Step By Step Keto Diet Plan!

[ThomasRivera]

Quick question (btw, been following your recipe log, great stuff).

What is all this talk about people becoming depressed on a keto diet? I feel great on it...always have. I actually feel better on a low carb diet than a diet with carbs. For long term use, I'm going to start on a CKD this week to keep leptin and thyroid optimized...other than that I feel really good on it.

You know, I've never heard of low carb diets causing depression until recently. I feel great on low carb diets too, my energy is pretty high all the time, I never feel lethargic even when I lose weight. It might be a perceived mental thing. Like for me the first shot I had at cutting I dropped my carbs to around 120 a day, the first few days i was miserable. It was probably because I was physiologically still craving the carbs.

 

[someguy1984]

So, you can't eat the turkey, or ham found in the stores? (Vacuum packed) I've been eating those lately. I usually will have like 5 slices or something. They say 1g of carbs per slice. So, that's 5g of carbs, but 25g of protein...Is this ok?

If not, what kind of meat should i be buying? I like the kind that's packed, because i count calories and it makes things a lot easier...

 

[ThomasRivera]

So, you can't eat the turkey, or ham found in the stores? (Vacuum packed) I've been eating those lately. I usually will have like 5 slices or something. They say 1g of carbs per slice. So, that's 5g of carbs, but 25g of protein...Is this ok?

If not, what kind of meat should i be buying? I like the kind that's packed, because i count calories and it makes things a lot easier...

The only problem with some packed foods is their nitrates. 5 grams of carbs are ok as long as your staying within the carb limit.

Nutritiondata.com

That website has the calorie information for a wide amount of food. For instance, 80/20 ground beef is near 1200 calories a pound. If I get 3 pounds I split it into three portions.

 

[BBR]

Gutterpump .. I agree man, it's very easy to smash a pound of meat in one sitting!

 

[papapumpsd]

Are you guys consuming 6-8 meals per day or are you jamming your food into just a few meals/shakes yet?

I like to have a constant supply of nutrients throughout the day so eat ~6 meals ED.

Also, I think the (gross bodyweight * 15) - 500 calculation found in the beginning of this thread leads to a somewhat higher daily caloric intake for a cut than I'm accustomed to. The above equation would have me consuming ~ 2,740cals ED, M-F.

Are you guys following this calculation?

 

[ThomasRivera]

Are you guys consuming 6-8 meals per day or are you jamming your food into just a few meals/shakes yet?

I like to have a constant supply of nutrients throughout the day so eat ~6 meals ED.

Also, I think the (gross bodyweight * 15) - 500 calculation found in the beginning of this thread leads to a somewhat higher daily caloric intake for a cut than I'm accustomed to. The above equation would have me consuming ~ 2,740cals ED, M-F.

Are you guys following this calculation?

I laugh at 6-8 meals a day. The way I figure it is that on the AD diet there are a different set of dietary circumstances than on a normal diet. On the AD diet your body uses fat as its main source of energy, a source of energy that is readily located in the body. Fat and protein from the usual sources on the AD diet (Except for coconut oil, whey protein, which both digest quickly) take a while to digest, so I don't see why the 2-3 hour feedings are required. Additionally from a mental point of view 1 pound of meat is not a lot of food for me, I can sit down through 2 pounds without much effort, it's more satisfying to do the 4 meals a day for me.

I do not follow the calculation, to be honest the AD solution, AD diet, UDv2.0 and other keto diet books are not designed for guys that don't know much. The AD diet especially is targeted towards people who know their body. The calculations they give are for people that don't know their macro requirements and are at best generalizations.

 

[papapumpsd]

I laugh at 6-8 meals a day. The way I figure it is that on the AD diet there are a different set of dietary circumstances than on a normal diet. On the AD diet your body uses fat as its main source of energy, a source of energy that is readily located in the body. Fat and protein from the usual sources on the AD diet (Except for coconut oil, whey protein, which both digest quickly) take a while to digest, so I don't see why the 2-3 hour feedings are required. Additionally from a mental point of view 1 pound of meat is not a lot of food for me, I can sit down through 2 pounds without much effort, it's more satisfying to do the 4 meals a day for me.

