You can walk 10,000 steps daily, do high -intensity workout in the gym, and still see no difference in weight until you fix your nutrition-intake. The most important thing for gaining muscle or losing weight is your diet.
People follow different types of diets across the globe owing to their benefits. One such diet that has been gaining popularity by the day because of its hard-to-believe results is the keto diet.
But there are so many misconceptions about the keto diet that have been blinding people. One of the widely believed is that Keto keeps you starving. That is so wrong. In fact, the keto diet does not make you lose weight because you are eating less, but because your body has been sent to a state of ketosis. Remember, a good diet will never advise you to eat less, instead, it asks you to eat right, in the right quantities.
How does the keto diet function? Why should you choose it? What can you expect out of it? Why does it work? All your questions are answered below.
- Eating sufficient protein
Protein is really important for the proper functioning of your body. A lot of health problems that we face in our daily life is accredited to the lack of protein in our diet. Keto diet operates on this maxim and hence ensures that your chart has at least one gram of protein for every pound you weigh.
Eating enough protein means that you will burn a lot of body fat as well. This is because protein keeps you fuller for longer, so naturally, your cravings are reduced. Protein is also the building block for muscles in the body.
So, if you don’t eat enough protein on your day-to-day diet, it’s time that you start doing it. Diets like the keto or the paleo diet can help you accomplish this, take a look at this article from Proper Good to learn the main differences between these diets. There are various protein sources available for you to choose from dairy, non-dairy, meat, and vegan.
- Snacking on vegetables
Unlike normal days, when you feel like snacking you definitely can’t pick a bag of chips or a packet of biscuits. They are not only full of carbs but also fail to fulfill your nutritional needs.
When you are following a keto diet, you should be snacking on vegetables. Not just carbs, they also have a low content of sugar and starch. Vegetables like tomatoes, cabbages, Brussels, broccoli, lettuce, cucumber are also very high in protein that ultimately promotes weight loss.
- Consuming healthy fats
Contrary to popular belief, fats don’t always contribute to increased weight. While entering a state of ketosis, your body will switch from its natural fuel, that is carbs, sugar, and insulin to fats. This is what makes you a fat-burning machine.
This further explains why you need to restrict carbs as much as possible, and include healthy fats in your daily diet. Healthy fats include olive oil, coconut oil, avocado, and more. On a keto diet, your body survives on healthy fats and not carbs, so make sure you consume it in sufficient quantities.
And, if you need some lip-smacking keto recipes, you must visit Sweet as Honey at least once!
- Carb-loading once a week
We all love carbs, and it is difficult to resist them for a long period of time. A keto diet is a very strict form of the diet, which asks you to stay away from carbs, but not always. You are allowed to fill your system with carbs once a week.
This not only allows you to savor the much-needed cheat meal but also enriches your system with a lot of macros and micros that carbs provide. However, make sure you only stick with healthy sources of carbs, like rice, quinoa, and fruit.
Now that you know the reasons at large why keto diet is becoming so popular for weight loss. It is also important for you to know how this diet works.
How does the keto diet work?
According to biology, there are three major macros that a human body requires: Carbohydrates, fats, and protein. All three have different functionality and reasons why the body needs them.
Among the three, carbohydrates act as the natural fuel of the body and are ranked at the top for energy-producing components among the three, followed by fats and proteins.
So, when you eat a plate of chicken and rice, your body would produce energy from the rice, and then if needed, from the chicken. The keto diet helps restrict the intake of carbohydrates, so that your body is forced to produce energy from chicken, making you burn the fat.
Now that you know the facts, you can start following the keto diet but it is always advisable to consult a nutritionist before entering into it.
