All About Keto

So you’ve been googling different diets for the last little while, just out of curiosity. One of the most popular one’s you’ve seen has probably been the KETO DIET. The Keto diet has a long standing history and can be an effective diet, but it may be confusing to navigate at first.

With that in mind, we decided to make a comprehensive Keto Diet blog series so you can learn all about Keto and discover whether it’s right for you. We’re going to discuss what the Keto diet is, how it works, who can benefit from it, when to be careful, common issues with Keto, and how to meal prep so that you can get the most out of the diet if you decide to give it a try!

Today’s blog is going to address the history of the Keto diet, and how it works in your body!

The Keto diet originated in the 1920’s as a medical diet that was actually used to help epileptic children manage their seizures. It was an extremely popular way to reduce seizures for the next decade or so, until anticonvulsant medications were made. Even today, for the 20%-30% of people who are unable to control their epilepsy with anticonvulsant medication the Keto diet is still used as a way to manage the condition.

So how did the Keto Diet go from being a treatment for epilepsy to a popular weight loss diet?

The answer is the way that the Keto diet works within your body.

Eating a Ketogenic diet aims to shift your body from using sugar and carbs to fuel it, to molecules called KETONES for fuel. Ketones are fuel that are usually found in stored fat in your liver. When your body is feeding off of your stored fat instead of carbs and sugar, your liver releases more Ketones, and those Ketones give you energy!

There are multiple versions of the Keto Diet, but they all work in a similar way. The Keto diet strictly limits your carbs and focuses instead on high-quality fats and proteins.

• The Standard Keto Diet requires you to get 75% of your calories from fat, 20% from protein, and no more than 5% from carbs.
• The Cyclical Keto Diet (which is mostly used by Bodybuilders or Athletes) requires you to rotate 5 days with the Keto Diet, followed by 2 high carb days.
• The Targeted Keto Diet (also used mainly by Bodybuilders to Athletes) requires you to maintain a generally Keto diet, but to add carbs to your meals before workouts.
• The High Protein Keto Diet focuses on changing the balance to 60% calories from fat, 35% from protein and 5% from carbs.

It is generally recommended that the Keto diet be followed for no more than 12 weeks at a time. Some of the weight may return during the period where you are not eating Keto, but as long as you continue exercising and making good food choices (such as whole foods on your off-Keto time instead of binging on junk food) it may be more likely that the weight will STAY off.

Obese people who ate a Keto diet lost more weight in a 3-6 month period than other participants trying other popular low carb diets. However, after those initial 3-6 months the weight loss appeared to plateau in some participants, and it was unclear how much of the lost weight stayed off and how much was gained back. There have not been enough studies done to determine the long term effects of eating a Keto diet.

As with all diets, the results will vary from person to person. Some people may lose weight very quickly, some may have a little bit more of a slow build. Some people may lose more weight at the beginning of this diet than other diets, but may still end up losing the same amount of weight they would have lost on another diet.

Disclaimer: This article is for information purposes only, it is not intended to diagnose, treat or prevent any illness or disease. Please consult a professional for your healthcare needs.