is Keto for me?

[gilly88]

Hi all.
for the last week have been doing twin peaks' carb cycling. gained 2lbs the day after my 'high day' which freaked me out but i think this is normal. i coped really well with the 'no carb' days (x3) where i ate at less than 25g carbs.
i have been lurking on the keto boards for ages trying to decide if its for me. since i felt OK on the no carb days i think i could do it, esp since i would be able to eat more fat on keto than u can on twin peaks'.
however, i feel like Keto maybe is too hardcore for me? as in, im not trying to be a bodybuilder or figure competitor or anything, just firm up and lose the love handles! im only about 10lbs from where i want to be and just want to drop body fat and inches, not a serious weight loss thing.

i am a 22y.o female, 5'6, 125lbs, about 23%bf according to my home scales.
my workouts look like this:
Mon: Pilates
Tues: lower body and back (legs: 6 exercises, 3 sets each, 10-15 reps relatively heavy. back: 3 exercises, 3 sets, 10 reps heavy)
Wed: Pilates
Thurs: chest, triceps (same reps/sets as back), and 45 minute Spin class
fri: pilates
Sat: biceps, shoulders (same reps/sets) and 45 minute squash game
Sun: rest

Do i need to add more cardio if I want to do Keto? is Keto right for me? at the moment i eat 1600/day but i wasnt losing on a 40prot/35carb/25fat diet so switched to carb cycling. now i want to know if i can get good fat loss with Keto!

i need someone to tell me whether i can achieve the same fantastic fat loss results i see others achieving!

thanks!!

[gilly88]

ps - am thinking of adding in a Plyo workout on the Monday or the THursday...

[CanuckTank]

I don't think your diet is the fault of what you are doing. Are you sure you want to be dieting at 125?

Thats seems like a decent weight for your height and you could be gaining valuable muscle which is heavier than fat and giving you the impression that you are not losing fat when you are actaully gaining muscle.

[gilly88]

Originally Posted by CanuckTank

I don't think your diet is the fault of what you are doing. Are you sure you want to be dieting at 125?

Thats seems like a decent weight for your height and you could be gaining valuable muscle which is heavier than fat and giving you the impression that you are not losing fat when you are actaully gaining muscle.

i don't think so, only b/c have been at this weight for months now and my clothes arent fitting any looser.
what i really mean is, can keto help someone like me to lose some fat? or is it only for harcore bodybuilders etc? i'd really like to try it...but don't want to gain fat on it, or something...
thanks!

[TheAsianPlayboy]

if you really want to lose body fat then go for it. Just make sure you're doing it correctly. Do your research. There's lots of information around here. Read up before you try it.

[MrLovrLovr]

Possibly you are not eating enough ?

on Keto weight training is a must and cardio is kinda not necessary ..

[gilly88]

Originally Posted by MrLovrLovr

Possibly you are not eating enough ?

on Keto weight training is a must and cardio is kinda not necessary ..

Thanks all!
I got the 1600 number from bmr calculators-but I don't know why not losing since that's a hefty defecit in itself....tbh I probs cheat more than I should.one reason I want to do keto cos I find myself less hungry and less craving carbs on non carb days.
So if I lift three times/week is that enough? I do legs onecday, then split upper into my other two days...along with some pilates and say 2x cardio(can't live without some cardio!) would that be sufficient?
Keeping in mind I don't want to bulk, or get big, just drop fat.
As I understand it I'd eat approx
50-60fat/30-40prot/10carb. Do I just use 1600 cals and go from there, or do I do the whole 1g prot per lb of bodyweight or lean bodyweight? Seems there's lots of different opinions on how to get started?
Many thanks you guys are really helpful!!

[MASSter]

Originally Posted by gilly88

Thanks all!
I got the 1600 number from bmr calculators-but I don't know why not losing since that's a hefty defecit in itself....tbh I probs cheat more than I should.one reason I want to do keto cos I find myself less hungry and less craving carbs on non carb days.
So if I lift three times/week is that enough? I do legs onecday, then split upper into my other two days...along with some pilates and say 2x cardio(can't live without some cardio!) would that be sufficient?
Keeping in mind I don't want to bulk, or get big, just drop fat.
As I understand it I'd eat approx
50-60fat/30-40prot/10carb. Do I just use 1600 cals and go from there, or do I do the whole 1g prot per lb of bodyweight or lean bodyweight? Seems there's lots of different opinions on how to get started?
Many thanks you guys are really helpful!!

Simply put.....you do not have enough testosterone in your body to "get big". Don't be afraid to lift heavy weight. There are tons of women with amazing figures lifting heavy. You are not gonna get the "bodybuilder" look.

[gilly88]

Originally Posted by MASSter

Simply put.....you do not have enough testosterone in your body to "get big". Don't be afraid to lift heavy weight. There are tons of women with amazing figures lifting heavy. You are not gonna get the "bodybuilder" look.

Ok-I just wanted to know if this diet is also for those of us without aspirations to be body or figure competitor, ie just to lose fat.
Based on the info re:my diet and xercise above, am I doing enough weightlifting and cardio?
And how should I set up my calories and macros?
Thanks! Sorry to ask lots of ques I just want to get this right!

[Atavis]

Originally Posted by gilly88

Ok-I just wanted to know if this diet is also for those of us without aspirations to be body or figure competitor, ie just to lose fat.

Yes, it is.

[rbdwarf]

Originally Posted by gilly88

Ok-I just wanted to know if this diet is also for those of us without aspirations to be body or figure competitor, ie just to lose fat.

I'm not trying to be a body builder or a figure competitor. I lift less in a week than most of these guys do in 20 minutes. Keto, for me, is a far healthier way to eat. Even without major lifting I'm still dropping 2-3lbs per week. So yeah, if you're happy eating low carb then give it a try.

--
Rob

[gilly88]

Originally Posted by rbdwarf

I'm not trying to be a body builder or a figure competitor. I lift less in a week than most of these guys do in 20 minutes. Keto, for me, is a far healthier way to eat. Even without major lifting I'm still dropping 2-3lbs per week. So yeah, if you're happy eating low carb then give it a try.

--
Rob

thanks that was really helpful.
May I ask how u set up your daily cals and macros?
I'm thinking 1600/day with a 50/40/10 split- is that a keto split?

[floridagirl]

Keep in mind that when you're carb cycling, on the no-carb days you still have plenty of glycogen stored in your liver and muscles, so you are NOT in ketosis. So, just because you felt good on the no-carb days doesn't mean that you'll necessarily feel good on keto.

[rbdwarf]

Originally Posted by gilly88

thanks that was really helpful.
May I ask how u set up your daily cals and macros?
I'm thinking 1600/day with a 50/40/10 split- is that a keto split?

Fitday tells me that I'm averaging 65/30/5 but when you remove the fibre I'm closer to 3% carbs (I average about 15-17 grams/day after fibre). My calories range between 2300-2600 and that seems to work for me. I'll have to drop them as my weight drops but that will be pretty easy.

50/40/10 is a pretty borderline split. I'd say to start, aim for the traditional 65/30/5 and once your body is adapted to keto then you can play around with the numbers.

Good luck

--
Rob

[MrLovrLovr]

Your fat intake should be 15-20g above your protein intake in grams so about 68-F/27-P/5-Carbs