portability

Why I make Keto Chow

This entry is part 139 of 139 in the series Ketogenic Soylent

I want to help people change their lives… and help them not go nuts in the process.

Nutritional Ketosis (aka “Keto” or “Ketogenic Diet”) can be highly effective but it’s daunting, especially for beginners. Keto is the only thing I have ever tried that has had any lasting effect on my health and my weight. I consider it like the “Konami Code“: a cheat or hack, because of how effective it has been in turning around my life (and the lives of family, friends, and former strangers =).  I’m committed to helping others get into the Keto lifestyle and Keto Chow makes doing Keto easier; not only for beginners that are just starting out, but also for grizzled veterans who have been doing keto for years.

My first introduction to the ketogenic diet was when our oldest son started having seizures. After trying most of the common anticonvulsants (with no success) the neurologist sent my wife home with some information on a dietary treatment to control the seizures. He told her that if they didn’t have success with a medication soon then we would need to try a ketogenic diet. Glancing through the information he provided, my initial reaction was “holy crap, that sounds impossible!” all of the dietary restrictions and rules were more than we could handle. We would be like this family. The next medication worked and I all but forgot about the ketogenic diet. Years later it came up again when I decided I needed to lose weight.

When you first start doing Keto, there is a lot of information to be learned. There’s new vocabulary, new science, new lists of things you should or shouldn’t eat. It can actually be a bit dangerous if you don’t do sufficient research and don’t know that insufficient electrolytes will make you feel terrible (it’s called “Keto Flu” and it isn’t any fun) – that was one of the mistakes I made when I started Keto. I also started keto using a meal replacement shake that was loaded with coconut flour, chia seeds and other gritty stuff.

My goals in making Keto Chow were:

  1. Make figuring out Keto easy. Easy on your brain and easy to prepare the food.
  2. Keep people from running into electrolyte deficiency (the aforementioned “Keto Flu”).
  3. Make it tasty enough that you’ll not just tolerate it but honestly, actually, for realsies, enjoy consuming it (and want more).
  4. Make sure people are getting the vitamins, minerals and other nutrients they need to be healthy. Likely healthier than ever before.

Here’s the honest truth: I completely and entirely believe in this product and the Ketogenic diet. It’s not the end-all, be-all answer to everything in the world and I don’t eat it all day, every day for every meal (because: bacon and cheese). But I do have it for most meals.

I made Keto Chow for myself, it just happens to be the sort of thing that other people like too. It’s easy to prepare meals and I don’t have to worry about missing out on weird vitamins or minerals. I hit my macronutrient goals. I’m getting my electrolytes and it’s REALLY good tasting – like I’m always sad when my Chocolate Peanut Butter is empty. I mix up a couple days worth at a time and am able to just grab containers out of the fridge on my way out the door. Let me give you an example:

Last weekend our family went to help some friends cut wood. They use it to heat their home during the winter and you can get a permit to take dead pines (either that or they eventually fall over and block the road; the pines, not our friends =). It’s insanely cheap to get the permit ($5 a cord, 4 cords minimum – a cord is a really arbitrary measurement). We had to leave by 6 AM to get down to the place at the time we wanted. While I was packing the cooler with food for the kids I threw in several “blender bottle” containers full of Keto Chow… and that was it! I drank one on the drive and the other in between chopping up the tree. It’s easy, it’s effective and it’s tasty. I even brought along Keto Chow to Disneyland.

[print_gllr id=20066]

So I use it myself, how about other people? PrimitiveOrigins posted that he had lost 100 lbs on Keto Chow, complete with before and after pics. I asked him for a full review, here it is:

About a year and a half ago I was having a bunch of medical issues and it seemed my diet had to change and I needed to lose some weight. So after trying diet after diet nothing worked. A lot of this had to do with the nature of the diets themselves, I’m very “black and white” as a person and the diets I was attempting were very just avoid carbs at night or try to eat vegan for breakfast and lunch. That is fine for some people, but since these diets gave me an inch I became a ruler. I needed something as strict and rigid as myself, I stumbled across keto. It seemed very easy for me to do. Want pizza? Nope, can’t have it: carbs and sugar. Want a pineapple? Full of sugar: nope. So I went forth with this idea and it was fine for a while, but I soon realized I disliked cooking and eating; only keto gave me a realization that I was only eating for fuel so I started looking for something that would fit that idea.

