You’ve probably always thought that if you want to lose weight successfully, a restrictive diet and a tedious amount of exercise is required. But if we’re being truthful, that’s exactly the reason why you haven’t started your weight loss journey in the first place.
In this day and age, it’s a challenge to maintain a healthy diet and to include exercise as a part of our daily routine. But what if there is a way to lose weight without having to limit yourself to a small bowl of salad? Think that it’s impossible? Enter the keto diet.
If you’ve been searching for weight loss tips on the internet, then you may have heard about the keto diet. The hype around it may be offputting. But don’t go thinking of it as another gimmicky weight-loss trend just yet – its effectiveness may surprise you.
But first thing’s first, what exactly is the ketogenic diet?
Keto Diet Explained
To put it simply, a keto diet plan follows a low-carb, high-fat rule. Now we know what you’re thinking – isn’t fat unhealthy for you? Not always.
Many people often mistake healthy fats as body fat. But in truth, they are not one and the same. Some types of fat are actually good for our health. In fact, our bodies need both healthy fats and carbs to function properly. So how does a high-fat diet promote weight loss, you ask?
When the body consumes more fat than carbs, it is programmed to use that fat as fuel instead of the glucose from carbohydrates. This is called the state of ketosis and it is the key to losing weight with a ketogenic diet. Once the body is done using up available fat as an energy source, it will then start to burn up body fat.
The fat-burning process during ketosis is primarily the reason why so many people are attracted to this diet. But actually, it is not the only benefit that one could get from a keto diet plan. The ketogenic diet has plenty of positive effects on the body such as the following below.
Keto Diet Benefits
Following a keto diet plan does not only result in weight loss, but it may also have a positive effect on your eating habits and even on productivity. Here are a couple of keto diet benefits that might just impress you.
Lowers Risk For Type 2 Diabetes
20 grams less of carbohydrates may not sound like much. But for individuals diagnosed with diabetes, it is a considerably high number. The keto diet pushes down the number of carbohydrates one would normally consume, which also means less amount of glucose a.k.a sugar. Consequently, persons with diabetes will not only be able to better manage their condition, but they also get to lose more weight in the process.
Reduces Visceral Fat
Body fat can reveal a lot about a person’s physical health – especially from where the fat is stored. There are generally two types of body fat: subcutaneous fat which is located under your skin, and then there’s visceral fat which collects in your abdominal area.
Between the two types of body fat, visceral fat is considerably more harmful than the other because it has a tendency to stick around your organs. Low carb diet plans such as the keto diet are proven to be effective in reducing harmful visceral fat.
Additionally, excessive visceral fat is also said to be a common cause of inflammation and many other metabolic issues. This may be the reason why some may suggest that a keto diet plan may be a potential cure for such illnesses. However, research in this area is still premature and official medical claims regarding its effectiveness have yet to be made.
Hunger Suppression
A lot of people find it very difficult to maintain a diet plan. A trivial thing called homeostasis may be the cause to blame. When we attempt to make changes to our diet, homeostasis pushes the body to fight against that change. It’s just how our bodies protect themselves whenever they sense something wrong with our usual routine.
For example, have you ever felt like you became hungrier ever since you started a healthier meal plan than usual? Sometimes it has nothing to do with whether or not you had a filling meal. It’s just your body releasing ghrelin as an effort to get back to the eating habit it is used to.
Ghrelin is a hormone that triggers hunger. It is basically your enemy when it comes to losing weight. But the good news is, a keto diet plan would help you suppress the hunger caused by ghrelin. Not only is it effective in helping you lose weight, but it would also help you improve your eating habits in the long term.
Improved Focus
The way we eat can also affect the way we work. Eating too much can often lead us to feel sluggish while eating too little causes a lack of energy. In terms of productivity, an unhealthy balance may also be a barrier to mental clarity.
Our bodies require two neurotransmitters in order to improve focus and memory – glutamate and GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid) The latter is responsible for promoting stimulation and is essential for learning, and the latter is responsible for toning down stimulation. They work hand in hand so that our brains can function as they should.
To achieve improved mental clarity, the ideal is to have a harmonious balance between glutamate and GABA. Having too many glutamates or a lack of GABA is the cause behind brain fog. Now, a keto diet plan supports the process of transforming extra glutamate into GABA. Because of this, many may also believe that a keto diet can reduce stress and anxiety. But again, research on this is still quite new so no official claims have been made yet.
Is the Keto Diet Safe?
Now that you’ve learned how beneficial the keto diet is, you may want to try it out for yourself. But the question is, is it safe? The answer is yes and no. The keto diet is perfectly safe. However, diets have varying effects on people so it is best to consult a medical expert first before trying it out.
And like with everything else, too much of something is never good. Before giving a keto diet plan a try, get to know your body a little bit better. This will not only prevent you from harming yourself, but it will also show you which weight loss tips are effective for you.