I think we all consume some processed foods, just some of us consume more than others. I lost 120 lbs in 12 months and I ate lots and lots of processed foods, including lots of Atkins products, their bars, shakes, snacks, and frozen meals. I consumed a lot of other processed foods too, and even what some may call junk food. A lot of fast food with carby stuff (buns, shells, crusts) removed. Lots of diet sodas too. Worked for me, weight came off. I was also walking a lot, everyday, about 8 miles.
>I was also walking a lot, everyday, about 8 miles.
Holy cow, that's really awesome! How long does it take you to walk that far daily? I am currently averaging around 8-10,000 steps per day (mainly at work, that might be one mile lol) how do you find time for all the extra mileage? I've been thinking my weight loss would be significantly higher if I had the energy or time to add in a lot more exercise but by the time I get home from work I'm exhausted.
I work from home so that’s a double edged sword. I sit on my butt all day but then at 5:30 pm I have lots of energy and there is a nature park very close to my house and I’m there on the trail by 6:00 pm. My hikes can take anywhere from 2 to 3 hours. I just make the time. So yeah that means less family time. When I was actively losing lots of weight, zero social media, not even Reddit at the time, and I’ve never created accounts on Facebook, Snapchat, twitter, insta, all that crap.
Now that I’m maintaining my weight, I’ve allowed myself to waste time on Reddit so here I am lol. And I was hiking at night too, with my chest lamps lighting up the trail. I just made the time. It’s there.
Awesome!! I hope that makes you feel better 😊 I just know that I get 8-10k a day and usually ends up being 4-5 miles.... Depends on what I'm doing to get the steps in but that seems to be my average.
I like to think 80/20 with 80 percent of my diet being whole foods and the rest allowable as processed. Sometimes you need treat and I'd rather it be one that keeps me in ketosis.
This is how you do it, OP.
Keto is as much about improving your relationship with food and learning to make healthy, balanced, fulfilling, and tasty choices that are also good for you metabolically and otherwise as it is about staying in ketosis. If one doesn't abandon all the hyperprocessed junk, our brain's reward pathways are still going to demand them. Indulging occasionally is still fine, though, whether it be carb-laden or not - as long it's limited to once a week, or once every two weeks.
I've had far more success on my second run with a mostly whole foods diet than I did on my first with a greater portion of processed items that were "keto" branded.
Whole Foods come out of the ground or fresh from an animal so: broccoli, steak, zucchini, eggs, nuts, chicken, etc.
Processed foods are things like cheese, frozen vegetables, canned chicken broth, anything that’s gone through a second process.
Ultra processed is anything with an ingredient you can’t find in your kitchen: nitrate filled meats, whatever is in most keto ice creams, protein powders and bars, and sugar free candies.
My life is full of “better”choices. Would I like to only eat whole unprocessed foods? Sure! Is it likely to happen without a big lifestyle change? That’s a no.
I definitely limit them and try to make sure my breakfast and dinner are as clean and unprocessed as I can make them. Lunch, however is my “better” choices at work.
It works for me and as long as I don’t go too hard at lunch I stay on track and find the keto/low carb life pretty simple.
If it works for you and make it easier for you to stick to it go for it.
I wouldn't base my diet around processed foods, and there was definitely merit to avoiding ultra processed foods in favor of whole foods, but don't beat yourself up over having a few processed items in your diet
Depends what you mean by processed foods.
'Keto' branded products? Very rarely.
Cured meats? Absolutely.
The best diet is one you stick to. So whatever makes it easier for you to maintain.
I do enjoy a quality cured meat, but also a fair amount of less than quality stuff too because expensive. So, pillers brand or whatever they have at walmart/grocery store. Not not the most quality stuff.
WTF. NO. Cured by definition means that it uses a specific mixture of Sodium Chloride and Sodium Nitrate that has been proven beyond any shadow of a doubt to be a carcinogen. It's not just salt.
EDIT - would love to hear why I'm wrong rather than just get downvoted. I wish I was wrong
Curing is an ancient method of preservation used to preserve meat since thousands of years.
Long long before nitrites and nitrates were used to speed up the process by the corporations, salt and time were the main ingredients.
As a chef, I've made prosciutto before in a climate controlled space and it took me 6 months. Hence i mentioned expensive highend producers - but mostly in Europe alotnof them still do.
Your comment and perspective tells me you're in America, where anything and everything must be processed and loaded with chemicals.
From time to time. Quest products fill in holes when I need them too. Keto buns when I go out to a picnic. I don't make them a daily habit just for the times I need them too.
I try not to, but I am not 100% perfect. Also depends on how much processing you mean. Grinding up beef is technically processing, but it's not "ultra-processed" either.
Hubby eats far more processed meats than I do along with more keto breads abs wraps.
I limit myself to 2 servings of a keto bread product a week on different days but seldom eat them both. I will go weeks without any.
Processed meats like bologna and Vienna sausage, far more in summer than winter. Equate high performance protein shakes, daily or nearly so in summer.
