You’ve probably heard that the keto diet is an easy way to lose weight but you’re still wondering exactly “How does the keto diet work?”

Basically the way the keto diet works is by restricting carbohydrate consumption to the extent that when your body realises that it doesn’t have enough carbs for its energy requirements, it begins to burn fat (for energy) by producing ketones.

These ketones that your body produces are small fuel molecules which are used instead of carbs (glucose) as an alternative fuel for your body’s energy source (which is usually carbohydrates).

So by having your body use these ketones, as its fuel, you’ll be burning fat instead of sugar (carbs) and thereby losing weight almost automatically.

“There is no doubt that there is strong supportive evidence that the use of ketogenic diets in weight loss therapy is effective…”

Ref: U.S. National Library of Medicine | NCBI National Center for Biotechnology Information

It all sounds simple enough but it’s important to understand that ketones will only be produced if you’re on a strict low-carb diet.

This means that if your consumption of carbs has not been restricted sufficiently your body won’t be producing these fat burning molecules and therefore you won’t be able to experience ketogenic diet weight loss.

The ketogenic diet is specifically aimed at creating a state of ketosis, which is a metabolic state of raised levels of ketone bodies, and being able to reach an optimal ketone level weight loss, health and physical and mental performance.

This occurs as carbs are reduced and fat is increased causing the body to go into a metabolic state called ketosis.

Ketosis encourages the body to convert the healthy fat, that you’ve included in your diet, into ketones which not only supply energy for the brain, but create this ketogenic weight loss phenomenon.

So the potential benefits that a ketogenic diet offers, for weight loss and improved health and performance, is massive.

Whilst the LCHF Banting & Paleo diets work pretty much the same as the keto diet does, keto restricts the consumption of protein as well.

A ketogenic diet is high in fat, moderate in protein and extremely low in carbohydrate consumption.

The great thing about the keto diet is that you’ll see results after a few days or weeks of eating this way as the body and brain become more efficient at burning fat and ketones for fuel instead of carbs.

Another beneficial side effect of a ketogenic diet is that it also lowers insulin levels which together with the increased ketones are two of the main reasons this diet has so many health benefits for us humans.

Ketogenic Diet Foods

The typical foods that you’ll find on a low-carb keto diet include these;

• meat
• fish
• butter
• eggs
• cheese
• full cream
• oils
• nuts
• avocados
• seeds
• low-carb vegetables (avoid those high in sugar such as butternut – pumpkin is better)

The fats in coconut oil are quickly metabolized by the liver, which increases your metabolic rate by up to 15%

Some keto-dieters who refuse to eat carbs and are strictly on SKD (Standard Ketogenic Diet) consume coconut oil as an immediate form of energy. Coconut oil is rich in MCTs (Medium-Chain Triglycerides) are converted in the liver into ketones that can be used by your body as fuel instead of glycogen.

Coconut fat is 92% saturated, with very little inflammatory Omega-6 PUFA.

Foods to avoid on a keto diet include these;

• grains
• rice
• bread
• potatoes
• beans
• pastries
• sweets
• milk
• cereals
• fruits
• high-carb vegetables (for example carrots)
• see also these foods on this red list of Banting diet foods

Ketogenic Diet & Weight Loss

This will come as welcome news for those overweight people who have resigned themselves to always being fat…

Well, the good news is that ketogenic diets are extremely effective for weight loss.

In fact a LCHF keto diet can help you lose fat, preserve or improve muscle mass as well as improve many markers of disease.

To back up these claims of effective ketogenic diet weight loss, many studies which have compared the recommended LCHF diet to a ketogenic diet for weight loss have found the ketogenic diet to be more effective for weigh loss.

If you need more inspiration to lose weight on a keto diet, one study showed that those people on a ketogenic diet lost 2.2 times more weight than those on a low-calorie, low-fat diet.

Furthermore, triglyceride and HDL cholesterol levels also improved in the keto group.

Another great point in favour of a ketogenic diet for weight loss is that other studies have found that people can lose fat when food intake is not controlled or restricted which is significant when applying the research to real life as people won’t be eating controlled amounts or counting calories.

So the data suggests that a ketogenic diet is a great option for you even if you are just going to be estimating your intake of protein & fat as long as you eliminate certain foods & carbs.

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Weight Loss Achieved In a Low-Carb vs Low-Fat Study

Study Comparing Low-Carbohydrate vs Low-Fat Diet in Severe Obesity – New England Journal Of Medicine

Here’s more evidence to show you that a low-carb diet is more effective for weight loss than a low-fat diet.

This study was done to compare weight change in 132 severely obese subjects revealed the following;

• The low-carb group lost an average of 5.8 kg (12.8 lbs)
• The low-fat group lost only 1.9 kg (4.2 lbs).
• Conclusion: The difference in weight loss experienced by the group eating a low-carb diet was significantly higher than the group on the low-fat diet.

Another study, conducted by the NCBI National Institute Of Health (J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2003 Apr;88(4):1617-23), revealed that people on a ketogenic diet lost almost 2½ times more weight than those on a low-fat, calorie-restricted diet with an improvement shown in triglyceride & HDL cholesterol levels.

There have been many other studies effected that show similar results which clearly demonstrate that replacing carbs with healthy fats in your diet will help you lose weight.

Conclusion

Not only is a ketogenic diet an effective way to lose weight without having to worry about counting calories, but it can also decrease the risk factors for diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and obesity.

If you still need more convincing read how Leanne Vogel lost almost 10kgs (20 pounds) & reduced her body fat from 32% to 20% in just 2 months of going ketogenic.

If what you’re doing isn’t working, dare to try something different like this…
You’ll be amazed at the results »

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