Well, I’m three weeks in now. Just to remind you all, I started the ketogenic diet at 15 stone, 10 pounds. My goal is 12 & a half stone, by mid-March 2015. This means a target weight-loss of 2lb per week.

Week Three’s target weight therefore? 15 stone, 4 pounds. Waistline measurement only once a month, so not this week.

I step onto the scales…

The previous week had been a huge disappointment! I’d been reading around the subject & had learnt that long-term carbohydrate-restriction requires increased levels of saturated fat to deliver sufficient calories. Obviously, I’m not yet in a state of ‘long-term carbohydrate-restriction’ – I’m still trying to lose weight; not maintain it! As a result of that misunderstanding, I’d upped the saturates and gained a pound. This at least was my theory.

Over the last week, I’ve aimed to assess the validity of that assumption and have ceased adding additional saturates. I’ve still been using liberal quantities of butter, cream & oil; I’ve simply not been adding these to my food where they’re not strictly needed. Has this worked?

15 stone, 4 pounds. Bang on target & a 3lb reduction from last week! I’m pleased, and really rather thankful! I’ve recovered any ground I’d lost and feel a lot better within myself. I’m now 6 pounds lighter than I was three weeks ago.

There is a stage of weight-loss where you start to feel a bit slimmer. I’m noticing this around my middle, lower back, chest & around the top of my arms. Obviously I’ve not measured this with a tape-measure; but I’m hopeful that ‘hard-fact’ will substantiate this in a week’s time when I take the first month’s measurements.

In addition to feeling that I’m making progress; how have I found it? Are there still side-effects from all this?

The headaches are still there occasionally, but almost all but gone.  Energy levels are up & I feel more of a spring in my step. I certainly feel more active! Mood is improving. I’m less grumpy, & the fact this seems to be working is definitely boosting my optimism.

Ketosis seems to carry with it a need for increased quantities of water. I’m still thirsty a lot of the time. I don’t know whether this has to do with ‘losing weight as the fat cells deplete’; or whether it’s a side-effect of the ketosis itself. Nicholas-James is also experiencing increased thirst-levels & the perceived rise in body temperature that I’d alluded to in earlier posts.

All in all, it’s been a good week. Motivation is still strong; if anything, it’s growing!

There are certain things I miss (trips to pub to drink beer mainly) but the increase in well-being more than makes up for this.

Next week, I’m hoping to push through the ‘half a stone’ barrier within one month. That only requires one additional pound from here on in, so if I stay in ketosis & keep focused, this should be more than possible.

Please do ‘look in’ on me next week, to see if I meet my targets. I find it really positive to have people read this – the support is a massive encouragement!

Thanks for reading, and have a great week,

Adam.

Well, two weeks in. Just to remind you all, I started the ketogenic diet at 15 stone, 10 pounds. My goal is 12 and a half stone, by mid-March 2015. This means a target weight-loss of 2lb per week.

Week Two’s target weight therefore? 15 stone, 6 pounds. Waistline measurement only once a month, so not this week.

I step onto the scales…

Oh dear. Oh dear, oh dear. Something has gone drastically wrong. 15 stone, 7 pounds. Not only have I missed my target; but I’ve actually gained a pound since last week! This sends me into a spiral of despair. I immediately think about giving up…

What can have gone wrong??? I wrack my brains repeatedly then turn to on-line guidance and the books I have bought.

All the literature says ‘don’ trust the scales’; weight fluctuates within quite a wide margin due to water-retention &tc. Yes this is true; but one whole week in ketosis should certainly have shifted something! I’ve been checking for ketones every day, and I’ve definitely been burning body-fat for energy. In spite of this, I’m heavier??

Admittedly all is not lost; I’m still 3 pounds lighter than I was 2 weeks ago, so that is a positive. But the ‘scales thing’ doesn’t quite add up. They say muscle weighs more than fat. Yes, I’ve been far more active over the last couple of weeks; but hardly in a ‘muscle-building’ kind of way. Am I dehydrated therefore retaining huge quantities of water? No, I drink a lot of water and top up regularly throughout the day.

My only assumption is that it has to be something to do with the food I am eating. Have I been doing anything differently this week? A short reply – yes.

I’ve been reading a lot about long-term carb-reduction. Examples include how First-Nations peoples such as Inuits survived almost exclusively on a diet of high levels of saturated fat & smaller quantities of protein (strangely enough, the body doesn’t get scurvy). Add to this, I’ve been reading blogs on things like ‘bulletproof coffee’ (apologies if you’re a fan, but this is REALLY not for me – my journey is about real food). In short, all these sources advocate upping your levels of saturated fat; which I’ve duly actioned.

So the one thing I’ve changed over the week, is adding additional saturates to things, e.g. stirring an extra tablespoon of butter into a sauce, when there is already some in there, and double cream to boot!

I’m firmly convinced that this is where my error lies. The additional fats are for long-term weight-maintenance i.e. when your body has lost all the weight. Only then do you need to up the calories, to stop you from wasting away & keep you steadily at your target-weight. I think I’ve somewhat lost sight of the fact that I’m in a weight-loss phase; I’m not a lean Eskimo, who requires a vast number of calories just to survive (yet). I sit behind a desk!!!

Yes, I’m convinced I’ve worked it out. I’ll just have to stop adding additional fat, and see if I can get back on track. Next week’s weigh-in will be a nerve-racking experience, that’s for sure.