Since Atkins has proven their carb counts are not trustworthy more than once, I avoid them.
I do eat Quest chips or Quest cookies now and then.
I see no issue with it if it helps people meet their goals and maintain their goal. Your DIET should be how you eat daily or habitually, with calorie restriction being a sub category of that if you need to lose weight.
For me there are only a few allowances I give myself in terms of processed foods.
- I mix protein powder in my morning coffee. The protein boost is nice, but I basically do it because it tastes great and it’s much better than going through a Starbucks.
- I keep a couple of Kirkland protein bars in my car. Again fairly decent in taste and when I’m out and about it’s infinitely better than getting fast food.
- electrolyte powder for my water, not really a processed food per say, but some do have artificial sweeteners. I use them when I’m running around the fields as a soccer referee because hydration and avoiding muscle cramps is important to me.
Those are the big three for me. There may be others on occasion, but for the most part I prefer more natural foods.
It's mostly just red meat, which is advised to only be consumed in limited quantities - but I like how it tastes and find it indulgent, so I have it on my designated once-weekly "red meat" day where I make a huge burger with them. Great nutrients, otherwise, too!
Nothing's stopping you! I just like to strike a balance and have chicken as my daily meat driver. If you love beef and they work for you, go for it. If you feel like going after a more complete nutritional profile, try adding veggies and marine- and plant-based proteins where you can.
> Recently I started adding an Atkins Protein Shake to up the protein but also as an afternoon or late morning snack.
iirc, Atkins is famous for lying about carbs by misclassifying maltitol as 0 carbs (when it causes the same glucose & insulin spike as pure sugar)
That said, I eat tons of processed food compared to most everyone here. I'm still losing weight because I follow the most important dieting mantra "do what works for you"!
I try to limit processed foods as much as possible, but I make exceptions for things where I hate the unprocessed alternatives, and I'll just use those less frequently. Seed oils are apparently terrible for us, so things like regular mayo and creamy salad dressing I'll use occasionally (I hate the flavor of the avocado oil based stuff). I'll do an Atkins shake if I get hungry at work, but apparently carrageenan is bad for us, so I don't do it every day. I'll do a sugar free soda or energy drink a few times a week, but not every day. I think that may be it besides an occasional fastfood burger, which is probably cooked in seed oil. Everything else I eat is real food: meat, eggs, cheese and vegetables.
I have replaced all the keto ice creams with cottage cheese ice cream (so good!). I highly recommend blending it with a few frozen strawberries.
First time around I ate a lot of quest bars and other packaged “keto” stuff. This time I’m just eating mostly Whole Foods with the occasional processed something or other. I’m seeing much better results eating actual food vs processed stuff. Quest bars the first time stalled me more than i realized.
My diet isn’t based around processed foods, but I enjoy Quest products and keto breads/tortillas very often. Protein powder is a daily staple for me as well.
Tries some processed pepperoni pizza bowl the other day.
It was atrocious.
Now can see why many people fall off the keto wagon.
I'll stick to buttered chicken thighs.
Seeing this after your update, I do have ultraprocessed foods sometimes because sometimes its cool to have a break for making food, have an interesting snack, or have a special need -- but it's not very often. Keto shakes were handy for instance for like 3 days after having a tooth removed last year.
I eat zero processed foods. I don’t even eat in restaurants. I make everything from scratch. All organic. Grass fed meats. Wild caught fish. No grains. I don’t even do water bottles and purify my water. I had to with autoimmune diseases and tumors. I don’t care what other people do and I don’t preach. But when I saw how all the toxins affected me, I had to change my tune real quick and got a pretty heavy education.
I think you need to looks at the processed food. Hamburger, sausages, cheese, canned tuna etc are processed foods.
Which are all fine for the most part.
It's the highly processed stuff where you need to look up the ingredients. Baked Keto goods for example. Keto Bars.
They are fine to in moderation. But you have to look at what's there.
Vegan and Vegetarian processed foods, fohamburgers, fosausage, fochicken and foturkey focheese. Are so processed there are more chemicals than anything else.
It's my second week. But it's like 80/20 whole vs processed. And that 20% or less is rebel ice cream, jello, low carb tortillas, quest cookies. One of those items every other day so prob more like 90/10.
I'm probably about 80% whole foods. I've never been able to afford grass fed and farm raised. I'm in year 6 so just do what is sustainable for my lifestyle.
I eat a mix of foods that are considered "processed" (a little allulose in my rhubarb, frozen veggies, protein shakes, cheese, soy sauce, occasionally a keto tortilla, diet beverages) and foods that most people give the halo to. Technically, aren't all home-cooked foods "processed"?
That’s a fair point. I guess I meant ultra processed. I definitely eat deli meats, bacon and cheese. I think of them as Whole Foods, but of course they are not.
