Thank you Jamal for this gem of the article! You have laid out something I have been looking on how exactly to eat on Ray Peat’s principles and now I know why I gained 8kgs instead of losing it after introducing sugar in my diet. Although, it helped in some other ways too. Keeping stress levels low and helping me relieved of morning allergies(Hay fever)
At what Fat(in gms) would you call a meal high carb and high fat? I have seen in you meal structures that you have kept below 10g for all meals, is there a general rule?
Thanks for your comment I appreciate it, I’m glad you liked the article, let’s say that in a high carb meal, 20 grams of fat and more is considered high fat
Great article! I particularly enjoyed the concluding section, as I’m relatively new to all of this. I find it challenging to implement most of the suggestions you make, but you’ve explained everything thoroughly and even demonstrated how to apply them in everyday life.
However, I have two questions. When do you choose to have a moderate carb day? On training days, it’s high carb, and on rest days, it’s low carb. But there were two days I believe with moderate carb intake. What’s the reason for that?
Additionally, how would this all apply to bulking? Will there be an article dedicated to bulking as well?
The moderate carb days were just examples of smart carbs timing: we adapt carbs to needs and training demand. For example, before a heavy legs day I’d eat high carbs to fill glycogen and support performance. Before a lighter session like arms, I’ll stay moderate because the demand is lower.
Why do I feel so good on keto? Why do my workouts remain high energy and powerful?
HCLF tanked my hormones. I felt terrible on 40-50g of fat a day. Bear in mind I was a growing 18 year old. Did it get me lean? Temporarily. Then I bounced back worse than ever before. Sure my defecit was aggressive, but I'm tired of being hypoglycemic at some points in the day due to the insulin crash from carbs.
Keto has given me stable energy, increased cognitive function, increased cardiovascular efficiency, a million times better sleep, the capacity for more work, the ability to work in the evening, increased strength and increased insulin sensitivity, as well as significant fat loss. Libido is a million times better as well.
I do have some carbs. Blueberries and vegetables is normally it. But sometimes I forget to eat them because I don't really crave them. What would you suggest for someone on keto?
If you feel good on keto, that doesn’t contradict the article. Removing carbs removes fuel competition, so energy feels stable.
But often when people feel bad on carbs it’s impaired glucose oxidation. Proper glucose use requires functional PDH, adequate B1, magnesium, potassium, thyroid output, and healthy mitochondria. If that’s impaired, glucose gets diverted toward stress pathways and people feel unstable.
Keto can feel better because you’re bypassing that bottleneck, but bypassing isn’t fixing.
The goal is metabolic flexibility: being able to oxidize both fuels efficiently, not being locked into one.
In my mind, keto will only improve my glucose oxidation, if carbs are steadily reintroduced (hypothetically). My issue is that HCLF means I have to eat regularly, to maintain proper glucose levels. With keto, energy is stable all the time, so I only have to eat once or twice a day. Prep takes less time too. It's cheaper, less expensive and makes me feel better.
It's interesting you talk about mitochondrial function, when fruit and honey is high in deuterium, that negatively effects their efficiency.
Carbs upregulate my appetite massively, leading me to think about food all the time, inflame me and glycate my cells. Ever since I've gone keto my skin conditions have improved. Before I was only eating 'clean' carbs.
As long as I keep adequately mineralised, maintain high quality sleep, eating enough fat and don't overtrain, I believe keto can get me in really good shape, without destroying my hunger hormones, libido and energy stability.
If keto feels stable and practical for you, that matters.
But keto doesn’t improve glucose oxidation, it reduces reliance on it.
Regarding appetite: carbs can increase hunger if glycogen management and insulin sensitivity aren’t optimal. But when liver glycogen is consistently replenished and meals are structured, appetite usually stabilizes. Chronic low carb often suppresses appetite via stress hormones and ketones, which feels good short term.
On deuterium: fruit and honey aren’t inherently mitochondrial toxins. Oxidative efficiency depends more on redox state, substrate balance, and ETC function than on trace deuterium content in whole foods.
If keto keeps your sleep, libido, and energy strong, that’s fine. My framework isn’t anti-keto.
Fair enough. 16 years of chronically overconsuming carbs and upregulating the randle cycle has led me to have sub-optimal glucose oxidation, significant insulin resistance and a degree of inflammation. Keto has been the best 'reset' so far, to decrease inflammation and insulin resistance, as well as managing my skew wiff hunger hormones.
I believe I can thrive on this diet, as it's eating the only things I like - meat and eggs haha. Dairy and nuts are nice additions but for fat loss i don't consume them.
