Keto Weight Loss: Macros Knowledge Unnecessary?

The ketogenic diet is a low-carb, high-fat eating plan that has been used for centuries to treat specific medical conditions. It has gained attention as a potential weight-loss strategy due to the low-carb diet craze. The basic premise of the keto diet is that if you deprive your body of glucose or carbs, your body will begin to break down your fat stores for fuel. This state is called ketosis. To achieve and maintain this state, you need to stop consuming large amounts of sugars and carbs. The keto diet is typically 70% to 80% fat, with only a moderate intake of protein and carbs. While it has been shown to result in short-term weight loss for some people, there is not enough research to show that weight loss remains beyond one year.

The importance of tracking macros

Tracking your macronutrients is essential when following a ketogenic diet. Macros, or macronutrients, refer to the energy-supplying nutrients that the body needs in large quantities: fat, protein, and carbohydrates. The keto diet is a very regimented way of eating, and tracking your macros helps you maintain the correct ratio of these nutrients, which is critical to achieving the desired state of ketosis.

The keto diet is unique in that it changes the way your body uses energy. Normally, the body burns glycogen for fuel, which comes from dietary carbohydrates. The keto diet encourages the body to use byproducts of fat metabolism, known as ketones, for fuel instead. This causes the body to enter a fat-burning state called ketosis, which suppresses appetite and makes it easier to eat less.

To achieve ketosis, you must significantly increase the percentage of fat in your diet while cutting out most carbs. On a typical keto plan, you get around 75% of your calories from fat, 20% from protein, and 5% from carbohydrates. Tracking your macros through a food journal or a macro-tracking app helps ensure you are consuming these nutrients in the right ratio and getting the results you want from your keto plan.

In addition to tracking your macros, it is important to remember the value of micronutrients when following a keto diet. Because certain food groups, such as fruits, vegetables, and grains, are restricted, it is important to consider the vitamins and minerals that these foods would normally provide and find alternate sources for them.

While tracking your macros can be time-consuming and challenging, especially when eating out, it is a critical component of the keto diet and will help you achieve your weight loss and health goals.

How to calculate macros

To calculate your macros, you need to determine the number of grams of carbohydrates, fat, and protein you need in a day. This involves figuring out your energy requirements based on your weight, height, age, and activity level.

Step 1: Calculate your basal metabolic rate (BMR)

Your BMR is the amount of energy you spend per unit of time while resting. It is influenced by your gender, age, height, and weight. You can calculate your BMR using the Mifflin-St. Jeor formula, which is considered one of the most accurate formulas.

The equations for BMR are as follows:

• For women: BMR = 655 + (4.35 x weight in lbs) + (4.7 x height in inches) - (4.7 x age)
• For men: BMR = 66.47 + (6.24 x weight in lbs) + (12.7 x height in inches) - (6.755 x age)

Step 2: Determine your activity level

Your physical activity level (PAL) measures how much energy you spend daily when you're active. Here are some common activity levels and their corresponding values:

• Little to no exercise: 1.2
• Exercise a few times a week: 1.375
• Exercise 3-5 times a week: 1.55
• Exercise 6-7 times a week: 1.725

Step 3: Calculate your total daily energy expenditure (TDEE)

Multiply your BMR by your activity level to get your TDEE, which represents the number of calories your body burns in 24 hours.

Step 4: Determine your calorie intake goal

If you want to lose weight, create a calorie deficit by setting your total daily calories to be lower than your TDEE. For moderate weight loss, aim for a deficit of around 10-20%.

If you want to gain weight, create a calorie surplus by setting your total daily calories to be higher than your TDEE. For moderate weight gain, aim for a surplus of around 10-20%.

Step 5: Pick your macronutrient ratio

For the keto diet, a common macronutrient ratio is 60% fat, 30-35% protein, and 5-10% carbohydrates. However, you can slightly adjust this ratio based on your personal preferences and goals.

Step 6: Calculate the number of grams for each macro

To determine the number of grams for each macronutrient, multiply your total daily calories by the decimal form of the macro ratio, then divide by the number of calories per gram for that macronutrient.

• Carbohydrates: 4 calories per gram
• Fat: 9 calories per gram
• Protein: 4 calories per gram

Step 7: Hit your macros consistently

Once you've calculated your macros, the key is to stick to them consistently. Familiarize yourself with foods that belong to each macronutrient category and plan and prepare your meals accordingly. You can also use a macro tracking app to simplify logging your food intake.

Remember to adjust your macros every 4 weeks or at the start of each month if your weight loss has stalled. Additionally, ensure you are getting enough physical activity and adequate sleep, as these factors contribute to your overall success on the keto diet.

The role of protein, carbs and fat in keto

The keto diet is a high-fat, low-carb, and moderate-protein diet. It involves reducing the number of carbohydrates in your diet and increasing your fat intake. Typically, on a keto diet, you get 55 to 75% of your calories from fat, 15 to 35% from protein, and less than 10% from carbohydrates.

The Role of Fat in Keto

Fat is the most energy-dense nutrient, supplying nine calories per gram. On a keto diet, fat is the primary source of energy. It is essential to keep the body in a fat-burning state called ketosis, which suppresses appetite and makes it easier to eat less.

The Role of Protein in Keto

Protein is made up of amino acids, which are essential for several bodily functions, including building muscle, synthesizing hormones, and promoting neurological function. Inadequate protein intake is one of the biggest mistakes people make on the keto diet. It is recommended to get 20-30% of your calories from protein.