I do not follow the calculation, to be honest the AD solution, AD diet, UDv2.0 and other keto diet books are not designed for guys that don't know much. The AD diet especially is targeted towards people who know their body. The calculations they give are for people that don't know their macro requirements and are at best generalizations.

K, cool, thanks TR. I will adjust accordingly. I will drop the number of grams of fat and increase my protein so my kcals <2,500 ED.

I'm on T3 (25mcg) and op day 2 of the CKD and I'm feeling HOT! Then again, I'm usually a heater, but this is somewhat elevated

Thanks for the help dood.

 

[FlawedGrunt]

At what point does one go WHOOOOOA too much liquid fat sources (Olive oil/flax oil)

Im trying to set up a CKD for myself and im falling super short on cals and fat and i could easily add in more olive oil and flax just not sure if there is a TOO much on this diet

How i have it so far

Meal 1
Vanilla Shake mix
ON protein
Natty PB
Whipping Cream

Meal 2
Meat
String Cheese
Flax oil

Meal 3
Chicken
Broccoli
Sunflower seeds

Meal 4
Broccolli
Sunflower seeds

Before Bed
ON Protein
Olive Oil
Flax oil

6 fish oil pills spread throughout the day

comes out tooo
Fat - 135
Pro - 161
Carb - 10(not including fiber or sugar carbs)

im trying to add more fat without protein cause thats right where i want it... i actually had to remove the tuna i had in the diet because it was putting me way over my protein amount (first time i ever thought id say i was getting too much protein haha)

 

[Gutterpump]

All oils are liquid when heated..EVO is one of the best sources. If you're having a lot of fish oil (omega 3 in general) try to balance it out with omega 6+9, or you could be asking for a hormonal imbalance.

Just make sure your protein is high enough and adjust fat as needed for cals.

 

[FlawedGrunt]

i take 6 fish oil pills a day and 3 flax oil pills and then on top of that 2 teaspoons of flax.

So but what youre saying is i could definately just add in a couple more doses of liquid fat?

 

[Gutterpump]

Yeah for sure. Not a problem. Don't be afraid of taking in too much fat on this diet. If you don't like the extra in your shakes, you can always break out a shotglass and measure/take it that way too. If you take it with your protein meal, it will help to digest it slower too.

 

[papapumpsd]

All oils are liquid when heated..EVO is one of the best sources. If you're having a lot of fish oil (omega 3 in general) try to balance it out with omega 6+9, or you could be asking for a hormonal imbalance.

Just make sure your protein is high enough and adjust fat as needed for cals.

Technically, oils are liquid at room temp. Fats are not.

 

[spres444]

ALRIGHT. I read through this entire thread, and I got a few questions-

Im about 215, 22% BF maybe? ( I havent had it measured just going with it).
I used that excel template and it puts me at 2295 Cal's Mon-Thursday. Friday and Saturday put me at 2725, and has me consuming 782g of carbs. Is this 782 g of carbs supposed to be taken BOTH friday and saturday? ( so 782 friday and 782 saturday), or mixed together?

I ended up getting these numbers-

no carb days-

172g protein
179g of fat


fri/saturday
172g protein,fat kept to minimum ( what number should I be looking at here).
782 g of carbs.

Im getting like contradicting numbers here because I did the calculations from the one of the FAQ pages and it had me at 3896 calories for the first 24 hours (681 g of carbs, 76g of fat, 170g of protein).

kinda confused :blink:

 

[spres444]

Your "carb-up" should begin Friday night and last until around midnight Saturday

So that would mean that I keep the calories at 2725 for Friday and 2725 for Saturday, and eavily distribute the carbs throughout both days?

 

[Gutterpump]

Technically, oils are liquid at room temp. Fats are not.

Ah yeah, true. I need to lookup and see what the varying rate of digestion is for different fats/oils. I know that coconut oil is the main oil that I eat that digests quickly. I don't know the other rates though for dietary fat and supplemented oils.

 

[papapumpsd]

I created my own basic excel tool for CKD (didn't see the one in this thread). It provides the essentials and a starting point for me, and it might be helpful to others here too. Everyone is different so as you progress throughout this diet, tweaking will be necessary.

