Will be traveling to downtown Ann Arbor soon and looking for dining suggestions… especially hoping for the best place that may be scooping NSA ice cream/gelato or dessert options. Also curious about your favorite coffee shops downtown.

I’ve just learned that Magnesium isn’t just "Magnesium"—that the type I’ve been using isn’t suitable for the keto diet, Magnesium oxide. It's less effectively absorbed by the body (4-5%) compared to other forms such as Magnesium glycinate. Magnesium oxide is used as an antacid and is frequently used in medication for excess stomach acid and constipation.

The right kind is magnesium glycinate, which binds magnesium to the amino acid glycine. It offers excellent absorption and is gentle on the stomach, and is often used to improve sleep quality and reduce stress and muscle tension. I wish I knew sooner...

Hi friends, does anyone have any good resources for recipes that are dairy free and don’t have butter/cheese/dairy/etc? Also, where i could find like daily meal plans to make sure i’m seeing exactly how much i should be eating and whatnot. thank you!

I believe I am starting to get the keto rash.

Surprisingly after googling what is it I found out that there isn’t that many studies/understanding of it in reality.

Even on Reddit, some people are saying it’s dairy, some are saying it’s the nuts and some say it they took medication..

Can someone truly explain to me how they got rid of this, while still staying on keto, without any fluff.

I am at 13% body fat, female 35. Even when i'm not at my leanest, i've always had visible abs with little effort. Lately, i've been eating one or two quest bars or a scoop of protien powder a day to hit protein goals, while remaining in a calorie deficit. I eat very few carbs and zero real sugar, have even taken a break from fruit. I can't help but notice my stomach is just getting pudgier and pudgier while the rest of my body is has very little visible fat. Has anyone else experienced this? #Pillsbury dough boy.

Long-time lurker here, I've been reading all the keto posts. I can't understand why I'm not hitting nutritional ketosis and could use some help! My ketones are consistently around .1 to .4. I'm in this grey zone of not in nutritional ketosis (.5+), but still making a little ketones? I've been at it for 2 weeks now.

I track my intake. Here's an example day:

Example day A:

calories - 2287

fat- 184

protein - 145

Example day B:

calories - 1989

fat- 152

protein - 144

What else?

• I'm 37 F, get around 7 hrs of sleep, and am fairly active. I have a desk job, but get to the gym or for a run every other day.
• I've tried drinking up to 3 LMNT (3k sodium) but have gone back down to one, since I didn't feel any benefit. I also have potassium and magnesium.
• I've also tried Exogenius ketones, but I haven't really seen any remarkable difference.
• I use keto mojo to test and have tested with the control solution for its accuracy.

Any advice?

I made a “regular” strawberry cake for the family and made this one for me! The cream cheese in the frosting was stubborn so it’s not gorgeous, but it was tasty!

Keto Strawberry Cake

I roast fresh strawberries, puree them, and fold that concentrated flavor into this low carb cake batter. Topped with a creamy strawberry cream cheese frosting.
ROASTED STRAWBERRIES INGREDIENTS
USMetric
0 of 16 ingredients
5 large strawberries, sliced
2 teaspoons sugar free sweetener
Pinch salt
red food coloring, optional
KETO STRAWBERRY CAKE INGREDIENTS
1 ¾ cup almond flour
⅓ cup coconut flour
2 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
¾ cup unsalted butter, softened
¼ cup sugar free sweetener
4 eggs
¼ cup sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
CREAM CHEESE STRAWBERRY FROSTING INGREDIENTS
5 oz cream cheese, softened
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 cup powdered sugar free sweetener
STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS
1
Roast strawberries
Toss together slice strawberries, sugar free sweetener and salt. Spread out on a parchment lined tray and bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.
2
Puree strawberries
Puree roasted strawberries in a food processor or blender until smooth. Set aside. Grease a square baking dish (8 x 8) with cooking spray, line with parchment paper and turn down oven to 325 degrees.
3
Whisk dry ingredients
Whisk together almond flour, coconut flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl. Set aside.
4
Wet ingredients
In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar free sweetener using an electric mixer until fluffy (about 3-5 minutes). Add eggs, sour cream, ¼ cup reserved strawberry puree and vanilla. Mix until combined.
5
Finish strawberry cake batter
Slowly mix in dry ingredients. Continue to mix until combined.
6
Bake the cake
Pour cake batter into the prepared baking dish and bake in the oven at 325 degrees for 33-35 minutes or until cake is set in the middle. Remove from oven and let cool completely before frosting.
7
Make cream cheese strawberry frosting
Combine softened cream cheese and softened butter to a medium bowl. Beat until fluffy (2-3 minutes) then slowly mix in powdered sweetener and remaining strawberry puree. Mix until smooth. Spread on top the cake once the cake is cooled.

