The Ketogenic diet is also known as the keto diet is a low carbohydrate and moderate fat diet. It was originally designed for medical purposes to help people suffering from seizure disorders and not to help people lose weight. It involves reducing carbohydrate intake and replacing it with protein and fat intake. This guide to the Keto Diet for Beginners covers everything you need to know.
The reduction in carbohydrate intake puts your body into a metabolic state called ketosis which is the state your body enters when it doesn’t have enough carbohydrates for your body cells to use for energy.
What Happens During Ketosis
During the ketosis process, your body is encouraged to burn fats Instead of relying on sugar (glucose) which it uses for energy that comes from carbohydrates.
This diet relies on ketone bodies which are organic compounds that your body uses in place of the missing carbohydrates.
It’s also a type of fuel that is produced by the liver from stored fat. This diet typically limits carbs to 20–50 grams per day
Keto Diet for Beginners
The benefits of the keto diet plan include weight loss, fat loss, reducing your blood pressure.
It is also therapeutic for several brain disorders and reducing your appetite. It also leads to a reduction in blood sugar and insulin levels.
Boosting the insulin sensitivity it leads to health benefits for people with type 2 diabetes.
The diet also has benefits on a variety of health conditions which may include: Heart conditions, Epilepsy, Cancer, Parkinson’s disease and many others.
Foods To Eat on a Keto Diet
If you plan on starting the keto diet you should base most of your meals around foods such as:
- Meat: steak, ham, sausage, Red meat, bacon, chicken and turkey.
- Eggs
- Real butter and cream
- Cheese: Unprocessed cheese (cheddar, goat, cream, blue or mozzarella).
- Plain Greek Yogurt and Cottage Cheese
How to Start the Keto Diet
- Consume or eat enough fats.
2. Avoid simple carbohydrates such as flour, potatoes, sugar,
3. Maintain a moderate protein intake.
4. Get enough sleep.
5. Avoid stress
6. Exercise frequently.
7. Avoid snacking
How to Know You’re In Ketosis (symptoms)
- Dry mouth and increased thirst.
- Increased urination.
- Keto breathe.
- Reduced hunger.
- Increased energy.
Reasons Why You Are Not Losing on The Keto Diet.
Sometimes even after practicing the diet, some people may observe that they have not lost any weight. Some of the reasons as to why you are not losing weight include;
- Not achieving ketosis- This is because of not cutting the intake of enough carbohydrates.
- Eating too much protein.
- Eating too many acceptable carbs
- Consuming too much of these carbohydrates may result in weight gain.
- Constant snacking.
- Drinking alcohol
- Most alcoholic drinks are high in carbohydrates.
- Little or no exercise
- Exercising stimulates the body’s metabolism and burns calories.
- Underlying medical conditions
Some of the conditions that may contribute to weight gain include hypothyroidism, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), high insulin levels and, Cushing’s Syndrome. The keto diet for beginners will help these conditions.
Side Effects of Keto Dieting.
Most people who start practicing this diet experience the ‘keto flu”. To minimize the flu you can try a regular low carbohydrate diet for the first few weeks.
By doing this, it may train your body to burn more fat before you completely eliminate carbohydrates intake.
A Ketogenic diet can also change the water and mineral balance of your body, consider adding extra salt to your meals or taking mineral supplements it can help.
The effects of the keto diet include: Headache, Fatigue, Dizziness, Light nausea, Difficulty focusing (“brain fog”), Lack of motivation and Irritability
Dieting Tips.
The following tips may help a person aiming to loose Weight through this diet by avoiding some minor mistakes.
Keeping a food journal: By keeping track of what you eat throughout the day, you can be able to identify your eating patterns.
By doing this it’s possible to identify the minor eating habits or foods that are preventing you from losing weight, for example, the constant snacking.
Drink a lot of water: By drinking plenty of water, it helps fill your stomach and this may help to keep you from overeating or snacking too much throughout the day and also keeps you hydrated.
Chewing sugarless gum: Chewing sugarless gum can help reduce your cravings for sweet foods. It may also help you minimize unnecessary snacking between or before meals.
Getting plenty or enough sleep: Sleep helps regulate your body’s normal cycles, and it may also help reduce stress levels.
The keto diet for beginners is generally not hard, but it’s not simple. This is an excellent article that explains carbohydrates and the number of carbs needed.
Keto Risks
A Ketogenic diet has various risks which include the high saturation in fat.
Nutrient Deficiencies
If you don’t eat a wide variety of vegetables, you may be at risk for deficiencies in micronutrients, including selenium, magnesium, phosphorus, and vitamins B and C. The keto diet is a diuretic diet. Carbohydrates retain fluid, and when you decrease your intake of
Liver Problems
Since there is so much fat to metabolize, the diet could make any existing liver conditions to worsen. However, this problem can be minimized by eating a moderate-fat keto diet. In fact, a Keto diet is moderate fat and moderate protein.
Kidney Problems
The kidney’s work is to metabolize protein. Since the keto diet encourages the intake of proteins and fats thus increasing the number of proteins in your body, this may overload your kidneys. This is only a problem if you have kidney disease.
Constipation. The keto diet is low in fibrous foods like grains and legumes. This may lead to constipation because of the lack of fiber.
If you are planning on practicing the keto diet for the first time its advisable to consider talking or consulting a doctor or a registered dietitian before ever attempting the keto diet to make sure you’re being safe.
Conclusion
The keto diet has taken the world by storm and rightfully so! To help you out here is the Keto Diet for BeginnersScientists are now understanding the role of insulin. Insulin is the fat-storage hormone. Excess insulin also causes inflammation.
When you eat excess carbs such as sugar, flour, and starched vegetables, your body becomes inflamed because of the excess insulin.
I have witnessed the keto diet take people off of blood pressure pills and insulin.
People have reduced their cholesterol and lost tons of weight on the keto diet. Scientists are doing research on the keto diet every day and they are finding more benefits every day.
References:
My name is Phyllis Robinson MSN, RN. I have been a Registered Nurse for 27 years in the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit. I am passionate about cardiac care and heart disease. I also want this blog to be an educational tool that people can refer to for traditional and alternative treatment. I will blog on heart disorders such as high blood pressure, congestive heart failure, cardiomyopathy, and high cholesterol.
I received my Nursing degree from Baltimore Community College.
I went on to receive my Masters in Nursing from Walden University
I have worked for almost 30 years in Critical Care with a focus on heart health. I am an advocate of preventive healthcare.