-Attachment-

 

[ThomasRivera]

The carb loads vary person to person. Some guys eat until they see their muscles pumped up to where they need to be before they hit a bloat, some people run off of calculations, some people just eat what they want as long as they limit fat.

 

[AMTorres]

I just wanted to say thanks to everybody who supplied information on the Keto Diet, this is the first time I've heard of it and I'll be starting mine in about 1 month. I'm 5'11" and currently 240lbs with around 20% bf. I would like to this this will get me around 10%. I'm excited to get started!

 

[BigFroggie]

Ok I must do something wrong on my diet.
I started CKD 3 weeks ago, on a bit low cals (1200-1500 instead of 1800 needed for my weight) but with that seems a good ratio to me (approx : 750 kcals from Fat, 600 from proteins and 55 from carbs (13 grs)) but i didn't loose any BF, and worse i feel i gained some more (i can't see my abs anymore) !
IS there something wrong on my diet, should i lower my cals more ?
Any ideas ?
JB

 

[ThomasRivera]

Ok I must do something wrong on my diet.
I started CKD 3 weeks ago, on a bit low cals (1200-1500 instead of 1800 needed for my weight) but with that seems a good ratio to me (approx : 750 kcals from Fat, 600 from proteins and 55 from carbs (13 grs)) but i didn't loose any BF, and worse i feel i gained some more (i can't see my abs anymore) !
IS there something wrong on my diet, should i lower my cals more ?
Any ideas ?
JB

Are you judging your caloric intake by way of calculator, or have you done the work yourself and tracked your own weight for a week to gauge what you need?

What do you weigh?

Are all your calories the same for the low carb days?

What is your carb load like?

What is your training like? (If you tell me you don't train i'll find and rip your head off)

 

[ThomasRivera]

I'll go through an explain all my questions with their purpose.

1. If you did not gauge your caloric needs on your own and you go by a calculator you will just get a rough estimate of where your calories roughly need to be. Some calculators for me are a couple hundred calories off. 200 calories extra or fewer calories than you actually need adds to a deficit or surplus of what, at least 1000 for a standard low carb week, which isn't good.

If you eat too little your body will stall weight loss by slowing metabolism.

2. Depending on your weight your protein intake might need to be adjusted.

3. If you vary your caloric intake during the week while mantaining the total calories eaten during the week you will have a more efficient metabolism. On a 1300 calorie a day average.

Day 1: 1200
Day 2: 1100
Day 3: 1700
Day 4: 1400
Day 5: 1300

Something like that, you want your calories to start to go low, peak, then restart. One day with slightly above bmr level or at it would be good too.

4. If you eat dirty during your carb load you will gain fat, count on it. By dirty I mean too much fat and protein.

5. Need to know how cardio and training goes.

 

[BigFroggie]

Calculators (found 2 on this site) gave me 1750-1800 kcals for my weight (72 kgs -> 155 lbs) to cut.
I take from 1200 to 1800 kcals everyday (a little bit more the we).
1200 kcals seems very low anyway, even if i only take 4 meals/day, it' only 300 kcals/meal
Just did one carb load last we (weetabix, apple pie :food: on saturday night).
I train 4days/week (1h30) :
Monday : back + bi
Tuesday : chest + tri
Thursday : legs
Friday : shoulders.
Today a guys told me i got a lot of fat :sad:
Forgot to say i'm on gear (test E + Eq). Had a little bloat at the begining but now it"s in order but got some fat too.
JB

Edit maybe i ate too much proteins and fat last we too...

 

[ThomasRivera]

If you are on test and equi, are on sub maintenance protein/fat/carb intake, I don't see how you would gain body fat. You might be getting water retention from the gear.

 

[Wood]

Can someone tell me how many carbs to count against my daily total on things like an Atkins bar? It has, I believe, 13 carbs but it says that it has just 3 net carbs. So how many should I count towards my daily total based on that?

 

[RobInKuwait]

Can someone tell me how many carbs to count against my daily total on things like an Atkins bar? It has, I believe, 13 carbs but it says that it has just 3 net carbs. So how many should I count towards my daily total based on that?

Ignore the net carbs. Just take carbs - fiber and thats how many carbs you count.