I'll consider carbohydrates in the form of fruits and honey in the summer, gradually introducing them to fire up glucose oxidation, where I get more sunlight and daily activity, and less cold exposure to regulate T3.
Very insight read thank you! Question for myself, I go gym, play competitive sports and am a fairly active individual, however my weight loss has stagnated. After reading your article I plan to have moderate carbs on gym days and higher carbs during sports training sessions then low carbs on rest days whilst keeping fat low throughout, is that an accurate way to go about things?
Thank you! Will keep you posted and come back to this. A final question: I am currently fasting as I’m observing Ramadan, when I do break my fast, what should my macronutrient composition be?
Hi Jamal, I read you on X (but I don't have an account). This guide is sooo good. Just trying to adapt it to a 48yo European woman and who is struggling with life, hypothyroidism and a bit of a sedentary lifestyle. Thank you so so much for giving this guide for free.
This was such a good read! Thank you. I was surprised this was free. I thought I knew a lot about nutrition. I am working with a bit of a setback having been diagnosed with ME/CFS. Chronically under eating for most of my life as I just don't have a big appetite but still overweight. I feel better on keto for a short time but just can't keep it up. Ill try this!
Really sharp take on the Beyond Calories: The complete metabolic guide, Jamal. I’ve been tracking the data on this from a slightly different angle—how the Liver-Mito Axis acts as a hidden throttle on cellular energy. It’s rare to see someone connect the dots. Just shared this with my research group over at The Vitality Protocol. Looking forward to the next one!
The Randle cycle asymmetry point is crucial and often missed. It explains why so many people stall combining high fat with moderate carbs, forcing both fuels into competition where neither wins cleanly. Separating them temporally or shifting the ratio decisively one way resolves that friction for most.
1️⃣ Low fat doesn’t automatically lower testosterone. Cholesterol is produced in the liver from acetyl-CoA, which can come from carbs, fats, or protein. As long as energy and thyroid function are adequate, steroid production isn’t dependent on high dietary fat. Retinol (vitamin A) supports this process.
2️⃣ Coconut oil is mostly medium-chain fats. They’re oxidized rapidly and interfere less with glucose oxidation than long-chain fats, but yes, they still count toward total fat intake.
3️⃣ The macros were an example. Since we can’t precisely calculate calories out (NEAT, thyroid, training, stress all shift it), start there and adjust based on energy, waist, and progress.
4️⃣ Ribeye once per week isn’t a problem. Weekly averages matter more than one meal.
Thanks for the explanation and response on all questions! This is really insightful! I will look into this and start implementing it as some points you talked about (fat loss stalled, sleep worsens, training performance declines, libido declines) is something I’m experiencing now. Even when I ate 200 kcal below maintanance (Now I understand that kcals out can’t be calculated). So definitely will do refeed days aswell.
Great article, can you go in to foods to avoid that are high in fat. I (70kg) get 70-85g of fat intake daily (mainly from ground bison and cheese, yogurt) and I now think that is what’s preventing me from maximizing fat loss.
At 70kg, 70–85g fat is probably on the high side if you’re trying to maximize fat loss, especially with carbs present.
I’d track for 2–3 weeks using an app (FatSecret, Cronometer, etc.) You literally just enter the food name, quantity, even the brand, and it calculates the macros for you.
Then aim closer to ~0.4–0.6g/kg fat and switch to leaner options.
Only exception for Randle Cycle: short- and medium-chain fats (coconut oil/MCTs). They’re oxidized faster and enter mitochondria more directly, so they interfere less with glucose oxidation than long-chain fats.
Thanks for making this post free, absolutely incredible knowledge
such a good post!
Thank you Jamal for this gem of the article! You have laid out something I have been looking on how exactly to eat on Ray Peat’s principles and now I know why I gained 8kgs instead of losing it after introducing sugar in my diet. Although, it helped in some other ways too. Keeping stress levels low and helping me relieved of morning allergies(Hay fever)
At what Fat(in gms) would you call a meal high carb and high fat? I have seen in you meal structures that you have kept below 10g for all meals, is there a general rule?
Thanks for your comment I appreciate it, I’m glad you liked the article, let’s say that in a high carb meal, 20 grams of fat and more is considered high fat
Insanity. Might be the best post about fat loss i have read
Great article! I particularly enjoyed the concluding section, as I’m relatively new to all of this. I find it challenging to implement most of the suggestions you make, but you’ve explained everything thoroughly and even demonstrated how to apply them in everyday life.
However, I have two questions. When do you choose to have a moderate carb day? On training days, it’s high carb, and on rest days, it’s low carb. But there were two days I believe with moderate carb intake. What’s the reason for that?
