Keto experiment — week 1: well I’m not short of questions…
This is the first weekly update of my six month experiment with the ketogenic diet, in a bid to obtain mental and physical health and to do away with fluctuating energy levels. Check out the current ketogenic plan I am undertaking, or catch my daily updates on Instagram and Twitter.
Daily life at team Snapppt is all very busy at the moment, so here’s a quick run through on the events and thoughts for the past week, the first of the 6-month experiment…
- Cravings be gone! Everything I’ve read about the keto diet and its impact on hunger levels is true. I rarely went above a ’30% hungry’ level this week, which is pretty incredible considering how I’ve nearly always been in a state of looking forward to my next meal, sometimes as soon as 30 minutes after eating. Intermittent fasting was effortless and going from lunch till a late dinner was possible without feeling a need to raid the peanut butter jar upon getting home. It hits home strongly what I’ve come to believe: that a diet shouldn’t need to rely so heavily on willpower.
- The data harvest! As the public experiment came together, in the hours following my decision to commit to an extended period of the keto diet — I had nothing but my age, body weight and inaccurate bodyfat recorded. Since then? Detailed body stats through Boditrax, blood test results through Thriva, sleep quality and resting heart rate with Fitbit and a combination of apps and methods to track much more. I’m determined to learn all that I can, leaving no stone unturned in the process.
- Embracing social media! Actively attempting to build a following has never come naturally to me — but with this experiment, I’m throwing caution to the wind. I want to be able to learn from as many as possible, and to eventually inspire as many as I can. So I’m wanting eyeballs on this experiment, and I’d appreciate readers passing this on to those who may be interested.
- So many questions! I long felt I had a good grasp on what it takes to be healthy: eat low carb, exercise, reduce stress and you’re good to go, right? But as I now delve into the depths of topics such as thyroid health and cholesterol — one thing is painfully obvious: I haven’t even scratched the surface till now. Speaking of which…
- Thyroid and Cholesterol issues! … wait, what? Throughout the week, I’ve continued to add to the starting data in my initial keto experiment plan article. With this, it includes all my Thriva blood test results — and it’s made this experiment all the more interesting. It turns out, I potentially have an under-active thyroid, and that my LDL cholesterol level is of concern. This has opened a whole new area of research for me, and thankfully there’s no shortage of great resources out there. The potential for hypothyroidism raises so many questions — but also has me even further committed to digging deep and discovering answers. I’ll be talking a lot more about thyroid health in upcoming blog posts. A key question I have at the moment is: would thyroid levels from a blood test be reflective of my diet and lifestyle over the past few days, weeks, months or more?
Energy
Above all, energy levels were the key incentive for embarking on this journey. After an initial bout of tiredness on the first day or two, the middle of the week turned out to be amazingly reassuring. I had unbound energy, which remained consistent all day, with a second wind in the evening which had me up till late into the night — working, blogging, reading, playing keyboard, socialising etc. Although I knew not to judge too soon.
My sleep was varied throughout the week. Almost immediately upon starting the experiment, I noticed I was waking up fully energised about an hour earlier than usual. By day 4, I found myself fully awake at 3am, struggling to go back to sleep — charged up and mind racing. By Thursday I barely managed 4 hours and the impact was noticeable. That said, a Friday night social event (with a keto feast of course!) had me not returning home till 2am. I was energised throughout.
Into the weekend, and the lack of sleep and high activity had taken its toll. Sunday in particular was very sluggish, despite sleeping for 7 hours - I felt groggy and tired — a feeling that wouldn’t quite shift. This carried on into the following Monday. It’s now Tuesday, day 9 and I feel a lot better and am set for a good day.
So why did I sleep so little? And how much of a factor was this in how I felt by the end of the week? From the casual research I’ve done so far, it would appear that intermittent fasting and being in ketosis can mean that you require less sleep — as you simply don’t need as much time for repair, given that you are in a fasted state, and thus recovering, for longer. With the busy week at work, the frantic rush to collect all the data I could for week one, and the few days of early starts and late nights — it’s likely to have quickly caught up with me. I usually make a point to start winding down an hour before bed. Yet the past week had me on the laptop right up until I hit the sack, which made falling asleep a lot more difficult — this is something I’m addressing for the upcoming week.
