# 12 Month Ketogenic Experiment



## dk8594 (Jan 17, 2018)

I’ve experimented over the past 12 months with a ketogenic diet and wanted to share some observations for anyone considering it or curious about its effects.  
In the beginning, I did a strict ketogenic diet.  80% fat, 20% protein 0% carbs.  The first 2-3 weeks absolutely sucked. I began registering in ketosis via piss strips in week 2, but  strength was down, energy was non-existent, muscles were flat.  Over that time I lost about 7lbs, but I’d attribute that primarily to water weight.    I switched it to a targeted carb diet of 80% fat, 15% protein, 5% carbs, with the carbs timed during and post-workout.

My observations
*Gym intensitity didn’t return to baseline until about month 4*- some people’s bodies may react differently than mine, but I didn’t feel like I was fuly keto adapted until much later than the 2-3 weeks you typically hear about.

*Calories in vs calories out still applies – *It’s still possible to gain fat on keto; just ask me how well eating entire jars of peanut butter worked for my waistline.  On the same token, it is possible to eat a lot less (see next point)

*Appetite suppression was amazing – *Went from a state of being hangry every two hours to a state of an , “oh, it’s been a couple of hours” I should probably eat.  Have gone as long as 10 hours without eating when work got crazy and never became manic like I would have done before.

*It’s extremely hard to eat a diet of 80% fat *– Even eating bacon, eggs, steak, etc. it’s extremely hard to get your macros to 80% fat since those items are high in protein as well.  Have had to rely heavily on oils and butter.  Excess protein knocked me out of ketosis and I had to let go of the 1g/lbs of body weight belief.

*Mental clarity improves* – I chalk this up to being able to focus on other things since I wasn’t in a constant hunt for food (see appetite suppression was amazing)

*Cholesterol wasn’t impacted* – No dramatic increase or decrease in baseline cholesterol. 

*Endurance was  insane*.  I never got the “out of gas” feeing and have been able to add a significant amount of volume to my training sessions without lowering intensity and cardio could go on indefinitely if it wasn’t so boring.

*Strength gains were correlated to caloric intake* – Not a big surprise here; if I ran a calorie deficit I didn’t gain.  If I ran a calorie surplus I did.
Other comments:  I’m 40 and on TRT with my total T in the high normal range.  Would I have gotten these results if I had the total t of a normal 40 yr old?  Probably not and I can’t really say whether training intensity would have returned to baseline if it wasn’t for the test.  I will point out that I’m on TRT in both the before and the after pics.  Another thing to point out is that my wife tried the diet.  Her observations were similar, but she had to stop due to it impacting her cycle. 

Hit me up with any questions.  All in all, it’s been a positive experience.


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## juuced (Jan 17, 2018)

were you able to get enough fiber?  take a fiber supp?  how was your digestion?

Thanks for sharing but I dont think this is for me.  I cant get my self to eat that much fat mentally.


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## dk8594 (Jan 17, 2018)

juuced said:


> were you able to get enough fiber? take a fiber supp? how was your digestion?
> 
> Thanks for sharing but I dont think this is for me. I cant get my self to eat that much fat mentally.



I had to supplement with fiber in the beginning as I figured things out, but once I introduced myself to avocados everything was fine.  Totally get if it's not for you.  It can be a real pain the ass to follow and until you get keto-adapted it sucks.   I had heard a lot about it and people either seemed to be religiously for it or religiously against it....decided I just needed to evaluate it for myself.  Hope this provides a more realistic set of expectations for those who are thinking about it.


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## motown1002 (Jan 17, 2018)

I tried this diet some time ago and it worked great.  Some lethargy issues at first, but add more fat and it seemed to go away.  The problem I had with it was that I didn't want to eat like that for the rest of my life, so when I introduced carbs back into my diet, which Im sure I didn't do right, I blew up like a balloon.  Im glad its working for you.  Looks like some good results.


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## Nitrous4me (Jan 18, 2018)

.. 4 months before returning to baseline intensity? I’m afraid that wouldn’t work for me. 

Glad and to see it worked for you because it obviously did. Great job


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## Flyingdragon (Jan 18, 2018)

Whats your blood sugars like?


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## dk8594 (Jan 18, 2018)

Flyingdragon said:


> Whats your blood sugars like?