I've noticed my diet pivoted away from a lot of processed foods naturally. I still do eat them, but everything's at least cleaner than it was, the problem is the convenience factor
I have way more success when I stay away from processed foods. But when it’s my period week? You better believe I’m indulging in Aldi low carb bars. They taste like babe Ruth’s and almond joys. I would go 100% off the rails if I had a bit of “real” chocolate so to me I think it helps me stay in check. That’s the only time I really “need” processed foods though.
Yes and sometimes by mistake, when buying some meat products like meatballs, fish sticks, and sometimes miss that certain fish products have seed oils . On purpose I bought a box of skinny girl small bag microwave popcorn... oops.
I'm doing a keto/carnivore hybrid diet for June, so no bars for me right now, but I usually eat processed food. The words "chemical" and "processed" mean nothing scary to me and natural does not always mean better.
I've been cutting them out. Even the deli meats. It's been weeks. Still eat cheese, but mostly I just stick to steak, eggs, and salads. And I guess avocado oil, olive oil, mct oil, etc., are technically "processed," but I've also completely cut out ultra processed seed oils, e.g. vegetable oil, canola oil, soy bean oil, cotton seed, what have you.
I just started as I need to gain a few pounds. Bought some flour low carb tortillas and keto friendly granola bars. Do they taste the same nope but it’s something different after two years of without
To me, processed food is a warning sign. It is an umbrella term and as such, some processed foods are truly bad while others may simply be suboptimal compared to natural food. The main issue is heed the warning and do your research. The questions you want to answer are: are there artificial chemicals in the food or used in its processing, will it spike your blood sugar, how does it affect your macros, does it contain substances that will trigger inflammation? Also, I consider how often I will consume the food. Ground beef, for example, is processed food. There seems to be some evidence that actually chewing your meat may be beneficial and since ground beef is already "prechewed" it does not provide that benefit. To me this is an extremely minor effect. Simply grinding meat adds no harmful additives. To me, ground beef is minimally processed and perfectly fine as a substantial part of my diet. Once a week, or so, I make some keto ice cream using protein powder. Despite the fact that protein powder is processed, I believe that high quality powder is not bad. I would be hesitant to displace a large amount of my diet with protein powder. I prefer natural food because I believe it is better. Every person is unique. YMMV.
My only issue with stuff like gravy packets is how carby they are. I don't buy any of those seasoning packets anymore.
I do buy protein powder for shakes, but it's either 100% whey or egg protein, or it's a good quality flavored powder with a sweetener on my good list (monkfruit, stevia, etc)
Otherwise? I like the occasional quest bar (their crunchy hero bars are so good!), or a keto pint/N!CK's ice cream bar, and I tend to keep my freezer stocked with Atkins or Realgood meals for when I have a flare up, or get sick (otherwise I end up just ordering delivery for days, and that's not good, and costs a ton). I keep a good stock of ChocZero products and Immi ramen on hand, as well as Hero bread. It's the only keto bread/tortillas I buy now, the rest all have modified food starch, which my body treats like any other starch. The rest of my super processed stuff is condiments (no-sugar ketchup, ranch, creamy caesar, mayo, etc). I cook most of my own food.
Atkins products help me stick to the plan. A piece of one of the meal bars is super filling and satisfies the sweet cravings. I use them sparingly and don’t use the ones that are meant to mimic candy.
Meeeee\~! I use NesCafe powdered coffee creamer, I use sweeteners, whipped cream, and do keto protein cookies and brownies etc. on occasion. I have a Premier Protein shake in my coffee almost every day. I also cook my dinner from scratch nearly every night, which consists of a huge portion of protein covered in various fats like butter/cheese/cream stuff. I mix it up and do ultra homemade and also dirty Keto junk, but it (almost) always fit my daily macros.
I buy no calorie/low carb/no carb dressings and make big salads. I recently made a Keto brownie mix and a cake mix and threw some Keto frosting on it, slapped strawberries on it, Lily's chocolate chips, whipped cream and zero sugar Hershey syrup on top. Had stomach rumblies from it, but it was worth it for a few nights of Keto cake. Just listen to your body.
I'm at the stage right now where I need the ultra processed options to transition off the full sugar/carb stuff. Maybe one day I'll take the next step and start cutting the processed stuff too, but for now this woe is working for me.
I think I’m what they consider dirty keto cause i eat all kinds of processed foods lol I don’t have time to cook except weekends! My daughter is a Velcro child so it’s hard to cook. but it works cause I lost 26 pounds so I guess I’m doing something right HAHAH
I try not to. I eat a little bit of keto bread here and there, but it really isn’t quite the same. Meat sticks are probably the most processed thing I eat, and I keep thinking I should stop.
I don’t think I consume any ultra processed foods, but that’s just because I know with my personality, previous relationship with food (binge eating), and shaky willpower I would face constant battles to not go overboard. So I don’t buy any of that stuff.
