Keto questions

[pugmom]

DH has lost about 20 lbs. doing what he calls "moderately strict" keto, but now is considering (for other health issues) going on a more strict version.

He has put together some questions:

1. How many people use, or would strongly recommend, the use of a combined meter such as Keto Mojo?
2. I know that many Keto diets allow,or sometimes recommend, having "cheat days". What if you pay a lot of money to go on a river cruise and need a "cheat week"? How much damage does it do if one reverts right away?
3. I have read different things about whether wine is okay. I typically have no more than 3 oz. per meal.
4. Same question about coffee. But I do love to have 1 tsp of half-Stevia and half-Splenda. It has not seemed to hurt me losing weight so far.

Some of these questions are really about getting my blood glucose down. To be honest I am not yet sure where that will end up.

Thanks to all!

pugdad

 

[steiny]

Here is a Dr. I have been following , Great info

Watch a few of his videos and he explains it all .

 

[Northforker]

Most people really don't follow a strict KETO diet, they are on a low carbs, no sugar diet.

I did the strict KETO diet for over a year, weight fell off. Then I missed my italian food and my wife's baking goodies, crashed and burned.

 

[audreyh1]

Ketosis urine strips like Ketostix are cheap and easy to use. I think you should start with that before buying a meter.

Can’t speak to cheat weeks. We don’t do that. I think it would be hard. We may occasionally eat a few more carbs when traveling as we are very active but not enough to knock us out of ketosis.

Dry red, dry white, and brut sparkling wine are quite low carb. We do limit the amount - usually 3 ounces or so with meals. I don’t drink it every day but probably every other day.

Coffee is fine. Lots of interesting keto coffee drinks out there. We do black or with heavy cream.

Initially I tracked carbs daily using an app (carb manager) for at least 6 months and was following a 25 grams net carbs daily limit. A year later I was just checking my blood ketones once in a while.

We focused on real food, no highly processed food or even store bought prepared meals, meals were prepared from scratch at home. No silly keto junk treats - those are generally rubbish except for Parmesan crisps.

This is not a keto rule: We also avoid refined seed oils (polyunsaturated “vegetable” oils). This makes it imperative to make your own food from scratch and makes eating out almost impossible. So we can’t keep that up while traveling but we are pretty strict at home including condiments. Primal kitchen condiments are OK.

 

[pugmom]

Thanks to all for replying! I have been using Keto sticks, and they do appear to show the maximum amount of ketones. The reason I mentioned the meter is that I have read that they lose effectiveness after a while, and that the blood test is more accurate.
And most of the other things, such as @audreyh1 mentioned, we already do.
Truth be told, I am looking at this because I have just been diagnosed with stage 3 melanoma, and I want to be more strict as a way of pursuing a "metabolic therapy" as well. This is fairly well documented and there is no downside.
Thanks again!
pugdad

 

[audreyh1]

I read that too about the strips losing effectiveness but didn’t experience it although I haven’t used them in a long while. The blood meter is more of a hassle but precise.

 

[donheff]

What benefits of keto is he looking for? If it is simply weight loss I suspect a cheat week probably won't make much difference as long as he continues to limit carbs (which he can do anywhere). I went on a very low carb diet for a year in 2014. I quickly lost 35 pounds and reached my target weight which was easy to maintain. As time went by I gradually added some carbs back - pasta, rice, etc. to no ill effect. Ten years later, approaching 75, my appetitive is less than it used to be and I am back to eating a boatload of chocolate with no impact on weight. But I have no illusion that that dose of sugar is harmless but what the hell. With keto some people argue for other benefits that may be more sensitive to small failures to maintain. Also, many people on diets quickly fall back to earlier patterns as soon as they relax even a bit.

Even at the beginning I never gave up my glass of wine with dinner.

 

[Gremlin]

So sorry to hear about the diagnosis. There is some really promising literature out there regarding low sugar diet and cancer treatment.

Wishing you all the best!!

Thanks to all for replying! I have been using Keto sticks, and they do appear to show the maximum amount of ketones. The reason I mentioned the meter is that I have read that they lose effectiveness after a while, and that the blood test is more accurate.
And most of the other things, such as @audreyh1 mentioned, we already do.
Truth be told, I am looking at this because I have just been diagnosed with stage 3 melanoma, and I want to be more strict as a way of pursuing a "metabolic therapy" as well. This is fairly well documented and there is no downside.
Thanks again!
pugdad

 

[Golden Mean]

The reddit keto forum is pretty active and is a great place to get answers, ideas and moral support.

One thing I would recommend in general is to try to stay away from fake foods trying to replicate high carb foods (e.g. keto ice cream, keto bread). Real unprocessed food is where it's at.

 

[Koolau]

I read that too about the strips losing effectiveness but didn’t experience it although I haven’t used them in a long while. The blood meter is more of a hassle but precise.

I found that Keto sticks have a relatively short time to expiration. Once opened, they seem to age very quickly and become ineffective. IIRC "old" Keto sticks still change color but do not detect ketones. I could be wrong, but decide for your self how long you use a container of Keto sticks before replacing them. Heh, heh, you could try putting a drop of nail polish remover (mostly acetone) into a small cup of water and see if the strips react to the ketone.

Once again, I've told you more than I know so YMMV.

 

[audreyh1]

I found that Keto sticks have a relatively short time to expiration. Once opened, they seem to age very quickly and become ineffective. IIRC "old" Keto sticks still change color but do not detect ketones. I could be wrong, but decide for your self how long you use a container of Keto sticks before replacing them. Heh, heh, you could try putting a drop of nail polish remover (mostly acetone) into a small cup of water and see if the strips react to the ketone.

Once again, I've told you more than I know so YMMV.

At least they are very cheap. They have an expiration time on the box - make a note of the opening date (write it on the container).