I first came across KETO about a year ago this time from a blogger I follow on IG (@makeupshayla). She was talking about how she was able to lose a significant amount of weight in just 3 months, simply by changing her diet. At first, I was a skeptic and was so confused as to why she was giving the diet so much credit because homegirl was a VERY active person who hit the gym regularly. I rolled my eyes at her and at the idea of depending on a diet to fix my weight problems, but my curiosity wouldn’t rest with the idea so I decided to look into it anyway. And the more and more I looked into the diet, the more and more I understood why this diet was getting all the praise.
KETO obviously is not a pill or some magic formula that gets your body in order instantly. It is a diet that takes a slow and steady process for your body to get adjusted to. And as with any other diet, KETO comes with its own list of restrictions. The biggest restriction being carbs. Having been accustomed to a heavy carb consumption lifestyle, at first, the idea of giving up carbs was unthinkable for me. But the more I read into the HOW of KETO, my desire to see results overcame my love for carbs. I was able to get rid of all the pasta, rice, bread, sugar, and all the other “good” stuff to straighten out my eating habits.
So how does the Keto diet work, you ask?
A keto diet is a low-carb/high-fat diet, where the body produces ketones in the liver to be used for energy as opposed to when we eat a carb-heavy diet, our body uses glucose and insulin for an energy source. Glucose being the easiest molecule for our body to convert into energy, it is always chosen over any other energy source. So when glucose is being used as a primary source of energy, the excess carbs and fats we consume on a typical carb-heavy diet are not necessarily needed right away and therefor stored for a later use. The result being piled on extra pounds. But “by lowering the intake of carbs, the body is prompted into a state known as Ketosis. Ketosis is a natural process the body initiates to help us survive when food intake is low. During this state, we produce ketones, which are produced from the breakdown of fats in the liver.” Therefore, when we take away the carbs and load our body with fats, the body will begin to burn ketones as the primary energy source, leaving not much to be stored for “later” – i.e. resulting in weight loss.
I am obviously not a doctor or an expert on this subject so I will leave a few links below to some informative articles if you would like to get more information on the diet.
https://www.ruled.me/guide-keto-diet/
https://www.ruled.me/guide-keto-diet/
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/ketogenic-diet-101
https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/keto
3 Tips for a successful Keto diet from my personal experience
1.Your desire to see results has to be greater than your love for carbs.
This is not the kind of “balanced” diet where you eat salads and fruits for 5 days straight and indulge in all the pizza and fries over the weekend. Since putting your body into Ketosis takes time, consuming large amounts of cabs at random interrupts the process and sets you back to square one. From my personal experience, I’d say it’s okay to have a certain amount of carbs here and there to satisfy your taste buds, but others may disagree. The more disciplined you are with the diet, the faster you’ll see results.
2. Meal Prep and put yourself on a routine.
Going right off of the first tip, one thing that helped me stay disciplined with this diet is meal prepping. I planned my meals for the week ahead and meal prepped every Sunday. I knew exactly what I was going to eat for each meal of the day, which prevented me from buying food at every conveniently located restaurant nearby.
3. Treat the diet like a “diet” and not a “life style”.
Although people often say it’s better to make a lifestyle change than be on a diet, and I somewhat agree with that statement, one thing that helped me stay consistent with this diet and keep the weight off is treating the diet as a diet and not a lifestyle. When I first saw results from this diet, I was so convinced that I was going to make keto a way of life and tried to convince myself that I no longer needed carbs in my life. But eventually, reality hit and I found myself craving fries, burgers, pizza, bread, cookies, and all the other good stuff keto restricts. So, to deal with my cravings, I started putting myself on the keto diet for a certain period of time and allowing myself to enjoy all the goodness life has to offer ever now and again. And since Keto has though me to be more conscious of what I put in my body, even when I’m not on the diet I usually find myself reading ingredient labels and avoiding anything processed. By not forcing the no carbs “lifestyle change” on myself, I have been able to allow myself to eat what I want and not feel so restricted about the foods that I consume.
Now, with all that said, I am not here to promote any diet or enforce a certain lifestyle on anybody. Nothing in life is ever a one size fit all situation and what works for one person, may not work for another. But as sharing is caring, I just wanted to share my experience in hopes that you get some sort of guidance or inspiration from it.
