Throughout history, civilized humanity has striven to improve the quality of life, the foundation of which is food. Numerous diets and fasting systems are proof of this. You get nice names, including understandable ones with a familiar range of products, but also many unusual ones with an exotic focus.
Recently, the keto diet, ketogenic diet (ketone diet), or low-carbohydrate diet with a high proportion of fats in the diet, is gaining more and more popularity. Its meaning is a sharp reduction in carbohydrate-containing foods and an increase in the proportion of mostly fatty foods and moderate protein intake. As a result of the keto diet, fatty acids are broken down into ketone bodies, which fuel all organs, including the brain, when glucose is low.
Until recently, athletes resorted to ketogenic diets to build muscle mass and reduce fat mass in their bodies to zero. However, the carbohydrate-free diet has been inherent in humankind since the dawn of history. From a physiological point of view, we are all hunter-gatherers.
The human brain evolved as a result of consuming massive amounts of fat throughout evolutionary history. Ancient people only ate animal food, the components of which were only proteins and fats. According to scientists, for a relatively short period of its existence, the body of a modern person did not have time to adapt to a carbohydrate diet, which, moreover, consisted only of carbohydrates that make up the diet of raw foodists.
It is quite reasonable to conclude that with the advent of carbohydrate nutrition, a process opposite to the development of human intelligence is inevitable. In order to understand the keto diet in more detail, it is necessary to learn some basic concepts on the subject that will help find the answer to the question: what is the keto diet?
What is a keto diet, concept, definition
There has been a huge amount of information out there about the ketogenic diet lately. The authors interpret the essence of the keto system in their own way, pursue different goals, but this does not change the essence of keto. Let's just get started.
Keto eats certain foods in certain combinations to get the body running on ketones. Ketones are produced by the body when fat is burned. They are alternative fuels. For the human body, this fuel is the most convenient, since the amount of "waste" is significantly reduced, and this fuel is the most efficient.
If we draw an analogy with car fuel, then carbohydrate-containing foods are the cheapest fuel, which contain a large amount of impurities, while carbohydrate-free or low-carbohydrate foods are euro fuel, premium fuel for our body, since they do not contain by-products "tasty" impurities, Keto fuel is most effective for a living organism.
One of the main benefits of the keto diet is the lack of hunger and cravings for certain foods. You can easily stick to this diet for a long time. Not only is it efficient, it's comfortable and enjoyable.
Over 90% of diets fail. You can't be followed all the time. Carbohydrate cravings and hunger do their job. A large number of temptations lead to disruption and disastrous results. The lost weight returns and often brings friends with it - new kilograms.
Such an unpleasant feeling as hunger is absent from keto. Yes, you can enter a state of ketosis while fasting, but why when there is a great way to do it without limiting yourself to food. The keto diet does not harm the body as much as fasting.
By taking ketogenic food, the body continues to get all the necessary substances and does not feel hungry. At the same time, the process of splitting fat is started - the body enters a state of ketosis, that is, it begins to produce ketones due to reduced consumption of carbohydrates.
Carbohydrates are not completely excluded from the diet (the exception is the period of entering ketosis, it is recommended to completely exclude carbohydrates). They must be present in the diet, but their levels of protein and fat must be controlled. The fewer carbohydrates, the deeper the ketosis.
The ketogenic diet is a fat burning diet. Many people dream of losing weight and reducing volume. For those who are serious about their body condition, keto is the magic pill that is easy and enjoyable to swallow.
Many people think that eating a lot of fat is bad. However, if you significantly reduce the amount of carbohydrates, then there is absolutely no danger in eating fat. When you enter ketosis, your body simply switches from sugar to fat. At the time, it will take 2 to 3 days. And to achieve this, you need to drastically reduce the amount of carbohydrates.
Carbohydrates are completely avoided for a more effective entry into ketosis. Such a restructuring of the diet forces the body to look for other sources of energy. And one such source is fat reserves, carefully accumulated over many years.
With a low-calorie diet, the loss of water reserves leads to weight loss. That could take a week, two weeks. Euphoria arises - it worked! Weight loss in progress! But at the end of the diet, water weight returns. The sense of such diets is reduced to zero, if not worse, the weight returns, bringing extra kilograms with soda. The fat burning process did not start. Water loss and fat loss are completely different things.