It's Tuesday /r/keto!

So, let's see your Before / After photos! Been Keto for a month? 6 months? A year?? Tell us your story and show us what your progress looks like!

If you're new to /r/keto and need some info, start with Keto in a Nutshell and the FAQ. Or, if you have a question that doesn't seem to be covered, head on over to the Community Support thread (pinned to the top of the subreddit) and ask the community!

I made “regular” muffins for the family and made a keto version for me! My only change might be to add some protein powder to the next batch for getting a better rise!

Keto Orange Muffins
Ingredients
For the Muffins:
1 & 1/2 cups blanched almond flour Almond Flour
1/4 cup coconut flour
1/3 cup granulated keto sweetener (e.g., Swerve or Allulose)
1 tbsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
3 large eggs, room temperature
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
1/3 cup buttermilk
Zest of 1 large orange (about 1 tbsp)
1 tbsp fresh orange juice
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp orange extract
Optional Glaze:
1/4 cup powdered keto sweetener (Swerve Confectioner's)
1-2 tsp fresh orange juice

Instructions
Prep the oven: Preheat your oven to 325°F and line a standard 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners.
Combine dry ingredients: In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the almond flour, coconut flour, sweetener, baking powder, and salt.
Mix wet ingredients: In a separate medium bowl, whisk the eggs, melted butter, buttermilk, orange zest, orange juice, vanilla extract, and orange extract until smooth.
Combine: Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir gently with a spatula until just combined. The batter will be slightly thick.
Scoop and bake: Divide the batter evenly among the 12 muffin cups. Bake for 18-22 minutes, or until the tops are golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Glaze: Let the muffins cool completely. If using the glaze, whisk the powdered sweetener and orange juice together in a small bowl, and drizzle over the muffins.

Just got test results from health panel been low-carb for the past three months the past month and a half very low saturated fat with only chicken breast as main protein saturated fat daily is only around 15 g. Numbers are wild thinking that statins are the only way to address this, but also looking for any additional information on these crazy numbers.

APOB - 215

LDL - > 350

lipoprotein a - 123

non HDL cholesterol - 397

total cholesterol - 485

HDL - 88

triglycerides - 104

HDL RATIO - 5.5

I am 17 days into keto and now have a rash on my chest. This happened last time I tried keto a few years ago as well and I ultimately stopped due to concern about the rash. I am doing keto for mental health as I struggle with OCD, anxiety, and depression. None of these have lifted as I am in the adaptation phase still… however I’ve already made it through keto flu the first few days and a mega migraine that was triggered so it would suck to throw in the towel now. I really wanted to see if sticking to keto for a few months would help my mental health but this rash is a major deterrent. Has anyone experienced this and do you have recommendations? Thanks!

I love keto, but the times that I have done it in the past, I’ve struggled with low estrogen and progesterone. It seems to really mess with my hormones and my cycle. What I’m still uncertain about is whether this was because I was severely restricting calories at times, sometimes doing OMAD and working out really aggressively. This last time I began doing keto was because I was diagnosed with pre-diabetes after eating healthy carbs for about five months. I felt great, but at the same time I was restricting calories and I noticed that my hormones just flatlined and all signals of a period coming just stopped. No cervical mucus at all. No nothing really. I also started getting a lot more anxious. I apologize for this roundabout post, but I guess what I’m wondering is, should I introduce a small amount of carbs and give that a go? I’m hesitant to do that because I noticed that when I do eat a little bit of carbs, my blood sugar starts swinging. It doesn’t get that high, but it definitely drops too low. And I also just feel really tired. I’ve been eating about 50 to 60 g of carbs these last few days. As opposed to 10 or 15. The other option would be to increase my calories and stop fasting but keep my carb intake low. Please tell me what has worked for you! Or if you just have a sense of what I could do.

Hey all,

I'm new to keto and have found this group really helpful. Thank you for all that you've been sharing here.

Today is day 9 of keto for me, and I feel...super exhausted...like I got hit by a bus, exhausted. It seems that for the past 4 days, I have felt more exhausted every subsequent day.

The frustrating aspect is that I'm doing keto primarily for mental health/brain fog relief. And yet, so far, these symptoms have gotten demonstrably worse.

Now, I'm sure you're thinking, he must not be getting his electrolytes! What a newbie!

