Happy February! 💝 Keto Sweets & Treats
FREE Keto Valentine Hearts, Peanut Butter Cups, NEW Raspberry Chocolate Bars 😍 plus VERY low carb Hazelnut & Peppermint Truffles.…
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Monday Weigh-In 🌟
How Did Your Week Go? If you’re doing the Free 30-Day Keto Kickstart and the weekly weigh-ins with us, here…
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Monday Weigh-In & Mindful Eating
This “fast frittata” was delicious, and super easy to make! I call it a “skillet quiche” 🍳 or a scrambled…
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Join the FREE 2020 Keto Challenge Education & Motivation Series
Fun weekly mini challenges and daily help.
Real Life Keto (With Chocolate & Wine)
It’s been a tough week. Every time I sit down to write to you, I backspace, start over, delete, start…
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Keto Challenge Weigh-In & Goals
Happy Monday! ❄️ Did you sign up for the Free 30-Day Keto Kickstart Program and get a chance to check…
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Free 2021 Keto Kickstart Program
I’ve had a slow start to the new year. Things have been really hard for me lately 😕 and I…
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MAKING LOW CARB EASY FOR YOU
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I’ll make this note fast because I’m sick… but I’ve been asked this question THREE times today, which is way more than the 2-3 times a week I usually get asked, so I want to give you a quick way to decide if exogenous ketones are right for you – or not.
Exogenous Ketones 🚫 My Take…
The first thing you should know is that there is A LOT OF MONEY in exogenous ketones. They are raking in the big bucks selling these to people with some pretty “interesting claims.”
Many of the products are part of an MLM (multi-level marketing/pyramid) style business, so most of the “claims” and recommendations you see are from people making money by talking you into trying them.
🔸An MLM structure pays out several levels of people, which means the prices are WAY marked up from the actual value of the product.
Keep that in mind first. 👆 Also keep in mind that I like money, and could use some extra money given how GREAT this year has been (ha! ugh), and I *still* don’t recommend them to you – and never have. (There might be a reason for that. 🤔)
The first question I usually ask people is WHY they are interested in taking ketones, or what caught their attention. There’s a reason I lead in with that question…
But to make this fast, here’s my typical response (copied from a private message earlier today):
“I don’t take ketones, or use anything with ketones in it. Your body makes ketones naturally and FREE when you eat very low carb. What made you decide to use it?”
Why I don’t take/use ketones:
I’m not a doctor or a nurse or a scientist or a nutritionist – but this feels like “common sense” to me…
Exogenous Ketones means “ketones you take” (vs ketones your body makes naturally). They are often called “ketone salts” because most of them are attached to a salt.
They are VERY high sodium.
Salt is great on a ketogenic low carb diet, as ketosis is a natural diuretic. But you can easily eat real salt, sip on inexpensive chicken broth for electrolytes & sodium, etc.
There’s NO need to pay out the nose for something like… salt. 👀
For sodium, all you really need to do is “salt to taste” (ie don’t eat low sodium) and don’t OVER-drink water, which will flush out your sodium & electrolytes. If you have headaches or leg cramps, you don’t need a lot of expensive supplements – you usually just need to back off the water a bit, and sip on chicken broth to replenish your sodium & electrolytes.
Again, I’m not a doctor and this is not health advice – it’s just common sense. I’ve been “eating keto” for more than 9 years and I have never taken a ketone or an electrolyte product. π
Ketones are FREE!
Your body makes it’s own ketones naturally and FREE simply by eating very low carb consistently. Unfortunately, the way ketones are “sold” is by suggesting you can eat your carbs AND stay in ketosis ~ “by taking this magic pill or potion.”
So anytime you have a “cheat day” or a cheat meal or totally binge out, just take ketones and you’ll stay in ketosis or be back in ketosis within an hour like nothing ever happened – and that’s totally healthy! (NO) 🚫
What’s that saying? “if it seems too good to be true…” 🧐
If you are not eating low carb consistently, or not in ketosis consistently, then you are mixing high fat (keto) with carbs and sugar.
And adding in “high sodium” sounds like a good idea… to anyone?! 🤯
High fat + high carb + high sugar +PLUS+ high sodium = 😳
That’s the part that seems like common sense to me. It sounds like a recipe for a heart attack. (eek!) That really concerns me, scares me actually. And I am not aware of ANY long term case studies on the side effects of this dangerous cocktail, used the way it’s suggested for weight loss or keto diets.
The way a ketogenic low carb diet works is all about the science of food combining. When you limit your carb intake super low, you force your body to run on fat for fuel or energy, instead of burn sugar (glucose) for energy. When your body starts burning fat, it creates BHB (ketones) – which you can detect on urine strips or measure with a ketone meter.
Again, ketones are free! 🙃
Why You Should Ask Yourself… WHY?
I mentioned earlier I usually lead in with that question, to see WHY someone is interested in taking or drinking ketones. The reason is because if you think about it for a second, you’ll usually get to the root of what you REALLY want or need – and it’s probably NOT an expensive pill or a potion.
If it’s because you aren’t eating low carb consistently, address THAT first.