If you use physical exercises for weight loss, they only provide 15% of the result, that is, very insignificant compared to the proper keto diet. Constant hunger and cravings for any food also doesn't allow you to stick to a low-calorie diet for at least a while.
98% of such diets end in failure, which explains the lack of willpower. When eating carbohydrate-containing foods, blood sugar levels drop due to a surge in insulin, which suppresses blood sugar. With low blood sugar, there is a constant feeling of hunger, irritability.
On a ketogenic or ketogenic diet, real fat is burned. Water weight will also decrease, but the main goal of burning fat in the body will be achieved. And the fewer carbohydrates you eat, the more efficient the fat burning process becomes. The feeling of hunger and the craving for food will disappear. Because of these circumstances, you can stick to this diet for quite a long time.
Any restructuring of the body brings with it unpleasant symptoms. To avoid temporary symptoms, the use of vitamins and electrolytes is necessary.
In addition to a number of negative side effects of the ketogenic diet, there are also positive ones:
- memory improvement;
- energy boost;
- Intelligence increases;
- The mood improves.
Because ketones are the best brain food. As a result, inflammation and pain or tension, if present, disappear. Keto leads to an improvement in the skin condition, the rash disappears if it is present.
Comparing low-calorie, low-fat diets to keto shows clear advantages of keto over other diets.
Why you should use the keto diet
Everyone who has resorted to a ketogenic diet has a specific goal. And the goals can be different. These can be needs of both an aesthetic nature and a desire to improve one's health, or at least to improve the condition caused by a particular disease.
Often the transition to a ketogenic diet is linked to a desire to reduce weight and volume. This is the most obvious result of the keto diet. Success is guaranteed under the strict requirements of the system. The goal is reached easily and with joy. The inevitability of positive results when losing weight is evidenced by a large number of rave reviews.
After people understand how a low-carb diet works, people often try to stick to the rules of the keto diet later in life. A correct understanding of ketosis gives confidence in its actions.
But in addition to the aesthetic result, for many the solution of health problems is in the foreground. After all, ketosis is all about lowering and normalizing insulin levels.
About 80% of the world's population has problems with insulin - insulin resistance, that is, a violation of the absorption of insulin through receptors. As a result of such a failure, the body is forced to produce more and more insulin to compensate for its deficiency. This causes many health problems.
An increase in carbohydrate intake leads to an increase in insulin production, resulting in insulin resistance. The average person with insulin resistance (prediabetes) produces seven times more insulin than the body needs. An excess of insulin leads to diabetes, metabolic disorders, obesity, high cholesterol.
The brain can burn glucose, but fats feed the brain better. The human brain is more comfortable burning fat. This state is ketosis. To achieve this state, you need to adhere to a categorical diet - low-carbohydrate and high-fat. Moderate ketosis is a state to strive for.
Ketone bodies in the body come from fats. You can't get them from sugar and carbs. Ketone bodies are used to feed the brain and fatty acids are used to feed the muscles.
It is known that Alzheimer's patients have elevated levels of insulin in their blood.
Problems of the heart and blood vessels are also a result of insulin resistance. As a result, it is a question of vasoconstriction due to the appearance of cholesterol plaques, the appearance of blood clots and the deposition of calcium, which can lead to a heart attack or even a stroke.
As a result of insulin resistance - the appearance of depression, anxiety, deterioration in emotional mood. The most serious consequences are fatty liver and cancer, since cancer cells feed on sugar.
From the material above, a whole list of reasons to go on the ketogenic diet can be identified. Most of the population will find for themselves motivating factors that say why it is necessary to switch to keto.
Who is on the keto diet
Despite the relatively young direction in the world of dieting, the keto diet has a large number of followers with solid experience in the application of this nutritional system. The ketogenic diet has proven to be positive not only for those who want to lose weight, but also for diabetics when the lipid profile tends to be ideal and the insulin level drops to normal. The experience of American doctors is known all over the world.
And another interesting theory. When taking medication, there is an effect on a specific organ in the human body. When the nutritional system is switched to keto, the brain, pancreas, liver, and other organs come under the beneficial influence. And this fact already has a very solid and reliable foundation.
Regular submission of the necessary tests and their control ensure that the therapeutic nutritional system with an increase in the percentage of fat in the diet, moderate consumption of protein-containing foods and, in practice, the exclusion of carbohydrate-containing foods cares for the above-mentioned diseases.
