Hi all, if
you have ever read any of my posts, the one common thread you will find is that
I am not a friend of diets especially fad diets. I belong to the school of
thought that believes in making healthy food choices in all categories and not
over or under eating. There is nothing I dislike more than a diet that seeks to
eliminate a major nutrient i.e. carbohydrates.
However I will
make an exception today, and I have good reason. It’s the popular,
misunderstood and much misapplied KETOGENIC
DIET, and if you have never heard of it, then you’d better crawl back under
the rock you came from! Seriously speaking, the Ketogenic or “Keto” diet is very
simple in its approach; it is a diet very high in fat, low in protein and ultra-low
in carbohydrates. Below is an illustration of the ideal keto diet:
As you can
see this diet blows away all you know about nutrition and weight loss, and may
seem counterproductive to most of you, I believe this diet has a whole lot to
offer people who want to burn fat while holding on to muscle and at the same
time live the healthiest life possible. What I want to achieve with this post
is to educate you about this wonderful diet tool, ignorance is no longer an
excuse! Please follow closely because as usual; the devil and the angels are in
the details.
Thanks, and
have a great weekend!
HOW DOES THE KETO DIET WORK?
The keto
diet works by Inducing a state in the body known as ketosis, this happens when
carbohydrates in the body are too low to provide enough fuel for the body, this
happens when we consume fewer than 50grams of carbohydrates a day and your
liver has to produce molecules called ketone bodies and uses them with stored
body fat as fuel. The result is a loss of body fat as there are no
carbohydrates to use and your body will not have to cannibalize your muscles
for fuel either.
TEMPORARY SIDE EFFECTS:
There is
aklways a price to pay! Albeit temporary in this case, and I can testify to
this having experienced it more than once. On commencement of the Keto diet,
you will often feel tired weak and sluggish, this is due to your body trying to
adapt to its new state. However if you stick with the ketogenic diet correctly these feelings will fade off
in about 2 to 6 weeks and you will be back to your old strength levels. The cool
thing about a keto diet is that you start to see changes in your body even
within the 2 weeks adaptation window. For me I stopped feeling bloated, my
stomach flattened out considerably and I had better abdominal and bicep
definition. In short I looked great even though I felt like crap!
COMMON KETO DIET MISTAKES:
1. Mistaking low carbohydrate diets for
ketogenic diet as they are similar but different the key difference being the
high fat in the keto diet.
2. Eating too much protein: I have been
guilty of this in the past, my first attempt at a ketogenic diet was actually a
low carb and high protein diet, high protein can actually lead to glucose
formation in the blood and glucose in excess can be stored as fat!
3. Not allowing for a long enough
adaptation period before giving up: my first attempt at a keto diet was off and
I didn’t last a week. This happened because I ate the wrong things and expected
too much too soon from my body.
4. Eating the wrong kind of fats: while
the keto diet has a high fat content, please remember that there are good and
bad sources of fat. Source your increased fat intake from fish oil, avocados,
olive oil, butter, bacon, whole eggs nuts etc. now I know you might be
thinking, isn’t high fat dangerous? Studies have shown that the enemy is not so
much a high fat diet as a high fat, high carbohydrate diet i.e the “western” diet is you research the “Mediterranean” diet, you will discover
a higher consumption of fat, lower consumption of carbs, and a lower incidence
of obesity, heart disease etc!
IN CONLUSION:
A Ketogenic diet can be very rewarding when trying to drop fat and
maintain muscle; however you need to fully commit to it to get the benefits,
there is no cutting corners!
This means keeping your fat intake at around 75% and I know this is
challenging. You will have to estimate your daily calorie intake and know how much
fatty foods you need to make up the required percentage, there are helpful apps
and charts online to help you with that. If you are interested in reintroducing
carbs to your diet please do so gradually, so your body has time to adapt. Lastly,
I will say again, when starting the Keto diet, give your body time to adapt. Your
body will need the full two weeks to realize the benefits of keto adaptation. If
you stick with it I assure you that you will stay fit and healthy, not only at
40 but for the next 40years!
Thanks, and have a wonderful weekend!!
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