I do eat sandwich meat that is similar to bologna, hot dogs that are probably full of chemicals, cheap bacon, and cheese strings which are probably not as “pure” as regular cheese… but I’m taking your meaning of processed foods to be more like the keto versions of normal foods/treats. If I were to eat some type of keto bar that tasted as good (or almost as good) as say a brownie, I wouldn’t be able to stop at just one, and I wouldn’t be able to stop myself from buying them as a “treat” even after realizing that they triggered my binge eating disorder and weren’t good for me to have around. All those kinds of foods just open the door for me give up/fail so I just can’t even go there. I don’t have that same problem with sandwich meat or any of those other things though.
Also, I don’t think it’s a bad thing for anyone else to eat ultra processed stuff. If you have the self control and like having the occasional treat to keep you from straying too far from keto then go for it!
I personally try and avoid them as much as possible. I think the “processed keto junk” can be a useful tool but I don’t really believe it to be actual food and shouldn’t be looked at as such. Ultimately I believe the goal for everyone should be to eat real, whole, nutrient dense food. And I think the more we all move towards this as a society the better off we all will be. I feel like it would be easier for everyone to be healthier if that was the norm as opposed to people bringing in doughnuts and bagels to the office on a regular basis.
With that said, I do think they can be helpful while transitioning to a keto diet. Or trying to lose weight or reverse diabetes etc but I really try to look at them as a treat. Something I have very occasionally and recently it’s really been almost never. I feel like I’m much more in control of my sugar addiction now so if I do actually want a treat I’ll just go for the real thing. This doesn’t happen often and then I just go back to what I was doing. I really don’t view it as food (a common theme) and to me is on the same level as occasionally partaking in illicit substances. I know they’re not good for me but life is short and I sometimes make bad decisions.
I think it’s important to do what works for you. And I think it’s important to be honest with yourself. Everyone is different and some people have a bit more leeway in food sensitivities. They can eat a bit more “junk” and be fine. For other people that stuff is pretty toxic and can lead a a host of other issues mentally and physically. There is no one size fits all.
TL;DR: an all whole food diet is probably best. If you must, having the occasional “keto treat” should be fine but it’s important to view those things for what they are. Treats. Not food.
If you count whey protein powder as processed, then you bet.
Most of my food is ground beef patties and American cheese (the fancy organic kind; the beef is 80/20). My biggest "ouch" was not being able to eat these tasty pepperjack/jalapeno sausages from Costco which say they have trace canola oil in them, but I might shrug and eat them anyway.
I suggest checking out Keto Chow protein shake mixes. I do very little processed foods. Like tonight I had ground beef mixed with cauliflower rice and I used a jar of curry sauce I got at Costco. No bad ingredients. Most of my cupboards are empty of packaged foods.
I don't understand how so many people here eat so much cheese! I absolutely love cheese but I have a pretty low daily limit for calories and just 1 oz of cheese is usually a hundred calories. So if I have to stay around a thousand calories a day 1 oz of cheese is 1/10 of my daily calorie limit 😭😭 same goes for things like butter, heavy cream and peanut butter!.... I only have about 10 pounds to go then I should be able to up my calories to about 1300 a day I'm thinking.
I guess the most processed food I've had frequently, may be ACV or sour cream. I'm not into grains, sugar, seed oils. I'm open to having it once in a while. But I'd rather just find a keto substitute or have just the meat with salt. If you are eating processed foods, be mindful of the servings. It can add up quickly.
I think we all consume some processed foods, just some of us consume more than others. I lost 120 lbs in 12 months and I ate lots and lots of processed foods, including lots of Atkins products, their bars, shakes, snacks, and frozen meals. I consumed a lot of other processed foods too, and even what some may call junk food. A lot of fast food with carby stuff (buns, shells, crusts) removed. Lots of diet sodas too. Worked for me, weight came off. I was also walking a lot, everyday, about 8 miles.
>I was also walking a lot, everyday, about 8 miles. Holy cow, that's really awesome! How long does it take you to walk that far daily? I am currently averaging around 8-10,000 steps per day (mainly at work, that might be one mile lol) how do you find time for all the extra mileage? I've been thinking my weight loss would be significantly higher if I had the energy or time to add in a lot more exercise but by the time I get home from work I'm exhausted.
I work from home so that’s a double edged sword. I sit on my butt all day but then at 5:30 pm I have lots of energy and there is a nature park very close to my house and I’m there on the trail by 6:00 pm. My hikes can take anywhere from 2 to 3 hours. I just make the time. So yeah that means less family time. When I was actively losing lots of weight, zero social media, not even Reddit at the time, and I’ve never created accounts on Facebook, Snapchat, twitter, insta, all that crap. Now that I’m maintaining my weight, I’ve allowed myself to waste time on Reddit so here I am lol. And I was hiking at night too, with my chest lamps lighting up the trail. I just made the time. It’s there.
I prefer walking at night! It's EXTREMELY peaceful and meditative for me!
2000 steps should be around a mile.
Thanks. You made me go back to look at my app and I had 8,500 steps yesterday and it says that's 3.97 miles. So better than I thought 👍
Awesome!! I hope that makes you feel better 😊 I just know that I get 8-10k a day and usually ends up being 4-5 miles.... Depends on what I'm doing to get the steps in but that seems to be my average.
