Keto Is More Than Just Reducing Carbohydrates!
May 3, 2019The Ketogenic diet is King right now. Everybody wants to look better, feel better and lose weight in the process. This is the diet we are hearing about every place we turn. If Keto is King and everybody is jumping on board and reducing their carbohydrate load, then why is it that we are not all at our ideal weight? Why is it that we are still struggling if we are all eating a Ketogenic diet?
We need to live the Keto lifestyle, not just reduce our carbohydrate load in order to see real and long-lasting results.
It is not enough just to say “no thanks” to the white bread and sugary snacks. Some of my clients need to completely re-vamp their diets to come even close to a true Ketogenic plan. The ones who are truly succeeding with Keto are the ones who fully embrace it.
A True Ketogenic Diet is More Than Reducing Carbohydrates
We need to restrict carbohydrates but we need to also add many things to our diets if we want to eat a proper Keto diet. If we just restrict the carbs, we are not getting even close to the true meaning of Ketogenic. When you only restrict carbs, you are on a low-carb diet, and that’s great, but it’s not Keto.
On a regular Ketogenic diet, we turn our focus to fat because 75% of our daily calories will come from fat. We will get 20% of our daily calories from protein and our carbohydrate intake will be at 5%.
I see the Ketogenic posts on Instagram every day. One person posts a picture of his lunch and it consists of a hotdog covered in cheese with a plate of pork rinds next to it. Or another person decides to Snapchat us a picture of her breakfast which is a plate of bacon and eggs with a pat of butter on top. Do we really believe that this is a healthy way to eat a Ketogenic diet?
Separate the Dirty Keto From the Clean Keto
I talk to my clients about how to separate the dirty Keto from the clean Keto. The term “dirty Keto” means eating fast food all day long or processed and pre-packaged foods. We can still lose weight while eating this way but in turn, we are going to see a whole host of other conditions crop up such as inflammation, sugar cravings and major bloating. Just because something doesn’t raise insulin levels doesn’t make it a health food.
When we purchase prepackaged foods and scan the label to ensure that it fits into our macros for the day, are we not missing the point of making major improvements to our diets? The food manufacturers are onto us now. They switch around a few macros and slap the label Keto onto it and we, the consumers, are eating it up. We are being taken advantage of once again. They have provided us with an “easy way out.” So, we just keep doing what we are doing, purchasing prepackaged foods and we continue to get the same results as before.
Healthy Fats
Let’s talk about “healthy fat.” Once we have restricted our refined and processed carbohydrate load, it’s time to add things back to our diet. When I think about healthy fats, I think about avocados, coconut oil, grass-fed butter, nuts, seeds, fatty fish. I do not consider deep fried chicken wings or processed cheese product to be a healthy source of fat.
Protein comes next. On a Ketogenic diet, we need to be consuming high-quality protein. We cannot skimp when it comes to where we source our protein. Does it come in a container or a package and say “Keto” on it? Are we using hotdogs and burgers covered in bacon and cheese to meet those requirements? Or are we eating good quality cuts of meat, poultry, eggs, fish and seafood? This doesn’t mean we cannot have the occasional burger. This means that we shouldn’t be ordering or cooking up bacon double cheeseburgers twice a day.
Beware of the Keto-Snacks
Beware of the Keto-snacks out there on the market. They can really derail our efforts to improving blood sugar and insulin levels as they can maintain cravings for sugar. They are chock full of ingredients such as sugar alcohols and artificial sugars. Just because they fit into your macros, doesn’t mean that they will not impact your weight loss goals.
Good Keto snacking can consist of easy, whole-foods such as veggies with dips, nuts, seeds, hard-boiled eggs, and olives. These are real-food options and they will keep you feeling full, satisfied and not significantly raise blood sugar and insulin levels.
Living a Ketogenic Lifestyle
I believe that we should replace the word “diet” with the word “lifestyle” and a ketogenic lifestyle should incorporate fresh, live, natural, good quality food. It should include lots of water, sunshine, daily walks, and a proper sleep schedule.
Do you see how Keto isn’t about only reducing carbohydrates? It’s about encompassing an entire lifestyle. We have to remember not to be only focused on weight loss when starting a new diet. The most important thing to consider is exactly how your diet and lifestyle is going to affect your overall health.
I salute you on your journey to health and wellness!
 | ABOUT THE AUTHOR Sheri Burke is a Registered Holistic Nutritionist and Bariatric Coordinator at International Patient Facilitators in Tijuana & Cancun, Mexico. She has worked with bariatric surgery patients for 10 years & provides nutritional guidance to pre and post bariatric patients. Sheri is passionate about supporting patients so she created a VSG Blanket & a VSG Plush.Read more articles by Sheri! |