If it’s because you ARE eating low carb consistently but can’t seem to get or stay in ketosis, address THAT – it’s likely a food or ingredient you’re eating that you simply need to eliminate.
GOAL: good health
RESULT: weight loss
I had that backwards ⬆️ when I first starting eating low carb almost 10 years ago. I think we all start out “wanting to lose weight” and find our way to a healthier more balanced lifestyle as part of the journey. Some of us take longer than others 🙋♀️ lol.
If you eat healthy and live healthy, your body will have no choice but to follow suit. If you stay consistent, so will your weight loss and health improvements. If you work through the problems that caused you problems, those problems will disappear…
My point is to think things through when it comes to supplements or “quick fixes” – first, YOUR WHY and second: does it REALLY make logical sense? Between those two filters, you can easily make smart choices, instead of impulse buys that target your emotional triggers. 💕
I am not feeling great, more on that later, but I’m not very focused – so if I left anything out or left you with any questions, please leave a comment and we’ll continue discussing. π
Best,
Lynn Terry
aka @LowCarbTraveler
p.s. All those ketone and electrolyte (etc) supplements are expensive! I’d rather save my money for keto chocolate. 💯 Right now ChocZero is giving away FREE sugar free chocolate (their keto advent calendar!) and they have all kinds of syrup & candy bundle deals going on this weekend: Shop the ChocZero Sale You can either get the free holiday chocolate box, or you can use my TRAVELINGLOWCARB discount code to get another 10% off the sale prices. 🍫🍯💝
p.p.s. My only “supplement” exception is the collagen in my first morning coffee every day. I started using it when I developed gut health issues after a nasty virus almost 2 years ago, and continued using it for all the great benefits it provides. Especially the important ones: like pretty skin, nails & hair. π I use Perfect Keto unflavored collagen powder. There’s a 15% off discount coded into this link or you can add my discount code: LOWCARBTRAVELER at checkout for 15% off anything at Perfect Keto.
xo
Netrition – The Internet’s Premier Nutrition Superstore!
Need some ideas and inspiration? The low carb food diaries are coming back! Yes, finally. π Apologies for the long quiet spell. I’ve been having some work done on the server that hosts my blog, and we’re just about to wrap it up.
In fact, the site will be down for a few hours early Wednesday morning – but fingers crossed, back up pretty quick.
Once everything is fixed I’ll finally be able to catch up and reply to your comments again, and start sharing some FUN keto recipes and low carb food diaries with you.
PLUS we can kick off a year-end low carb weight loss challenge together! π
For now, below are the meals I ate yesterday (perfect or not!) and my macros for the day, and I have this Keto Q&A: Ask Me Anything! on Facebook – or you can leave your questions as a comment at my blog here on this post.
(If the site is down for maintenance when you try to comment, it’ll be back up soon!)
Low Carb Food Diary ✍
What I ate yesterday: 4 small double blueberry waffles with butter only, meatloaf with sugar free bbq sauce & cauli mash with shredded cheddar.
Then half a pint of low carb ice cream topped with chocolate hazelnut nut butter.
Yes, I stopped at half. 😉 I was satisfied (and tired), so I put the other half back in the freezer.
☕ 🧈 🧇 🥘 🍦🍫
📊 29 net carbs 👀
76% fat – 77 grams of protein
(including my ☕ coffees)
+ 64 ounces of water 💧
I normally stick to 20 net carbs max for the day, but I’ve been pushing the limits a little lately. 😬 Not every day, but sometimes you gotta do whatever it takes to stay on track. 🤷♀️🍦🧇 👀 😋
I made smaller waffles yesterday (using a chaffle maker) to test the recipe. At that size, and with the different nut butter and 70g of blueberries instead of 35g, the recipe made 11 waffles that were 1.7 net carbs each.
I used the same batter to make pancakes, waffles and muffins – so it’s this recipe: Keto Blueberry Muffins & Pancakes Recipe except I used the Perfect Keto vanilla macadamia nut butter instead of the other one.
🧇 The recipe has great ingredients: eggs, macadamia butter, almond flour, blueberries, all good stuff.👍
🍥 The ice cream was Halo Keto White Chocolaty Macadamia topped with Perfect Keto chocolate hazelnut macadamia butter. It gets hard like magic shell on low carb yogurt or ice cream. 🥰😋
That’s the same nut butter I used in the waffle recipe above, the vanilla one from Perfect Keto. It’s great for making candy / fat bombs, baking with AND ice cream!
📲 http://www.perfectketo.com/lynnterry
My discount code is LOWCARBTRAVELER for 15% off there
This was SO delicious!! 😍🥰
Halo Top’s “keto series” is not my favorite low carb ice cream. It’s good with “magic shell” (this combo) plus I got it on sale and it’s already cheap – and easy to find. π
So far (I’m still trying more) my top favorites are Simple Truth Keto at Kroger Stores, and the Enlightened Keto ice cream line. I think I have a good discount code for Enlightened btw, so I’ll look that up for you…
📝 Note: if I eat low carb ice cream, I eat it as a meal. I think of it like a frozen protein shake. 😉🙃
It’s more ideal for me to eat super simple vs recipes and products and sugar free sauces & sweets. I do best sticking to plain foods like meat, eggs, pecans, spinach, broccoli, etc. 🥩🥦🥚🥓🍗🧀🥑🍓🧄🥗
But I’m not against indulging in low carb treats and having healthier versions of what I want – if it keeps me from going on an all out carb binge. 🎯
Besides, sometimes you need a little FUN in your low carb life – like “ice cream for dinner” and a great movie with a friend! π
* We watched The Departed, btw (again) – what a great movie!
