Keto/low carb question

[Bastiat]

Actual question in around 2 paragraphs, sorry for the wall

So, background since I think this is my first post here. A few years ago I decided I was just too fat. I was late 20s and had not infrequent chest pains even. starting point 5'10" 275lbs.

I didnt go nuts on any specific diet, I just did a heavy calorie restriction, took a multivitamin just in case for the sake of micros (which I actually stopped taking) and over the course of a year dropped to a low point of 165. maintained at about 170 over the last few years at 3000 kcal/day. By this I mean I eat generally whole food but also some other (admittedly) crap like icecream.

For the sake of general health, I thought I would take a look at replacing some of the more "pointless" calories in my usual diet with something that has more value. Not that, say, white rice is necessarily bad provided I have a decently balanced diet, but hey, might as well see whats out there.

Note: I am always skeptical of "fad" diets as well as high exclusion diets. Simple calorie restriction worked for weight loss for me even at probably 40% carbs.

So, what better way to look at ideas of replacing carb heavy ingredients than look at low carb or keto recipes. Looking into keto, I see that, rather than just being a calorie deficit masquerading as a novel diet, the whole point is about altering body chemistry away from carb metabolism toward fat metabolism. I thought I'd try it for a little bit just to see. while I havent done it too long (like 2 weeks, so I know its not long enough for "full benefits") it seems difficult to keep carb counts incredibly low while eating at a maintenance of 3000kcal and still get a decent variety of vegetables and such. Results notwithstanding, this seems pretty annoying to upkeep honestly and I've always also told people who ask about my own weight loss that the best diet is one thats sustainable.

But back to my actual question, So, IF keto diets are basing on being IN ketosis and ketosis is defined as using ketones instead of glucose and IF the ceiling on your carbs is quite low where you would be "kicked from" ketosis, I assume this would mean your body would attempt to revert to glucose. So, what happens on relatively low but not ketosis level carbs? as a simple example, a low carb paleo type diet? are energy levels lower than either a keto or ~40% carb?

Alternate more general wording: Does anyone know of any studies relating to the health benefits of specifically being IN nutritional ketosis vs simply eating less carbs/refined sugars etc. or a specific detriment to having moderate-low carb with higher fat (at least as compared to NK

[gbullock32]

Keto is simply a way of eating for those who prefer to eat that way; there are no real health benefits to it. There is nothing wrong with eating carbs, ice cream, rice, or any food in moderation.

[Plateauplower]

The benifits of deeper ketosis specifically related to dieting is simply increased satiation. It can make it easier for some to get by on lower calories with less hunger. The fiber intake can be removed from the carb count. I can eat several lbs of veg per day and remain in dietary ketosis as measured via blood. If satiation isn’t an issue, and you have 3000 cals / day to work with, why not just eat a balanced diet composed primarily of nutrient dense food. BTW, as long as you eat primarily nutrient dense foods including veg, fruit, nuts seeds, meat etc etc, you will likely be getting plenty of micronutrients and there isn’t anything wrong with including some ice cream etc if you can fit it. Some people prefer to eat that way even at higher calorie levels, if you don’t, then don’t do it.

[Bastiat]

If satiation isn’t an issue, and you have 3000 cals / day to work with, why not just eat a balanced diet composed primarily of nutrient dense food.

thanks for your answer. Really, this is what I was asking. Why should I specifically be in NK over just eating, lets just call it "low superfluous calorie" food? What i really couldnt seem to find was any information comparing a low carb healthy diet to a specifically nutritional keto diet. Most things seemed to be more about comparing standard american diets to low carb which led me to wonder why I would want to push the effort to actually hit NK.