7 reasons why you should start a ketogenic diet right now!!
If you are into the fitness scene you have probably heard of the ketogenic diet. From celebs like Kourtney Kardashian to a trending hashtag on Instagram, the Keto diet has blown up.
But, is it actually a healthy way to live? Here’s a little rundown of what it is.
What is the Ketogenic Diet?
Ketogenic dieting is a “low-carb” diet plan that consists of 80% fat and little to no carbs. Instead, it places its emphasis primarily on fish, meat, eggs, dairy, green vegetables, and oils. To the disappointment of some, pasta rice potatoes and fruits are not a part of the diet.
Keto works by changing the way your body turns food into energy. Because you restrict your carb consumption, your body can be switched into a state of producing and burning a significant amount of ketones.
In simpler terms, you can lose weight by replacing the body’s typical energy source, carbs, with fat.
Fat –> ketones = energy
If you are thinking of starting a keto diet, I recommend you speak to your doctor first to make sure this is the right step for you!
What to Eat
One of the best ways to get started is to keep it simple.
Breakfast: 2 scrambled eggs with ½ cup of sautéed spinach (cooked in 1 tablespoon of coconut oil)
Lunch: Loaded chicken salad: grilled chicken, chopped avocado, tomatoes, and onions
Dinner: Cheesy low carb lasagna: made with zucchini
TIP: go for the whole-fat cheese and milk options! Low-fat options typically have more carb
Healthy foods commonly eaten on the ketogenic diet:
- Eggs
- Fish – salmon
- Avocado
- Olives and olive oil
- Seeds
- Nuts and nut butters
5 Best Keto Diet Apps for counting macros
- Keto Finder
- Keto Diet Tracker
- My Fitness Pal
- Carb Manager
- Cron-o-meter
7 Benefits of a Keto Genic Diet
1. Preventing Heart Disease
Foods play a large role in heart health. Thus, the ketogenic diet helps keep blood pressure in check and lowers triglyceride levels.
In a study done, the individuals who followed a higher fat diet significantly lowered triglycerides lowered the size of very low-density lipoprotein and raised LDL particle size.
The findings of this study also make sure to highlight the negative impact carbohydrates have on the health, even when in small doses.
Surprisingly, the authors concluded that the risk of heart disease can be lowered by using saturated fat to replace carbohydrates.
So, start cutting down those big hero sandwiches for lunch and start adding more healthy fats into that lunch bag! It can be more delicious than you think! 😉
2. Decreasing Inflammation
Decreasing inflammation can improve acne, arthritis, eczema, IBS, pain, etc…
A Nature Medicine article and further studies reveal that “anti-inflammatory effects of caloric restriction or ketogenic diets may be linked to BHB-mediated inhibition of NLRP3 inflammasome.”
To put it simply, one of the main causes of many inflammatory diseases is suppressed by BHB. This happens to be a prominent ketone produced from a ketogenic diet.
The benefits of the keto diet is even seen in the positive effects on arthritis, acne, eczema, IBS, and other diseases involving inflammation and pain.
Research is still being done on the correlation between the keto diet and inflammatory responses, but the effects thus far have been very promising!
3. Helps Fight Type II Diabetes
People that have Type II Diabetes suffer from an increased creation of insulin within the body. Because the ketogenic diet eliminates sugars from the diet it works to lower the HbA1c count and can effectively reverse Type II diabetes.
Managing carb intake is also recommended for people with Type II Diabetes because carbohydrates turn to sugar which, in large quantities, can cause blood sugar to spike. [source]
4. Increased energy levels
After 4 or 5 days on a ketogenic diet, most people report an increase in energy levels and an absence of cravings for carbs.
This is due to a stabilization of insulin levels and a readily available source of energy for our brain and body tissues. [source]
If your body already has a good amount of fat to work with, this means it can store more fat and provide you with an energy source that won’t ever run out.
So this means, after your big lunch or dinner, you won’t feel sluggish as you would after consuming a carb filled meal.
5. Increased Levels of HDL (the “Good” Cholesterol)
HDL = High-density lipoprotein AKA the “good” cholesterol
HDL carries cholesterol away from the body and to the liver, where I can be recycled or expelled.
The higher your HDL levels, the lower your risk of heart disease will be.
One of the best ways to increase HDL levels is to eat fat… and a lot of it. Low carb diets like the ketogenic one includes a lot of fat, so this is where it’s at!
This is why it’s not uncommon to see that HDL levels increase drastically on low-carb diets, while they often increase slowly on low-fat diets. [source]
Basically, low- carb diets = GOOD and low-fat diet = not as good! 🙂
6. Helps Lower Blood Pressure
Being on a low carb, high-fat diet, your body needs salt (sodium, potassium, & magnesium)
The process of burning fat as fuel results in your body to lose increased amounts of sodium & potassium, which means you must replace these electrolytes.
As you are all aware, the standard American diet isn’t all that great. It raises your blood pressure and is loaded with sugars. So that donut you just ate, will raise your blood pressure for the next 12 hours.
So how do you lower blood pressure through diet?
First, cut out simple sugars.
Second, restrict your intake of other carbohydrates such as white bread, rice, pasta, tortilla, corn, potato, etc.
By fueling your body with more healthy fats, you will kick start your metabolism to burn fat more quickly. In addition, this ketogenic process will incite the mitochondria to produce optimum amounts of energy.
Thus, by getting rid of the bad carbs, which often elevate blood sugar and insulin levels, the kidneys are able to efficiently eliminate fluids. This, in turn, helps regulate blood pressure levels.
7. Leads to More Weight Loss
By now, you probably realized or already know that a ketogenic diet can help you lose weight.
Many studies reveal that people on low carb diets lose more weight, faster, than those on low-fat diets. This is due to the fact that low-carb diets tend to get rid of excess water from the body. They lower insulin levels and in turn, the kidneys start to shed excess sodium. These factors combined lead to rapid weight loss in the first week or two.
If you’re thinking of starting something like this, I would suggest you make low-carb a lifestyle, NOT a diet.
Diet’s don’t work. Never have, never will. Well, I mean they will obviously work for a little while, but once you stop you will go right back to where you started.
However, once you’ve reached your goal weight you may be able to introduce healthier carbs back into your diet! So don’t think you’ll never be able to sniff carbs EVA again!
NEED SOME HELP?
Obviously losing weight is not easy and neither is setting up a diet plan to keep yourself on track. To get you jumpstarted on your journey I created a free weekly meal planner that can help plan out your meals, water, and exercise for each day.