Really good question, and admittedly not one I thought of as I was going through this since I was so focused on ketones.

I went back through my blood work. Looks like before the diet my glucose ranged from 77 to 92 mg/do. On keto it ranged from 80 to 85. I only do my blood once every 3 months so not a lot of data points but appears it didn't lower my blood sugar, but seemed to stabilize it.


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## Flyingdragon (Jan 18, 2018)

For those who may be Type 2, knowing how this diet effects blood sugar is critical.  They would have to go off their meds on a diet like this....


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## dk8594 (Jan 19, 2018)

Flyingdragon said:


> For those who may be Type 2, knowing how this diet effects blood sugar is critical.  They would have to go off their meds on a diet like this....



Agree 100%.  There are plenty of resources out there for anyone who is diabetic and interested in a ketogenic diet, but that's way out of my wheel house.


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## WyattWright53 (Jan 24, 2018)

I'm trying to get into this but finding it hard to make good tasting recipes without any sweet sauces. It seems like any sauce you buy in a can or jar has tons of sugar in it.


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## dk8594 (Jan 24, 2018)

WyattWright53 said:


> I'm trying to get into this but finding it hard to make good tasting recipes without any sweet sauces. It seems like any sauce you buy in a can or jar has tons of sugar in it.



Yeah, it may be hard to find a store bought sauce that isn't high in sugar. You may have to make your own. Plenty of sites out there with recipes.  

Here is a messed up thing I didn't mention though, and don't ask me the science behind it.  Even if I had something with a sugar substitute, and no sugar, it triggered something in my brain that stimulated my appetite just as much as if it had.


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## jrsgym (Jan 26, 2018)

Good work!! I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in December 2014. On a good bit of meds including levemir and humalog. POB suggested I look into keto diet so I'm looking for as much info as possible.
Thanks for sharing.


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## jbeard82 (Feb 4, 2018)

I’m on this diet right now.  Did you take any supplements at all?  It’s hard to find anything without carbs or sugary in it.


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## dk8594 (Feb 4, 2018)

jbeard82 said:


> I’m on this diet right now.  Did you take any supplements at all?  It’s hard to find anything without carbs or sugary in it.



Cool. Keep us up to date on how it goes. The only supplement I took was creatine, which I timed with workout/post workout carbs.


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## Rida (Feb 4, 2018)

If I may ask , why did u go 80% fat ? What was ur approach in defining ur protein and fat intake  ?


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## DarksideSix (Feb 4, 2018)

I actually started this diet along with intermittent fasting last week.  After about 5-6 days I started to feel like things were regulated. Was using test strips to see my Keto range and after 2 days on they were pretty decent. In the moderate to high range.  Ironically I fell off over the last 24 hours due to the big game tonight and all the tempting food. I could have held out but said **** I and caved. I’ll start over tomorrow.  Lol.  I did notice that after a week of no carbs I got a headache shortly after eating them. Probably due to sugar levels.  I was surprised that I got use to it that quickly as normally I’m a cranky ****er while trying to cut carbs.  I noticed within a day that I wasn’t as hungry but I was lethargic for a few days at first.  Surprisingly I found some decent recipes which has always been a key factor for me with any diets food has to taste good.  And yes, avocados are a big plus!


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## dk8594 (Feb 5, 2018)

DarksideSix said:


> Ironically I fell off over the last 24 hours due to the big game tonight and all the tempting food. I could have held out but said **** I and caved. I’ll start over tomorrow.  Lol.  I did notice that after a week of no carbs I got a headache shortly after eating them.



Glad it's going well for you and that you got regulated so quickly!  If it makes you feel any better, I caved last night too (and my stomach has been paying for it all day!) Just to give you a heads up, when you get fully adapted, you're going to stop registering on the piss strips.  Don't freak out. It's a good sign.  It means you're using them that you aren't excreting them in your urine anymore.


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## dk8594 (Feb 5, 2018)

Rida said:


> If I may ask , why did u go 80% fat ? What was ur approach in defining ur protein and fat intake  ?



