Keto Helped Me: My Personal Transformation Story

The keto diet is a low-carb, high-fat diet that has been touted as a weight-loss wonder. The diet involves drastically reducing carbohydrate intake and replacing it with fat. This reduction in carbs puts your body into a metabolic state called ketosis, where it becomes incredibly efficient at burning fat for energy. While the keto diet has been shown to aid weight loss, it is not without its drawbacks and risks. In this article, I will discuss my experience with the keto diet, the challenges I faced, and the benefits I gained. I will also provide insights into how the keto diet may help others and offer tips for getting started.

Weight loss

How Keto Helped Me: Weight Loss

I decided to try the keto diet to lose weight. I wanted to lose 10 pounds ahead of a wedding I was attending. I chose the keto diet because of its simplicity: it's a low-carb, high-fat, and moderate-protein diet. I also spent several weeks researching the diet and creating a plan, which I found to be the most important part of my journey.

My Experience

I found the keto diet challenging at first because it was a big change from my usual plant-based and whole-food-focused eating philosophy. I ate a lot of bacon, cheese, eggs, and meat, and I had to cut out almost all carbs, including sugar, grains, legumes, and most fruit. I also had to be careful not to eat too much protein, as this can prevent the body from entering ketosis.

I found that planning my meals in advance was crucial to staying on track. I planned out all three meals, condiments, and snacks on the weekends for the following week. This made it easier to manage cravings and hunger pangs.

The Results

The keto diet helped me beat my weight loss goal. I set out to lose 10 pounds, but I lost 15 pounds in just under three weeks. I also had more energy, although I did find the gym a bit challenging at times because my body had to work harder to release fat for energy.

Takeaways

While I won't be staying on the keto diet long-term, my month-long experiment helped me eat less sugar and refined carbs. I also learned to be more creative in the kitchen, as eating out while on the keto diet is almost impossible.

Overall, the keto diet was an effective tool for weight loss, but it requires dedication and a careful plan to be successful.

Increased energy

How Keto Helped Me: Increased Energy

I was tired of always feeling so tired. I would experience bursts of energy that would peak after a meal and then dip drastically when I went too long without eating. I felt like I was strapped into a carb-powered rollercoaster, and I was tired of the highs and lows.

I decided to try a keto diet, and it helped me achieve sustained energy. I tapered my carbs and added healthy fats, and I noticed a drastic improvement in my energy levels. I no longer experienced afternoon energy slumps, and I didn't need to snack all the time.

Here's how keto helped me increase my energy:

The Science Behind How a Ketogenic Diet Improves Energy

I used to rely on carbs for fuel, which meant I felt tired and sluggish until my next carb-refuelling. With keto, I was able to drain my body's excess stores and fuel it with healthy fats instead. The average person on a standard diet eats around 225 grams of carbs daily, but on keto, you limit this to less than 50 grams. This forces your body to switch to a "fat-adapted" state, where it relies on fat stores instead of carbs for energy.

The Benefits of Ketosis

Ketosis is a metabolic state where your body burns fat for energy instead of glucose. The keto diet has many possible benefits, including increased energy. Research has shown that ketosis can increase your focus and energy. The keto diet delivers your body's energy needs in a way that reduces inflammation, and studies suggest your brain works more efficiently on ketones than on glucose.

My Body's Response to Energy Needs

Once I was fat-adapted, I noticed that my body could produce glucose (endogenously) to help with power output when I worked out. This meant that even without carbs, my blood sugar would go up in response to my muscles being taxed, and then it would quickly regulate. So, in theory, I didn't need carbs for high-intensity workouts or heavy lifting.

Fast-Acting – Micro Carb Loading on a Keto Diet

If I wanted an extra energy boost before a workout, I could eat honey 20-30 minutes prior. Eating 20-40 grams of honey provided my body with carbs that it could immediately use for power output. This method worked well for me, but it's important to listen to your body and not consume honey before every workout.

Balance Your Electrolytes

Balancing my electrolytes was crucial to maintaining my energy levels on keto. Staying hydrated and replenishing electrolytes is important because dehydration can cause symptoms similar to the keto flu, such as brain fog, fatigue, and muscle cramps. I made sure to drink enough water and use electrolyte powder in my drinks for added minerals. I also consumed more sodium and trace minerals by adding more salt to my food.

Consume Ample Fat for Energy

On keto, most of your energy comes from fat, so it's important to eat enough healthy fats like coconut oil, olive oil, grass-fed butter, avocado, nuts, and seeds. Eating enough fat helped me ensure I had enough fuel to feel energised.

Exogenous Ketones

When starting keto, introducing exogenous ketones can be beneficial. Exogenous ketones are those that you consume, as opposed to endogenous ketones, which your body naturally creates. Consuming ketones can give your body more fuel and provide an energy boost, especially if combined with carbs. However, regular ketone consumption is not recommended as it can be addictive and negatively impact sleep.

Make Sleep a Priority

Getting proper sleep is essential for maintaining energy levels. Making sleep a priority helped me ensure I felt energised while on keto.