 

[pitching101]

Can someone explain to the me the refeed/carb-up days. Say I finish my workout Fri at like 6 P.M., after that what should be in my postworkout shake. And what type of carbup is this? Can I eat anything I want, such as french fries and burgers, as long as I'm under my maintence? Or should the carb up still come from healthy sources like oatmeal?

 

[AMTorres]

Can someone explain to the me the refeed/carb-up days. Say I finish my workout Fri at like 6 P.M., after that what should be in my postworkout shake. And what type of carbup is this? Can I eat anything I want, such as french fries and burgers, as long as I'm under my maintence? Or should the carb up still come from healthy sources like oatmeal?

From what I read on here, the first 24 hours or so of the carb up, you can eat any carbs you want, thats why when they talk about the carb up they say you can eat things like pizza. The carbs fill up your glycogen stores in your muscles, so it shouldn't matter. I am saying this off of memory, so forgive me if i'm wrong

 

[ThomasRivera]

From what I read on here, the first 24 hours or so of the carb up, you can eat any carbs you want, thats why when they talk about the carb up they say you can eat things like pizza. The carbs fill up your glycogen stores in your muscles, so it shouldn't matter. I am saying this off of memory, so forgive me if i'm wrong

Thats what Lyle McDonald suggest for efficiency purposes. You could just eat anything you wanted if you so chose to.

 

[AMTorres]

Thats what Lyle McDonald suggest for efficiency purposes. You could just eat anything you wanted if you so chose to.

So, regardless what carbs I eat on my refeed, as long as i stay within the parameters, it won't have any negative effects on my body?

 

[ThomasRivera]

So, regardless what carbs I eat on my refeed, as long as i stay within the parameters, it won't have any negative effects on my body?

Most likely no, I've read some guys' carb load that hits into over 5000 in the first day with no noticeable gain in fat. If you are eating adn eating and feeling bloated or looking bloated I would cut it back a little.

 

[AMTorres]

Thanks for the info Thomas. Also, a friend of mine has been around bodybuilding for a few decades now and he told me that the suggested 3,000 calories a day, according to the keto diet on here was way too many, and that my fat intake should be closer to 40-50%, not 60-70%, also that a keto diet would be better if it is ran 16 weeks instead of 8, that professional bodybuilders and people who have done it a long time try to condense it down to 8, but still sacrifices losses in the proccess. What do you make of all this? And do you compete in contests and use this to cut, or do you just do this to become more cut for personal reasons? As always, thanks thomas!

 

[RobInKuwait]

Thanks for the info Thomas. Also, a friend of mine has been around bodybuilding for a few decades now and he told me that the suggested 3,000 calories a day, according to the keto diet on here was way too many, and that my fat intake should be closer to 40-50%, not 60-70%, also that a keto diet would be better if it is ran 16 weeks instead of 8, that professional bodybuilders and people who have done it a long time try to condense it down to 8, but still sacrifices losses in the proccess. What do you make of all this? And do you compete in contests and use this to cut, or do you just do this to become more cut for personal reasons? As always, thanks thomas!

That is correct for a CKD cut, but not for a bulk or recomp. While your body is acclimating you want 60-70%. After you're acclimated and begin your recomp, you cut cals by 500 each week, and up protein until you start cutting fat.

 

[AMTorres]

That is correct for a CKD cut, but not for a bulk or recomp. While your body is acclimating you want 60-70%. After you're acclimated and begin your recomp, you cut cals by 500 each week, and up protein until you start cutting fat.

How long does the acclimatization take? Honestly i think if i cut my caloric intake 500 immediately and get my fat intake to less than 50% i will be good. What do you think? I guess the only way to know is to find out. When working out, how do fats in my diet affect me? The reason i ask is because if i cut them i want to know if my workouts will be affected in a big way. and my goal with my CKD is fat loss

 

[RobInKuwait]

How long does the acclimatization take? Honestly i think if i cut my caloric intake 500 immediately and get my fat intake to less than 50% i will be good. What do you think? I guess the only way to know is to find out. When working out, how do fats in my diet affect me? The reason i ask is because if i cut them i want to know if my workouts will be affected in a big way. and my goal with my CKD is fat loss

It varies for everyone, and there's no set way to determine if you're acclimated or not. I know for me, I knew I was acclimated when I stopped having energy drop offs toward the end of the week. I also noticed a burst of energy whenever I consumed fats. Basically, a shot of olive oil feels like a candy bar. I was at that point after about 2.5 months in.