The meatloaf and cauliflower mash dinner was a fresh cooked meal I bought, not one I made myself. I’ve been using a Keto Meal Delivery Service which is working out GREAT for me lately! The food is delicious.
It’s Eat To Evolve and I scored us a great discount on their keto meal plan. Just use code LOWCARBTRAVELER at checkout if you decide to try it out. 💕
I have quite a few Evolve unboxing videos on my Facebook Page – or on my YouTube channel if you want to watch a few of those to see what to expect from week to week.
📅 I haven’t eaten an “off plan meal” in over 7 months – since March 12th (I had veal parmesan that day from a great Greek/Italian place). I’m pretty proud of that fact. 😎✌
Still, even sticking to super low carb foods (and usually better meals & macros than yesterday!) my weight has been trending up over the last six months. I have something hormonal going on it seems, plus stress & anxiety spike my blood sugar and cause me to float in and out of ketosis.
I’ll be talking more about that in future posts, and I’ll share with you what I plan to do to get back into weight loss mode – and the results along the way too, of course. I know others who have stayed “consistently keto” through 2020 and are also gaining weight, so if that’s you: we’ll beat this together – you are not alone!
➡️ How are things going with you lately, and what would you most like to change or improve? Are you still on track, back on track, or looking to GET back on track?
As always, if you have any questions – drop a comment and let me know. π
Best,
Lynn Terry
aka @LowCarbTraveler
Netrition – The Internet’s Premier Nutrition Superstore!
TGIF, right?! Let’s wind down and catch up real quick. π
I had a VERY full week and I’ll be working all weekend, but I did take some time to float in the river and soak up some sun 🌞 and I’m going to sneak off for a hike soon!
I also got a new dress that I love 👗‼️ and my kitchen make-over project is coming along super nice. This week we finished painting the cabinets and got the new backsplash done. I’m testing out a new keto meal delivery service too. 👀
Lots to catch up on! …
I feel bad that my meals aren’t all that exciting this week, but I’ve been eating super simple since Aaron took over my kitchen with wet paint and tools and such.
But at least he made me bacon while he was in there. π
I finished off the last of that bacon this morning with some cheesy eggs:
He also made a batch of Spinach Cheddar Drop Biscuits while he was here this week, and I made 3 different meals out of those – as a bacon sandwich. 😍🍃🥓🧀
This the awesome Keto Drop Biscuit Recipe in the Southern Keto Cookbook 👩🍳 with cheddar & spinach added.
I use 2 servings of Pictsweet Steamables frozen cut leaf spinach (still frozen, straight into the mixing bowl!) + a cup or so of shredded cheddar & the original recipe.
Unfortunately I can’t share her keto drop biscuit recipe due to copyright violation, and it isn’t online anywhere. But EVERYTHING in her cookbook is super easy, delicious and filling, and she only uses very basic everyday ingredients. (highly recommended!)
You can check out the reviews and read her story here:
📲 Southern Keto Cookbook
TIP: get the spiral bound version – you’ll have this one open A LOT! 📖 😉
There’s just something about a bacon biscuit. 😋
And you know me: I’ll add spinach to just about anything! π Like my delicious spinach burgers or this easy oven stew and even my sausage balls recipe!
(Fun Fact: Did you know spinach promotes healthy hair growth??)
🗞️ The BIG news today is Lolli’s new flavor!
I fell in love with what was originally called Lolli’s Low Carb Granola almost two years ago. It’s now called Lolli’s Clusters, which is much more accurate because they’re like big chunks of cookie clusters – VERY low carb, gluten free & keto friendly of course.
Just this morning she released a brand new flavor: 🥥🍫 German Chocolate cookie clusters. Super moist, perfectly rich and amazingly delicious! ❤
📲 https://lollisclusters.com/lowcarbtraveler
Discount Code: LOWCARBTRAVELER
Here are ALL the flavors:
🥜 Peanut Butter Macadamia
🍥 Cinnamon Pecan Crunch
🥕 Carrot Cake
☕ Mocha Cappuccino
🍋 Lemon Drop
🥥🍫 German Chocolate
* (Seasonal: Gingerbread)
🥣 They’re great as cereal, fun for snacking, perfect to top your yogurt & ice cream and awesome for creative baking too!! 👩🍳
Think: cinnamon crunch blueberry vanilla muffins – made with vanilla macadamia butter. 😍 yeah… (stay tuned for that recipe!)
📲 My discount code is LOWCARBTRAVELER at https://lollisclusters.com/lowcarbtraveler ~ and the brand new German Chocolate flavor is FINALLY available if you want to grab some. 💕
I haven’t shown my face in awhile, or taken any new pictures of myself at all actually. I didn’t realize just how withdrawn I had become – until someone pulled me out of it.
