Greetings Gang, Dr T hererx quick
KETOGENIC DIET WHAT IS IT AND DO I WANT IT?
As some of you know and many of you do not, I went on the Ketogenic diet 3 months ago. Now I know that you will hear how much weight people are loosing on this diet. What you want to pay attention to if you go on this diet is not the pounds it is the percentage of BODY FAT. If you see a reduction on the scale of 5 pounds but the % of body fat has not changed, More-than-likely the weight that you lost was water weight. Water weight can be gone today and back tomorrow, as I am sure you have seen if you are like me.
There are lots of scales now that will not just tell you your weight but also your % body fat, % water, Bone weight, Muscle weight, BMR. Some of the scales now even connect to your smart phone. Take a look on Amazon and you will see more scales then you ever knew existed.
So you are starting to hear about the Ketogenic Diet every where. So I thought that if you are considering this diet I would give you some pointers about all the things that I did wrong and right when I got started.
You should always consult your doctor before you start any diet program or exercise program to make sure that you are not putting yourself at risk by trying to help your health.
What is the KETOGENIC DIET?
It is a high fat diet and low carbs. If you think about it we have been on the low fat kick for a few decades now and look at the health of America. Not so good. We are fatter than at any time in history. Our health in this country is Horrible. So, this low fat diet craze is not working.
Fat is not the enemy, Sugar is the enemy
The Ketogenic diet forces your metabolism into ketosis. What is ketosis you ask? Well it is when you body is using fat for fuel instead of sugar. If you have been on the low fat diet for awhile you will have lots of stored sugar. So you must deplete the stored sugar and then the body will be forced to start burning fat for fuel (if you want to know the science you should get a book about the ketogenic diet we will not be going into the science here. But you need to know what gluconeogenesis is and things like that if you want to understand how your body will change to using fat for fuel)
NOTE; Aerobic (with oxygen) exercise burns fat for fuel
Anaerobic (without oxygen) exercise burns sugar for fuel
Here is a formula for how to figure out where you aerobics range is (the only thing in this world we can never get back is time. So if we are going to take the time to exercise lets make sure that we are really exercising)
180 – age = X
X +/- 5 = your aerobic range
Example (if I am 50 yo)
180 – 50 = 130
130 +/- 5 = 125 – 135
So if you keep your pulse rate inside the range you are in your aerobic range. Anaerobic means the lack of oxygen so you would need your heart rate to be above the range listed above.
Now I am really going to break your bubble
If you want to maintain your health and maintain your weight
You need to work out 45 min/day 6 days/week
If you want to improve your health and lower your weight
You need to work out 60-90 min/day 6 days/week
So most people will loose fat as a result of using fat for fuel
How much weight and % of body fat have I lost in the last 3 months. I have lost 24 lbs but the real important part is I have lost 8% body fat. (That is what makes me more healthy and is that not why I am exercising in the first place?)
What are some positive things a person can get from the KETOGENIC DIET?
- No more blood sugar crashes or the dizziness and fainting feeling
- Asthma Symptoms seem to go away faster
- Energy levels seem to be higher
- People report that they sleep better
- How about less anxiety or less intense
- Less digestive issues
- Lots of other things also
WHAT DO YOUY EAT ON THE KETOGENIC DIET?
I get asked this question a lot. So what do you eat?
Remember the ketogenic diet is a low – moderate protein diet
You get fats from sources like butter, oils, nuts avocados, olives, and seeds, and cheese. Does not sound to different than what you are eating now does it? You must get plenty of leafy greens, berries, and other green veg daily (that is my carbs) My protein comes from meat and eggs the usual sources. You will just probably eat less meat and eggs than you are now. I also will use some protein powder in the breakfast shake that I drink.
How much should I eat on this KETOGENIC DIET?
Lets think back to our high school days and take our seat
Carb = 4 cal per gram
Protein = 4 cal per gram
Fat = 9 cal per gram
So you have a tendency to eat less because most of your calories are coming from a higher calorie foods. If you continue to eat the same amount of food on the ketogenic diet you will wind up with some potential health problems.
As a general rule (there are always exceptions)
Woman need about 1800 calories/day
Men need about 2000 calories/day
My break down right now on the ketogenic diet is:
70% FAT
20% Protein
10% Carbs
I keep track of my daily breakdown in a app for my iPad Called “Stupid Simple Keto”
I used Thomas Delauer’s kick start program to make the transition into keto.
Here is a link to a video that he has done on the difference between high fat vs low fat
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gnH-BfIdo_M
So let me tell you about how it went for me
- The first week was NO FUN
- Your body starts to rebel against all the fat that you are giving it.
- You body is not happy being forced to change using sugar for fuel
- You can go thru something called the Keto Flu (boy I did)
- Then you will have a reduced amount of energy for a few weeks while you body is getting used to the new fuel source
BUT (GREAT THINGS COME TO THE ONES THAT ARE WILLING TO GO THRU THE STORM)
Now that I have made the transition Here is how I feel now
- I have more energy than in years
- My mind is working much better
- My memory is much better
- My strength level has increased HUGE
- I don’t even crave carbs anymore (boy I did at the beginning) (Your body will crave the sugar since it is used to using it and you are not giving it any of it’s preferred fuel right now)
Boy the way my energy is now and the way I feel when I get on the scale and see another percent of body fat GONE
Is so much greater than
The temporary taste from ANY FOOD
If you would like to hear more about the ketogenic diet just let me know in the comments and I will make another blog on the ketogenic diet.
Next Blog will be on the exercise that burns the most calories. Think about something you may have done as a child at least all the girls did this! What is it?
JUMPING ROPE
Dr T