Do you want to lose some weight, but have become tired of all the pieces of advice that never work? We know it can become frustrating when you’re trying many methods with little to no results. Nowadays, many people are reporting extremely good results with the Keto diet – some losing as much as 20 kg in less than 2 months. It sounds unbelievable… but it works! Be advised however: don’t try it if you are pregnant.
What is the keto diet?
The ketogenic (keto) diet is based on the idea of – surprisingly – consuming fats. Your diet should contain 65% fats, 30% protein, 5% or no carbohydrates at all. Some nutritionists consider this diet to be very healthy. It will help you drop the extra kilograms, have flatter abs, and its efficiency isn’t dependent on your body type, because it is based on a natural process – bringing your body in the ketosis state.
How does it work?
Your body needs energy, and it usually gets it from carbohydrates (sweets, bread, rice, potatoes). But if we stop providing it with carbs, then in order to produce the energy it needs, it will start to burn off fat. That’s the trick! There are actually many types of ketogenic diets (Atkins, low carb diets, etc.), that will get your body to naturally exchange fat for energy.
One of the unique things about the keto diet is that, unlike any other diets, you can eat anytime, whenever you want, as long as you are eating the aliments you’re allowed to. A good thing, also, is that when your body enters the ketosis state, you won’t have as much of an appetite as when you’re eating lots of carbs. A diet rich in carbohydrates works the other way around: the more you eat, the hungrier you’ll feel, which is not beneficial for losing weight.
What can you consume in this diet?
There are a lot of allowed foods. Let’s divide them in a few categories.
Protein sources: beef, any kind of fish, pork (just make sure you buy it from a good source, to avoid any kind of bacteria), bacon, chicken, sea food, eggs.
Lactate products: fat whipped cream, sour cream, cottage cheese, all kinds of hard cheese, fat cheeses, Greek yoghurt.
Vegetables: green leaf vegetables, asparagus, bok choy, broccoli, cabbage, bruxelles cabbage, cauliflower, celery, cucumbers, garlic, onions, mushrooms, spinach, radishes, olives, etc.
Drinks: chicken soup, decaf coffee, decaf tea, plant tea, water.
Nuts and seeds: macademia nuts, pecan nuts, caju, pistachio, hazelnut. Bear in mind that some of these contain plenty of carbs, so it is great to limit them as much as you can. You can surely have a few once every few days.
Sweeteners: we generally recommend stevia based sweeteners as they are known to be the healthiest.
Spices: basil, black pepper, hot peppers, chili, coriander, cinnamon, cumin, dill, ginger, oregano, mustard seeds, parsley, mint, rosemary, stevia, thyme, turmeric.
You also need to consume at least 2 liters of water every day. This is very important as it will greatly accelerate the weight loss process, while keeping you hydrated.
To conclude, the keto diet is a very popular method of weight loss. It has given great results for a lot of people. Just make sure you stick to it, and don’t cheat. And of course, losing weight is a lifetime change, so make sure you don’t start eating even more than you were eating before, when you finish your diet. Otherwise, these extra kilograms will add up again pretty fast. And, as with any diet plans, it would be recommended to speak to a nutritionist or a doctor first, just to make sure that you don’t have any allergies or affections that can get in the way.
Stay tuned for the next part, where we will be asking some of the most frequent questions about this great diet!
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