"Healing" Keto Diet...Here we go!

[GoalGetter28]

I have been challenged to do a 90 day, ketogenic diet that also targets autoimmune issues. If it works I will do my best to stick to it. This was created based on my personal goals. If you look up autoimmune paleo diet, it is similar to this but with the ketogenic aspect as well. I ask that you stay supportive here. I don't want to argue about this plan. It was created with someone who does this professionally. There have been some adjustments made to the "standard protocol". I will change it if need be. Suggestions as I go along are cool but please be positive.

Here are my goals (some of which will take longer than 90 days) and hopes for this plan:

Weight: Get under 200 (haven't weighed this since early high school), then 170lbs. Keep as much muscle as possible. My body has been maintaining between 215-225 for months. I'm at 221 today.

Lifting: Have enough energy to complete 4x low reps/high weight lifting workouts without feeling like death warmed over. I anticipate I may feel like that the first couple of weeks of this diet and will have to hang in there.

Cardio: Be able to continue hiking longer distances and do fun cardiovascular activities. Fun activities include swimming, yoga, basketball, walking with my friends, dog and girlfriend, doing activities with the youth I work with.

[B]Stop using sugar and food in general for emotional eating/B]: this one has been hard for me and has slowed my fat loss progress. Though, after I overeat (haven't binged in years though) I can lift a lot more. It's definately something I need to break. I have way too much body fat still.

Help deminish and perhaps aliviate physical/emotional ailments: So here's a list
-I have had joint pain since I was pretty young (since 10). Paleo diet seems to have helped it but it's still there.
-Yeast aka candida overgrowth. This is gross and I'm not going to go into detail but I have several symptoms of this.
-IBS and acid reflux symptoms
-Sudden, horrible muscle aches and cramps no matter what I do. No matter how much I use different suppliments, take in potassium, drink water etc.
-Severe TMJ accompanied by facial nerve pain
-Mood swings including depression and anxiety.
-Pretty bad seasonal allergies
-Strong carb cravings and a difficulty stoping eating carbs once I start.
-I've been on the "pre-diabetic" border for a while
-I suddenly get fatigued and tired. I feel as if I have to sleep and can't keep going.

The good thing is that I have already managed to lose a little over 100 pounds by eating intuitively and following mostly "paleo" diet. I haven't counted calories on a regular basis. From time to time I plugged in my food to make sure I was still getting enough protein. So, I hope to carry this success into this next phase.

The plan goes like this:
-Eat about 1hr before and within 1hr after lifting and/or hiking.
-Pre workout-1 cup of black coffee with coconut oil. I can have a second "cup" of iced coffee during long distance hikes. Though tea is better.
-Put food into myfitnesspal to look at macronutrients without focusing on how many calories I'm eating (for now). This is a mental thing. I understand the benefits of calorie counting.
-Stick to foods list (which i have included below) and no carb ups
-Weight lift 3-4x/wk focusing on heavier weights for less reps. I'm going to stick to my current split but change the amount of weight and reps.
-Continue hiking and other fun physical activities
-Weigh the 1st of the month only
-Spend some time each day meditating or relaxing in a quiet and calm atmosphere. This helps me stay focused. Plus, as a therapist I teach mindfulness/mediation skills so I figure I should practice what I preach

Foods list:
-Meats and seafood accept for pork because it shows up as an irritant on blood alergy tests. I am supposed to go for grass fed and organic if possible.
-Animal fats (again except for pork) I love bacon so this may be a bit difficult.
-Eggs (the cage free, happily fed, kind). Limit 2-3 per day. Some people have issues with egg whites so I will stick to yolks if it bothers me down the line.
-Vegetables (except for "nightshades" which are things like tomatoes, eggplant, white potatoes etc. and starches)
-Grassfed butter from happy cows who get to roam freely in the pasture
-Olive and coconut oil
-Bone and vegetable broth
-Most teas
-Most spices
-Peacans during hiking (This is one nut that hasn't bothered me in the past that I like. It also has low/no net carbs. The protocol says no nuts but we agreed I need something for this length of time. I'm not going to eat oil by the spoonful or try to carry a steak lol and jerky usually has too many additives. If I can find some super applicable jerky then I'll use that too/instead.)


The "no" list looks like this:
-No fruit
-No starches
-No "nightshades" the things I listed above as well as peppers and spicy foods
-No spices or teas made from nightshades and seeds
-No grains
-No sugars or artificial sweeteners
-No citrus
-No nuts or seeds except for the exception above
-No soy

So after the first month, I am supposed to pay attention to see how the coffee, eggs, butter and pecans effect me. If my symptoms persist, then I cut those out too. We'll see.
The other thing that was reiterated is that this doesn't necessarily mean I will have to follow such a strict diet forever. After my ailments have dicipated or left completely, I can start adding things like sweet potatoes and fruit back to see what happens.

[GoalGetter28]

Well, this is the official first day on this diet. I had some Mexican food and some sweets yesterday. Today I stuck to the protocol pretty well. I'm noticing that I have a bit of a headache today. its similar to the headache I usually get when eating very low carb. I also had to end a romantic relationship today which was difficult. Anyway, let's get on with the food and exercise.

Workout: legs and abs

Food:
– 2 ounces raw pecans
– Coffee with coconut oil
– Two chicken thighs that were 10 ounces total, cauliflower with butter
– 12 ounces of New York strip, okra fried in 2 tablespoons of olive oil
– Two baby carrots

Total calories – 2154
Fat – 154 g
Proteins – 174 g
Carbs – 20-12 g of fiber equals eight net

I ate when I was hungry and stopped when I was full while trying to pay attention to macros

[lochinvar76]

I had a friend who suffered from a serious candida infection. It spread over much of her arms and was terrible. I can understand not wanting to go in depth on it, really. She did pretty much what you are, switching to a keteogenic diet and it took only a few short weeks for it to get better. In about a month it was entirely gone, so I think you're on the right track here! Best of luck on your endeavor.