I found Soylent quite quickly and marveled at the idea; this was exactly what I was looking for, but soon realized it wouldn’t work for me as weight loss was my goal and Soylent doesn’t really provide efficient weight loss. So I started looking for keto version of soylent and discovered […] Keto Chow. I placed my first order of a months’ worth of rich chocolate.

I explained to my wife what I was planning on doing, she was skeptical to say the least (amplified by the fact that the order came in a ziploc bag lol.), but I pressed and she agreed if anything was going to work it would be this. I got my order and mixed everything up and the next day I would have my first meal.

I had my first meal. Taste wise, I did not enjoy rich chocolate at all, but again I was drinking it only for fuel so I pushed through it. I drink 2 a day as it works for my schedule better, one at around 6am and the other at around 6pm, I have done this for about a year and a half now.

The toughest part was training myself out of eating socially, that took about a month to get used to. Once that was over it was smooth sailing, I started mixing my own.

I didn’t see any weight loss, but I got a scale and I was reading it on the scale, so something had to be working. It was insanely motivating and frankly addicting. When people would offer me food or soda my gut reaction was like: “Are you insane? I’m not working out and I’m losing weight at an aggressive rate, you couldn’t pay me to stop this!” My friends all thought I was nuts for the first month or two then after I dropped my first 50lbs or so they were very interested and I had at least 4 friends try it. None of which could stick with it as aggressively as I did/do. It’s a wonderful meal replacement, but real weight loss takes dedication and I was determined.

I’ve “cheated” on Keto Chow by, now and then – maybe once a month, getting plain meatballs from Noodles&Co. or having scrambled eggs and bacon and that was great while it lasted, but I was having some stomach trouble from that so I gave it up.

Overall my plans for the future are: Keto Chow until I cannot anymore. One of the reasons I’m going to be doing keto chow the rest of my life is because I had undiagnosed absence seizures. For the longest time, my wife and I just thought I’d get mixed up when speaking because of my stutter and forget what I was talking about. I’d have really bad headaches and get randomly tired throughout the day. I was going to the doctor to make sure I wasn’t losing weight too fast and that everything was going smoothly. It was, but one day I happened to “cheat” and grab some Noodles&Co. meatballs before my Dr. appointment; and I had an absence seizure right in front of him. He noticed and we started testing for epilepsy. Apparently I have a good deal of food allergies that also trigger seizures, but apparently I was an undiagnosed epileptic for some time and thanks to you I’ve been seizure free for almost 2 years. (Minus the forced ones.)

It’s so cheap, it’s so simple. I see no reason to ever change my diet at this point. My wife and my friends are all used to it; it’s a bit strange explaining it to new people, but the results speak for themselves. Overall I’ve never been happier or more healthy and it’s all thanks to Chris.

Seriously, that’s just awesome. This is why I make Keto Chow.

By |2016-10-13T07:27:32-06:00September 2nd, 2016|Weight Loss, Ketogenic, Keto Chow, Site or Store Stuff|3 Comments

Staying keto at Disneyland

This entry is part 135 of 139 in the series Ketogenic Soylent

Phineas and Ferb taught me to be careful about what I post online (they carved it into a meteor or something so it was really important) so I usually don’t post anything about going on vacation until after I get back. I’m back.

We finally took our kids to Disneyland. Some of the stuff was too immature for the older kids and some was too intense for the youngest. That didn’t deter us at all though. I also wasn’t deterred about staying keto while I was in Disneyland, also known as land of carbs.