I’ll have to share more with you about that. π
I’m NOT loving any of these pictures of me, but I *AM* loving this new dress!! 👗
I got it on Amazon pretty cheap, and I love it SO much that I ordered two more in solid colors (green and wine red). π
I didn’t mean that to sound bad…
I’m really pleased about maintaining my weight loss, even if I have lost some muscle tone this year. That doesn’t bother me because I’m working on it (!!) – and anytime I’m actively working toward improving myself, that feels GOOD. 🙌
It’s less about “how I look” and more about… not wanting to be looked at. It’s an introvert thing I guess. It started back in June and I just sort of went quiet over the summer and kept to myself. But more on that later. π
Speaking of Amazon though (I get a lot of cute dresses there!), that’s also where I got the new backsplash for my kitchen – and the paint, and some plants, new wall maps and other fun home decor stuff. ✅
I’m going with “cheap & easy” on my home projects and this Peel & Stick Tile is really cool. I was impressed with it!
It’s a HUGE improvement over the weird blue wallpaper my kitchen came with. 😝
Back to my meals though, I also had the Spinach Salad with grilled chicken and roasted tomatoes again – twice this week 🤔 er, maybe three times!
It’s SO good, and takes literally FIVE MINUTES to make.
It’s the same salad I shared with you in my last food diary:
This is the chicken I keep on hand in the freezer (below) for fast low carb meals: grilled & ready chicken strips. 🥰
Just toss them in the skillet with a little butter 🧈🍳 (yes, still frozen) and brown a bit over medium heat… and you have the perfect salad topper 🥗 or serve over/with cauli rice or roasted vegetables 🥦 or stuff them in your low carb wraps.
Easy! Perfect when you need a 5 minute keto meal. 🎯
This one is Tyson brand but the Simple Truth brand at Kroger stores is good too. 👍 You’ll find them in the frozen food section near the wings usually. 🛒
I’ve pretty much been eating meals-on-repeat or super simple stuff this week with the kitchen torn apart and wet paint everywhere.
Which suits me fine – I actually prefer simple meals!
One of the things I do is log my meals in MyFitnessPal BEFORE I make or eat them. That REALLY helps me with portion control AND with mindful eating. 👌
Another favorite snack lately is roasted pecans dipped in Philadelphia Chive & Onion Cream Cheese.
That stuff is SO good! I love it spread on the keto drop biscuits, as a dip, or it even melts down nice to make a cream sauce when you’re cooking. π
Another meal we have a lot when Aaron is here is Aidell’s Apple Chicken Sausage 🍎🐔 over cheesy cauliflower rice medley.
Aaron doesn’t eat beef or pork, and this is a favorite we BOTH love. It’s 3 carbs per big plump juicy link – and delicious. 😋
It also has WAY better ingredients than other brands of Apple Chicken Sausage!
I’ve been testing out a keto meal delivery service over the last week or so too, so stay tuned for details on that.
I’ve been really impressed so far, but I’m doing ALL the research on it – and of course trying to score you a discount code on the one I settle on as the BEST. π
This is just one of the meals I tried though: pork steaks with steamed zucchini sticks. The pork was like super tender fatty boneless pork ribs. 😍 SO good, and SO nice not to have to cook!!
Now that I have my kitchen back for the weekend π I’m going to get to work on that recipe for you: Cinnamon Crunch Vanilla Muffins with Wild Blueberries.
Hmm 🤔 I need help coming up with a better name for that recipe, lol…
Or maybe I’ll make cinnamon-blueberry-vanilla-pancakes instead, or both! The same batter makes great muffins, waffles & pancakes. 🥞 It’s the same base recipe as my Keto Blueberry Muffins, just with a variation on the ingredients.
I’m going to use the Vanilla Macadamia Nut Butter this time instead since I got SO much of it FREE in my last few Perfect Keto orders. 🥰
I got 3 of my 4 orders already, by the way! They’re shipping FAST…
I told you I was stocking up for the winter. 😅
Here’s what I ordered, and how I got the most savings combining their deals.
I ordered more peanut butter cookies too, which should come tomorrow – and more unflavored collagen powder since it was still on sale!
Their bars and cookies have a GREAT (long) shelf life, and Aaron eats those too, so I went ahead and stocked up on both while they were so cheap.
Let’s catch up!
How are things going with you this week?
📦 If you ordered stuff from Perfect Keto last week, did you get your packages yet? I’d love to hear what YOU ordered, and what you’ve tried so far!
I hope this note proves helpful, or gives you some ideas to try. Like I said, I feel bad I don’t have anything new & exciting to share this week – but sometimes eating the same GREAT meals that are quick & easy (and delicious) is … just nice.
I’d rather spend an extra hour at the river or on the deck than in the kitchen. π
If you have any low carb or keto questions, let me know…
I’m always happy to help! 💕
Or maybe you have some tips & ideas, a great success story – or a great low carb recipe you love even, that you want to share. Drop a comment and let’s all catch up this weekend… xo
Best,
Lynn Terry
aka @LowCarbTraveler
Netrition – The Internet’s Premier Nutrition Superstore!