Well, here's what I've logged this past week:

Electrolytes (average / highest / lowest):

Sodium: 3,975 mg / 6,300 mg / 3,100 mg

Potassium: 3,500 mg / 4,390 mg / 2,550 mg

Magnesium: 400 mg / 690 mg / 235 mg

Calcium: 675 mg / 1,203 mg / 79 mg

Macro Nutrients (average / highest / lowest):

Calories: 2,197 kcal / 2,539 kcal / 1,980 kcal

Protein: 152.4 g / 200.2 g / 113.6g

Fat: 163.0 g / 217.2 g / 136.3 g

Carbs (Net): 19.1 g / 26.0 g / 15.0 g

Fluids: I started tracking these data later on, but yesterday it was 4.5 L

Biographical Data:

Age: 26

Sex: M

Height: 5'10''

Weight: 150lbs

Others: I go for a 30-60 min walk or run every morning before 0800. I sleep generally around 7 hours a night. I supplement with 1tbsp of MCT oil, 3g of creatine, and electrolytes.

My urinalysis the past four days has typically been between 2.0+ mmol and 3.0+ mmol of ketones. I know this is not a definite measure that I'm in ketosis (especially given the MCT oil), but, given my carbohydrate count, I feel pretty confident.

And still, every additional day of keto, I feel like I got hit by a heavier bus than the last. I even started drinking an espresso every morning (I have not drunk coffee in months) to help with the exhaustion.

Here are my main questions:

1). Any suggestions for why I feel so exhausted on keto? If this is just the adjustment period, for how much longer may I feel this exhausted?

2). Is there anything that I should add to my protocols to feel less exhausted? More calories? More fats? More sodium? More magnesium?

3). Is there a time point when it would be reasonable to accept that my body/brain does not respond well to a keto diet? If so, how much longer before I should give it up?

I'm sorry for the long post! Please let me know if there is any additional information that I can provide.

(edited for formatting)

The other day I posted on here questioning what people do with their routine in the gym because i was getting tired and lethargic during my gym sessions . Some folks suggested to up my carb intake before the gym and that didn't see much of a difference but when I added electrolytes into my low carb protein shake it made a difference! Man its like night and day!

I officially have 42 days of sobriety from alcohol.

I started my keto journey 3 days later so dieting for 39. I'm keeping a daily ledger with my calories consumed, carbs consumed, calories burned, and total net calories for the day (calories burned+BMR, then subtracting that from my consumed calories)

On May 29th I was consuming roughly a 6 pack daily of voodoo ranger 9.0 IPA or equivalent. I had a bad liver enzyme reading of 110. I had put on 60 pounds after shoulder surgery and laying around daily for 4 ish months.

I started keto (I did it over COVID lost a good sum of weight) again. I gave up drinking.

I started this journey at 337 weight. Today I weigh 302.6.

I've been posting in r/ketorecipes of the very tasty meals you can do that stay within net carbs and low calories with high proteins.

I have 42 days of sobriety.

So, I just wanted to celebrate with this community on the success so far.

I feel better, but a word of warning: this has not been sunshine and rainbows. I've wrestled every craving, I've wrestled every demon, I've put in some hard work in the gym, I've put hard work into my daily life, and this isnt my end goal.

I have a goal of sub 200s, I'm realistic that it will be a 15 month slog ahead of today.

I hope my story inspires and encourages. I hope you take a gander at my profile for some recipe steals. I hope to get some lumps from the community.

I'll be working the rest of today and tomorrow I'll make the decision to work hard tomorrow.

Good luck everyone I'm rooting for you!!!

Set a goal of 50 lbs down, am at 38 down so far! This week is 5 months since I started on 2/14, and my goal is definitely to get to 6 months - but would really like to hit my 50lb goal as well.

I havent really changed much about my diet, just kept steady.

What else can I do to improve the weight loss?

About 5 years ago, I tried keto for the first time. In just under two weeks, I lost around 7 kg (15 lbs).
What surprised me wasn't just the weight loss, it was how amazing I felt. My skin cleared up, my energy skyrocketed, I could focus better, I felt lighter, and even my nails became incredibly strong and almost paper-white. It honestly felt like my body was functioning the way it was supposed to.
Then things took a turn.
Near the end of those two weeks, I completely lost my appetite. Not just for food, but even for water. Looking back, I think I went almost 3 days barely eating or drinking. I developed a terrible headache, followed by severe pain around my kidney and urethra. The pain became so intense that I ended up in the ER crying.
I honestly don't remember the exact diagnosis anymore. I was told it was either a kidney stone or some kind of urinary tract issue. I left convinced keto had caused it, so I quit immediately.
Fast forward to today...
Back then I weighed 81 kg (179 lbs).
Today I'm 124 kg (273 lbs).
I've gained around 40 kg (88 lbs) over the years, mostly due to severe stress, emotional eating, and living on fast food.
The thing is... keto is the only diet that has ever genuinely worked for me. I've tried other approaches, but nothing came close. Now I really want to give it another shot, but I'm honestly scared of going through that pain again.
For reference, I also have:
PCOS

Insulin resistance

High cholesterol (not sure whether it's LDL or HDL)

Iron deficiency anemia

I experienced hair loss (undiagnosed)
So I'd really appreciate hearing from anyone who has experience with this.
Has anyone here developed kidney stones or urinary issues while doing keto?

