The keto or ketogenic diet is very beneficial to our health. It is a low carbohydrate with protein and a high-fat diet. Lots of studies say keto diet helps to lose weight and improve your health. Ketogenic diets are also beneficial in some diseases like cancer, diabetes, and epilepsy.
After taking the keto diet your body starts ketosis. It is processed to burn body fat for energy. In ketosis, your body fat break into ketones and these ketones further converted into energy. And provides energy to your body and brain.
You can follow Vegetarian keto diet as well as non-vegetarian diet.
Table of Content:
- What is Ketogenic Diet?
- Types of Ketogenic Diets
- Benefits of Keto Diet
- Foods to Avoid
- Foods to Eat
- Ketogenic Diet Menu for 1 Week
- Keto Snacks
- Side Effects and Prevention
- Supplements for a Ketogenic Diet
- FAQs
- Conclusion
What Is a Ketogenic Diet?
Keto diet is very helpful in weight loss. It contains high-fat and protein with low carbohydrates. That will help to lose weight without doing fasting.
When you take the keto diet, then your liver produces “ketones” cells from your fat. These cells store lots of energy and supply it to the body and brain.
The brain needs more energy to work, but it does not use your fat directly, its work on glucose so, firstly fat is converted into ketones and then that glucose supply to the brain.
When you take Keto diets, then your body fat converted into energy, and you feel more focused and active. This is known as the name “ketosis.”
It may also help in remove visceral fat of your body.
Types of Ketogenic Diets
The ketogenic diet is a diet that is used for ketosis process, it converts body fat into ketones, and allows to body to work on ketones at the place of glucose.
These are the four different types of the keto diet:-
Standard ketogenic diet (SKD)
It contains 75% fat, 20 % protein and 5% carbs. This is a very low-carb, low-protein and high-fat diet.
High-protein ketogenic diet (HKD)
This is like a standard ketogenic diet but includes more protein as compared to the standard ketogenic diet. This diet is 60% fat, 35% protein, and 5% carbs.
Cyclical ketogenic diet (CKD)
In this diet, take some carbs for two days after that take more carbs for five days.
Targeted ketogenic diet (TKD)
In this diet, you can take carbs before workouts.
Most of the study held on the standard ketogenic and high-protein ketogenic diet. However Cyclical ketogenic and Targeted ketogenic diet is used by the bodybuilder and athletics.
Benefits of Keto Diet
The ketogenic diet used for the treatment of neurological diseases in children named epilepsy:-
Lots of studies say that keto diet beneficial for numerous diseases:
- Epilepsy: NCBI Research says that a ketogenic diet reduces seizures in epileptic children.
- Heart disease: The ketogenic diet helps to maintain cholesterol levels, blood sugar, and pressure.
- Cancer: Several types of Cancer can be treated with the help of a ketogenic diet. It reduces the growth of the tumor.
- Parkinson’s disease: The keto diet beneficial in Parkinson’s disease.
- Alzheimer’s disease: The keto diet may reduce symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease and slow its progression.
- Acne: Less processed food help to reduce acne.
- Polycystic ovary syndrome: The ketogenic diet reduce insulin in our body, which is helping to reduce polycystic ovary syndrome.
- Brain injuries: A study on animals found that keto diet recovered brain injury quickly.
Foods to Avoid in Ketogenic Diet
High in carbs foods will be avoided in the ketogenic diet. Here is the list of food to avoid in the ketogenic diet:-
- Sugar rich foods: Soda, smoothies, fruit juice, ice cream, cake, candy, etc.
- Fruit: Only strawberry you can take, and forget about all fruits.
- Grains: Wheat-based processed products, rice, pasta, cereal, etc.
- Beans: Peas, lentils, kidney beans, chickpeas, etc.
- Root vegetables: Potatoes, carrots, sweet potatoes, parsnips, etc.
- Some condiments or sauces: These contain sugar and unhealthy fat so these are not best for health.
- Alcohol: Alcohol rich in carbs so avoid that.
- Sugar-free diet foods: These foods are highly processed food, therefore, it is not best for your health.
Food to Eat in Ketogenic Diet
Keto food list, High in fat you should take are, given below:-
- Meat: Red meat, steak, ham, sausage, bacon, chicken and turkey.
- Eggs: It Contains Omega-3.
- Fatty fish: Like Tuna, Mackerel, and famous fish like salmon.
- Cheese: Take unprocessed cheese.
- Butter and cream: These are rich in fat.