I didn’t have very high hopes of finding foods I could eat there so I bought a few extra insulated flasks and brought along enough Keto Chow for myself and my wife. I was also prepared to do intermittent fasting (eat at night, drink during the day), ended up never doing it though. Following my previously established pattern from the last time I did Keto Chow in a hotel I brought:

  • Two bags of Chocolate Peanut Butter
  • a carton of heavy whipping cream
  • 4 blender bottles for mixing and chilling
  • MCT oil
  • Fish oil pills
  • Scale
  • Measuring cup
  • Bottle brush
  • Soap
  • Vacuum insulated flasks

_DSC3726

Happily it all fit into an Amazon box for easy packing:

_DSC3727

The Vacuum flasks do an excellent job of keeping Keto Chow cold all day in a backpack- provided it’s cold when you put it in there. Hence the need for the blender bottles. I would mix up enough to replace the ones used that day, stick them in the fridge overnight and in the morning pour the Keto Chow into the HydroFlasks. Wash out the now empty blender bottles (with soap and the brush) and leave them to dry. While we were there I had a GoPro strapped to my chest that took a photo every 30 seconds. I ended up with a bunch of fun photos of me eating keto chow (and other keto friendly foods):

[print_gllr id=18453]

Should be noted that if you’re willing to pay the $37/plate at Ariel’s Grotto for breakfast they will do a surprisingly good job adapting the meal for a low-carb diet. The server was fine removing the hash browns and toast and adding more bacon, then she asked if I wanted more sausage and some avocado slices. I also ate 3 of the smoked turkey legs – Allegedly they’re soaked in a brine solution with no carbs, I can’t find reliable information though.

On a side note, on our way to California we stopped in Mesquite Nevada for a night, we caught the buffet and I was surprised at the crab legs, I kinda ate a lot of them (did 3 plates like this):

2016-07-09 18.22.18

 

By |2016-10-13T07:27:36-06:00July 18th, 2016|On Tour, Keto Chow|Comments Off on Staying keto at Disneyland

Day 053 – 100 days of Keto (Chow)

This entry is part 44 of 81 in the series 100 days of keto
  • Weight: 205.0
  • Blood ketones: 0.8 mmol/L

Weight is still going down and my ketones are getting up into happy territory. At the weigh in yesterday I was down 5 lbs compared to the week before, which wasn’t hard since I was up 4 last week. Today I’m going to be at Snow Force – I’m guessing there won’t be anything I can eat so I got two HydroFlasks full of Keto Chow, a bag of macadamia nuts, some pork rinds and some diet root beer in my backpack. That said I might just do intermittent fasting and not eat until dinner. Going to see how it goes.

Yesterday this was posted: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7_Ejb29bJ0 He does actually mix up some Keto Chow about 2/3 of the way through. It’s surreal seeing stuff I make reviewed in a vlog.

By |2016-10-13T07:27:49-06:00February 25th, 2016|Keto Chow, 100 days of keto|Comments Off on Day 053 – 100 days of Keto (Chow)

User Experience: 3 months and going strong!

This entry is part 117 of 139 in the series Ketogenic Soylent

My dad is on keto and drinking Keto Chow for it, He passed me another update on his progress to publish on the blog:

Keto Chow has been part of my daily diet for 3 months now.  It tastes great, is easily carried (even on airplanes,) and is very convenient.  My recent trip to Hawaii worked very well with Chow as my main food everyday (2 out of 3 meals a day) for 12 days straight.
Some people think a low-carb diet means low strength and fatigue.  I’ve had no problems keeping up my energy with Chow. I recently wanted to capture the beauty of the rugged Na Pali coast on the island of Kauai and found the only route was a treacherous hike into the jungle and over volcanic boulders.  I have never seen so many muddy adults on the trail —most were 20 and 30-something!  Many were falling down left and right, but I managed the 800 ft elevation gain (in 1/2 mile) and captured this incredible sunset image. The salt spray from the ocean waves, crashing on the shores below, was so heavy even at this elevation that I had to wipe my glasses twice to see my way!
By |2016-10-13T07:27:54-06:00February 8th, 2016|On Tour, Ketogenic, Keto Chow|Comments Off on User Experience: 3 months and going strong!

Day 034 – 100 days of Keto (Chow)

This entry is part 30 of 81 in the series 100 days of keto
  • Weight: 207.8
  • Blood ketones: 0.2 mmol/L

Last day of the conference, tonight after the Expo Hall closes we all get to take down the stuff that took 5 days to put up. Depending on how many stay to help it might only take 5 hours, so I might even be home sometime before Sunday morning. Didn’t have any of the fountain drink yesterday, just water, some diet soda I brought and Keto Chow. Today I’m planning on stashing a keto chow in a hydroflask in my car for when we finish taking down. I’ll have some for breakfast and again for lunch.

As for tomorrow, we’ve established a family tradition of doing a Super Bowl party with our kids. This year my parents (also doing keto) and my younger brother (also doing keto) will be joining us. So far we have shrimp (plus reduced sugar ketchup and some horseradish = low carb cocktail sauce!), I’m making a bunch of wings, going to bake them, I have a big bag of cheese curds from Costco and we’re going to make bacon wrapped jalapeno poppers too. I’m planning on heading into all this fasting, you know: for fun!

By |2016-10-13T07:27:54-06:00February 6th, 2016|Keto Chow, 100 days of keto|Comments Off on Day 034 – 100 days of Keto (Chow)

Days 027, 028 & 029 – 100 days of Keto (Chow)

This entry is part 25 of 81 in the series 100 days of keto
  • Weight: 208.7
  • Blood ketones: 0.1 mmol/L
  • Weight: 207.5
  • Blood ketones: 0.3 mmol/L
  • Weight: 209.4
  • Blood ketones: 0.2 mmol/L

Busy weekend, had to mix and package enough product to last the next 8 days. Saturday I had a steak for lunch, that was yummy. I also made keto chow muffins 3x this weekend and I revised the recipe with some changes. This week will be interesting – the first part of the week I’m helping set up a technology conference so I’ll be crazy busy, then I’ll be helping run computer labs at the conference for the rest of the week. I’m planning on either using hydroflask insulated bottles or doing intermittent fasting – just don’t bother with eating and do it when I get home. I opted for the latter approach last year and it worked out just fine. Either way I’m going to do my very best to only drink Keto Chow this week, so I’ll see how it goes! To that end I mixed up the biggest batch of blender bottles I’ve ever done: 18 (that’s what the photo is). Did it 6 at a time, 3 different flavors. Should last about 4 days.

By |2016-02-01T06:52:36-07:00February 1st, 2016|Keto Chow, 100 days of keto|Comments Off on Days 027, 028 & 029 – 100 days of Keto (Chow)

Keto Chow in paradise

This entry is part 116 of 139 in the series Ketogenic Soylent

 

My parents visited Hawaii and my dad sent me some info on his experience. Bright, sunny Hawaii is a radical departure from his recent photographic work (photos of nightscapes – check out http://intothenightphoto.blogspot.com/ in several of his shots I’m the guy turning on the light to paint the scenes). He seems to really like measuring out 50g into bags ahead of time to make measuring easier:

Keto Chow and traveling is an easy combination. I wondered if airport security would question the plastic bags of powder ,  but no one has seemed concerned. I pack 50 grams of Keto Chow per small snack bag.  I even went to Arizona in December with no security problems. The insulated bottles keep my Chow the perfect temperature, even in Kauai.  Winter here is only a few degrees cooler than the Summer months but my favorite time to escape the snowy mountains of home in January.

A local snack of dry roasted macadamia nuts has been a unique and readily available treat.  Serving size, 1/4 cup.  Total carbs, 4 grams.  Dietary fiber, 2 grams.  Net carbs 2 grams, same as almonds.  Total fat, 21 grams to balance protein intake.