Additionally, how would this all apply to bulking? Will there be an article dedicated to bulking as well?
I really enjoyed reading this article. :)
Thanks a lot, glad you enjoyed it.
The moderate carb days were just examples of smart carbs timing: we adapt carbs to needs and training demand. For example, before a heavy legs day I’d eat high carbs to fill glycogen and support performance. Before a lighter session like arms, I’ll stay moderate because the demand is lower.
Yea I get it now, looking forward to part 2
Why do I feel so good on keto? Why do my workouts remain high energy and powerful?
HCLF tanked my hormones. I felt terrible on 40-50g of fat a day. Bear in mind I was a growing 18 year old. Did it get me lean? Temporarily. Then I bounced back worse than ever before. Sure my defecit was aggressive, but I'm tired of being hypoglycemic at some points in the day due to the insulin crash from carbs.
Keto has given me stable energy, increased cognitive function, increased cardiovascular efficiency, a million times better sleep, the capacity for more work, the ability to work in the evening, increased strength and increased insulin sensitivity, as well as significant fat loss. Libido is a million times better as well.
I do have some carbs. Blueberries and vegetables is normally it. But sometimes I forget to eat them because I don't really crave them. What would you suggest for someone on keto?
If you feel good on keto, that doesn’t contradict the article. Removing carbs removes fuel competition, so energy feels stable.
But often when people feel bad on carbs it’s impaired glucose oxidation. Proper glucose use requires functional PDH, adequate B1, magnesium, potassium, thyroid output, and healthy mitochondria. If that’s impaired, glucose gets diverted toward stress pathways and people feel unstable.
Keto can feel better because you’re bypassing that bottleneck, but bypassing isn’t fixing.
The goal is metabolic flexibility: being able to oxidize both fuels efficiently, not being locked into one.
Thank you for replying so promptly.
In my mind, keto will only improve my glucose oxidation, if carbs are steadily reintroduced (hypothetically). My issue is that HCLF means I have to eat regularly, to maintain proper glucose levels. With keto, energy is stable all the time, so I only have to eat once or twice a day. Prep takes less time too. It's cheaper, less expensive and makes me feel better.
It's interesting you talk about mitochondrial function, when fruit and honey is high in deuterium, that negatively effects their efficiency.
Carbs upregulate my appetite massively, leading me to think about food all the time, inflame me and glycate my cells. Ever since I've gone keto my skin conditions have improved. Before I was only eating 'clean' carbs.
As long as I keep adequately mineralised, maintain high quality sleep, eating enough fat and don't overtrain, I believe keto can get me in really good shape, without destroying my hunger hormones, libido and energy stability.
I understand your point.
If keto feels stable and practical for you, that matters.
But keto doesn’t improve glucose oxidation, it reduces reliance on it.
Regarding appetite: carbs can increase hunger if glycogen management and insulin sensitivity aren’t optimal. But when liver glycogen is consistently replenished and meals are structured, appetite usually stabilizes. Chronic low carb often suppresses appetite via stress hormones and ketones, which feels good short term.
On deuterium: fruit and honey aren’t inherently mitochondrial toxins. Oxidative efficiency depends more on redox state, substrate balance, and ETC function than on trace deuterium content in whole foods.
If keto keeps your sleep, libido, and energy strong, that’s fine. My framework isn’t anti-keto.
Fair enough. 16 years of chronically overconsuming carbs and upregulating the randle cycle has led me to have sub-optimal glucose oxidation, significant insulin resistance and a degree of inflammation. Keto has been the best 'reset' so far, to decrease inflammation and insulin resistance, as well as managing my skew wiff hunger hormones.
I believe I can thrive on this diet, as it's eating the only things I like - meat and eggs haha. Dairy and nuts are nice additions but for fat loss i don't consume them.
I'll consider carbohydrates in the form of fruits and honey in the summer, gradually introducing them to fire up glucose oxidation, where I get more sunlight and daily activity, and less cold exposure to regulate T3.
How would I approach eating with hypothyroidism to burn belly fat?
Very insight read thank you! Question for myself, I go gym, play competitive sports and am a fairly active individual, however my weight loss has stagnated. After reading your article I plan to have moderate carbs on gym days and higher carbs during sports training sessions then low carbs on rest days whilst keeping fat low throughout, is that an accurate way to go about things?
The perfect strategy, and it will works.
Thank you! Will keep you posted and come back to this. A final question: I am currently fasting as I’m observing Ramadan, when I do break my fast, what should my macronutrient composition be?
