Keto: Morning, Noon, and Night (Part 1 of 2)

When I decided to take the jump into the Keto diet, there was some apprehension. I actually thought I couldn't even do it, like I didn't have the willpower to eat the right diet. There came a point, where I had to stop worrying about if I could do it and just do it! (No copyright infringement intended here).

So there was a great deal of research that went into determining the foods my husband and I would be able to eat. We didn't want to impact the kids, so the limits on particular diets were not forced on them. They still did get to witness the changes we made morning, noon, and night. It was a challenge, but we were up to it!

The first thing that dawned on me was the changes to our daily habits. We have coffee like 2, no 4, no probably like 6 times a day! Usually our coffee is accompanied with milk or sugar, but both are not allowed on the Keto diet. Heavy cream is too thick for our taste, so perhaps a blend of coconut milk and almond milk will do the trick? Add some stevia with a teaspoon of vanilla extract might work. At the end of the day, we decided on good ol' cream and sugar-free vanilla syrup (ratio of a half a tablespoon to 1 tablespoon cream) and a splash of no calorie/carb vanilla syrup to taste.

**Now do beware, if you are just starting in the Keto ways, you have to read the label for your cream. Most heavy cream has a starch in it, but won't list any carbs. So it can be misleading. Just make sure you read the ingredient list to account for the carbs.

Oh and in case you have an obsession for homemade cappuccinos, like I do (I owe the obsession to my mom, 19 years and counting). You can make cappuccinos Keto-friendly, by limiting the amount of milk you use to 1/4-1/2 cup of milk and adding cream/water mix. Too much milk will give you too many carbs, so I have figured out my way around it. And it works!!

Then when I thought about healthy foods, there was a disconnect between what I usually considered healthy and Keto. Fruits like bananas and grapes have a high sugar content. And vegetables are great unless you are a fan of beets or potatoes, the carbs are too high on those. So sweet potatoes are out.

Once my research was complete, this is the list I personally choose from:

Vegetables:

(In order of least to most carbs, not to exceed 5 carbs)
Spinach, Lettuce, Avacado, Cucumbers, Asparagus, Tomatoes, Olives, Eggplant, Zuchinni, Cauliflower, Broccoli, Bell Peppers, and Brussel Sprouts

Onions, Beets, and Carrots could still be eaten, but with a carb count of 8, it's almost not worth it.

Fruits:

Blackberries, Raspberries, Strawberries, Lemons, Cantaloupe, Watermelon, Peaches/Nectarines, and Blueberries (and blueberries have a carb count of 12!)

Now let me be clear, this doesn't mean I absolutely cannot have any other fruits or vegetables, but based on carbs-and specifically servings (a scale is really useful here)-it is just not usually worth it to have other fruits/vegetables.

I would refer you to this website for more information, on what helped me make my decisions on the foliage above: https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/keto/fruits and https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/keto/vegetables

My next thought was what can we eat for snacks. This is where I started to feel a little light-headed thinking about all I couldn't eat. We are talking no chips, no rice cakes, no snack cakes, no cake/ice-cream/candy/cookies, nothing!

Cue maniacal laughter here.

Okay, that's a little harsh, but these kinds of foods your body will turn to first for energy. It will never get to Ketosis. So this is an important sacrifice.

However, with losing that, we gain other great alternatives, such as the following delicious looking (and tasting) foods!

The snacks are easy to put together, in most cases, and involve a high fat approach. So eggs, nuts, small servings of vegetables, cheese (hard and soft), and sour cream are all great to keep you in ketosis. The trick here is to just start basic and then get creative with learning new recipes. Before you know it, you will have a recipe box full of great snack ideas!

So from here, I will take a break from the Keto talk. I look forward to telling you more about the lunches, desserts, and dinners in part 2 of this blog. In addition, I will share some of the tips and recipes I have tried too!

And in case you were wondering, I am 17 lbs down since April 22nd!

How are you doing on your Keto journey? Are there any recipes you want to share? Feel free to add to the comments below.