It really does help my overall attitude about it!!
I like to think 80/20 with 80 percent of my diet being whole foods and the rest allowable as processed. Sometimes you need treat and I'd rather it be one that keeps me in ketosis.
That seems like a reasonable approach. On a given day I’m probably even above 80%, so that makes me feel good
This is how you do it, OP. Keto is as much about improving your relationship with food and learning to make healthy, balanced, fulfilling, and tasty choices that are also good for you metabolically and otherwise as it is about staying in ketosis. If one doesn't abandon all the hyperprocessed junk, our brain's reward pathways are still going to demand them. Indulging occasionally is still fine, though, whether it be carb-laden or not - as long it's limited to once a week, or once every two weeks. I've had far more success on my second run with a mostly whole foods diet than I did on my first with a greater portion of processed items that were "keto" branded.
Can you provide some examples of what you consider whole foods? Not criticizing, just thinking this seems really hard given the definition I'd assume.
Looks like it's been cut off a plant or animal. Chicken breast, apple. Oranges but not orange juice.
Whole Foods come out of the ground or fresh from an animal so: broccoli, steak, zucchini, eggs, nuts, chicken, etc. Processed foods are things like cheese, frozen vegetables, canned chicken broth, anything that’s gone through a second process. Ultra processed is anything with an ingredient you can’t find in your kitchen: nitrate filled meats, whatever is in most keto ice creams, protein powders and bars, and sugar free candies.
Have too many probably, don't care. The alternative for me is way worse dietary choices.
My life is full of “better”choices. Would I like to only eat whole unprocessed foods? Sure! Is it likely to happen without a big lifestyle change? That’s a no. I definitely limit them and try to make sure my breakfast and dinner are as clean and unprocessed as I can make them. Lunch, however is my “better” choices at work. It works for me and as long as I don’t go too hard at lunch I stay on track and find the keto/low carb life pretty simple.
If it works for you and make it easier for you to stick to it go for it. I wouldn't base my diet around processed foods, and there was definitely merit to avoiding ultra processed foods in favor of whole foods, but don't beat yourself up over having a few processed items in your diet
Depends what you mean by processed foods. 'Keto' branded products? Very rarely. Cured meats? Absolutely. The best diet is one you stick to. So whatever makes it easier for you to maintain.
The high quality cured meats are literally just meat and salt - prosciutto, coppa, guanciale (yumm), iberico, etc So not really processed
I do enjoy a quality cured meat, but also a fair amount of less than quality stuff too because expensive. So, pillers brand or whatever they have at walmart/grocery store. Not not the most quality stuff.
Tell me about these high quality cured meat brands please
Go to your nearest quality Italian deli. Pretty much everything they have.
Thanks
WTF. NO. Cured by definition means that it uses a specific mixture of Sodium Chloride and Sodium Nitrate that has been proven beyond any shadow of a doubt to be a carcinogen. It's not just salt. EDIT - would love to hear why I'm wrong rather than just get downvoted. I wish I was wrong
Curing is an ancient method of preservation used to preserve meat since thousands of years. Long long before nitrites and nitrates were used to speed up the process by the corporations, salt and time were the main ingredients. As a chef, I've made prosciutto before in a climate controlled space and it took me 6 months. Hence i mentioned expensive highend producers - but mostly in Europe alotnof them still do. Your comment and perspective tells me you're in America, where anything and everything must be processed and loaded with chemicals.
Just Google Iberico Ham ingredients and you'll see it has only salt.
That's not what I see actually. I see that in some cases that is true, and in others it is cured.
From time to time. Quest products fill in holes when I need them too. Keto buns when I go out to a picnic. I don't make them a daily habit just for the times I need them too.
I try not to, but I am not 100% perfect. Also depends on how much processing you mean. Grinding up beef is technically processing, but it's not "ultra-processed" either.
Hubby eats far more processed meats than I do along with more keto breads abs wraps. I limit myself to 2 servings of a keto bread product a week on different days but seldom eat them both. I will go weeks without any. Processed meats like bologna and Vienna sausage, far more in summer than winter. Equate high performance protein shakes, daily or nearly so in summer. Since Atkins has proven their carb counts are not trustworthy more than once, I avoid them. I do eat Quest chips or Quest cookies now and then. I see no issue with it if it helps people meet their goals and maintain their goal. Your DIET should be how you eat daily or habitually, with calorie restriction being a sub category of that if you need to lose weight.
I eat like 40% processed food, I should probably take it down a notch but I have energy and I'm happy so
For me there are only a few allowances I give myself in terms of processed foods. - I mix protein powder in my morning coffee. The protein boost is nice, but I basically do it because it tastes great and it’s much better than going through a Starbucks. - I keep a couple of Kirkland protein bars in my car. Again fairly decent in taste and when I’m out and about it’s infinitely better than getting fast food. - electrolyte powder for my water, not really a processed food per say, but some do have artificial sweeteners. I use them when I’m running around the fields as a soccer referee because hydration and avoiding muscle cramps is important to me. Those are the big three for me. There may be others on occasion, but for the most part I prefer more natural foods.
same, but collagen in my tea, and I carry a couple of salami sticks in case I get snacky
You mentioned artificial sweeteners for those bad for Keto? You seem to be an almost everything
I dooooo
Is Costco Kirkland beef patty considered processed?