The same, I’ve also posted an article about Ramadhan on X :
https://x.com/berbarianwizard/status/2013241084445364445?s=46&t=apY_FI4CrlbpCLNbT-HVEw
Mashallah tabarakallah, barakallah feekum! Will read
À ton avis, quel serait le ratio glucide/lipide qui les mettrait en compétition (randle..) ?
Certains repas je me retrouve à éviter le gras quasi complètement afin de maximiser l’oxidation du sucre…
Ce ramadan je me suis retrouvé à ne quasi plus manger d’œuf alors qu’avant c’était minimum 3-4/j
En tout cas la lecture était vraiment intéressante !
Hi Jamal, I read you on X (but I don't have an account). This guide is sooo good. Just trying to adapt it to a 48yo European woman and who is struggling with life, hypothyroidism and a bit of a sedentary lifestyle. Thank you so so much for giving this guide for free.
Thank you, I appreciate your comment, keep us updated 🙏
This was such a good read! Thank you. I was surprised this was free. I thought I knew a lot about nutrition. I am working with a bit of a setback having been diagnosed with ME/CFS. Chronically under eating for most of my life as I just don't have a big appetite but still overweight. I feel better on keto for a short time but just can't keep it up. Ill try this!
Thanks I appreciate your feedback, let me know how it goes
Really sharp take on the Beyond Calories: The complete metabolic guide, Jamal. I’ve been tracking the data on this from a slightly different angle—how the Liver-Mito Axis acts as a hidden throttle on cellular energy. It’s rare to see someone connect the dots. Just shared this with my research group over at The Vitality Protocol. Looking forward to the next one!
Appreciate your feedback, thank you, the other two parts are already online, and other articles are incoming
Thanks!
I've just realised I've now read a whole pro-metabolic diet article that didn't mention the carrot.
The carrot is mentioned in my testosterone kabballah article and gyno article too (great for estrogen clearance)
The Randle cycle asymmetry point is crucial and often missed. It explains why so many people stall combining high fat with moderate carbs, forcing both fuels into competition where neither wins cleanly. Separating them temporally or shifting the ratio decisively one way resolves that friction for most.
how do you measure your body temp? oral thermometer?
Underarm (axillary) on waking, before getting out of bed, is a simple and reliable method. Oral works too.
Great article! All this information is amazing. I have a few questions:
1.Does the low fat have impact on my hormones? Because it is essential to get fat to produce testosterone for example right?
2.I use coconut oil as my cooking oil, do you count this as fats aswell?
3. I weigh 75kg right now. Can I do the macros (carbs, fats and proteins) divided by 80 x 75 (my weight), to get the amounts for my body?
4.Is it ok to eat a ribeye 1x a week? Because I like to eat that once a week. On all the other days I will do HCLF
Great questions.
1️⃣ Low fat doesn’t automatically lower testosterone. Cholesterol is produced in the liver from acetyl-CoA, which can come from carbs, fats, or protein. As long as energy and thyroid function are adequate, steroid production isn’t dependent on high dietary fat. Retinol (vitamin A) supports this process.
2️⃣ Coconut oil is mostly medium-chain fats. They’re oxidized rapidly and interfere less with glucose oxidation than long-chain fats, but yes, they still count toward total fat intake.
3️⃣ The macros were an example. Since we can’t precisely calculate calories out (NEAT, thyroid, training, stress all shift it), start there and adjust based on energy, waist, and progress.
4️⃣ Ribeye once per week isn’t a problem. Weekly averages matter more than one meal.
Thanks for the explanation and response on all questions! This is really insightful! I will look into this and start implementing it as some points you talked about (fat loss stalled, sleep worsens, training performance declines, libido declines) is something I’m experiencing now. Even when I ate 200 kcal below maintanance (Now I understand that kcals out can’t be calculated). So definitely will do refeed days aswell.
I’m looking forward to part 2!
Please let me know about your progress 🙏
Yes, I will ket you know in a few weeks to see how it’s going!
Great article, can you go in to foods to avoid that are high in fat. I (70kg) get 70-85g of fat intake daily (mainly from ground bison and cheese, yogurt) and I now think that is what’s preventing me from maximizing fat loss.
At 70kg, 70–85g fat is probably on the high side if you’re trying to maximize fat loss, especially with carbs present.
I’d track for 2–3 weeks using an app (FatSecret, Cronometer, etc.) You literally just enter the food name, quantity, even the brand, and it calculates the macros for you.
Then aim closer to ~0.4–0.6g/kg fat and switch to leaner options.
Only exception for Randle Cycle: short- and medium-chain fats (coconut oil/MCTs). They’re oxidized faster and enter mitochondria more directly, so they interfere less with glucose oxidation than long-chain fats.
This is fantastic