Keto Diet Experiment, Week 1
As promised in my first Keto Diet Intro Post ‘Gareth’s Keto Experiment..’, here is an update on my progress for Week 1.
I was pretty anxious about this week not knowing what to expect. I’ve heard lots of stories about this week being ‘Hell Week’: bouts of ‘Keto Flu‘ while the body adapts to its new fuel source. Well, in that case, I’ve been pretty lucky this week, barely had any negative symptoms other than a bit of a headache on day 2 but nothing major.
I thought about my research before starting the Keto Diet and how I would have loved to have seen how people got on day by day in the first week. The first week is usually where a lot of the changes start to happen as the body begins to adapt. So firstly I’ve included my stats and photo’s at the beginning of the experiment; then I’ve broken down the week down to days. Though don’t worry I won’t be doing it every week!:
BodyFat Check
Stats
So here are my stats for this week:
- Weight: 84.7kg
- Bodyfat: 18.76%. Ouch! Must admit I thought I was lower than this. Apparently, for my age 36, this is still classed as lean, but I remember my kickboxing days being at 10%! However, granted I was in my 20’s then 😀
- Blood Pressure: 114 Systolic, 72 Diastolic
Photo’s
Front Shot Week 1
Back Shot Week 1
As much as I dislike before/after photo’s and cringe a little bit posting them up, I’m determined to do this properly.
Taking photos is the best way for me to see how my body is changing as a result of the diet. I can see clearly from these photo’s I’m pretty bloated, retaining a lot of water!
One of the main reasons for me doing the Keto Diet is to reduce water retention as mentioned in my last post. Hopefully, a Keto Diet will reduce water retention. In theory, it should (I’m reducing carbs, carbs hold onto water thus reducing carbs should result in me losing water!)
Day 1 – Monday, Toe Disaster!
Got my blood tests done this morning, I will get the results back in about a week. This day was pretty smooth, that was until I went and fell down the stairs in my house and cut open/broke my little toe. Ouuuuch! This will pretty much put an end to any running for a few weeks I think 🙁 I won’t make you sick and show you a picture of my wonky toe, but here’s a pic of the spiral staircase that I fell down!
I spent a lot of time on the weekend cooking up meals for this week which was a godsend today being stuck on the damn chair all day long with my foot up in the air.
For brekky, I had half an avocado with 2 eggs and bacon. Also had a protein shake, bacon, avocado and a coffee with some full-fat milk.
Today’s lunch was Buffalo Chicken Jalapeno Popper Casserole. Let me tell you if you cook one thing on Keto make it this, its epic! Salmon in the afternoon and an Almond & Spinach Skillet Meal, which was very filling but also a bit weird tasting. The almond was a bit weird with the beef, won’t be rushing to cook that one again.
If you are on MyFitnessPal, add me so you can see my diary. Leave a comment if you want any recipes!
Day 2 – Tuesday, Drowned in Water!!
Today I realised how much water my body is retaining. Firstly I could not stop drinking water all day long, I must have easily drunk a few gallons. Plus several visits to the loo. I’ve read up about it, see below quote from ‘Losing Water Weight: How Carbs Really Work‘ at 8fit.com:
“as it turns out, each gram of glycogen is bound to 3-4 hefty grams of water. So, as your body burns its way through the reduced dietary carbs and into the glycogen stores, the water attached to the glycogen flushes away as well” Source – 8fit.com
Jalapeno Popper Chicken Casserole = Heaven!
However, I’ve also found out that the body also loses electrolytes during this process. Primarily Sodium, Potassium and Magnesium. Funny enough, in the evening I went over to my parents for a BBQ and started feeling a bit rough – nothing major, just a bit drowsy and a slight headache. I drunk some water with 1/2 tsp pink Himalayan Salt plus a glass of Kallo Organic Chicken Stock and instantly felt much better.
As for the BBQ, I had 2 burgers with 2 slices of cheese wrapped in lettuce with mayo. I sat and watched my family tuck into their bread rolls and rice etc. Didn’t miss it one bit! However when my mum got the lemon cake out I was salivating, but somehow managed to resist 😀
Day 3 – Wednesday Weigh In & Traces of Ketones
Had my first weigh in today, 84.7kg. Should have done it Monday, didn’t have any weighing scales at the time. Showing traces of Ketones on the KetoDiastix, about the 2nd colour down at the moment so I’m creeping into Ketosis. In fact, I’m already there 😀
Day 4 – Thursday, Strength Workout A
Did my usual full body workout in the gym today. This workout consists mainly of bodyweight strength exercises (pull ups, dips, press-ups) plus a ballistic finisher at the end. Usually a few rounds of burpees, med ball slams and lunges. I’ve posted ‘30 Minute Full Body Strength Workout A‘ in the workouts category. They take me approx 30 mins since my lunch hour time is limited. However every workout is v intense, I cram a lot into that 30 mins.
I didn’t notice any difference today during my workout, it felt like a normal day
Day 5 – Friday, More Ketones
I’ve moved down the chart a bit more today on the KetoDiastix, showing a few more ketones now (3rd box on the chart). Toe like a balloon today! Went down to OBSTAFIT RunClub to say hello but didn’t run!
Day 6 – Hint Of Keto Flu
It was boiling today, around 28 degrees C. We went to a community fair in Cardiff with some friends with next to no shade. I didn’t drink enough water and felt it! I had a bit of a headache and dry throat. I had to supplement with some salt which helped a bit. In the evening we went to a friends house with the boys and had an awesome meal cooked for us. Fair play Ceri who was cooking for us went out of her way to accommodate us.
For those who don’t know, our boys are pretty much dairy, soya and egg intolerant, so is my wife since she’s breastfeeding at the moment. So not only did she have all those intolerances to contend with but also me and my Keto Diet.
The meal was perfect: Chicken and chorizo with some salad. Everyone else had potatoes and cheesecake dessert which if I’m honest felt slightly torturous ha. Only because I also hadn’t really eaten enough in the day. Lesson learned. I think I need to start carrying around an easily accessible supply of fat with me for emergencies! Any tips, let me know in the comments!!
Day 7 – Fathers Day
Couldn’t have asked for a better fathers day. This was my second Fathers Day and it was perfect. My wife was an absolute star, she bought me an excellent book ‘The Ultimate Keto Diet Guide and 100 Recipes’, plus some pork scratchings, the perfect Keto snack. Annoyingly when I checked the packet I noticed they added sugar, why?! Yet, it was literally less than a gram per 100g. It was a 75g packet so I won’t be losing sleep over that.
This Book Has Some Really Good Recipes!
She pretty much did all my prep for me including Caveman Keto Breakfast Muffins and some tasty Lemon Poppy-Seed Muffins. The boys helped..helped increase the mess ha but they had fun.
Breakfast Muffins From CavemanKeto.com
I also cooked some Avocado Fat Bombs, plus made some bone broth. A very productive day!
In the afternoon we went to my parents to sit in the garden in the scorching sun which made an appearance for the 3rd time this week! Shocker! I’ve been glad for the sun this week though, especially since I’m still limping around in flip flops with a dodgy toe!
Week 1 Keto Diet Summary
So week 1 is done and dusted! That was relatively pain-free to be fair. I think the key to this diet is preparation. Having all my meals pre-cooked so I can just grab them to take to the office with me in the day saved me loads of time and made it stress-free. I’m looking forward to next week now, stay tuned and as always please leave your comments. Have you tried any of these recipes? Have you tried a Keto Diet? How was your first week?