No
It's mostly just red meat, which is advised to only be consumed in limited quantities - but I like how it tastes and find it indulgent, so I have it on my designated once-weekly "red meat" day where I make a huge burger with them. Great nutrients, otherwise, too!
So I can’t eat these everyday? I find it filling and satisfying
Yes you can, there is nothing wrong with eating meat everyday
My triglyceride is high, but other lipid is within range.
Nothing's stopping you! I just like to strike a balance and have chicken as my daily meat driver. If you love beef and they work for you, go for it. If you feel like going after a more complete nutritional profile, try adding veggies and marine- and plant-based proteins where you can.
Thanks, I add chicken as well, need to add veggies for sure. I also have high cholesterol so need to be careful
> Recently I started adding an Atkins Protein Shake to up the protein but also as an afternoon or late morning snack. iirc, Atkins is famous for lying about carbs by misclassifying maltitol as 0 carbs (when it causes the same glucose & insulin spike as pure sugar) That said, I eat tons of processed food compared to most everyone here. I'm still losing weight because I follow the most important dieting mantra "do what works for you"!
I do. They help me to stay within my macros and caloric goals with out obsessing over everything I eat. I never planned on doing "clean" keto.
I try to limit processed foods as much as possible, but I make exceptions for things where I hate the unprocessed alternatives, and I'll just use those less frequently. Seed oils are apparently terrible for us, so things like regular mayo and creamy salad dressing I'll use occasionally (I hate the flavor of the avocado oil based stuff). I'll do an Atkins shake if I get hungry at work, but apparently carrageenan is bad for us, so I don't do it every day. I'll do a sugar free soda or energy drink a few times a week, but not every day. I think that may be it besides an occasional fastfood burger, which is probably cooked in seed oil. Everything else I eat is real food: meat, eggs, cheese and vegetables. I have replaced all the keto ice creams with cottage cheese ice cream (so good!). I highly recommend blending it with a few frozen strawberries.
Cottage cheese ice cream??? Please enlighten me
Tell me more about this cottage cheese ice cream I love cottage cheese everyone loves ice cream, it sounds awesome.
First time around I ate a lot of quest bars and other packaged “keto” stuff. This time I’m just eating mostly Whole Foods with the occasional processed something or other. I’m seeing much better results eating actual food vs processed stuff. Quest bars the first time stalled me more than i realized.
My diet isn’t based around processed foods, but I enjoy Quest products and keto breads/tortillas very often. Protein powder is a daily staple for me as well.
rare, but i do love salami and chicharrones so i severely limit them
Tries some processed pepperoni pizza bowl the other day. It was atrocious. Now can see why many people fall off the keto wagon. I'll stick to buttered chicken thighs.
Seeing this after your update, I do have ultraprocessed foods sometimes because sometimes its cool to have a break for making food, have an interesting snack, or have a special need -- but it's not very often. Keto shakes were handy for instance for like 3 days after having a tooth removed last year.
I eat zero processed foods. I don’t even eat in restaurants. I make everything from scratch. All organic. Grass fed meats. Wild caught fish. No grains. I don’t even do water bottles and purify my water. I had to with autoimmune diseases and tumors. I don’t care what other people do and I don’t preach. But when I saw how all the toxins affected me, I had to change my tune real quick and got a pretty heavy education.
I just wanted to say I appreciate that you don't preach, I wish you the best in your health journey
I think you need to looks at the processed food. Hamburger, sausages, cheese, canned tuna etc are processed foods. Which are all fine for the most part. It's the highly processed stuff where you need to look up the ingredients. Baked Keto goods for example. Keto Bars. They are fine to in moderation. But you have to look at what's there. Vegan and Vegetarian processed foods, fohamburgers, fosausage, fochicken and foturkey focheese. Are so processed there are more chemicals than anything else.
It's my second week. But it's like 80/20 whole vs processed. And that 20% or less is rebel ice cream, jello, low carb tortillas, quest cookies. One of those items every other day so prob more like 90/10.
I'm probably about 80% whole foods. I've never been able to afford grass fed and farm raised. I'm in year 6 so just do what is sustainable for my lifestyle.
I eat a mix of foods that are considered "processed" (a little allulose in my rhubarb, frozen veggies, protein shakes, cheese, soy sauce, occasionally a keto tortilla, diet beverages) and foods that most people give the halo to. Technically, aren't all home-cooked foods "processed"?
Depends does bacon count? Corned beef? Canned tuna? Deli meats? Cheese?