I used two main sources: Lyle McDonald's The Ketogenic diet and another one that I bought on Amazon whose title I can't think of at the moment, but Lyle's was definitely the more scientific of the two.   I set 80% as my initial target based on the reading I did and I used two criteria to help me get dialed in:

1) If I was out of ketosis, increase my fat intake and decrease protein
2) If I ate a meal and felt hungry soon afterwards, increase fat and decrease protein

What I found was that I could venture as far down as 70% fat, but any further and I had significant decrease in my ketones.  I also found that if I had a high protein meal  it would trigger my appetite.   So if I had one steak, I'd finish it and almost  immediately want another.  If I had a quarter steak, butter, and avocadoes,(with the  same total calories as a whole steak) I was satiated.  It's definitely an individual thing,  I've heard of people going as low as 60% fat, and of people having different blood marker responses to the exact same meal.   I'd say play around with it.   Pick a starting point, if you aren't registering in ketosis or if you find yourself ravenously hungry, change your targets.


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## DarksideSix (Feb 9, 2018)

dk8594 said:


> I’ve experimented over the past 12 months with a ketogenic diet and wanted to share some observations for anyone considering it or curious about its effects.
> In the beginning, I did a strict ketogenic diet.  80% fat, 20% protein 0% carbs.  The first 2-3 weeks absolutely sucked. I began registering in ketosis via piss strips in week 2, but  strength was down, energy was non-existent, muscles were flat.  Over that time I lost about 7lbs, but I’d attribute that primarily to water weight.    I switched it to a targeted carb diet of 80% fat, 15% protein, 5% carbs, with the carbs timed during and post-workout.
> 
> My observations
> ...



How were you actually getting all your fats.  I know you said you relied a lot on oils but were you just cooking with them or what?  I’ve heard of guys actually just swallowing a tablespoon of olive oils before to make sure they got their fats in


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## dk8594 (Feb 9, 2018)

DarksideSix said:


> How were you actually getting all your fats.  I know you said you relied a lot on oils but were you just cooking with them or what?  I’ve heard of guys actually just swallowing a tablespoon of olive oils before to make sure they got their fats in



Yeah, I tried spoonfuls of oils.  It was f'ing gross!

I used a lot of mct oil, which is flavorless, but you have to build up a tolerance to, as well as quest mct powder, which is easier on the stomach. Both of these I would either mix in a protein shake or crystal light. I also ate a lot of salads with olive oil, cooked a lot of things in butter, and used heavy cream in my coffee.  

Are you back on the wagon?


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## Jin (Feb 9, 2018)

dk8594 said:


> Yeah, I tried spoonfuls of oils.  It was f'ing gross!
> 
> I used a lot of mct oil, which is flavorless, but you have to build up a tolerance to, as well as quest mct powder, which is easier on the stomach. Both of these I would either mix in a protein shake or crystal light. I also ate a lot of salads with olive oil, cooked a lot of things in butter, and used heavy cream in my coffee.



I'm surprised you didn't mention plain coconut oil. That's my go to fat source on keto. Tastes just fine by itself IMO.  

I remember the the first time I ate MCT oil........


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## dk8594 (Feb 9, 2018)

Jin said:


> I remember the the first time I ate MCT oil........



Yup! We all had that "first time " with the mcts. 

Coconut oil is a a good source too.  For some reason or another I was just never able to get into it.


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## DarksideSix (Feb 16, 2018)

dk8594 said:


> Yeah, I tried spoonfuls of oils.  It was f'ing gross!
> 
> I used a lot of mct oil, which is flavorless, but you have to build up a tolerance to, as well as quest mct powder, which is easier on the stomach. Both of these I would either mix in a protein shake or crystal light. I also ate a lot of salads with olive oil, cooked a lot of things in butter, and used heavy cream in my coffee.
> 
> Are you back on the wagon?



Yeah I’ve been back for almost 2 weeks.  Picked up some MCT oil to help with the fats.  I need to figure out how to get my digestive system on track cause I’ve been shutting my guts out!  Lol.


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## dk8594 (Feb 16, 2018)

DarksideSix said:


> Yeah I’ve been back for almost 2 weeks. Picked up some MCT oil to help with the fats. I need to figure out how to get my digestive system on track cause I’ve been shutting my guts out! Lol.



With MCTs, you can go from zero to shi&^ing your pants in about 5 mins! 

Quest makes an MCT powder that is easier on your digestive system. It contains a small number of carbs, which they use as a binder, but it may fit into what you're doing depending on how low you're going on carbs.


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