Complete beginner here — where do I even start with keto?

Welcome! Okay let me give you the simple version that nobody seems to put in one place.

Day one: Clear your pantry of bread, pasta, rice, sugar, and anything with more than 5g of carbs per serving. Replace with: eggs, bacon, butter, cheese, ground beef, chicken thighs, olive oil, heavy cream, leafy greens, broccoli, avocados. That's your starter pack.

Carbs: stay under 20g net carbs per day to start. Net carbs = total carbs minus fiber. After 4-6 weeks once you're fat adapted you can experiment with going up to 25-30g. But 20g is the number that works reliably for almost everyone.

Macros: you don't NEED to track them obsessively at the start. What you need to avoid is under-eating fat. This is the #1 beginner mistake — people cut carbs but don't replace the calories with fat, then they're starving and quit. Eat until you're genuinely full. Fat is your fuel now.

Supplements: the only one you actually need right away is electrolytes — sodium, potassium, magnesium. You'll lose water weight in the first week and with it your electrolytes. This causes keto flu. Buy LMNT or make your own with salt, no-salt, and a magnesium supplement. $15-20 total, not $200.

I started exactly where you are three years ago. My advice: don't overthink it. The first week is just about getting through the carb withdrawal. It's uncomfortable but it passes.

The thing that saved me was meal prepping on Sunday. I hard-boiled a dozen eggs, cooked a big batch of ground beef with taco seasoning, and cut up a bunch of vegetables. When you're hungry and tired, you need food ready to grab or you'll eat whatever's around.

Don't buy anything special yet. Start with what's already familiar to you — whatever meat you normally like, add butter or oil, and pair it with vegetables that grow above ground (no potatoes, no corn, no carrots). That's it for week one. Keep it simple.

Same situation as you when I started — confused, overwhelmed, and skeptical. Lost 38 lbs over 7 months so I can tell you it works.

One thing nobody told me that I wish they had: the first 3-5 days are rough. Headaches, tired, maybe a bit moody. This is NOT your body telling you keto is wrong for you. It's your body switching fuel sources. Push through and it completely goes away.

Also — don't weigh yourself every day for the first two weeks. You'll see weird fluctuations that mess with your head. Weigh once a week, same time, same conditions.

Quick practical tip: download the Cronometer app (free) and log your food for the first 2 weeks. Not to obsess, just to get an intuition for which foods have hidden carbs. You'll be shocked — some things you thought were healthy have 30-40g of carbs.

And yeah, 20g net carbs. Not total. Net.

This is incredibly helpful, thank you all. So if I understand correctly: clear the pantry, eat meat + fat + low-carb vegetables, stay under 20g net carbs, get electrolytes. Starting Sunday. I'll report back!

Good luck! One more thing — don't fear the fat. That's the weirdest psychological adjustment. You've been told your whole life that fat makes you fat. On keto it's the opposite. Eat the fatty cuts of meat. Add butter to everything. Use heavy cream in your coffee. The fat keeps you full and fuels ketosis. If you try to do "low fat keto" you'll be miserable and hungry.