Keto diets and cheat day ???'s

[Bobarell]

Hey all,

I am the Atkins diet right now and have been for 2 weeks. I have lost aroudn 10-12 pounds on the 14day period and I have been increasing weight on my chest and shoulder workouts like crazy. I haven't worked out in a few months and lost some muscle because of it. I want to burn some fat tough before I start to really crank the muscles again. Here's my stats if anyone cares. 5'10" 170lbs. I am not sure what my BF% is, but I sure do feel like I have burned an enourmous amount of fat over the last 2 weeks.

I have seen a lot of people on here taking cheat days just to replenish. On Atkins there are no cheat days, but also with Atkins if you ever start eating carbs again(starches) that weight just piles on. Would a cheat day say once a week help to prevent such a harsh reaction to carbs?? The way I understand it, the body is not used to having the carbs so when it gets them it panics and turns it all to fat. So a cheat day would prevent that correct???

Also, I just cheated and that's why I am asking. Not really bad , but I went to IHOP and had to eat a pancake. It was a "Harvest Grain 'N Nut" pancake so it wasn't as bad as a buttermilk. I feel terrible right now, but I was thinking about incorporating a cheat day anyway

Thanks all

 

[_jaap_]

do some research on leptin and refeeds to much to explain in a single post

 

[vitor97]

basicly

Understand that Each Carb makes you hold X amount of water. So on a KETO diet you do eliminate carbs, and water, as well as fat. It is a good diet, but also remember if you have no carbs and then all the sudden have like 200 grams of carbs that is a ton and expect water retention. I have gone keto for a few days then ate something bad and I felt like I gained 10lbs, U look like crap, holding that water, but really it goes away and isnt that bad. IF your gonna cheat, I would say enjoy yourself, take 1000mg of ALA with it, and then get back on track, it will take 2-3days to get back into Keto. Look up the crumbcake Diet. I find that to work real well, I lift m-f, eat a ton of fats and protein, then after I lift, I have a bag of candy or some simple sugars, with 10grams of creatine 10grams of glutamine, and 50grams of whey, IF i take some ala with it, I dont even leave KETO sometimes.

 

[Par Deus]

On Atkins there are no cheat days, but also with Atkins if you ever start eating carbs again(starches) that weight just piles on.

It is water weight, not fat -- as is probably 8-10 lbs of what you have lost in your two weeks.

 

[Bobarell]

Thanx Par Deus

I was talking mostly about long term and not water weight. A friend of mine went on Atkins and lost 26 pounds. He gained a lot of it back pretty fast. Yes, over all he lost about 8 pounds after another 3 months off the diet but he wasn't working out either.

As for my cheat/refeed!!! I did not do a complete refeed day, but on this diet I am not supposed to exceded 20g of carbs. Yesterday/last night I ate around 50. Most of it came from 1 Pancake and a little syrup. My cals were up around 20% as well. I guess it can be considered a refeed day, but it was really just one meal. I checked my Ketostix about 7 awake hours after eating the meal and Ketosis was stronger than it has ever been. I didn't stop drinking the water or change anything else about my diet, just added one pancake and syrup and it jump started my Ketosis so I am happy.

 

[vitor97]

Just

Just take ala with the cheat meal, i mean if u can live with this diet, u need some comfort foods everynow and then. Me I love Steak, EGGS, high in fat and protein, so im set, and very rarely I eat some cake thats about it, for sweets I have 50grams of sugar post workout and usally can almost stay KETO, because my muscles need it right after a workout

 

[KWKSLVR]

I've had cheat meals before on Atkins, like a slice of pizza, or maybe a hotdog, but i cut it off quickly. The most i've seen is about 2-3lb's of water retention that is quickly dissolved in about 2 days.

This is not true for everyone though, i've been in kind of a "semi-induction" stage of Atkins so i'm sure it effects me more than someone who is in Pre-Maintenance, etc.

I haven't really noticed a benefit to it, but i'm by no means a heavy lifter.

 

[Bobarell]

I am not a heavy lifter either. In fact I think I am kinda weak. I am trying to get stronger but I want to have very little fat when I start to build. I am going on a Bulk diet once I get rid of this cheesecake gut.

I have been in induction for 2 1/2 weeks now and I plan on staying on it for a couple more weeks or whatever it takes to get aroudn 10% BF. I am also going to incorporate at least a refeed meal 1 or 2 times a week. I think I am at 15%BF right now, but I am not positive. Using every online calculator on the net I get around 20%. At the gym I used the scale and it tells me 9.5%. I figured I was in the middle. I know I am not 10% for sure though.

 

[KWKSLVR]

I wouldn't let the whole, "OMG, i just gained 2lb's after that pizza" bother you since it is just water weight. Thats one of the reasons why you add on carbs slowly over a long period of time. As you add carbs, your slowing your weight loss as your body equalizes its water weight. You may go through a time period where you burn a pound of fat but you've gained a pound of water so its all equal in the end