Low-carb/low calorie diet Vs. low calorie dense, low fat foods?

[CROM]

So far my experience with low carb/low calorie dieting (keto) is that it SEVERELY slows down your metabolism. Granted I’ve lost about 20 lbs but I am sure half of what I lost has been muscle.

Currently I consume 1500 to 1600 calories per day. Go to the gym 6 days per week (for 26 years). Walk 4 miles 5 or 6 days per week (jog a little of the way) and often do a little exercise at home. Yet I am at a point where I have near zero ketones in my urine or blood when testing and feel hungry all the time.

Should I switch to low calorie dense foods that are high in water and fiber…such as vegetables, fruits, cooked whole grains, oatmeal, cooked beans and legumes, nonfat dairy and soy products, and lean animal proteins?

Keto is about almost no sugar consumption which means fruits are out of the question. Would trading fat for fruits work better for weight loss? Do you consume the same amount of calories on both diets or can you eat more on low calorie dense foods? Any insight from experience would be awesome.

 

[SilverSurfer]

Youve put your body into starvation mode. As a male you cannot only eat 1500 calories per day while also burning 500+ calories in your workout. Digesting protein and complex carbohydrates takes more energy vs a fat and sugar laden so your body has to now work even harder....hence no/low energy, body not maintaining ketogenic response.

 

[Vince]

When you're on a high-fat low-carb diet, you don't count calories.

 

[stx359]

Keto isn't reducing your metabolism. YOU are reducing your metabolism. Step one is determining your basal (or resting) metabolic rate which you can get via hydrostatic testing, dexascan or by googling an equation. I am 100% certain your BMR is higher than 1500 calories. From there you add whatever you are burning in the gym and that should be the basis of your daily caloric intake.

 

[slicktop]

I'm on board with stx359. Calculate your BMR first, then take a good look at your calories and see what your intake is, just in case you're off. I had great success doing keto at a 15% caloric deficit based on my BMR+ exercise calories burned, as stated above. For me, fat, protein, and low to no carb veggies was the key to satiety, as I don't do well being hungry all day- I'd rather burn more than eat less. Bulletproof coffee or something like it is great (coffee+ MCT oil+ swerve was my go to), breakfast was often a whole avocado cut in half, seed removed, with a slab of cream cheese on top, microwaved for 30 seconds, then doused with Tabasco. Sounds bizarre, tastes delicious. Lunch was usually different flavors of pre-marinated chicken (cilantro lime, Italian, sweet chili, etc) and a low to no carb veggie (tons of squash and zucchini) cooked in a Hot Logic while in the office. Fasted cardio also pairs great with keto- get up and immediately jog a couple of miles and you're burning nothing but fat.
Some people will find that too much protein will throw them out of ketosis as well- your body can make carbs out of protein. Luckily I never encountered that issue.

 

[Rabbit91476]

Use the my fitness pal app to track Its not a 100% accurate as far as calorie requirement but close. After a month. You can adjus.

 

[captain]

So far my experience with low carb/low calorie dieting (keto) is that it SEVERELY slows down your metabolism. Granted I’ve lost about 20 lbs but I am sure half of what I lost has been muscle.

Currently I consume 1500 to 1600 calories per day. Go to the gym 6 days per week (for 26 years). Walk 4 miles 5 or 6 days per week (jog a little of the way) and often do a little exercise at home. Yet I am at a point where I have near zero ketones in my urine or blood when testing and feel hungry all the time.

Should I switch to low calorie dense foods that are high in water and fiber…such as vegetables, fruits, cooked whole grains, oatmeal, cooked beans and legumes, nonfat dairy and soy products, and lean animal proteins?

Keto is about almost no sugar consumption which means fruits are out of the question. Would trading fat for fruits work better for weight loss? Do you consume the same amount of calories on both diets or can you eat more on low calorie dense foods? Any insight from experience would be awesome.

If you drink caffeine it is causing your hunger. Diet drinks may stimulate insulin secretion and with caffeine a drop in blood glucose. You will be hungry at that point.

 

[johnoh]

So far my experience with low carb/low calorie dieting (keto) is that it SEVERELY slows down your metabolism. Granted I’ve lost about 20 lbs but I am sure half of what I lost has been muscle.

Currently I consume 1500 to 1600 calories per day. Go to the gym 6 days per week (for 26 years). Walk 4 miles 5 or 6 days per week (jog a little of the way) and often do a little exercise at home. Yet I am at a point where I have near zero ketones in my urine or blood when testing and feel hungry all the time.

Should I switch to low calorie dense foods that are high in water and fiber…such as vegetables, fruits, cooked whole grains, oatmeal, cooked beans and legumes, nonfat dairy and soy products, and lean animal proteins?

Keto is about almost no sugar consumption which means fruits are out of the question. Would trading fat for fruits work better for weight loss? Do you consume the same amount of calories on both diets or can you eat more on low calorie dense foods? Any insight from experience would be awesome.

I did keto, then just low-carb, for a year recently, went like this:
20 net carbs per day: low energy, not great sleep
30 net carbs - a little better, still not great
40 net carbs - felt great
50, 60, 70, 80, 90 same as 40.

during that year I lost 20 pounds and strength stayed close to the same, overall fitness improved. Took metamucil when net carbs were at their lowest less because its insane to starve your gut of fiber. So I wonder if you simply are too low on net carbs. I had good energy when at a 800 calories per day deficit and net carbs of 40 or 50. Never once measured for ketones, didn't even want to know. Always had some blackberries and a half an apple every day too, avoiding fruit altogether felt like a bad idea. Never ate after 4pm due to schedule, so am a natural intermittent faster. Also never went more than three weeks at a calorie deficit, would always insert one week per month of maintenance calorie intake, wanting to avoid any kind of chronic stress state.

IF you do not have high blood pressure, I recommend getting enough sodium and of course water. I put 1tsp of table salt into my morning shake myself.

You may be asking too much of your body and are high in cortisol. I now just walk 30 minutes a day (normal pace), do a hard 10 minutes on the elliptical once a week, and do 30 minutes of resistance bands three times a week. I feel way better today and am in better shape than when I was hitting the gym hard for 6 days a week. It never occurred to me that I was overdoing it before, but looking back now its obvious. Maybe you could try sleeping more and working out less. The american mantra of "more is more" leads many people to naturally overdo it.

 

[JohnTaylorHK]

I lost 27lbs on a ketogenc diet. Keto is NOT a calorie restricted diet, there is no need to restrict calories. If I cook beef, I always pour the rendered fat back over the meat, often adding butter/olive oil if it seems a bit dry. Initially, you will lose water weight with the glycogen. Once you adapt, and some find that they cannot, then you will not be as hungry as you were before. If you watch the YouTube videos by Robert Lustig he is not a low carber or a low fat advocate, he just advocates REAL FOOD. I added carbs (15%) back into my diet (65% fat, 20% protein) as I DID find that my boxing sparring was suffering. Some athletes do not have that problem, some do. I further limit carbs (but not much less than that) on days when I'm not training. I'm about 12% body fat and can regulate my weight within 2lbs and workout 3 times a week. Active recovery on my off days is walking, up to 10Km as I feel. Resting and hydration are uber important. I also add (potassium) salt to my water bottle, as I get enough sodium with my food. I also recommend documenting what you eat on www.cronometer.com. You will almost certainly be surprised at the adjustments you need to make once you record and follow proper nutrition using real foods. If the packaging shows more than one ingredient, it's not real food. Namaste.