Week Six on Keto: Why Month Two Is When the Calories Come Down

2020-02-13

A long Facebook Live from mid-February 2020, 42 days into the New Year's reboot I ran in the group. It's the "you made it through month one, now what?" talk. The first 45 minutes are the plan for month two. The middle is questions. The last half hour is the part I'd keep: why doing the right thing doesn't feel good while you're doing it.

In this recording

[0:00] Week six: you should be through most of adaptation. Ketones that were coming out in breath, urine and sweat are now being used.
[2:12] What that feels like: steady energy, less hunger, a skipped lunch you don't notice until evening.
[3:25] So now is the window to bring calories down, because hunger is controlled and you no longer want to clear the plate.
[6:40] If month one gave you keto breath, odd-smelling pee, rash or cramps, that's proof your carbs were low enough.
[11:37] In month two you're not eating for energy. You eat for protein and for nutrition, especially electrolytes, because ketosis makes you pee more and the salty, potassium-rich carb foods are gone.
[13:05] A potassium-citrate drink mix I'd been trying, alongside bouillon with potassium-chloride salt. Not sponsored; not named here.
[16:11] Your protein number stays the same through introduction, weight loss and maintenance. It only goes up if activity or muscle goes up a lot.
[16:54] I cited an outside analysis of MyFitnessPal logs: people who hit their goals ate more nutrient-dense food. I said myself it wasn't a study.
[19:08] Fiber: my soluble vs insoluble explanation, and why I thought subtracting all the label's "dietary fiber" to get net carbs is inaccurate.
[21:37] Why the scale may not move in month two: water swings, the menstrual cycle, weighing at different times.
[23:28] The "whoosh": my picture of fat cells holding water and then letting it go. I said the mechanism isn't known and I dislike the word.
[26:49] No miracles. Keto doesn't break calories in, calories out. It controls hunger and keeps energy up.
[28:32] Lost 30 pounds and stalled on the same food? You're no longer carrying the weight around. I demo it with gallon jugs.
[31:07] How to speed up month two: leaner proteins (white fish, shrimp, chicken breast, sirloin, pork loin), less added fat, cream out of the coffee, go easy on mayo. Or add a protein shake to a bacon-and-eggs meal to shift the ratio.
[44:29] Measure with string at arm, waist, neck and thigh, and hang the strings up. Better than the scale if you're training.
[47:23] My dog Molly makes an appearance.
[51:51] The real talk: clearing out my house and bookshelves felt like admitting defeat, not like a win. Skipping the Oreo is the same.
[1:06:16] In ketosis you'll go to the pantry and realize you're not hungry. That's the moment to ask why you're there.
[1:10:48] Two audiobook passages on deliberate practice: plan specific techniques, and believe the work pays off.
[1:20:29] Sign-off, with a pitch I've left out.

The claim worth unpacking: "no magic in the calories"

At [26:49] I said keto doesn't break calories in, calories out; it suppresses appetite and keeps you moving, and that's all it does. That line is the one the metabolic-ward studies back up most directly:

When 17 men switched to a ketogenic diet at the same calories, energy expenditure rose by only about 57 kcal a day, and body-fat loss slowed after the switch (Hall et al., 2016).
In 19 adults with calories cut by the same amount, body-fat loss was 53 g a day with carbohydrate restriction against 89 g a day with fat restriction (Hall et al., 2015).

Both were short ward studies, as the evidence page notes. But they line up with what I said: no large fat-burning bonus, just an easier time eating less. The gallon-jug demo at [28:32] is the same arithmetic from the other side: carry less weight and you burn less.

Where I'd qualify what I said: fiber

At [19:08] I said soluble fiber "can still give you an insulin response" and insoluble fiber is the "free ride". The fiber evidence page doesn't test that. It does show that soluble fiber lowered total and LDL cholesterol a little (Brown et al., 1999), and that more viscous fibers beat less viscous ones on appetite, 59% of comparisons against 14% (Wanders et al., 2011). So I'd keep "eat your stems and greens" and drop the warning about soluble fiber. My point about labels fits the evidence page: the FDA counts dietary fiber within total carbohydrate, and none of the bodies on the evidence page define "net carbs".

Then vs now

In 2017 I said to stop pushing fat once weight loss began, around week five (video NUJNFG6lLWw), and not to restrict calories in month one (video 7Aixw4uRksI). By 2018, fat was the variable by phase and yarn measurements on the wall replaced the scale (video UygKGoP_BtA). Same order here, plus fiber next to protein for fullness, which I pushed harder two weeks later (live GUQX2721).

Watching this in 2026

The best part is the Oreo section. I said that when you skip it, "angels don't sing" (live HCIB5705). You sit back down, still want it, and the reward is weeks away. Nobody says that in a diet group, and they should. Doing the right thing usually feels flat while you do it.

What I'd change is some of the "either they're lying" tone. If restriction has ever been a problem for you, ignore the speed-up advice in this live.

Who should check with a doctor first

Peeing a lot: I said it myself at [25:12]: frequent urination can be a sign of many problems. Get it checked rather than calling it a whoosh.
Diabetes or blood-pressure medication: cutting calories and carbs further in month two can change what you need. Tell your doctor first.
Eating-disorder history: skip the "how to go faster" section and work with your therapist and doctor.

Key points

Week six is when hunger usually settles, which makes it the time to bring calories down, not earlier.
In month two, cut added fat first and lean on lean protein, greens and fiber. Keep protein steady.
Keto doesn't beat calories in, calories out. The ward studies found only a small energy difference. Its advantage is appetite.
Water swings, cycles and weighing at different times hide fat loss. Measure with string, not just the scale.
Not eating the Oreo won't feel like winning. Do it anyway, and ask why you're at the pantry if you're not hungry.

Guide: stall or fluctuation? · non-scale progress · hidden calories · energy balance · how much fat? · net vs total carbs · eating disorders
Blog: the whoosh · losing inches, not weight · the metabolic advantage · Kevin Hall's ward studies · eat less fat to lose weight · soluble vs insoluble fiber · hit your protein goal
Videos: eating too much fat · still hungry? · keto basics for beginners · fiber before fat · 2019 basics