Keto for beginners.
February 06, 2017I have a few friends starting our Keto Challenge with me today and I have had a few questions about the Ketogenic diet. Instead of sending the same thing to many people, I thought it would be a good idea to put it all down here and then you've got a resource that you can come back to if you like.
I stumbled on the keto diet a few years ago when I was trying to lose weight for my sister's wedding. I didn't want to be a fat bridesmaid and was looking for a quick fix. Where I could lose as much weight as possible in the shortest amount of time because I'm lazy and couldn't be bothered with calorie counting, getting off my arse and moving more. Shitty way to go into losing weight if I can be honest.
So, I found optifast. I was to have two shakes a day, an optifast approved snack and for dinner low carb vegetables. It's classed as a VLCD (Very low-calorie diet) and encourages you to go into ketosis. I lost weight fast (YAY) and I stuck to it for a few months and then gave up when I just wanted to eat a fucking steak.
Needless to say, I did NOT lose all the weight I wanted to, and I went to England for the wedding fat.
My mum came out for my 30th birthday and we all planned a trip to Hawaii in April.
The day after she left I sat down and looked at all the pictures of my sister's wedding, my 30th birthday party and I cried. I didn't want to be a size 18 anymore. I didn't want to buy clothes only from the plus size section and I didn't want to sit on the sidelines of my kids life because I was uncomfortable with how I felt.
I was going to go back onto the Optifast diet because I knew it would work, but I wasn't looking forward to forcing down the gross shakes every day.
Looking into optifast again, I kept seeing "ketosis" coming up. So, I did a little bit more research into ketosis and realised the reason for the weight loss on Optifast wasn't just that you were on the low-calorie diet, but because of ketosis.
Realising that I could get into ketosis, lose weight and still eat bacon was a crazy thought.
I can remember going for a walk with the husband and explaining it and he looked at me like I'd lost my damn mind.
So.
What is the keto diet?
The ketogenic diet is basically a very low carb diet.
The “keto” in a ketogenic diet comes from the fact that it makes the body produce small fuel molecules called “ketones”. This is an alternative fuel for the body, used when blood sugar (glucose) is in short supply.Ketones are produced if you eat very few carbs (that are quickly broken down into blood sugar) and only moderate amounts of protein (excess protein can also be converted to blood sugar).Ketones are produced in the liver, from fat. They are then used as fuel throughout the body, including the brain. The brain is a hungry organ that consumes lots of energy every day and it can’t run on fat directly. It can only run on glucose… or ketones.On a ketogenic diet your entire body switches its fuel supply to run almost entirely on fat. Insulin levels become very low and fat burning increases dramatically. It becomes easy to access your fat stores to burn them off. This is obviously great if you’re trying to lose weight, but there are also other less obvious benefits, like for example less hunger and a steady supply of energy.
How do I get into ketosis?
Stop eating carbs.
Easier said than done I know.
For your body to produce ketones, you need to reduce your carb intake dramatically. No more potatoes, pasta, bread or cake. Mean I know.
Generally speaking, the macronutrient ratio varies within the following ranges:
- 60-75% of calories from fat (or even more),
- 15-30% of calories from protein, and.
- 5-10% of calories from carbs.
To find the correct macros, there are some great macro calculators out there that will work it all out for you.
I use this one.
Enter your personal details and follow the instructions.
How do I work out how many carbs I'm eating?
Track everything.
It's a hassle at first, but after the first week, it becomes a habit.
I use My Fitness Pal on my phone to track everything. It's free, easy to use and a great resource.
Calculate your net carbs by subtracting fibre from total carbs. Carbohydrate comes in two forms: net carbs and fibre. Some countries vary with their nutritional information. There are two kinds of Carbs, Net Carbs and Fibre. You don't count fibre as your body doesn't absorb these.
For example, if my meal has 15g Carbs, but 10g of those is fibre, your Net carbs are 5g.
Yeah, but what do I eat?
FAT!!
Think cheese, bacon, eggs, butter, steak, chicken, bacon, bacon baaaaccooon.
Here are some diet plans that you can follow.
What else do I need to do?
Drink water. Drink it all the day.
Take a multivitamin and drink some more water.
How do I know I'm in Ketosis?
- Dry mouth and you'll be thirsty (unless you're following my above instructions and you're drinking your 2L a day.
- Keto Breath. This often caused by certain chemicals that are released in the breath as the body burns fat. Brush your teeth, or chew on a sugar-free mint and you'll be fine. Also, more water. This isn't a permanent thing and goes away once you're in the swing of things.
- Reduced Hunger. You may feel a reduction in hunger. (This is the main indication for myself to know I'm in Ketosis)
- Increased energy. After keto flu has gone, you may notice your brain is "on" you'll have more motivation and energy. It's the BEST part of the keto diet.
Keto Flu!
okay, so going into Carb detox is fucking awful.
Common symptoms are headaches, feeling lethargic, feeling irritable, stomach upsets and just generally feeling shitty.
This goes away after 3-4 days.
Drink water, watch your electrolytes, take a supplement, eat more fat and know that it will pass.
Resources
If you need help with your macros, or a diet plan, I'd be more than happy to help, Keto has changed my life and I get so excited when other people discover the awesome thing keto is.
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