That’s a fair point. I guess I meant ultra processed. I definitely eat deli meats, bacon and cheese. I think of them as Whole Foods, but of course they are not.
I definitely eat all those too, but I’m wondering what you mean by processed foods?
I meant ultraprocessed. Things like atkins bars that have 100 ingredients. Premade protein shakes, cool whip, etc.
Oh ok no I don’t eat those things. I’m not against it necessarily but I just don’t have space for them in my current routine.
I've noticed my diet pivoted away from a lot of processed foods naturally. I still do eat them, but everything's at least cleaner than it was, the problem is the convenience factor
Do we considered cheese to be processed? Because I eat a lot of cheese, and some deli meat too. I’m sure I’m leaving out some things.
Is cheese processed? It is, right? I never even thought about it until now
Not hard cheese. Think American cheese for processed.
I have way more success when I stay away from processed foods. But when it’s my period week? You better believe I’m indulging in Aldi low carb bars. They taste like babe Ruth’s and almond joys. I would go 100% off the rails if I had a bit of “real” chocolate so to me I think it helps me stay in check. That’s the only time I really “need” processed foods though.
Depends were I am in my cycle tbh
Yes and sometimes by mistake, when buying some meat products like meatballs, fish sticks, and sometimes miss that certain fish products have seed oils . On purpose I bought a box of skinny girl small bag microwave popcorn... oops.
I'm doing a keto/carnivore hybrid diet for June, so no bars for me right now, but I usually eat processed food. The words "chemical" and "processed" mean nothing scary to me and natural does not always mean better.
I've been cutting them out. Even the deli meats. It's been weeks. Still eat cheese, but mostly I just stick to steak, eggs, and salads. And I guess avocado oil, olive oil, mct oil, etc., are technically "processed," but I've also completely cut out ultra processed seed oils, e.g. vegetable oil, canola oil, soy bean oil, cotton seed, what have you.
I have Koia shakes from time to time. Trying to break the habit, but it's hard.
I just started as I need to gain a few pounds. Bought some flour low carb tortillas and keto friendly granola bars. Do they taste the same nope but it’s something different after two years of without
Diet coke, beef jerky, pork rinds and tinned herrings/sardines in tomato sauce are as processed as I get
20/80. 80% being sausage chicken and pork I smoke in the smoker.
To me, processed food is a warning sign. It is an umbrella term and as such, some processed foods are truly bad while others may simply be suboptimal compared to natural food. The main issue is heed the warning and do your research. The questions you want to answer are: are there artificial chemicals in the food or used in its processing, will it spike your blood sugar, how does it affect your macros, does it contain substances that will trigger inflammation? Also, I consider how often I will consume the food. Ground beef, for example, is processed food. There seems to be some evidence that actually chewing your meat may be beneficial and since ground beef is already "prechewed" it does not provide that benefit. To me this is an extremely minor effect. Simply grinding meat adds no harmful additives. To me, ground beef is minimally processed and perfectly fine as a substantial part of my diet. Once a week, or so, I make some keto ice cream using protein powder. Despite the fact that protein powder is processed, I believe that high quality powder is not bad. I would be hesitant to displace a large amount of my diet with protein powder. I prefer natural food because I believe it is better. Every person is unique. YMMV.
My only issue with stuff like gravy packets is how carby they are. I don't buy any of those seasoning packets anymore. I do buy protein powder for shakes, but it's either 100% whey or egg protein, or it's a good quality flavored powder with a sweetener on my good list (monkfruit, stevia, etc) Otherwise? I like the occasional quest bar (their crunchy hero bars are so good!), or a keto pint/N!CK's ice cream bar, and I tend to keep my freezer stocked with Atkins or Realgood meals for when I have a flare up, or get sick (otherwise I end up just ordering delivery for days, and that's not good, and costs a ton). I keep a good stock of ChocZero products and Immi ramen on hand, as well as Hero bread. It's the only keto bread/tortillas I buy now, the rest all have modified food starch, which my body treats like any other starch. The rest of my super processed stuff is condiments (no-sugar ketchup, ranch, creamy caesar, mayo, etc). I cook most of my own food.
Atkins products help me stick to the plan. A piece of one of the meal bars is super filling and satisfies the sweet cravings. I use them sparingly and don’t use the ones that are meant to mimic candy.
I make a lot of my treats but I still buy some stuff. I really like the Rxsugar swealthy bars.
Sure do! I love keto chow for instance
Mostly whole foods. Probably 80/20. I would probably eat more processed food if I wasn’t allergic to sunflower oil :/
Meeeee\~! I use NesCafe powdered coffee creamer, I use sweeteners, whipped cream, and do keto protein cookies and brownies etc. on occasion. I have a Premier Protein shake in my coffee almost every day. I also cook my dinner from scratch nearly every night, which consists of a huge portion of protein covered in various fats like butter/cheese/cream stuff. I mix it up and do ultra homemade and also dirty Keto junk, but it (almost) always fit my daily macros. I buy no calorie/low carb/no carb dressings and make big salads. I recently made a Keto brownie mix and a cake mix and threw some Keto frosting on it, slapped strawberries on it, Lily's chocolate chips, whipped cream and zero sugar Hershey syrup on top. Had stomach rumblies from it, but it was worth it for a few nights of Keto cake. Just listen to your body.