One thing I would highly recommend that will pay major dividends, is that you get very acclimated before you start manipulating calories.

 

[AMTorres]

It varies for everyone, and there's no set way to determine if you're acclimated or not. I know for me, I knew I was acclimated when I stopped having energy drop offs toward the end of the week. I also noticed a burst of energy whenever I consumed fats. Basically, a shot of olive oil feels like a candy bar. I was at that point after about 2.5 months in.

One thing I would highly recommend that will pay major dividends, is that you get very acclimated before you start manipulating calories.

I'm 236lbs and taking in 3,000 calories a day, i think that's a little excessive, if i dropped that down to 2,500 i should be alright, right? i've only been taking in this many calories for 3-4 days now, i dont think my body is used to getting that many yet

 

[ThomasRivera]

Thanks for the info Thomas. Also, a friend of mine has been around bodybuilding for a few decades now and he told me that the suggested 3,000 calories a day, according to the keto diet on here was way too many, and that my fat intake should be closer to 40-50%, not 60-70%, also that a keto diet would be better if it is ran 16 weeks instead of 8, that professional bodybuilders and people who have done it a long time try to condense it down to 8, but still sacrifices losses in the proccess. What do you make of all this? And do you compete in contests and use this to cut, or do you just do this to become more cut for personal reasons? As always, thanks thomas!

Fat on this diet becomes the main source of energy. Even though it's called a ketogenic diet, free fatty acids are the main source of energy used through the body. I can imagine on a bulk messing with the macro numbers, but on a cut getting 60-70 percent fat is getting 60-70 percent energy.

I don't see why someone would just go through this diet for 8 weeks, it's a good long term recomp diet. First 4 weeks of this diet, 2 of them being training weeks, I remained around the same body weight and I lost body fat. I was thinking about competing sometime around august.

 

[RobInKuwait]

Fat on this diet becomes the main source of energy. Even though it's called a ketogenic diet, free fatty acids are the main source of energy used through the body. I can imagine on a bulk messing with the macro numbers, but on a cut getting 60-70 percent fat is getting 60-70 percent energy.

Actually DiPascale did mention cutting down on the fat ratio during a cut. If you cut out 500-1000 calories you need that macro ratio to get enough protein to prevent catabolism.

I don't see why someone would just go through this diet for 8 weeks, it's a good long term recomp diet. First 4 weeks of this diet, 2 of them being training weeks, I remained around the same body weight and I lost body fat. I was thinking about competing sometime around august.

Dave Palumbo's contest prep diet is also CKD. I think that's the diet AMTorres' friend was referring to.

 

[RobInKuwait]

I'm 236lbs and taking in 3,000 calories a day, i think that's a little excessive, if i dropped that down to 2,500 i should be alright, right? i've only been taking in this many calories for 3-4 days now, i dont think my body is used to getting that many yet

How long have you been doing CKD?

 

[AMTorres]

How long have you been doing CKD?

I started it Monday, I was going to start it a few weeks ago, but I'm in Iraq and we didn't have a chow hall at my base, and i wanted to wait until i could get hardboiled eggs and lean meats, this diet would have been impossible if i started it any sooner!

 

[RobInKuwait]

I started it Monday, I was going to start it a few weeks ago, but I'm in Iraq and we didn't have a chow hall at my base, and i wanted to wait until i could get hardboiled eggs and lean meats, this diet would have been impossible if i started it any sooner!

Wow, be safe over there. You're in our thoughts.

If I were you, I would not worry about calories for at least a month after starting the diet. Just focus on getting used to the no carb then refeed thing. You're body is trying to get used to getting by without daily carbs, don't make it get used to a calorie deficit at the same time.

After about a month, you should be used to the diet enough that you can start effectively cutting.

 

[ThomasRivera]

Actually DiPascale did mention cutting down on the fat ratio during a cut. If you cut out 500-1000 calories you need that macro ratio to get enough protein to prevent catabolism.



Dave Palumbo's contest prep diet is also CKD. I think that's the diet AMTorres' friend was referring to.

Ahh, I never liked dave paulumbos diet because of a few scientific inaccuracies within it. Turned me off to reading anything he had posted.