🌎 In a world-gone-mad and a 2020 nobody would ever want to repeat, smack dab in the middle of a pandemic and political warfare, there are still good and beautiful things happening. This is one of them…
This bacon 🥓 brought me to HAPPY TEARS!
It was totally unexpected…
I know I’m not alone in reevaluating my friend circle and relationships this year.
I’ve been calling it “pandemic personalities” 😳🤯😅 – I mean, people I’ve known for YEARS are blowing my mind. 🤪
You’ve seen that too, right?! 👀
But Aaron, the man I’ve been dating +/- 4 years, through losing a business he worked his a** off to build, and watching a country he served for 20 years crumbling, he has changed too … in so many wonderful ways.
He’s been kind, calm, patient, supportive, funny even! 🙃
While out of work he’s been painting my walls & helping me with home projects and maintenance. 🏡
I couldn’t be more grateful for the help!! 🙏
But the other night, after painting and working all day on my kitchen, I walked in to THIS : him cooking me bacon, in the ONE little spot on the counter not scattered with power tools. 🥓
He doesn’t even eat bacon, or any pork or beef. He did that (meal prep) for ME. 🥰 And roasted my tomatoes too.
I broke out in happy tears and threw my arms around his neck in so much appreciation. ❤ What a guy!!
It may seem like a small thing, painting my cabinets and making me bacon… but it’s not (to me), it’s not small at all.
It’s everything. 🙌
It’s unselfish, kind, thoughtful. It’s love – and love is beautiful, in all the ways it’s shown… like in a pound of beautiful perfectly crispy bacon strips, that he won’t even eat. 🥓
In a time full of change and uncertainty, I’m SO grateful for his company and companionship. There are no words for my depth of appreciation… just tears and smiles as I stand in a freshly painted kitchen eating a slice of bacon, feeling: 🥰
So I’ll show you my bacon and eggs and share my food diaries with you…
But now you know what I’m FEELING, and all the JOY behind that plate. 🍽 💕
Best,
Lynn Terry
aka @LowCarbTraveler
p.s. People are weird. Let go of the crazy ones, and HOLD ON TIGHT to the good people in your life right now. xo
p.p.s. If you liked this story, be sure to read For the love of eggs! 😅 Pandemic moments to remember too – where, back in April, he said: βThereβs no one Iβd rather spend a pandemic withβ¦ than you.β 💕
p.p.p.s. I did go back and order those Perfect Keto Peanut Butter Keto Cookies for Aaron. He kinda deserves them, don’t you agree? π They’re expensive to me so I grabbed them while they were on sale, but they do go a long way – and they ARE delicious. Plus Aaron LOVES them, so… yeah❣️ he can enjoy those while I eat my bacon with a heart full of smiles. π
Netrition – The Internet’s Premier Nutrition Superstore!
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The sale I’m referring to in this post has now ended, but make sure you’re signed up by email to get notified of their next BIG sale! And keep reading for the current deals – because I’m always scouting the BIGGEST savings for you. π
📲 Perfect Keto 15% Off Discount Link
Discount Code: LOWCARBTRAVELER
Perfect Keto is STILL offering free gifts (free products!) and free shipping, plus $20 off certain keto bars – and their 45% off ALL keto bar flavors, so definitely check out the deals (plus the 40% off nut butters below) and play around on the site to see what kind of discounts you can score. 🎯
📲 Current Special: Get 40% Off Perfect Keto Nut Butters!
Want to see what I ordered today, and how I got 🖐 FIVE free products + half off the normal price using two different Perfect Keto discount links?!
I’ll show you exactly how I got the MOST stuff for the LEAST amount.
I’m all about using every trick to maximize savings & get stuff cheap! π
You can see what all I ordered, even if you’re just curious. 👀
Oh – and their Unflavored Collagen Powder and Peanut Butter Cookies ARE back in stock. 👍
Perfect Keto had another one of their BIG sales this week, and I ALWAYS stock up during their sales! π
I started by ordering 3 tubs of their Unflavored Collagen Powder because I use that daily in my first morning coffee. ☕️ Perfect timing too, because I’m near the bottom of my last canister as we speak.
🎁 They added a FREE vanilla macadamia nut butter to my order at checkout too!
Note: this sale has ended, but you can still get 15% off using this discount link or using the code LOWCARBTRAVELER at checkout.
First though, if you like the Perfect Keto Bars and you wait to stock up when they’re on sale, this 45% off 4 boxes is a WAY better deal than the current sale they’re running! ❤
That link is not on their website anywhere, so just click here to order Perfect Keto Bars – but don’t add anything else to your cart, only bars. Everything else is on sale, so you can place a different order for other items.
This is my order using that deal today. 👇
I might have stocked up for the winter… lol – but what a DEAL! And they added ANOTHER free vanilla macadamia nut butter to this order too. 🥰
So I had two FREE vanilla macadamia nut butters (those are GREAT to bake with!!) a FREE collagen powder, half off my keto bars…
And wait 🤔 I should tell you those are not ALL for me. 😆
Aaron LOVES the Perfect Keto bars and gets into my stash quite a bit when he’s here painting, or grabs a few to take along when he picks me up for a hike.