I forgot a measuring cup but that was a simple purchase.  Extra cream can serve as a substitute for the MCT oil for a few days,

[to simplify] ingredients.  I like to bring a variety of flavors but my favorites are:  chocolate peanut butter, rich chocolate and strawberry blast.  The wonderful smell of fresh pineapple has not even been able to convince me to break my diet.  Keto Chow is a big part of my successful quest to lose weight.

Stats
  • Male
  • Age 67
  •  Time on Keto Chow: 3 months on Feb 2nd.
  •  Complications: none.
  •  Lost about 12 lbs, average 4 lbs a month.

By |2016-10-13T07:27:55-06:00January 25th, 2016|Weight Loss, Soylent, On Tour, Ketogenic, Keto Chow|Comments Off on Keto Chow in paradise

Days 014 & 015 – 100 days of Keto (Chow)

This entry is part 14 of 81 in the series 100 days of keto
  • Weight: 207.5
  • Blood ketones: 0.9 mmol/L

Wow, that’s a LOT of water weight! (3.5lbs) Having food with a lot of salt will do that to you I guess.

  • Weight: 206.0
  • Blood ketones: 0.2 mmol/L

There I go, back down =) Yesterday I made jello using keto chow and some sugar free jello. Put it in the fridge overnight and tried it for breakfast. Overall it turned out pretty well. I used vanilla Keto Chow and orange Jello. Not sure how other flavor combinations will turn out. I have some lime jello too.

By |2016-01-18T12:07:14-07:00January 18th, 2016|Keto Chow, 100 days of keto|Comments Off on Days 014 & 015 – 100 days of Keto (Chow)

Pro tip: close the lid

This entry is part 96 of 139 in the series Ketogenic Soylent

At a training, all the is to eat is pastries and fruit. I guess I could eat the butter but that’s a bit excessive. Luckily I brought along keto chow (I planned on this happening and didn’t want to go into carb coma during class), unluckily I apparently did not securely close the little spout. Had to spend 15 minutes in the bathroom cleaning up my backpack. I guess I should be happy it only spilled a little bit.

By |2015-09-13T08:41:45-06:00September 13th, 2015|On Tour, Keto Chow|Comments Off on Pro tip: close the lid

Making Keto Chow in a Hotel

This entry is part 95 of 139 in the series Ketogenic Soylent

Doing something like Keto Chow in a hotel room presents some interesting issues. I’ve done another “soylent” in hotels before and I’ve done Keto Chow while camping. I’m using a couple tools to make this all work in my hotel room.

  1. A refrigerator. Doesn’t come standard in the room though a quick call to the front desk and it’s happily chilling out.
  2. Shelf stable cream, specifically the Trader Joe’s brand. While it’s not the same fat content as the Heavy Cream I normally use, this travels well and you don’t have to worry about it. It comes in smallish 8 ounce containers and plugging the nutrition information from the package into the Recipe Editor on diy.soylent.me it says that I need to use all 236ml per day to get 1400 calories. This works out to 78ml per meal. So I open a box, split it 3 ways and I’m done with that box.
  3. I brought along two of the 18oz Hydro Flask insulated containers. These should keep lunch nicely chilled all day.
  4. I brought along a bottle brush and dish soap. You have to scrub out the hydro flasks (and blender bottles).
  5. I have 3 blender bottles. I’m going to mix in these and transfer 1 or 2 meals into the hydro flasks as needed.
  6. I stopped and grabbed a bottle of liquid coconut oil since my containers of MCT oil are the massive 64 ounce ones.
  7. Scale, measuring cups, a bowl to measure into and some fish oil pills.

Anyhow, should be interesting to see how it all works out. I have classes tomorrow and the included breakfast is bagels and pastries. No way am I eating that junk. Going to bring along my Keto Chow and if I’m lucky there will be a cheese tray during lunch.

By |2016-10-13T07:28:03-06:00September 12th, 2015|Uncategorized, Soylent, On Tour, Preparation, Ketogenic, Keto Chow|1 Comment