The ketogenic diet is not limited by age for individuals looking to lose weight or improve their health. This diet is suitable for both athletes and non-athletes, young and old.
Pregnant women use the keto diet successfully. There are no contraindications to a low-carbohydrate diet while breastfeeding.
The results will not be long in coming. You just need to start eating right, listen to your body and follow the instructions for beginners, which you can find in this resource.
And when the ketone diet is used for weight loss, this process becomes enjoyable and effective.
Reasons to switch to keto
The first and perhaps the most important thing for someone is to get rid of food addiction, overeating and cravings for certain food groups: sweets, starchy foods. Many people feel an irresistible craving for sweets. Who has not received sweets as a reward since childhood, in almost all families cakes, cookies, sweets are served for the festive table?
The presence of sugar on the everyday table has become familiar. So it happens that the most beautiful moments are associated with sweets.
The amount of sweet foods in children's diet sometimes does not scare adults. "Little ones love sweets. "And they refer to the fact that the child receives the tasty with tenderness. The child has little choice. What is given to him, he takes. Over time, children develop a firm belief that sweets and cakes are good. In addition, the amount of sweets consumed increases, food addiction to sweets appears.
With the advent of health problems, most people understand the need to adjust their diet and introduce some dietary restrictions. But not everyone can handle cravings for sweets, a habit that has been established since childhood and only got stronger with time.
Also, for some, eating sweet stressful situations is a calming and solution to the problem, but unfortunately not for long. Periodic attempts to abandon sugary products once and for all end in failures, breakdowns.
This is where the ketogenic diet comes in. There is not a single review that, with strict observance of all the conditions of a carbohydrate-free diet, I would like to sit down with something sweet.
If such impulses suddenly appear, then you should think again, is everything being done correctly in the context of clinical nutrition?
Check calories (KBZhU), the amount of food eaten, the "purity" of the food eaten, whether a sufficient amount of the necessary vitamins enters the body. If you approach this issue correctly, then positive results will not keep you waiting. With theTransitioning to keto will normalize blood sugar levels.
Another important reason for switching to carbohydrate-free is the condition of the skin. In the first few weeks, the facial skin changes. There is no need to visit beauty salons. Over time, the use of creams of various types of orientation is minimized.
For many who have problems with the gastrointestinal tract:
- Gastritis;
- cholecystitis;
- pancreatitis;
- ZhKB.
There is a great chance to reduce them. Cramps, pain, flatulence are a thing of the past. The intestines begin to perfectly cope with their tasks without the help of pills and other drugs.
Of course, in the case of serious illnesses, the transition to a ketogenic diet must be carried out under the supervision of a specialist doctor, using tests to monitor the main indicators of the state of health.
What can you eat on a keto diet
Carbohydrates - 5% of all calories (vegetables are listed separately as they do not have as many calories and do not elicit an insulin response). Proper carbs acceptable on keto include no flour products, sugar, grains, fruits.
Proteins - 20% of all calories (86 - 175 g). This group should include:
- Meat;
- Fishes;
- Seafood;
- Cheese;
- eggs.
It should be noted that whenever possible, preference should be given to products from the natural environment: pasture meat, commercial seafood. In the diet it is necessary to take meat broths, offal. When it comes to drinks, the so-called tank coffee is very popular. Although this drink is more food than drink.
Fat makes up 70% of all calories.
At first glance, the fat content in food may seem huge. However, it should be understood that the percentages given are based on calories and not volume or weight.
Most foods are a combination of fats, proteins and carbohydrates. Pure fats include ghee, coconut oil, olive oil, low-carb avocados, and animal fats.
Allowed vegetables on keto are leafy greens, broccoli, lettuce, and other green vegetables. They supply the body with vitamins, trace elements and antioxidants. Don't forget that they contain fiber.
World-class nutritionists have developed many recipes with the appropriate keto ratio of KBJU. There are soups, side dishes, meat and fish dishes, even desserts and pastries. Using ready-made recommendations for cooking keto food, you can come up with an approximate menu for yourself for a certain period of time, say, a week, a few days, and stick to it without tormenting yourself with the question: "What do cooks do? ".
What not to eat on keto
All grain products (bread, pasta, cereal, pastries and legumes) should be avoided.
The exception to keto are starchy foods (potatoes, rice, corn), which quickly convert them to sugar.
