The ketogenic diet is a very unusual one. It sounds like it should make you gain weight but it has, in fact, been shown to help people lose weight quite effectively. With such a high rate of obesity in the US, especially in men, lowering your weight could be a way to save your life. This diet helps you to do it quickly and effectively.
How Does it Work?
Basically, it works on the principle of high fat, moderate protein, and little to no carbohydrates. While that may sound odd, it works in a very logical way. Firstly, the diet requires good fats, like those found in avocados and nuts, not hamburgers and fries. When the body has a high-fat diet with very low carbohydrates, the body starts to produce ketones, which lower insulin levels and supply food to the brain. This sends your body into a state of ketosis. This leads to the body and brain becoming extremely good at burning fat as the source of fuel for the body, while it increases mental capacity and lowers blood sugar levels.
What Foods Should You Eat?
You want to make sure that you are eating more good fats than bad fats. Unsaturated fats are always better for you, with monounsaturated fats being the easiest for the body to break down. Try to avoid eating any kind of trans fats or hydrogenated fats. Many studies have shown that these are the leading cause of heart disease. While you can’t avoid saturated fats completely as they are in animal products, your most likely source of protein, try to cut down on them as much as you can. Try to eat lots of oily fish as this contain omega fatty acids, which like taking ‘Optimal Omega’ supplements, will boost the immune system and mental functioning.
When it comes to carbohydrates, you need to be eating less than 20 net grams a day. That seems very low but it is the way this diet functions. The problem here is that carbohydrates are often in foods that you do not realize, such as some vegetables. Make sure that you are checking this otherwise your body will not go into the necessary state of ketosis.
Tips and Tricks
Firstly, make sure that you eat enough salt. While most diets tell you to cut back on salt, you will need it because, without the carbohydrates, your body will not retain water in the same manner.
With that said, it is important to drink lots and lots of water. As your body will not retain it, you need to drink far more than you think you need. You need to drink around 100 ounces a day.
Stick through the first three days. They will be hard work but this is normal. You may experience headaches, dizziness, irritability, and aches and pains in your muscles, but ignore it and make sure you get through the first three days. This is how long it usually takes your body to go into ketosis.
Get into the state before you worry about the diet plan. While you may want to stick to a schedule and know what you are doing, the stress on the body in the first three days is hard enough. Get through this and then plan your diet.
Don’t count calories too much. This is not the measure of this diet, so you need to make sure that you don’t worry too much, and instead focus on lowering your carbohydrate levels.
The ketosis diet is unusual but has shown to be very effective in very short periods of time.
