Keto After 50

 

Keto After 50

I enjoyed the keto diet, but I didn't want to follow it forever.Elizabeth Blasi/Rachel Hosie

I lost 40 pounds in a year on the keto diet, but then I wanted to quit.

To quit without gaining all of the weight back, I used "maintenance keto."

Maintenance keto is a period when you increase your carbohydrate count and decrease fat consumption.

When I started the keto diet, I was the heaviest I'd ever been.

By the end of the 12 months, I'd lost 40 pounds. Following the keto diet was easier than I expected, I ate foods I loved, and I always felt satiated.

Weight loss was my initial goal, but after a year, I began to not recognize my body and lose my curves. My dilemma was that if I went off of keto, how would I not gain the weight back?

So once my body was at a point where I felt healthy and strong, I consulted with nutritional experts to begin my version of "maintenance keto," a transition out of following a strict keto diet when you gradually increase your carbohydrate count and decrease fat consumption.

Some choose to stay on keto-friendly foods but increase carbohydrates with green vegetables. Others decide to incorporate food outside of keto and stick to under 50 grams of carbs. Some use this period to transition into a fully balanced macro diet with no limitations.

Although it worked for me, it's important to note the keto diet is not ideal for everyone and can come with risks. These are the steps I took with my network of experts while listening to my body. It's important to consult with your doctor before drastically changing your diet.

I used 6 months of maintenance to transition out of the diet and ensure I could healthily maintain weight

I think because I was following clean keto — a version of the diet that focuses on supplying your macro fat count with mostly monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats like fish, avocado, and seeds — my transition was easier.

Instead of living by convenient macro numbers that would drive up my fat intake, I listened to my body and balanced healthy fats with carbs from vegetable produce to help make up my daily food intake.