 

[AMTorres]

Wow, be safe over there. You're in our thoughts.

If I were you, I would not worry about calories for at least a month after starting the diet. Just focus on getting used to the no carb then refeed thing. You're body is trying to get used to getting by without daily carbs, don't make it get used to a calorie deficit at the same time.

After about a month, you should be used to the diet enough that you can start effectively cutting.

I'm only doing the diet for 8 weeks before i start a bulking cycle, now with that being said, should i start cutting calories earlier? I don't mind suffering through a caloric deficiency since i'm trying to cut, and I have a hard time eating that many calories anyway. As long as I have enough protein, and i continue to work out, that will keep from catabolism, right?

 

[ThomasRivera]

I'm only doing the diet for 8 weeks before i start a bulking cycle, now with that being said, should i start cutting calories earlier? I don't mind suffering through a caloric deficiency since i'm trying to cut, and I have a hard time eating that many calories anyway. As long as I have enough protein, and i continue to work out, that will keep from catabolism, right?

Before I go off on a tangent, I would probably go on at least one week before going into a caloric deficit. This is one of those "it depends" things, I'm very much at the point where I don't get fatigued even while going on long periods of training, but you might. See how you feel, post up and then decide from there.


Some catabolism is bound to happen on any cutting diet. The keto diets however partition the nutrient usage differently. Where as on a normal diet you get a combination of energy from carbohydrates fats and protein. On a keto diet your main source is fat, secondary is protein for production of glucose. Adding the carb load in gives the potential to building back muscle or new muscle, thats why this diet even while cutting is a recomposition style diet.

This diet has a curve of about 3 weeks until you hit the sweet spot. The two different major energy sources you'll be using on this diet are free fatty acids and ketones. Glucose plays the third role. As the diet starts the body will prefer to use ketones, the brain will begin to use ketones. This is around the three day period. As time goes up to the three week period, the brain will obtain up to 75 percent of its requirements in ketones while the body switches to using FFA's.

So at the three week period the body will only ever harvest up to 25 grams worth of glucose for the brain. This is why when you read a lot of logs and experiences with CKD you get an overwhelmingly positive response. Preservation of muscle on this diet is great.

 

[pitching101]

I read not to eat nitrites while on the keto diet, or basically every. So what type of bacon and sausage does everyone buy? All the packaged stuff in the stores have nitrites and I really want some bacon!

 

[AMTorres]

Since are diet is high in fat and protein during the week, i shouldnt have to worry about avoiding the yolk in hard boiled eggs, right?

 

[RobInKuwait]

Since are diet is high in fat and protein during the week, i shouldnt have to worry about avoiding the yolk in hard boiled eggs, right?

Not at all. I usually have 6-12 whole eggs a day.

 

[AMTorres]

If you live in a more rural area, I would suggest going to a slaughterhouse the small mom and pop places

 

[kholdstare]

just started the CKD after being on a fairly low-carb diet for the last 3-4 weeks. Transition was pretty easy. Before I was eating 1 serving of maybe 20g slowly digested carbs post HIIT session. Now I eat, well, none. Maybe 5g tops per day. Dont use any sauces (ketchup, relish, etc). Mostly mustard.

Question though, I got a bucket of 100%Whey, however. It's got 5g carbs / serving. I havent touched it since monday. Is it ok to have 1 scoop of this post work out, or should I just shelf it and find a better brand? I'm guessing the answer is find something else. Dont wanna take it and have it kick me out of keto. Thx in advance guys, alotta great info on these boards.

 

[KgTomCat]

Now I eat, well, none.

LOL

Question though, I got a bucket of 100%Whey, however. It's got 5g carbs / serving. I havent touched it since monday. Is it ok to have 1 scoop of this post work out, or should I just shelf it and find a better brand? I'm guessing the answer is find something else. Dont wanna take it and have it kick me out of keto. Thx in advance guys, alotta great info on these boards.

I go with All-The-Way Fat Free Whey Isolate, stuff is great! :cheers:

 

[enhanced]

Wow, what a ton of good info in this thread!! I googled keto diet plans & this was one of the top finds. Going to try & start this very soon. Gonna try the excel spreadsheet when I get home.