With all the lovely weather our backyard strawberry plants are starting to look very robust. I was weeding this weekend and, looking at them, had a moment of sadness thinking I wouldn't be able to graze the strawberries and raspberries this year, but when I looked up the carb content, it's actually pretty low. Like, 10 grams for a cup, which would more than satisfy me. So my question is, can I use strawberries as a 'vegetable exchange' occasionally at lunch (i.e. make a massive salad with strawberries on top)? Or is there something else I am missing about the types of carbs in fruit that would make them problematic on IP?

I'm in P1, if that helps.

They metabolize to sugar so they trigger an insulin response. This is why no fruit. If you want to slow your fat loss down, then you could substitute I suppose. If you are going to miss it that much, then maybe do the P1 Alternative plan where you can have some fruit.

Ro22 is correct and eating fruit will probably make you crave more sugar.

Thanks for the info. I might have to consider the Alt plan once I've gotten a little further along. After the revelation in one of Braels posts that people can actually remain ketogenic long-term without ill effects I'm actually looking at IP as a stepping stone to a permanent eating style change. I've been amazed at how LITTLE I crave sugar anymore, mostly from the mental vs physical standpoint, but I do confess to looking enviously at fruit and some odd vegetables like carrots. I haven't even missed wine the way I thought I would.

Once you reach goal and head into maintenance you will find that your body will adjust to higher levels of carbs and fat and STILL be able to stay in ketosis.

From the keto-runners perspective, many of them are having between 100 and 120g of carbs per day and remaining in a very light form of ketosis (barely registering on the blood ketone meter, but still actually in catabolic metabolism). Of course, there will be times that you want/need to have a mini-break to ensure optimal thyroid health and keep your hormone levels in the right place, but yes, it's absolutely possible to remain ketogenic post-IP.

Thanks, Briael! I'd like to drop another 10# before I start running again, but I do plan to follow in your footsteps and try a C25K. I did try jogging at my higher weight level, pre-IP, and had to do a lot of squats to strengthen my knees to avoid getting sore. Plus I was bouncing all over the place in terms of hunger levels. Figured my body was trying to tell me something and I'd better revisit that level of cardio later, else risk my knees, ankles etc. It seems to be a work in progress, keeping the body chemistry in line with the brain desires!

I was super sore after my first day, but then I started doing deep stretching after each run. Now I not at all sore, and I'm getting my flexibility back. Highly recommend.