They do have a great shelf life though, so I’m not opposed to being “over stocked” when they’re half price. π
Anyway ~ two FREE vanilla macadamia nut butters, a FREE collagen powder, half off my keto bars… and then I decided to grab some more Chocolate Hazelnut Nut Butter too.
Truth: Aaron gets into that too. 🧐 But also because I want to do some more baking with it AND because it’s my favorite “magic shell” on low carb ice cream. 😍
And look: a THIRD FREE vanilla macadamia nut butter (yay!!) + my third 2-pack of nut butter FREE … then they offered me a special deal at checkout: a box of Cinnamon Roll Keto Bars for only $19.99 ($20 off!).
Um, yes please! ❤
I feel like I seriously SCORED today with the FIVE free products and half off ALL the bars. I am shopping for two like I said, but the bars and collagen and nut butter are staples in my keto pantry – and you really can’t beat those deals.❣️
📲 Perfect Keto 15% Off Discount Link
📲 Current Special: Get 40% Off Perfect Keto Nut Butters!
📲 45% off Perfect Keto Bars (don’t add anything else to your cart!)
I think I’m going to place one more order… and snag some of their DELICIOUS peanut butter cookies. I only have one package left, and I’ve had it stashed away (hidden from Aaron!) for a special treat. π haha
Poor guy, he loves those – and I’ve been holding out on him. 😇 I don’t really snack much or eat a lot of sweets, but Aaron DOES – and he loves to have something sweet in the evenings when he watches a movie.
So yeah, I should go grab those too. The peanut butter cookies are their BEST flavor (in my opinion). I love them, even for breakfast with coffee – or smeared with peanut butter and sugar free preserves. 🥰 yum!
I’ll put some pictures for you below to give you an idea of the textures & flavors of their bars & cookies, in case you haven’t tried them yet.
I hope you enjoyed a sneak peak at my keto shopping & great deals today!
A lot of people in our group ONLY stock up during their sales, so I try to make sure you don’t miss those. Apologies for the late notice on this one, but I just got my own order in a few hours ago… It’s been a crazy full week here! 🤪
Best,
Lynn Terry,
aka @LowCarbTraveler
Their cookies are softbatch style, by the way: very moist. The double chocolate cookies are more like a βbrookieβ (brownie cookie) in texture.
I do like those, and the chocolate chip (theyβre all good) but the newest Peanut Butter Cookies are my FAVORITE:
This is the Birthday Cake bars 👇 which are softer like the Cinnamon Roll bars. Those two flavors are softer and creamier than the others. I love them both!
My top favorites are Almond Butter Brownie, Lemon Poppyseed and Cinnamon Roll. (Aaron loves the Salted Caramel!)
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People give me a hard time about what & how I eat. I get that. It can be hard to judge a person’s diet on a single Facebook or Instagram share though, or a single day of eating even. I don’t know about you, but I change things up a lot…
That would be a GREAT topic for us to discuss actually. I’ll work on that for an upcoming post, like why I stopped using MCT oil and why I’m going to start back using it again, why I’m eating yogurt & spinach & onions & grape tomatoes so much lately, why I haven’t been testing my ketone levels lately (like I normally do), etc.
But today I’ll give you two complete Keto Food Diaries, one from yesterday and one from last week, plus show you more recent meals I’ve been eating for some live examples.
Plus a video from my most recent pick-up from the store to give you some low carb grocery ideas (and how I use those foods for fast keto meals). 🛒
As for the negative feedback, I don’t mind the questions AT ALL or even the criticism.
Actually, sometimes the more critical questions and even straight up criticism inspires me to get out of a food rut, or it brings up a great topic for us to discuss here.
It’s always “food for thought” at least – on how I can be more specific or more helpful, hunt down easy swaps or replacement ideas for people, or even make some improvements. π
The comments range from: I eat too many vegetables, I don’t eat enough vegetables, I eat way too much, my portions are way too small, I eat expensive foods, I eat too boring/simple, I eat processed foods, I’m too strict, I eat too many calories or too much fat, I eat at the wrong time of day, etc, etc, etc.
I’m just doing what works for me, and sharing lots of ideas & examples as I go. But I do change things up a lot…
Last summer for example I was eating mostly meat & avocado for awhile, because I was in the middle of a major elimination diet. Sometimes I do OMAD (one meal a day) and just eat one bigger meal in the middle of the day. Other times it’s yogurt & certain vegetables when I’m testing things with my gut health issues, etc.
Most of the time I have some reason or objective with what or how I’m eating, I just don’t always do a good job of pointing that out. But here’s one for example, on why I decided to double my protein last year:
How Much Protein Should You Eat? 5 Keto Food Diary Examples with LCHF Macros
No matter what or how I’m eating though, I keep it really simple:
My goal is to eat 20 net carbs max and 70% fat minimum per day. I eat when I’m hungry and don’t when I’m not – and stop when I’m satisfied (vs stuffed). Sometimes I go over the 20 net carbs, sometimes I’m way under – honestly, I don’t sweat it. 💁♀️
Here’s my complete Keto Food Diary in MyFitnessPal yesterday:
I had a collagen coffee and a collagen protein bar in the morning, and then one big meal (bacon & eggs) later in the day.
