What is the Keto Diet?
Before knowing if a Low Carb High Fat (LCHF), or “keto” Diet, is a lifestyle you would like to embrace, it first helps to have an understanding of what exactly it is, how it works and what some of the health benefits are.
To start, a low carb high fat diet, is exactly that. It focuses on lowering the amount of carbohydrates you intake and increasing the amounts of high protein, fats, and healthy vegetables.
On a more “traditional” diet that is higher in carbohydrates, our bodies main source of energy comes from glucose. Once we digest food, the carbohydrates in the food are then broken down to create glucose. Once glucose is created, insulin is produced to move the glucose into the bloodstream. It is then used to energize the body.
How does the Keto diet work?
By switching to a LCHF diet, the body begins to produce ketones as oppose to glucose. Ketone, is a molecule that is used to fuel the body when there is an absence of glucose. Ketones are produced in the liver from fat. From there, the ketones move throughout the entire body (including the brain) to fuel it.
On a high carb diet, the body will choose to use the glucose molecule to fuel itself, which causes it to store fat as oppose to using the fat as it’s main source of energy. On the Keto diet, your body will function and run completely on fat. Feeding your body this way, will cause your insulin levels to lower and your fat burning will increase.
Producing high levels of ketones will eventually put your body in a state of ketosis.
What can I eat on a Keto diet?
Now that you have a preliminary understanding of how it works, you are probably thinking “sounds good…but what can I eat?!”
Let’s keep it simple for now with a short list that can be used for quick referencing
- Natural Fats such as butter and olive oils
- Meat
- Fish and other seafoods
- Eggs
- Cheese
- Vegetables that are grown above ground and are low in carbohydrates
Avoid starchy foods that are high in carbs such as rice, pasta, bread, potatoes, as well as, food that is high in sugar.
A simple list for beverages is water, coffee, teas and a glass of wine or two on occasion.
As you begin on your LCHF diet and lifestyle, we can take a closer look at these “can” and “cannot” eat and drink lists, as well as some meal plans.
Why should I go on a Keto diet?
Some people have experienced the following benefits on the LCHF Diet:
- Appetite Control
- More energy and mental strength
- Control blood sugar levels
- A calmer stomach (less gas and cramps)
- Increased physical endurance
- Decrease in inflammation throughout the body
What do I do now?!
Taking on a new dietary plan or changing the way we think about food can be a very overwhelming and daunting task. In giving you a better understanding of some of the benefits of this dietary and lifestyle change, we hope we have given you more confidence in taking the first steps to implementing this into your life.
Creating a balanced diet can be a complex process. Our goal is to help those who are up for the challenge and create a plan that will result in people living a healthier lifestyle and being able to cash in on many of the health benefits we believe this diet creates.
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