The Role of Carbohydrates in Keto

Carbohydrates are typically the body's main source of fuel. However, in the absence of carbs, as in the keto diet, the body can make its own glucose through a process called gluconeogenesis. Carbohydrates provide glucose, a vital form of energy. On a keto diet, it is recommended to keep carbohydrate intake to 5% or less of total calories, which typically works out to 20-50 grams of net carbs per day.

In summary, the keto diet involves a significant increase in the percentage of fat in your diet, a moderate amount of protein, and a reduction in carbohydrates. This shift in macronutrient ratios helps the body enter a state of ketosis, burning fat for energy instead of carbohydrates.

Weight loss on keto

The keto diet is a low-carb, high-fat eating plan that has been used for centuries to treat specific medical conditions. In the 19th century, it was used to help control diabetes, and in 1920, it was introduced as a treatment for epilepsy in children. More recently, it has gained attention as a potential weight-loss strategy.

The basic premise of the keto diet for weight loss is that if you deprive your body of glucose (its main source of energy), it will begin to break down stored fat for fuel. This state is called "ketosis". The keto diet typically recommends an average of 70-80% fat, 5-10% carbohydrates, and 10-20% protein.

• Increased calorie-burning power: It takes more energy for your body to break down proteins and fats on a ketogenic diet than it does on a traditional, higher-carbohydrate diet. This increase in calorie-burning power may be one of the reasons many people lose weight on this diet, especially in the beginning.
• Decreased hunger: Low-carb diets may decrease your hunger hormones, resulting in fewer cravings.
• Appetite suppression: The very high-fat content of this diet fills you up, and ketone bodies produced during ketosis may have a direct hunger-reducing role.
• Reduced insulin levels: Lower insulin levels can suppress appetite and curb sugar cravings.
• Increased calorie expenditure: The metabolic effects of converting fat and protein to glucose can lead to increased calorie expenditure.
• Fat loss: The keto diet promotes fat loss versus lean body mass loss, partly due to decreased insulin levels.

While it is not essential to know your macros to lose weight on keto, it can help you stay on track and ensure you are getting the right ratio of nutrients. Macros, or macronutrients, are the energy-supplying nutrients (fat, protein, and carbohydrates) that the body needs in large quantities.

There are two ways to track your macros on keto:

• Percentage of calorie intake: You eat a certain percentage of calories from each macro (e.g., 70-80% fat, 5-10% carbs, and 10-20% protein).
• Specific gram-amount: You eat a specific amount of grams of each macro.

Your target macros will depend on your current weight, activity level, sex, and age. You can use a keto macro calculator to determine your ideal ratio.

Tips for weight loss on keto

• Calculate net carbs: To find net carbs, subtract the amount of fiber from the total carbs. Then track the net carbs you eat.
• Choose healthy fats: When tracking fats, focus on "healthy fats" from nutrient-dense, whole foods. Avoid over-processed oils and fried foods.
• Build lean muscle: Lean muscle increases your metabolism, so you burn more fat while at rest.
• Calculate body fat percentage: When calculating your macros, it is more accurate to factor in your body fat percentage than your body weight, as body fat is what you want to burn.
• Exercise and calorie deficit: If you hit a weight loss plateau, try exercising more and eating fewer calories while still meeting your target macros.

Keto weight loss results

Research has shown that the keto diet can result in short-term weight loss for some people, as well as improved blood sugar and cholesterol levels. However, there is not enough research to show that weight loss is sustained beyond one year, and the amount of weight lost is similar to that of other conventional diets.

The keto diet can be an effective way to lose weight, but it may be challenging to maintain due to its restrictive nature. It is important to consult with a physician and a dietitian before starting this or any other diet, especially if you have existing health conditions.

The benefits of keto

The ketogenic diet is a low-carbohydrate, high-fat diet that has been around since the 1920s. It was initially used to reduce seizures in pediatric patients with epilepsy, and it is still prescribed for that purpose today. The diet is now also touted as a weight loss tool.

The keto diet is designed to burn fat by cutting carbs. When you cut carbs from your diet, you switch to burning fatty acids, or ketones. This process is called ketosis, and it takes about three weeks of carbohydrate elimination for your body to transition into ketosis.

• Weight loss: The keto diet can lead to more short-term weight loss than low-fat diets. This is because low-carb diets act to rid excess water from your body, lowering insulin levels and leading to rapid weight loss in the first week or two.
• Reduced abdominal fat: A large percentage of the fat lost on low-carb diets tends to be harmful abdominal fat that is known to cause serious metabolic problems.
• Lowered blood triglycerides: Triglycerides are fat molecules that increase your risk of heart disease. When people cut carbs, they tend to experience a dramatic reduction in blood triglycerides.
• Increased levels of 'good' HDL cholesterol: The keto diet tends to be high in fat, which leads to an impressive increase in blood levels of "good" HDL cholesterol.
• Reduced blood sugar and insulin levels: The keto diet can be particularly helpful for people with diabetes and insulin resistance. Studies prove that cutting carbs lowers both blood sugar and insulin levels drastically.
• Lowered blood pressure: Cutting carbs leads to a significant reduction in blood pressure, which should reduce your risk of many common diseases.
• Effective against metabolic syndrome: The keto diet is incredibly effective in treating all five key symptoms of metabolic syndrome, a serious condition that increases your risk of heart disease and type 2 diabetes.
• Improved 'bad' LDL cholesterol levels: When you eat a low-carb diet, the size of your "bad" LDL particles increases, which reduces their harmful effects. Cutting carbs may also reduce the number of total LDL particles in your bloodstream.
• Therapeutic for several brain disorders: The keto diet has been used to treat epilepsy in children and is being studied for its effects on other brain conditions, including Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease.

Frequently asked questions