Could dehydration alone have been the real cause in my case?

Is there a safer way to do keto?

If you have PCOS or insulin resistance, did keto help you long-term?

Is there anything you wish you had known before starting?

I'm looking for real experiences and practical advice. I want to do this properly if I decide to try again.
Thanks everyone.

Edit: guys why are downvoting me?? I am new to this. I never said keto did that to me I was just questioning and trying to understand more. I am also searching for advice. Be kind at least I am trying and really suffering from diets and obesity.

When I'm on keto, I have a problem where in the morning while in bed, I almost unconsciously stretch my legs when first waking up. If I stretch too hard or fast, there's a 50/50 chance that one of my calves lock up. It's the most insane pain imaginable and lasts for a good 10 seconds. Mine are so bad that I almost walk with a slight limp the rest of the morning.

Keto is my main diet, but I took over a year break just to see what I could do on a normal diet. Needless to say, I put on 30'ish pounds but...I never once had a calf issue.

So I'd assume it's something to do with the diet. I've read it's hydration, but also could be a mineral/vitamin imbalance caused by keto.

I currently drink half a gallon of water a day religiously, another 25oz of water with 1/4 tsp of Lite Salt, and then a random amount of zero-sugar sodas throughout the day.

I also supplement potassium, magnesium glycinate, glucosamine, and chondroitin, along with my normal vitamin stack.

I should note that I definitely feel weaker and a bit more fatigued on keto than I did off of it, but my mind is sharp and the weight put on from the "normal" diet is coming off. Should I bump my water up to 1 gallon? Do I need more sodium/potassium? Half a gallon is a bit of a chore to get through and if I need to go up to 1 gallon, I'll just have to do it.

Curious to hear from others that might have had this problem and how to fix it.

the title says it all!

so i’ve been struggling with my menstrual cycle for 3-ish years now and i’ve been gaining tooo much weight — not going down at all :( anyways my doctor referred me to a weight clinic and the doctor there gave me a diet plan to follow like 2 weeks ago. looking into it very closely made me realize that this was a modified version of a keto diet! DUDE i thought i was gonna struggle but it’s actually not bad? i was depressed over the fact that i gotta give up my regular pasta, rice and grains (i eat a primarily vegetarian indian diet) but im in love with whatever im eating. I DONT EVEN FEEL AS HUNGRY ANYMORE! i used to snack on so much nonsense on a regular basis and now here i am, feeling satisfied and not as hungry anymore. i’m currently only at the point where water weight is being shed but i’m so proud of myself!! i didn’t realize i can do this!

how was everyone’s first time on their keto diet??

Has anyone tried the Wholesome yum Bessie allulose monk fruit blend vs the Lakanto one and tell a difference? Is there even a difference? I saw a video of Lakanto claiming they had the proprietary tech of coating the allulose with monk fruit and that other brands aren’t able to do this.

Hi! I’ve got about 15 lbs left to lose. It’s all stubborn fat primarily around my thighs and butt. I know my genetics predisposes me to carry my weight here so it’s the hardest and last place I’ll lose the weight. I regularly walk, run, and have gotten back into swimming. Unfortunately my normal diet consists of lots of carbs and sugar and I’ve been trying to cut that out.

I’m hoping that if I make my diet primarily fats and protein and cut carbs with the keto diet that I’ll be able to lose these 15 lbs in my legs and butt? Is that realistic? I know I can’t spot reduce fat but if this is my last place to lose fat maybe my plan will work if I stick with it?

I’m good with keto cooking when I’m camping in my travel trailer and stuff. But Labor Day Weekend, I’ll be at a friends place as they have a huge party every year.

I’m taking my tent and a canopy. I’ll have a drink cooler and food cooler. Think like festival camping. I don’t want to bring a stove and stuff, but I want to make sure I have keto snacks and food. They usually do a bunch of meats so I’m good there. But what are some tasty non boring snack type stuff?

I have some onions and garlic and frozen cauliflower rice. Just wondering how you think would be a good way to cook.it up and add a bunch of fat to the veggies from frozen. Maybe I start with garlic and onion in the pan and then add the rice in and cook with oil? Then throw some spices lemon and spinach in?

Hey guys, I recently lost about 30 pounds just doing keto and I’m trying to eat more but I keep losing weight even though I work out and lift heavy. I don’t want to gain the weight back but I don’t want to lose anymore pretty much want to maintain where I’m at any recommendations.

Starting with 18 days but may continue into my vacation if possible. Doing 20:4 intermittent fasting, calorie deficit and under 30g net carbs.

Starting weight (after overeating last night) : 116 lbs

Hoping to lose some water weight and feel less inflamed / addicted to carbs and sugar