My day came to 11 net carbs, 74% fat and 65 grams of protein.
See: What Are Keto Macros? (How To Use Your Macro Calculator Without Stressing Out)
And: How To Get Net Carbs in MyFitnessPal (Free)
I ate less yesterday than I have been lately, but that’s just how some days go. It was a busy day and I was stressed. 🤷♀️
I also ended up making two meals out of the bacon and eggs, because it was A LOT of food and I got satisfied about halfway through it – so finished it later.
That’s 4 eggs, 4 slices of bacon, plus the butter & cheeses.
To give you another example, with almost twice the calories and carbs, here’s my MyFitnessPal Food Diary from last Friday – where I had a pint of low carb ice cream for dinner. 😅🙃
26 net carbs, 70% fat, 115 grams of protein
Starting my day with a collagen coffee & keto bar has been the norm lately, because I’ve been having to get an EARLY start on my work days here in the home office.
I had a late breakfast closer to 11am, just cheesy eggs. Some days, a soft scramble with colby jack cheese just really hits the spot. 👌🍳🥚🧀
This is a saucer with 3 1/2 eggs (7 scrambled eggs split between two people) compared to the full-sized dinner plate above.
The late lunch / early dinner (or just: “next meal”) was a BEAUTIFUL salad. 🥗
This has been a meal-on-repeat for me lately because it’s FAST, EASY and healthy – and SO delicious. 🥰
It’s 60 grams of fresh baby spinach 🍃 topped with 42 grams of shredded mozzarella + hot grilled chicken strips & garlic-roasted grape tomatoes & drizzled with Litehouse Foods homestyle ranch dressing. 💯
I roast the grape tomatoes by the sheet pan and keep those in the freezer. The chicken is fully cooked frozen Tyson “grilled & ready” strips, so I toss both in a skillet with a little butter straight out of the freezer. 🍳
Fast, healthy low carb meal. ✅
The Simple Truth Keto Ice Cream is one of many brands I’ve been reviewing lately. I find that brand (Simple Truth) at Kroger – it’s their own brand, and it’s delicious!
You can see that ice cream in this video of my last pick-up from Kroger, just basic low carb staples & keto favorites. 🛒 I already had plenty of cheese & almond butter & pecans + tons of meat in the freezer, so just a quick restock of things I use for those fast easy “freezer to table” meals. ✅
I’ve been eating A LOT of eggs.
They were 88 cents for a carton of 18 eggs at Kroger recently, so I stocked up!
This has been a favorite lately! 🥰
🧅🍃🧀🍅🥚🍳 ~ sautΓ©ed onions, roasted grape tomatoes & spinach scrambled in butter with pimento cheese and topped with a sprinkle of cheddar + a dollup of Daisy Brand sour cream. 😍
I like to stock up when I do shop, but I can’t use everything up that fast (usually eating alone) so I dice up the fresh onions and freeze those in a sealed container.
I also roast the grape tomatoes by the sheet pan and freeze those. Shredded cheddar & mozzarella, colby jack cheese blocks, butter and the Palmetto Pimento Cheese also freeze well.
They all thaw super fast too, so I’ll often use the roasted tomatoes or diced onions or shredded mozzarella straight out of the freezer. π
Anyway, that scramble was AMAZING. 💯 Sometimes I’ll add chopped bacon, diced ham, you can toss in pretty much anything you have on hand. 😉
More Low Carb Meal Ideas…
In my grocery video above you saw the chicken sausage, cauliflower rice w/vegetables and grape tomatoes…
Here’s a fast meal I made with those items:
It’s cauliflower rice w/vegetables (steamed in the bag) + roasted grape tomatoes (out of the freezer) topped with Aidells Apple Chicken Sausage. 🐔🍎 Easy! 👍
A simple no prep throw-together meal. π
Speaking of simple, here’s the simple NO-FRILLS version of my sausage ball recipe:
Just sausage & cheese! π
Here’s “the fancy version” with spinach and sauteed onions:
Spinach Sausage Balls
You can toss in pretty much anything you like, or use ground chicken or ground turkey or even ground beef for different styles of meatbals…
That’s pretty much how I eat most days: super simple.
Meat, eggs, spinach, cheese, sometimes diced onion or roasted tomatoes, sometimes yogurt or strawberries & blueberries, but usually quick & easy – and always a pretty simple combo of whole foods.
I rarely snack, as in “eat between meals” but sometimes I do graze at my desk on snack foods in place of a meal. Like with this plate of roasted pecans dipped in Onion & Chives cream cheese + a mozzarella cheese stick:
To me, that’s an easy “lunch” at my desk while I’m working.
Lately if I’m hungry in the morning I’ll have 2 tbsp of Justin’s Almond Butter (only 2 ingredients) with a mozzarella stick and a keto bar. You saw those bars in my two food diaries above – they’re collagen protein bars from Perfect Keto.