Sugars (cane, beetroot, honey, fructose, syrups and fruit juices, sweet fizzy drinks) are not acceptable on keto. Sugar substitutes are allowed if needed (stevia, xylitol, erythritol).
It is recommended to avoid GMO products (soy, corn, canola oil).
When buying products, be sure to pay attention to the composition. This recommendation applies to meat and fish products, as well as cheese. Semi-finished products should also be avoided.
Fats are very important for the body, but you have to be very selective with them. Some of them are dangerous. Solid vegetable fats that have undergone multi-stage processing are industrial-scale trans fats. Keto is against this type of food processing.
Alcohol is also not acceptable on keto. Although among the abundance of strong drinks you can choose dry wines. There are circumstances when you shouldn't advertise that you're on a ketogenic diet. Then you should opt for drinks without sugar and gases. At the same time, it is still necessary to observe the measure.
If you follow all the above recommendations when choosing products for a ketogenic diet, then the purchase will not seem too difficult to you, and over time these rules will become normal.
Cons of Keto
In addition to a whole list of positive aspects, keto also has its downsides. Although the negative points are negative if you pay attention and treat them as flaws.
It pays to pay attention to the state your body enters during the initial phase of the keto path. This condition is called ketoflu. It is characterized by a feeling of heaviness in the stomach, mild indigestion. Acetone breath, headache, weakness or depression of the body are possible. But for all their apparent severity, these uncomfortable moments are temporary. And then, they don't always accompany entry into ketosis and aren't necessarily a complete list.
However, if you adopt the right mindset psychologically and remember that these aggravating circumstances will pass once you enter ketosis, most negatives won't seem so big, especially if you employ techniques to circumvent them.
Physical activity on keto
It is known that in the modern world the first followers of keto are athletes, for whom the absence of fat or its minimal amount, dense muscles and endurance play an important role. And since the keto diet sharpens memory, speed of thought and clarity of mind, this nutritional system becomes interesting not only for athletes and people who love physical culture.
As you know, a beautiful, elastic body is not just food. An important role in building our beautiful shell is played by sports, those physical activities that a person engages in as a result of their type of activity, hobby or sports life.
To increase the effects of the keto diet, exercise is perfectly acceptable.
The best time to exercise is not in the evening or morning, but after a long interval after eating. That is, when ketone levels in the body are elevated.
It is known that during times of starvation (hunger) the body produces more ketones than when eating fatty foods. If you're still eating a pre-workout meal, it's a good idea to reduce the amount of protein in the serving. The carbohydrate content does not have to be changed before or after training.
fasting days
The concept of "fasting days" is more acceptable, with enforced improved nutrition. Everyone knows the physical state after the holidays, when extensive celebrations are inevitable and physical activity is minimized.
If you approach this issue correctly, then the holiday menu can be used for the benefit of your body, i. e. H. aim to eat only what your body needs on keto. But even with selective nutrition, overeating is not excluded, and after the copious consumption of fatty-protein foods, heaviness in the body is observed. Of course, you need to control your actions and remember that a large amount of food, even if it is carbohydrate-free, will not have a beneficial effect.
But if, nevertheless, there was a fact of overeating, then you should apply for unloading for the body. In addition, your body tells you when to stop and start eating. The actual concept of "fasting days" for keto is not fully applicable. Among the keto adherents there is the concept of "intermittent fasting".
Intermittent fasting
Intermittent fasting is not a strict restriction on the body's intake of fuel. It is known that high-calorie food allows the body to go without food for a long time. The intervals between meals are getting longer. And if you listen to your body and don't follow the well-accepted breakfast-lunch-dinner routine and only eat as needed, that interval can increase significantly.
It's possible that it extends from morning to morning or from lunch to lunch. That is, a daily meal can become a one-time meal. Here you should not keep track of time, count minutes and try to break your own record. You just have to listen to your body. And that's sensible, rather than putting him on an enforced hunger strike or starving him.
That's what intermittent fasting is all about.
It should not be done from time to time, but constantly. Our body tells itself when to refuel and when to cut off the fuel supply. You just have to learn to hear it, understand it and apply the necessary actions in practice.
So, the primary reason for switching to a ketogenic diet is to improve health and eliminate disease, if present. Prevention of diabetes and in some cases its treatment. Increased energy levels and appetite control. Normalization of cholesterol levels and blood pressure. Improving memory, concentration. Get rid of depression and all signs of its manifestation. Improving the quality of life in general.