“I Lost 100 lbs on Keto!”

We all know someone who’s lost weight doing keto. If you don’t, I’d be very surprised. In fact, there’s a pretty high chance you’ve even tried keto. On the off chance you haven’t let me tell you what keto is.

The Ketogenic (Keto) diet is a very low carb diet. It is based on the idea that if you deprive your body of carbs, it will start using fats for fuel instead. In theory, it sounds like a good idea. If you are trying to lose fat, it only makes sense you’d like to burn more fat as energy.

But, is that really how it works? And is it better for weight loss?

To answer that, let’s talk about what carbs are and how they work.

Carbohydrates Are Energy

Your body burns carbs for energy. After they are digested, they are stored in your muscles and in your liver, to be converted for energy. All day long, your body is converting them into energy for movement and other bodily functions.

Carbohydrates are found in foods like breads, oats, fruits, vegetables, rice and pasta. A lot of popular foods demonized for carbs are also high in fat (ice cream, cookies, cake, pizza).

Our bodies prefer carbs over fats for energy most of the time. It especially prefers them for weight lifting, sprinting, and any high intensity activities.

If you’re tracking carbs, here are a few examples of how many grams per serving:

1 medium banana is about 27 grams of carbs

1 apple is about 20g of carbs.

1 cup of grapes is about 28g of carbs.

1 Orange is about 17g of carbs.

1 cup of white rice is about 44g of carbs.

1 cup of spaghetti is about 42g of carbs.

½ a cup of oatmeal is about 27g of carbs.

1 slice of white bread is about 13g of carbs.

1 medium potato is about 32g of carbs.

½ cup of beans are about 18-22g of carbs.

1 cup of quinoa is about 42g of carbs.

If you want to stick to the healthier side of the spectrum when it comes to carbs, go with fruits and vegetables (including potatoes), oatmeal, whole grain breads, brown rice, beans, and quinoa.

The next best is flavored oatmeal, white breads, pancakes/waffles, pasta, whole grain crackers, white rice, granola and granola bars.

Now, if you need carbs for energy, how does Keto work so well?

How Keto Works

The Ketogenic diet works when you eat few enough carbs that your body starts burning fats for energy instead. That doesn’t necessarily mean you’re burning more body fat. That’s because you’re eating a lot more fats. So your body is burning more fats as energy, but because you’re eating more it might not matter.

So then, how do some people lose large amounts of weight on keto?

Simply put, they eat less overall on keto. This is because the keto style of eating fits their likes and dislikes, and they find it easy to follow. If that’s you, then you could likely lose weight doing keto.

It isn’t magic, it isn’t tricking your body into losing more fat with less work.

It just works for some people, because it fits their personality!

In summary, low carb isn’t better than high carb. And high carb isn’t better than low carb. Whichever style allows you to stick to it, is going to give you better results.

I would recommend going with whatever style is easier for you to stick to. The evidence clearly shows, whatever you can stick to gives you the best results.

Can Keto Be Done Long Term?

If you like a keto diet and get results with it, that’s great!

Personally, I would caution against doing keto long term. Some studies are suggesting the high amounts of saturated fats still cause issues in the long term.

I personally think cutting out one of the essential macronutrients long term just can’t be good for your health. That’s just my two cents.

Let’s make this the best week yet, I know you will! See you next week!

If you have any questions you want answered, or want to know more about carbs, sign up for a free 15-minute phone call: