the shipped food. (I've tried other things that let me get the food and they haven't stuck.)

At the start of this, I weighed about 316 pounds (143.3kg). Currently, I'm sitting at around 279 pounds (126.5kg), which for three months is decently impressive. However, these last few weeks have been problematic. Not merely due to the aftermath of Christmas, no - I actually didn't do poorly around Christmastime. No, this whole phase of the diet has been done without a kitchen (I've been REALLY reliant on a microwave), and the cramped space is more-or-less giving me cabin fever, which is leading to an increase in my fruit intake. I've also taken up a job that requires a lot of standing and moving and a three-day-a-week exercise routine, and my body isn't fully used to it yet.

My actual goal is somewhere around 240lb (108.8kg) - that may still be considered obese by some people, but I have an actual wider frame than most people (I blame the dual sports) and so that kind of weight can mean lots of muscle. I plan to stick through with the diet until mid-May at least even if I hit that goal, with one caveat - if I wind up below 215 pounds (97.5kg), I drop the diet immediately. The last time I was that low was during the phase where I did dual sports, so sinking that low is something I'd discuss with my doctor before proceeding given that I may actually be working myself too hard.


Quick addendum to this: I am SCARED of what will happen when I finally go off of this diet. This is teaching me what actually counts as portions, but all of the food was decided for me, so I'm REALLY concerned I'll get it all wrong.

 

[CaptainCool]

Quick addendum to this: I am SCARED of what will happen when I finally go off of this diet. This is teaching me what actually counts as portions, but all of the food was decided for me, so I'm REALLY concerned I'll get it all wrong.

Yeah that is pretty terrifying to me as well. I didn't want this to be for nothing.
There was a video about that on SciShow recently:

 

[CaptainCool]

About a month ago, I finally accepted that I was okay with being fat. I mean, I'm attracted to other fat guys, so if I find them hot, wouldn't someone feel the same about me? I'm happy with how I look right now, for the first time in over a decade of hating my body(to the point of trying to saw off fat) and I don't spend time in social circles where people are douches about looks. It took me about a day to realize that, as a fat guy, I'm actually? Almost hot? Being in the furry community has changed the way I look at bodies a lot, and to see large guts or heavy arms being drawn as something attractive, even desirable, has done way more for my self image than any bullshit self help books or activities. "Dad bods" are hot, and if I find them attractive on everyone else, I think maybe mine can be as well.

I'm a cook by trade so I end up eating a lot but it's all healthy, hearty food-- sugary food doesn't taste super good to me and greasy food gives me a stomach ache so it's all vegetables, a lot of white meat, and fresh baked breads. I go on walks as my exercise, which are challenging with my asthma, but it's something. None of my health issues are correlated to my weight, and the ones that have popped up in the past have been taken care of. I can like how I look.

Two days ago I found out from my doctor that I have to lose 1/3 to 1/2 of my entire body weight or I won't be able to get a surgery I need. I have two years to do it or getting insurance coverage will be so much harder to get. It's just the standard rule since fatty tissue causes complications during surgery and recovery. I understand this, but it's heartbreaking for me. I got to enjoy almost an entire month of self acceptance.

I'm 192 lbs, have very little free time with school and work, and what I eat generally is just what I make for others. I've spent the day looking up weight loss methods and exercises and most of it looks either unsafe, shady, or impossible considering my circumstances. I'm considering starting with a liquids diet, to detox and get my system cleared out, but I really don't know where to go from there.

I don't think there is anything wrong with that
Personally I did care about my looks but my main concern was that I was starting to see some real health problems.
Did you know that you aren't automatically prone to heart problems when you are overweight? The only issues you see at a certain point are mobility related, which makes sense as the load on your joint increases.
Also, most diets don't work and put you under a lot of psychological stress. Not to mention that most people who lose weight gain more than half of it back after they stop their diet and go back to eating normally.

With my keto diet I did lose a lot of weight very easily while eating food I actually really like. And because I lost it so quickly I got a lot of positive reinforcement from other people (to the point that they are getting worried that I might become too skinny ). So I didn't have any psychological stress while losing weight and I felt amazing.
Keto in itself is also not really a traditional diet. I can keep eating like this and when I reach a point at which I want to keep my weight stable I just have to increase my intake of carbohydrates from 20 to 50 grams per day without eating too much.

