Are you trying to lose few pounds and not starve yourself with boring greens? I have a perfect option for you.
That is- ’KETO DIET’.
I think everyone more or less heard of the keto diet. But, not sure how it works? No worries! Here’s the keto diet explained for you. I am sure that you will be surprised to hear that the keto diet wasn’t originally developed for weight loss. The idea of the keto diet was to treat epilepsy. Even it can be used for treating diabetes sometimes. You can feel the drastic change inside yourself as it changes your metabolism. But how?
Keto Diet Explained- From Glycolysis to Ketosis
There are two key points:
- High fat, low carb, low to moderate protein diet.
- A metabolic state where the body burns a highly efficient alternative fuel called ketones.
- If you follow the keto diet for a certain period, instead of glycolysis, there will be ketosis inside your body.
But, what is ketosis? Before knowing that you should know how your body metabolism works. The fundamentals that are responsible for your metabolism are-
- Insulin is responsible for carbohydrate metabolism. It moderates glucose levels in your blood by balancing glucose transport inside your body.
- There will be glycogenesis in your muscles and lipogenesis in the fat cells of your liver due to glucose. And, from these two biological processes, your cells produce energy.
- Another factor is glucagon which increases your sugar level. Glucagon and insulin are opposite to each other.
Now, when you follow the diet, you have less amount of carb intake. Hence, your body won’t have an adequate amount of carbohydrates to produce energy from. Therefore, your body will find a highly efficient alternative called ketones. The aim is to gain more calories from fat than carbohydrates. As your body doesn’t get carbs to burn, eventually your body will burn fat. And, when you burn fat, you will lose weight automatically.
So, if you are thinking of starting to follow the keto diet plan, you have just come to the right place. Here’s the keto diet explained for you. There are several steps to have a successful keto journey.
Step-1: Eat the right food
As you already know, the keto diet is a low-carb diet. Therefore, you have to maintain that. You can eat meat, high-fat dairy products, healthy oils, leafy green, and above-ground vegetables. Apart from veggies and meat, you can have nuts and seeds, avocado, berries, and keto-approved sweeteners.
You must avoid dextrose, scratch, sugar, high fructose corn syrup, maltodextrin. So, check the ingredients list before buying.
Step-2: Eat the right amount
The amount of your daily intake is important no matter whichever diet plan you follow. You must calculate your body nutrients. It is standard calculation is 30% of protein and above 70% of fat intake daily. Seems like you can eat any fast food! Yes, you can. But, it must be healthy. Another important rule you have to abide by your daily carbohydrate intake must be less than 5%.
Step 3: Deal with keto flu
Once you start following the keto diet, your metabolism converts from glycolysis to ketosis. Hence, you will feel a change inside yourself. As example-
- Rapid loss of water
- Massive electrolyte loss. Such as Sodium, Potassium, Magnesium.
- Due to this reduction, you will often feel thirsty. You may have to encounter fatigue, muscle cramps, headache, mental fog.
- Breathe smelling fruity which comes from the ketone bodies.
You may have to face these types of changes in your body during your initial days. That’s because your body system needs time to adopt the change of your diet plan. These visible changes are known as keto flu.
So, after hearing about keto flu, are you thinking twice before starting it? No worries! I have suggestions for you to deal with it. Drink an adequate amount of water regularly. Try to drink 3 to 4 liters of water daily. You may drink pickle juice if you like. And, you can take supplements for electrolytes.
Benefits of Keto Diet
- The keto diet promotes weight loss by reducing appetite. In 2013, researchers found that people following the keto diet lost 2 pounds (lbs) more than those following a low-fat diet for 1 year. And, there are several types of research regarding the relationship between the ketogenic diet and weight loss.
- You have to choose your food wisely. Yes, there is no limitation on eating fat. But, you should select healthier fat food like Avocado instead of junk food. This will help to reduce the risk of heart diseases by reducing cholesterol levels in your body.
- As the keto diet reduces the blood sugar level, it is may balance your insulin level. Insulin is a hormone that controls your blood sugar.
- It may reduce the risk of certain cancers. The research found that it is fruitful to use it as a complementary treatment along with chemotherapy and radiation. But, more research is needed for more convenience.
- It may reduce your acne and improve your skin health.
- Your body generates ketones when you are on the keto diet. Ketones provide neuroprotective advantages. It may improve your memory as well. For this reason, it is even effective to manage Alzheimer’s disease.
Health Hazards due to keto diet
- Excess protein in your body
- Mineral and vitamins deficiencies
- Fatty liver
- Kidney stones
Caution
Diabetic people who are insulin-dependent must avoid the keto diet. Women during pregnancy and breastfeeding should eat more carbohydrates. Hence, the keto diet is not for them. Also, if you have any kind of kidney disease, keto is not the right diet for you.