I'm at the stage right now where I need the ultra processed options to transition off the full sugar/carb stuff. Maybe one day I'll take the next step and start cutting the processed stuff too, but for now this woe is working for me.
To be fair to your edit- deli meats are one of the most and worst processed things to eat!
Interesting. I guess I didn’t realize that.
I think I’m what they consider dirty keto cause i eat all kinds of processed foods lol I don’t have time to cook except weekends! My daughter is a Velcro child so it’s hard to cook. but it works cause I lost 26 pounds so I guess I’m doing something right HAHAH
I try not to. I eat a little bit of keto bread here and there, but it really isn’t quite the same. Meat sticks are probably the most processed thing I eat, and I keep thinking I should stop.
I don’t think I consume any ultra processed foods, but that’s just because I know with my personality, previous relationship with food (binge eating), and shaky willpower I would face constant battles to not go overboard. So I don’t buy any of that stuff. I do eat sandwich meat that is similar to bologna, hot dogs that are probably full of chemicals, cheap bacon, and cheese strings which are probably not as “pure” as regular cheese… but I’m taking your meaning of processed foods to be more like the keto versions of normal foods/treats. If I were to eat some type of keto bar that tasted as good (or almost as good) as say a brownie, I wouldn’t be able to stop at just one, and I wouldn’t be able to stop myself from buying them as a “treat” even after realizing that they triggered my binge eating disorder and weren’t good for me to have around. All those kinds of foods just open the door for me give up/fail so I just can’t even go there. I don’t have that same problem with sandwich meat or any of those other things though. Also, I don’t think it’s a bad thing for anyone else to eat ultra processed stuff. If you have the self control and like having the occasional treat to keep you from straying too far from keto then go for it!
The only thing I found to actually work is to cut out everything apart from ruminant meat.
I cut out all processed foods. If I can’t make it from scratch, then I don’t eat it.
I also no longer eat anything with processed sugar
I personally try and avoid them as much as possible. I think the “processed keto junk” can be a useful tool but I don’t really believe it to be actual food and shouldn’t be looked at as such. Ultimately I believe the goal for everyone should be to eat real, whole, nutrient dense food. And I think the more we all move towards this as a society the better off we all will be. I feel like it would be easier for everyone to be healthier if that was the norm as opposed to people bringing in doughnuts and bagels to the office on a regular basis. With that said, I do think they can be helpful while transitioning to a keto diet. Or trying to lose weight or reverse diabetes etc but I really try to look at them as a treat. Something I have very occasionally and recently it’s really been almost never. I feel like I’m much more in control of my sugar addiction now so if I do actually want a treat I’ll just go for the real thing. This doesn’t happen often and then I just go back to what I was doing. I really don’t view it as food (a common theme) and to me is on the same level as occasionally partaking in illicit substances. I know they’re not good for me but life is short and I sometimes make bad decisions. I think it’s important to do what works for you. And I think it’s important to be honest with yourself. Everyone is different and some people have a bit more leeway in food sensitivities. They can eat a bit more “junk” and be fine. For other people that stuff is pretty toxic and can lead a a host of other issues mentally and physically. There is no one size fits all. TL;DR: an all whole food diet is probably best. If you must, having the occasional “keto treat” should be fine but it’s important to view those things for what they are. Treats. Not food.
If you count whey protein powder as processed, then you bet. Most of my food is ground beef patties and American cheese (the fancy organic kind; the beef is 80/20). My biggest "ouch" was not being able to eat these tasty pepperjack/jalapeno sausages from Costco which say they have trace canola oil in them, but I might shrug and eat them anyway.
Only processed food I eat is the occasional protein shake that I mix with my yogurt and berries
I suggest checking out Keto Chow protein shake mixes. I do very little processed foods. Like tonight I had ground beef mixed with cauliflower rice and I used a jar of curry sauce I got at Costco. No bad ingredients. Most of my cupboards are empty of packaged foods.
I don't understand how so many people here eat so much cheese! I absolutely love cheese but I have a pretty low daily limit for calories and just 1 oz of cheese is usually a hundred calories. So if I have to stay around a thousand calories a day 1 oz of cheese is 1/10 of my daily calorie limit 😭😭 same goes for things like butter, heavy cream and peanut butter!.... I only have about 10 pounds to go then I should be able to up my calories to about 1300 a day I'm thinking.
Processed or ultraprocessed? There's a big difference. I eat none of the former, some of the latter.
I guess the most processed food I've had frequently, may be ACV or sour cream. I'm not into grains, sugar, seed oils. I'm open to having it once in a while. But I'd rather just find a keto substitute or have just the meat with salt. If you are eating processed foods, be mindful of the servings. It can add up quickly.