[aaaaaaaaaachooo]

I think it's awesome that you have a plan and that you are sticking to it.
Most do not.
Congrats on losing over 100lbs - I as well have done the same, so I understand the journey.

The only suggestion I would have is incoporating a carb refeed day "once in awhile".
"Since muscle glycogen is the main source of energy for anaerobic exercise such as weight training, we cannot simply deplete all stores while working out and not fill them back up. If that does happen, be rest-assured that the body WILL use protein for fuel then." (This won't happen if carb reloading)

We want protein to be used for muscle repair, and the fat intake for energy. Carb up days can be extremely beneficial. Your muscles will appreciate this, and reward you with a huge pump, until glycogen storages are depleted once again throughout the week.
Personally, I plan on doing carb ups once a week, b/c I'm going balls out lifting weights. and yes, I'm "cutting".

I'm not saying carb up right now. Give it a couple weeks. Listen to your body. Carb-up.

As the HodgeTwins would say.......All of this is just advice...........

[GoalGetter28]

I think it's awesome that you have a plan and that you are sticking to it.
Most do not.
Congrats on losing over 100lbs - I as well have done the same, so I understand the journey.

The only suggestion I would have is incoporating a carb refeed day "once in awhile".
"Since muscle glycogen is the main source of energy for anaerobic exercise such as weight training, we cannot simply deplete all stores while working out and not fill them back up. If that does happen, be rest-assured that the body WILL use protein for fuel then." (This won't happen if carb reloading)

We want protein to be used for muscle repair, and the fat intake for energy. Carb up days can be extremely beneficial. Your muscles will appreciate this, and reward you with a huge pump, until glycogen storages are depleted once again throughout the week.
Personally, I plan on doing carb ups once a week, b/c I'm going balls out lifting weights. and yes, I'm "cutting".

I'm not saying carb up right now. Give it a couple weeks. Listen to your body. Carb-up.

As the HodgeTwins would say.......All of this is just advice...........

Thanks for the support and input! I agree with you about the carb ups. I have to wait until the candida growth goes away to do a carb up even if I stuck with the paleo setup (yams, squashes, bananas etc) bc the candida yeast feed off of sugar/starch. It could take the full 90days or longer for that to happen

After talking to my friend again I'm going to be eating some nuts everyday and pay attention to how my stomach does. It's very hard on my budget to eat so strictly. That should help with lifting and strength if I get more fats and calories in.

[GoalGetter28]

I had crazy sugar cravings and was constantly hungry. Stuck to the food plan though. Been emotional so that didn't help ****. Going to lift tomorrow so ill feel better.

Did some walking today

1lb (when raw) Cooked ground beef with portabellas, broccoli and garlic and 1/4lb (when raw) ground lamb

2 chicken thighs baked

5oz macadamias (I didn't realize the calories and fat in these! Need to eat meat or veggies when I'm really hungry bc I can pack these away)

Calories:2711
Fat:215
Pro:178
Carb: 27-15 fiber=12 net

[GoalGetter28]

Well I didn't count macros today because I had to navigate eating at a work conference. It was at a beautiful location and I managed to stay away from foods that were on the no list. I had way too much caffeine though. I also had coffee at like 6p bc I needed some energy for my workout. I usually work out in the AM so I don't think my body was used to it.

Workout: 30 min walk with a friend around the grounds of this beautiful hotel. Also back abs and biceps workout. I also did a little bit of yoga at the end. Feel much better after working out.

Food:
Coffee with coconut oil

1/2c pecans

Tuna, olive oil and greens

Salad, olives, chicken breast with butter, couple cups of iced tea and mug of coffee

More coffee

Prime rib, broccoli with butter

[GoalGetter28]

Today was odd and a little emotional. Wasnt as hungry today. Tomorrow is a 5mi (one way) hike that is one of the steepest in the area. Can't wait! Hope I make it to the top.

Exercise: went for 30min walk w friends

Food:

Coffee w coconut milk

3 eggs w butter and mushrooms

11oz sirloin, 2 orders of broccoli w butter

1/2 avocado

Totals:
1558 cal
Fat: 113
Prot:117
Carbs: 29-19 fiber=10 net

[GoalGetter28]

So we ended up doing 6hrs of actual hiking time for about 8 total miles with a 2000ft and some change incline. It was 85 degrees in the desert and 70s as we got higher. On the way down, I hurt my already slightly messed up knee, ran out of water with 2hrs left to trailhead (because I had to move really slow). I was badly dehydrated and had some symptoms of heat exhaustion. With all that said, I had fun and was thankful for a guy who filled up my water bottle and gave me an ace bandage for my knee. Two of my quicker friends brought me Gatorade and water w 10min left. I chugged that all and then felt so hungry. So i ate carbs, ones I'm not allergic to. Back on track tomorrow with the keto. Bc despite the dehydration, I was able to continue with a surprising amount if energy and no blood sugar issues, even after post workout feast.

According to fit day I still burned like 3k calories.

Workout: 6hrd of hiking time and 7 hrs total

Food:
Eggs with veggies, butter, coffee with coconut oil

Nuts, burger patty and a little avocado.

Gatorade

Roast beef, veggies, potato pancakes, apple sauce, chocolate dipped, grain free macaroon

Totals:

3315 calories
186g fat
135g carbs-20 fiber=115g carbs
115g protein(a little low but I'm full and overeating triggers binges. Will make up for it tomorrow after weights!)