This one is the Cinnamon Roll flavor:
Those are B2G1 (buy two get one free) today at this link, or I have this 45% off link that’s a better deal if you buy 4+ boxes (if you stock up when they’re cheap, like me).
We’re discussing that here if you have any questions, because I placed 3 separate orders this morning to get the MOST savings.
I also ended up getting 2 free nut butters and half price on another box of bars in my orders, which was a sweet deal. It was easy enough to place separate orders to get the MOST stuff for the LEAST amount. π
That came up (again) in the comments on my last post, btw – about the expensive things I use that they can’t afford and things they wish I wouldn’t eat, or that I would go back to SIMPLE.
As you can see in my meals & food diaries above, almost everything I eat IS really simple – and cheap: 18 eggs for 88 cents, marked down chicken (that was a GREAT price if you saw it in my grocery video), frozen vegetables for a buck or two each that make several meals each for me when I combine a few things, etc.
I’m actually pretty thrifty. π Plus I’m saving TONS of money eating at home this summer instead of getting fast food & take-out so much, or dining out & traveling.
I’ve also been skipping my usual pedicures, manicures, hair appointments, etc. My hairdresser shut down, btw – so I’m just letting my hair go, and letting it grow out. 🤷♀️
That’s just me though. I’m actually enjoying a lower maintenance lifestyle and more time at home, but it IS nice to get low carb ice cream delivered (or at pick-ups) – or have the keto bars & cookies on hand for a fast grab to enjoy now and then.
I only get the bars & other products on sale too, which helps. Since a bar is easily a meal replacement for me, breakfast for $1.83 is not bad at all (considering I use that 45% off link to stock up on those). Especially compared to what I used to spend on take-out breakfast or dine-in brunches on the go. π
I don’t feel like I have to defend the way I eat or what I eat, but I do like to explain it in a way that gives you the bigger picture – or helps you see it in a more balanced way.
As for Perfect Keto, I love their bars and their peanut butter cookies & the chocolate hazelnut nut butter. But I mostly use their protein bars and unflavored collagen. The bars are just EASY, and a nice change on mornings I don’t want to have eggs.
Plus I get them cheap – usually close to half price, which makes them cheaper than Atkins bars or anything I can get locally even. π
I started using their unflavored collagen powder daily in my first morning coffee last year when I had horrible gut health issues, but I kept using it because it works wonders on my hair & nails!
This is the one I use. I mentioned my kitchen was under construction. π lol…
I can’t wait to show you before & after kitchen pictures!!
My gut still isn’t 100%. Unfortunately stress and anxiety cause flare-ups, and 2020 has been… 😳🥴 – so I still have to be picky about what I eat.
The Perfect Keto Bars were one thing I identified early on in my elimination diet last year that don’t inflame my digestive tract (unlike the ingredients in many other bars).
So there’s that, too. Plus I just like them (A LOT) 🥰 and the ingredients are really high quality. ✅
Actually, I’ll get screenshots of my 3 Perfect Keto orders from this morning, because I ended up getting a SWEET deal – including FOUR free products, half price on one, and 45% off the other order. That way you can see my “shopping skillz” 🛒 and how to make the most out of their sales. 🤑 (lol, that emoji cracks me up!)
Here are the two special links I used though if you want to browse for now:
📲 Perfect Keto Buy 2 Get 1 Free (ends tonight!)
📲 45% off 4+ boxes of Perfect Keto Bars (don’t add anything else to your cart!)
I’ll get more of my recent EASY recipes & low carb meals together for you…
– plus more of my grocery pics & videos too, so you can see some live examples of EASY low carb living, and maybe get some fresh ideas to mix things up and keep it interesting.
Because I’ve been eating at home all summer, and coming up with some GREAT one-skillet meals that are super easy, and trying out all kinds of new things in my kitchen… which rarely got used before this year. 😂
👩🍳 Like this “fancy-but-fast” dish:
I hope this proved helpful.
Let me know if you have ANY questions – or even special requests or feedback. π
I don’t really have a “set way” of “doing keto” except to stick to around 20 net carbs a day, keep it simple, eat when I’m hungry and don’t when I’m not.
Otherwise I’m pretty much freestyling it – and yes, sometimes having a pint of low carb ice cream for dinner. 😎
I don’t like to be too strict or too restrictive, but I get that it works out really well for some people to be MORE strict or have more of a routine to it – which is totally okay too.
I do track my macros though, and put everything into MyFitnessPal BEFORE I make it or eat it. I find that makes me a MUCH more mindful eater. Plus it lets me easily see what potential culprits might be if/when my weight loss stalls or I get a weird reaction to something.
I think a good mix of routine and mindful eating along with freeflow (and easy) is a great balance.
It is for me at least! π What about you?
Best,
Lynn Terry,
aka @LowCarbTraveler
p.s. THANK YOU for all of your awesome notes & comments on my last post. I’m still working my way through replying to each and every one! xo
My next post is all about how to get back on track 👣 … the EASY way.
Watch for it – it’ll be hitting your inbox later today or first thing in the morning! π
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Welcome to my blog
I love making the low carb diet EASY for people with a busy lifestyle (like me!) with my KISS / Keep It Simple method. π