Overall, keto helped me increase my energy levels and achieve a more stable and sustainable source of energy. I no longer experienced the highs and lows of a carb-based diet, and I felt more energised and focused throughout the day.

Treating chronic illnesses

The keto diet has been shown to be effective in treating and managing chronic illnesses such as epilepsy, Alzheimer's disease, autism, brain cancers, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, metabolic syndrome, and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).

Epilepsy

Healthcare providers often recommend the keto diet to children with epilepsy to reduce or even prevent seizures by altering the "excitability" of their brains. Research has shown that the keto diet can cause significant reductions in seizures in epileptic children.

Alzheimer's Disease and Other Neurological Conditions

The keto diet may help reduce symptoms of Alzheimer's disease and slow its progression. It has also been shown to improve neurological conditions such as autism and brain cancers like glioblastoma.

Type 2 Diabetes

The keto diet can help people with type 2 diabetes lose weight and manage their blood sugar levels. It lowers insulin levels and reduces blood sugar, which can lead to a decrease in the use of certain blood sugar medications.

Heart Disease

The keto diet may lower the risk of developing cardiovascular disease by improving risk factors such as body fat, HDL ("good") cholesterol levels, blood pressure, and blood sugar.

Metabolic Syndrome

The keto diet may reduce the risk of developing metabolic syndrome, which is associated with an increased risk of heart disease. It can improve several markers of metabolic health, including blood pressure, blood sugar, HDL cholesterol, and triglyceride levels.

Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD)

Recent research suggests that the keto diet may help reduce or even reverse NAFLD. It can lower liver fat, improve insulin resistance, and improve liver function.

Other Potential Benefits

While there is less high-quality research in these areas, the keto diet may also be beneficial for other chronic illnesses, including polycystic ovary syndrome, irritable bowel syndrome, multiple sclerosis, and rheumatoid arthritis.

It is important to note that while the keto diet has many potential benefits for treating chronic illnesses, it also has some risks and side effects. It is always recommended to consult with a healthcare professional before starting any new diet, especially if you have an existing medical condition.

Reduced hunger

One of the biggest benefits of the keto diet is reduced hunger. The keto diet can help you feel less hungry, which may lead to eating less food. This is because the keto diet lowers insulin levels, which can help you access your body fat stores more easily. In turn, this can help you lose belly fat while maintaining lean mass.

The keto diet is a low-carb, high-fat diet that shares similarities with the Atkins and low-carb diets. It involves drastically reducing carbohydrate intake and replacing it with fat. This reduction in carbs puts your body into a metabolic state called ketosis, where your body becomes very efficient at burning fat for energy.

Ketosis can help you feel less hungry, which may lead to eating less food and ultimately losing weight. In fact, research shows that the keto diet may be as effective for weight loss as a low-fat diet. One review of 13 studies found that following a very low-carb, ketogenic diet was slightly more effective for long-term weight loss than a low-fat diet.

The keto diet's ability to reduce hunger is likely due to its impact on insulin levels. When you eat far fewer carbs, your body begins to burn fat for fuel, and your liver turns fat into small energy molecules called ketones. Eating a keto diet lowers insulin levels, which can help you access your body fat stores for energy.

In addition to reduced hunger, the keto diet has several other potential benefits, including weight loss, improved energy, and the treatment of chronic illnesses such as epilepsy, Alzheimer's disease, and type 2 diabetes. However, it's important to note that the keto diet may also have some side effects, such as "keto flu," which includes symptoms like upset stomach, headache, and fatigue.

Overall, the keto diet's ability to reduce hunger makes it a popular choice for people looking to lose weight and improve their health.

Improved metabolic health

The keto diet has been shown to improve metabolic health in several ways. Firstly, it can help reduce insulin resistance, which is a large component of metabolic dysfunction in obesity. By lowering insulin levels, the keto diet can also improve insulin sensitivity, which is beneficial for managing blood sugar and improving fuel utilization and metabolism. This can lead to a reduction in the risk of developing metabolic syndrome, a cluster of metabolic abnormalities that include type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, high waist-to-hip ratio, and low HDL (good) cholesterol.

Additionally, the keto diet promotes fat loss, especially the loss of unhealthy abdominal fat, which is one of the criteria for metabolic disease. The diet can also help to preserve lean body mass during weight loss, preventing a metabolic slowdown that often leads to weight regain. Furthermore, the keto diet has anti-inflammatory properties, and reducing chronic inflammation is linked to a lower risk of metabolic syndrome and various diseases.

The keto diet also has the potential to lower the risk of heart disease. It can help improve risk factors such as body fat percentage, HDL (good) cholesterol levels, blood pressure, and blood sugar. However, it is important to note that the keto diet is high in saturated fat, which is a risk factor for heart disease, so more long-term research is needed to fully understand the impact of the keto diet on heart health.

Overall, the keto diet has been shown to improve metabolic health by enhancing insulin function, reducing inflammation, promoting fat loss, and improving various metabolic markers. However, it may not be suitable or sustainable for everyone, and there are potential risks and side effects associated with the diet, so it is important to consult a healthcare professional before starting.

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