Intro to Keto

My trainer put me on a ketogenic diet as a "let's see what happens" strategy. The results, in only 11 days, are kind of outstanding. I've lost 13 lbs.

For those of you playing the home game, a ketogenic diet is a diet that's predominantly protein and some fat with very little carbohydrates of ANY kind. Most are familiar with the Atkins diet which is a form of a ketogenic diet. The diet is designed to put you into a state of ketosis (the accumulation of excessive ketones in the body, as in diabetic acidosis). Ketosis can be used to treat epilepsy but it is also a state that puts your body in high fat-burning gear. Typically, your body would produce energy from the carbohydrates you ingest. Since this diet provides you with 50 or less grams of carbohydrates in a day, your body learns to use a new source of fuel. They say you'll feel "weird" for the first few days because it takes approximately four days to get into a state of ketosis. Let me tell you..."weird" is the only way to describe the feeling. There's a strange taste in your mouth and your stomach feels out of sorts and you almost feel disoriented. It's not pleasant. For me, this feeling passed after the first day and a half, luckily.

For a female, the diet plan goes like this:

Day 1:
Meal 1: 12 egg whites
Meal 2: 40 grams of whey protein
Meal 3: 6 oz. chicken and 1 cup asparagus or green beans
Meal 4: 6 oz. white fish with a green salad (no tomatoes, carrots, or red peppers) using mustard and vinegar as dressing
Meal 5: 35 grams of whey protein

Day 2: Repeated two days in a row
Meal 1: 2 whole eggs, 6 egg whites
Meal 2: 35 grams of whey protein with 1 tbsp of natural peanut butter
Meal 3: 6 oz. chicken with 1 oz. (1/4 cup) or cashews, almonds or walnuts
Meal 4: 6 oz. salmon, swordfish or lean red meat with a green salad (no tomatoes, carrots or red peppers) using macadamia nut oil and vinegar as dressing
Meal 5: 35 grams of whey protein with 1 tbsp of natural peanut butter


You follow Day 1's diet, and then do two days of Day 2's diet, and repeat. For the first four weeks you eat like this. After this point, you are required to have a "cheat meal". Basically you eat whatever you want to restore your glycogen levels. Your body then feeds off that for the week until the next feeding. Shane highly suggests a whole pizza and a few doughnuts because that's what he does. Eww.

Although extremely specific, this diet is as motivating as it is limiting. But just imagine watching 5 lbs melt off in a day....it helps keep me pretty focused. September 26th will be my first cheat meal day. I have a long way to go but a blazing trail of determination behind me already!