A Simple Ketogenic Diet Guide for Beginners
The ketogenic diet shifts your body from a glucose-burning to a fat-burning energy system. Fat is the body’s second favorite source of energy, after carbohydrates. When you limit your carb supply, your body will turn to fat to get the energy it needs. The ketogenic diet is designed to put you in such a low carb state that the liver breaks down stored body fat into fatty acids. These fatty acids are then broken down into compounds called ketones.
Most of the cells in your body can directly use fatty acids for energy. But some cells, such as those in your brain and muscles, cannot. The fatty acids have to be further broken into ketones to be used by them. When you have ketones in your bloodstream, you will be in the state of ketosis.
When you eat a lot of carbs, the body uses them for energy and stores the left over as either glycogen or as triglycerides in your fat cells. But when there are no carbs to call upon, the body will firstly use up its very limited liver glycogen stores. It then turns to fat. This fat comes from the foods you eat as well as the fat that is stored on your body. When it does this, your fat cells will shrink and you will begin to lose weight.
When you switch to a fat-based energy burning system, you’ll be making daily inroads into your reserves of stored bodyfat. You will literally be burning fat 24/7!
When you eat sugary foods, your body produces the hormone insulin to clear the glucose from your blood. This causes an energy crash and cravings for more sugary food, setting up a vicious cycle of carb dependency. However, a high-fat diet does not induce insulin release. This helps to prevent fat storage.
Fats, which have twice as many calories per gram as carbs and proteins, are very filling. The result is that you won’t be nearly as hungry as when you were eating a high-carb diet. You’ll also end up with a reduced daily caloric total to help you lose even more fat.
When you excrete ketones through your urine, you also flush out toxins. This provides you with an ongoing daily detox.
The yo-yo effect that a high-carb diet has on your blood glucose levels is eliminated when you switch to keto. That means no more energy crashes or mood swings!
A high-carb diet leads to enhanced cholesterol levels as a result of excess glucose intake. But, with its greatly reduced glucose intake, the keto diet reduces your LDL (bad) cholesterol levels. Simultaneously, your HDL (good) cholesterol levels will be enhanced.
Low-carb diets have been shown to bring down blood pressure levels. As a result, your risk of the following conditions decreases:
The first step to getting into ketosis is to limit your carbohydrate consumption. However, you need to also limit your intake of protein. That’s because the body is able to convert excess protein into glucose. As a result, a ketogenic diet requires very low levels of carbohydrates and moderate amounts of protein.
The exact macronutrient breakdown may vary, but in general, keto macronutrients fall into the following ranges:
60–75 percent of calories from fat 15–30 percent of calories from protein 5–10 percent of calories from carbohydrates Once you get into a state of ketosis, you need to keep to these macro ratios in order to stay there. If you increase either your carb or protein intake you could easily kick yourself out of ketosis.
Keto makes it easier to burn fat and lose weight without hunger, without having to count calories
Low-carb diets can help normalize blood sugar, and can help reverse type 2 diabetes
A low-carb diet helps settle a grumpy gut, relieving gas, diarrhea, and cramps
Ketosis boosts energy and improves focus
A low-carb diet can reduce or even banish cravings for sweets
A keto diet is an effective way to lower blood pressure and reduce risks of heart disease, stroke, and kidney disease, helping you live longer
A keto diet can improve your skin’s health and help clear up acne, leaving you with a glowing complexion
Keto sparks an ongoing daily detox by excreting ketones through your urine, flushing out toxins