 

[fourur]

I browsed reddit for keto benefices, and i'm surprised it can help for mental illness like depression and anxiety, tbh I don't want to do it for weight loss, but that a great bonus, long live the keto diet.

 

[JakeTheFoXx]

Good work! You look great, and must feel even better!

I was someone that always struggled with my weight. Puberty had the opposite effect on me. While my friends went through puberty and gained lightning speed metabolisms, mine became almost non-existent. I attribute my weight gain to mostly diet habits and lack of physical activity (hey, I like my video games ) but did always struggle to maintain a weight. In high school I did the Nutrisystem diet and was successful in losing around 70lbs, but the moment I stopped "dieting" the weight would come back with a vengeance. I learned that I could follow a diet plan perfectly and be successful, but if I ever stopped the diet plan, the weight would find it's way back. After a while I changed my eating habits, and slowed my drinking down, and began working out, but found that I wasnt really losing weight. So, last year in January, I weighed nearly 500lbs... I hated the way I looked and felt. I decided that I wanted some help, and elected to have Weight Loss surgery, to use as a tool. I managed to get my weight down to 485lbs prior to my surgery that was in march. I'm currently still losing weight, but my total loss at this point is 180lbs. My current weight is 305lbs. My job is a pretty physically demanding job at times, and my weight loss has helped me immensely. Often times we have to navigate a hoarders house, get into steep ditches after a car wreck, or climb multiple flights of stairs. I can do all of these things without getting winded anymore, which feels fantastic.

 

[Haydn Iles]

There is no such thing that you can do just once to become healthier. To be healthy, you need to lead a healthy lifestyle. At least try to. I work out regularly, follow healthy diet, recently contacted https://skinnyfit.pissedconsumer.com/customer-service.html for consultation, because I want to try their products for detox.

 

[TyraWadman]

I know this thread is super old but if you can discipline yourself to commit to a diet that essentially starves yourself, you can commit to eating healthier and becoming slightly more active where its needed.

Once you reach your desired weight through keto, not committing to the right diet means you'll just balloon back to the weight you were at before. Its like the people I saw who got lipo where I used to work. They were celebrating their thin body but within weeks they were already bulking back up.

If you still want to take shortcuts, at least be willing/prepared to deal with the side effects and potential consequences. :/

 

[Deleted member 127940]

I know this thread is super old but if you can discipline yourself to commit to a diet that essentially starves yourself, you can commit to eating healthier and becoming slightly more active where its needed.

Once you reach your desired weight through keto, not committing to the right diet means you'll just balloon back to the weight you were at before. Its like the people I saw who got lipo where I used to work. They were celebrating their thin body but within weeks they were already bulking back up.

If you still want to take shortcuts, at least be willing/prepared to deal with the side effects and potential consequences. :/

A lot of people don't understand that losing weight and keeping it off is a lifestyle change that needs to be maintained perpetually. If eating four cheeseburgers per day made you spherical but you one day decide to stop eating four cheeseburgers daily, you don't go back to eating those four cheeseburgers once you hit your target weight.

You're done eating all of those cheeseburgers period.

 

[Fallowfox]

Tyra and Ram make really good points.

This particular diet is linked to high risk of heart disease, and weight loss is rarely sustained long-term.
I am especially worried, in retrospect, about somebody being glad they lost weight 'without lifting a finger'.

Exercise is essentially the best medicine a doctor can prescribe. We should all be doing at least 75 minutes of strenuous exercise a week, no matter what shape we're in.
You will begin to enjoy doing it if you develop a good habit and keep it up.

 

[Haydn Iles]

Yeah, but I assume that the needed result is common.

 

[Odetta]

Wow, what a cool result. Well done. Keto diet is really cool. I have also heard about various grapefruit diets and a cucumber diet, but I did not know which was more effective. I also recently learned about the trend of medications that help lose weight and can be bought online.. A little dangerous, of course, because inexperienced people can do this. But still interesting

 

[NilsTeutschLW97]

Respect. Personally, I don't see myself as able to give up meat. I try to eat as healthy as I can tho.