Finally, it being week one, and being a proud keto newbie — I’m a long way away from settling on the macro split that works for me, along with the many other aspects to the diet. Despite entering ketosis as soon as day 4 — it’s very likely that it’ll take a few more weeks to become fully keto-adapted, and the transition phase was expected to be unpredictable. As I comfortably settle into week 2, I’m expecting it to be a lot smoother.
Diet
This week I’ve been blown away at how darn tasty and easy it has been to follow the keto diet. As mentioned above, hunger not being an issue is potentially the strongest case for the keto way at the moment. Mostly through convenience, and a lack of time, each day has been pretty consistent this week. A typical days eating for me, starting at around 1pm has been: salmon and avocado for lunch (topped with sea salt!), followed by bacon, eggs, avocado, cheese and spinach for dinner. I’d follow this with a heavenly keto hot chocolate (made with butter, MCT, unsweetened cacao powder and almond milk — heavenly!) .
It’s been an absolute joy, and in no way have I felt I’ve compromised. Instagram has been reassuring me of the huge variety of keto meals possible, and I’m looking forward to getting my chef game on and creating ketogenic wonders. There’s also a plenty of great YouTube channels, and I’ve also picked up this book. Exciting times!
I’ve aimed for about 1,800 calories daily — in a bid to be somewhat consistent with the way I’ve eaten in the weeks prior to the experiment. With keto, I’ve found it difficult at times to eat as much as this — finding that I would feel completely satisfied for the day having eaten only 1,300 calories. This would then be bumped with a keto hot chocolate. Here’s the macros and calorie counts for the week:
…and a summary of the foods eaten in each macro (click to expand):
The shopping experience has been interesting — as I now pick up and study the packaging for foods I have never thought to purchase (hello double cream and pork belly slices — not eaten together mind). As I eat more salmon, avocado, steaks and such, the cost of the weekly shop has increased. Although, this is offset somewhat by the complete lack of desire for snacks during the day. Which works out well, as there’s very little in the way of keto-friendly snacks. Even my local Wholefoods has very little for those aiming for a low-carb snack, without the high-protein.
Friday night included a glorious feast which relatives had put on for us. I calculated the carbs for the day to have reached around 35g. To my surprise the next morning, I had the highest ketone reading I had seen all week — suggesting that my carb threshold may well be higher than the approx 20g limit I currently have set.
Fitness
This week I settled back into a routine where I am aiming for 2–3 workouts weekly — alternating between high-intensity training with a tabata session, and weights training with the 5x5x5 method. Stats for this week being:
Full body stats taken with the Boditax system can be seen in my starting article. With intermittent fasting, I was steadily losing weight over the previous few weeks — to the point where clothes that used to fit well, are now starting to hang off of me. It’s appearing with keto, this rate may be increasing. Based on my weekly body stats coming this Thursday, I may be increasing my calories for week 3. Here’s my current physical stats, very likely the smallest I’ve been in years. Note that these may not be 100% accurate, but useful as a relative measurement going forward:
The weeks prior to the experiment saw me opting for running and tabata, over weight training, so I’m expecting positive results in terms of gains, going forward. Most of my workouts have been in a fasted state — after up to 16 hours without eating, to no noticeable impact on my energy levels or performance.
Tweaks for week 2?
- No changes to the plan just yet.
Resources of the week
- Keto clarity by Jimmy Moore
- Dom D’Agostino on the Ultimate health podcast
Closing thoughts
The past week will no doubt prove to be one of the significant weeks of my life. What started out as a new-found commitment in the journey towards all-day energy, has led to slowly but surely taking control of my health and the visibility I have on it. It has also seen the growing belief that this project may well result in not only achieving my personal goals, but also serving as a guide and motivation for anyone who has decided that ‘enough is enough’, and that they’ll stop at nothing to achieve well-being.
I’ve spoken to many of those who are close to me this week. My eyes have been opened further to the extent of the issue of fatigue. The idea that everyone is fighting their own battle is ringing true, and although I’m far from having the answers: I have every confidence that in almost every case, the symptoms can be hugely improved, if not resolved completely.
More on the way! Till then, be sure to catch me on Instagram and Twitter.