- Nuts and seeds: Almonds, walnuts, flax seeds, pumpkin seeds, chia seeds, etc.
- Oils: Olive oil, avocado oil, and coconut oil.
- Low-carb veg: Tomatoes, green leaves vegetables, peppers, onions, etc.
- Spices: Salt, pepper, and various healthy condiments.
These are the best food you can take in a keto diet. These diets are low in carbs and high in fat diet, So it is best to lose weight.
Ketogenic Diet Menu for 1 Week
These are the best keto diet plan for 7 Days:
First Day
- Breakfast: Eggs, Tomatoes, and Bacon.
- Lunch: Chicken with olive oil and cheese.
- Dinner: Pork with cheese, salad, and broccoli.
Second Day
- Breakfast: Egg, Tomatoes, basil, and cheese.
- Lunch: Peanut butter, almond, and a keto milkshake.
- Dinner: Meat, cheese, and vegetables.
Third-Day
- Breakfast: Almond milk, greens, almond butter, and protein powder.
- Lunch: Salad with olive oil.
- Dinner: Salmon cooked in peanut butter.
Fourth-Day
- Breakfast: Ham cooked in cheese with vegetables.
- Lunch: Nuts and celery with guacamole and salsa.
- Dinner: Pesto and cheese, chicken with vegetables.
Fifth-Day
- Breakfast: Yogurt sugar-free with peanut butter, cocoa powder, and stevia.
- Lunch: Beef with vegetables.
- Dinner: Burger (bun-less) with bacon, and cheese.
Sixth-Day
- Breakfast: Egg omelet with avocado, peppers, spices, salsa, and onion.
- Lunch: Cheese slices with nuts.
- Dinner: Egg, whitefish, and spinach fried in coconut oil
Seventh-Day
- Breakfast: Omelet with bacon and mushrooms.
- Lunch: Burger, cheese, and guacamole.
- Dinner: Steak and eggs with a salad.
Always try to eat vegetables and fatty meat for a long time. These both have different healthy minerals for better health.
Keto Snacks
If you feel hungry between your breakfast, lunch, and dinner then you take some ketogenic snacks:
- Fatty meat or fish
- Cheese and bell pepper
- Sunflower seeds
- A handful of nuts or seeds
- Cheese with olives
- 2 hard-boiled eggs
- Dark chocolate
- A low-carb milkshake with almond milk, cocoa powder, and nut butter
- Full-fat yogurt with nut butter
- Strawberries and cream
- Celery dipped in guacamole
Side Effects and Prevention
The ketogenic diet is safe and healthy for your body but you can face some initial side effects in your body in the process of ketosis.
It is known as keto flu and it will seem for a few days at the beginning of the diet.
Keto diet side effects are, feel less energetic, sleeping problems decreased exercise performance and increase hunger.
You need to take a low-carb diet for starting weeks. When your body is starting to burn fat then you can take food without carbs.
Due to keto diet water and minerals of your body unbalanced. You can take extra salt in your diet to get rid of this problem.
Supplements for a Ketogenic Diet
Some supplements help in reducing fat and build muscles:
- Whey: Taking half spoon whey protein with shake or curd is better for muscle building.
- Creatine: Creatine gives full of energy and performance, take it before the exercise to build muscles.
- Caffeine: Caffeine gives us energy and performance so it is beneficial in weight loss or fat burn.
- MCT oil: Take it with drinks or Yogurt, it provides energy and increases in ketone levels of the body.
Frequently Ask Question
Some common questions asked about the keto diet:
1. Can I eat carbs again after losing weight?
Yes, you can take carbs again after 4-5 months, but you can take it on occasion only, come back again on your low carbs diet.
2. How I build muscle on a ketogenic diet?
You just need to take a high protein diet in your diet plan. Protein helps to build your muscles.
3. Will I lose muscle?
Chances to lose muscle will be in any weight loss diet. It can be maintained by taking a high protein diet plan. Weight lifting also helps in minimizing muscle loss.
4. How much protein can I eat in my diet?
Around 35% of Protein should be taken in your diet.
5. What if I am tired, weak or fatigued?
If you feel tired it means your body fat is not ketosis, you need to reduce your carbs consumption.
Conclusion
A keto diet is best for overweight persons. Also, it helps to maintain diabetes and improve metabolism.
It is not best for those who want to gain weight and improve your muscles.
The result comes when you take it for a long time. If you don’t take it regularly then you may not get better results.