So apart from my devastating results and probable humongous error;  how have I found this week?

Headaches still recurring, but with lower frequency. Slightly lower energy levels this week; but I expect this may have something to do with my ‘saturated fat overload’! Mood has also stayed on the grumpy side; but work has remained super-stressful, so cannot differentiate between the two.

Still thirsty and drinking a lot of water. The body-temperature thing seems less noticeable, but maybe I am just getting used to it. All in all, I am still highly motivated to continue and shall chalk this week’s setback down as a simple case of ‘you live, you learn…‘. I just hope I’m right; I certainly don’t want to go to all that effort, only to find I’m getting fatter!

Only time will tell. Feel free to check in on Week 3’s progress to see if I’m right!

Thanks for reading, and have a nice week; Adam.

Please note – as highlighted in the my first weekly weigh-in post, I hadn’t yet had the idea to write this blog when I started the diet. The first couple of ‘weekly reports’ are therefore retrospective; but as this was only a week ago, I more than remember how I felt! The results were naturally recorded aside from this blog, so no chance of variance there.

Enjoy the read, and with thanks, Adam.

Well, one week in. Just to remind you all, I started the ketogenic diet at 15 stone, 10 pounds. My goal is 12 and a half stone, by mid-March 2015. This means a target weight-loss of 2lb per week.

Week One’s target weight therefore? 15 stone, 8 pounds. Waistline measurement only once a month, so not this week.

I step onto the scales…

15 stone 6 pounds! I have done it. I breathe a sigh of relief. Weight-loss of 4lbs in the first week is fairly good going. I lost about 6lbs in the first week of doing the Atkins, but that was about 5 years ago, and I had a job that kept me on my feet all day. Now my job is desk-based, therefore pretty sedentary.

In short I am pleased.

How have I found the first week?

Physically speaking, my body has very much made me aware that a big change has taken place. I didn’t test for ketones until Wednesday morning, so that was 3 full days of not eating carbs. The keto-strips came up a dark purple, so I was in deep ketosis.

I seemed to arrive at this fairly quickly. I expect that if I’d have tested on Tuesday, I would have actually been in ketosis by then. Most of the literature states between 2-3 days for the body to adapt from burning glucose to producing ketones, so my timescale sounds about right.

Side-effects? I’ve had recurrent headaches, but again, the literature on ketosis says this is only natural. They weren’t particularly pleasant, but certainly bearable. I actually felt as if I had more energy than before; most of the books say you might feel listless, tired and weak. I have always known that my body does not respond to carbs well, so the heavy, bloated feeling of starch is a blessed relief as soon as it leaves the body.

Apparently my mood has been a little grumpier than usual. Work has been quite stressful of late, so it is difficult to differentiate between the two, but I suspect my fractiousness could be put down to my body responding to the big change.

Ketones detectable on the breath? A little, but I drink peppermint teat throughout the day so nothing unpleasant.

One big thing that I did notice, was my body temperature. This was not something that I actually measured, but I felt like a furnace!! I was constantly warm (not in a sweaty kind of way) but just felt as if I was emitting a lot of heat. Anyone who got near enough to me attested to this fact also.

I was also incredibly thirsty. I have been drinking a lot of water, but this is something that one should do on any diet, as the more water you drink; the less you retain (which is good for obtaining a more accurate read from the scales).  This was in no way a bad thing; just noticeable.

All in all, the week went very well. It has not been overly difficult; just different. All other diets (low fat, GI &tc) have all left me feeling incredibly hungry. LCHF has not., which is a real boon. If anything, you want to eat less, not more. The food has been pretty tasty and varied, as my ‘recipes’ will show.

Highly motivated therefore to continue week two. As before, wish me luck and thank you for reading,

A.

Please note – as highlighted in the my first weekly weigh-in post, I hadn’t yet had the idea to write this blog when I started the diet. The first couple of ‘weekly reports’ are therefore retrospective, but as it was only two weeks ago, I more than remember how I felt! The results were naturally recorded aside from this blog, so no chance for variance there.

Enjoy the read, and with thanks, Adam.

As I detailed in my earlier post The Great Fat Meltdown! Weight, Targets & the Point of All This, I have made the decision to shape up, slim down & become a healthier, fitter ‘me’. My key to doing this is the ketongenic diet or LCHF (low carb, high fat).

Every Sunday I shall mount the scales & report my weight on this blog. Waist measurement will also be taken once a month.

I hadn’t yet had the idea to write this blog when I first started the diet; so the first few ‘weekly reports’ are retrospective.

This post looks back 3 weeks to week 0, day 1; the first day of the diet (28th Sept 2014).

The following body-stats are my ‘start weight’ and width. Weight: 15 stone, 10 pounds. Waist circumference: 45 inches. Both pretty grim!!!

Target weight (unless that ends up being too skinny): 12 stone, 6 pounds. Waist circumference: no idea!!!! Whatever a 12.5 stone waist circumference looks like; and certainly out of the 40+ inch danger-zone.

I have been to the shops, filled the fridge with keto-friendly fare, and off-loaded whatsoever carb-loaded foodstuffs I had left onto family, friends and neighbours. Lucky them!

I am motivated, excited and feeling VERY MUCH in need of a diet. I hate my body shape. I could either ignore it & carry on avoiding the bathroom mirror for the rest of my life; or do something about it. I have chosen the latter.

Wish me luck!

A.