Ketogenic Dieting: Frequently Asked Questions
Ketogenic dieting is more popular than ever these days, but unfortunately, that doesn't mean it's more understood than ever. In fact, given the many different names, styles, and goals that get associated with the term, the confusion seems to be growing! After researching ketogenic dieting for years and studying it firsthand in the lab, I believe it has a lot to offer to a wide range of people who want to burn fat, hold on to muscle, and live the healthiest life possible. Researchers have been digging into the details of ketogenic dieting for decades, but there's also fascinating new science happening in this area all the time. So, I'm devoting this installment of "Ask the Muscle Prof" to answering the most common questions I hear about ketogenic dieting. In addition to the questions I’ve answered in the article itself, I also did a live Google Hangout answering the most common questions from readers! After you’ve read the article, check it out at the bottom of the page to have even more of your burning keto questions answered in details! My goal is for you to have no excuse not to know what's going on in this exciting part of the nutrition world! The Terms "Fat-Adapted," "Keto-Adapted," And "In Ketosis" All Get Mixed Up Online. Do They Mean The Same Thing, Or Are There Differences? This is a great question. Ketosis is induced when carbohydrates in the diet are too low to provide the exclusive fuel source for the body, usually lower than 50 grams per day.[1] When this occurs, you enter into a unique metabolic state in which the liver produces small organic molecules called ketone bodies at sufficient levels to allow your brain, organs, and muscles to function using them and fat as fuel.[2] Someone consuming a "traditional Western diet" has a blood ketone level that's Continue reading >>
The Basic Ketogenic Diet
Note: Please note that if you are interested in a Ketogenic Diet used to treat Epilepsy or Pediatric Epilepsy, please start at Johns Hopkins who are the pioneers in this field. The wikipedia page for the Ketogenic Diet diet also has information on the diet as it relates to treating epilepsy. The diet below is simply for rapid and effective weight loss and uses a 1 to 1 fat to protein ratio rather than the 4 to 1 fat to combined protein and carbs ratio of the Ketogenic Diet pioneered by Johns Hopkins used to treat epilepsy. [wp_ad_camp_3] Disclaimer: I am neither a doctor nor self proclaimed nutrition expert so please consult your doctor before starting any diet or taking any action that affects your health and wellbeing. After finishing Gary Taubes latest book, which seems to have rapidly become the cornerstone of a new approach to nutrition, I’ve become very interested in the Ketogenic diet. The speed of weight loss I’ve seen is incredible and my energy level has remained high. The science behind a ketogenic diet is solidly backed up by Taubes research published in “Good Calories, Bad Calories” and “Why we get fat“. According to Taubes’ research, it may also be the only way for people who have become severely insulin resistant, to effectively lose weight. The Ketogenic diet has always lived on the fringes of diet lore and has been seen as extreme. But the reality is that the low glycemic index diet (Low GI Diet) is effective because it is close to, but not quite, a ketogenic diet. Other diets like the South Beach Diet are also only effective because of the reduction in carbs and consequently insulin levels. The science behind this diet looks solid and it is part of the massive shift in nutrition research we’ve seen in the last few years. Prominent sport Continue reading >>
Evidence-based Recommendations For Natural Bodybuilding Contest Preparation: Nutrition And Supplementation
Go to: The popularity of natural bodybuilding is increasing; however, evidence-based recommendations for it are lacking. This paper reviewed the scientific literature relevant to competition preparation on nutrition and supplementation, resulting in the following recommendations. Caloric intake should be set at a level that results in bodyweight losses of approximately 0.5 to 1%/wk to maximize muscle retention. Within this caloric intake, most but not all bodybuilders will respond best to consuming 2.3-3.1 g/kg of lean body mass per day of protein, 15-30% of calories from fat, and the reminder of calories from carbohydrate. Eating three to six meals per day with a meal containing 0.4-0.5 g/kg bodyweight of protein prior and subsequent to resistance training likely maximizes any theoretical benefits of nutrient timing and frequency. However, alterations in nutrient timing and frequency appear to have little effect on fat loss or lean mass retention. Among popular supplements, creatine monohydrate, caffeine and beta-alanine appear to have beneficial effects relevant to contest preparation, however others do not or warrant further study. The practice of dehydration and electrolyte manipulation in the final days and hours prior to competition can be dangerous, and may not improve appearance. Increasing carbohydrate intake at the end of preparation has a theoretical rationale to improve appearance, however it is understudied. Thus, if carbohydrate loading is pursued it should be practiced prior to competition and its benefit assessed individually. Finally, competitors should be aware of the increased risk of developing eating and body image disorders in aesthetic sport and therefore should have access to the appropriate mental health professionals. Keywords: Hypertrophy, Cal Continue reading >>
Ketogenic Diet For Bodybuilding
Bodybuilding isn’t easy or achieved quickly. It takes time, dedication, a lot of exercises, and the right diet plan. A lot has been said about ketogenic diets and their ability to strip body fat while preserving muscle, and it has made a name for itself amongst heavyweights in the field. But is the ketogenic diet for bodybuilding right for you? Most if not all fitness models and bodybuilder competitors include a low carb eating program at a point. The idea is before a competition or photo shoot; their muscles will have increased definition. When the event is complete, regular dieting is resumed. Bodybuilders or weightlifters looking to achieve a ripped physique can use high-fat ketogenic dieting for preserving lean muscle and increase fat loss efficiently.(1) What is a Ketogenic Diet In the most basic terms, a ketogenic diet is high in fat, has good protein levels, and is very low in carbohydrates. For a more detailed look check out our introduction to a ketogenic diet. This pushes your body into a ketogenic state, which means you start burning fat to fuel your everyday activities. Low-calorie diets can have similar slimming effects, but with them, you also risk losing muscle, which is the exact opposite of what bodybuilders are looking for. Another advantage of ketosis is the strong diuretic effect. This is a fancy way of telling you that you’ll shed water weight. Save LowCarbAlpha Ketogenic Diet for Bodybuilding It’s very common for weightlifters beginning a keto diet to experience loss of strength. Many people get turned off instantly blaming the low level of carbs and give up on this diet. Leave your ego at the door and simply push some lighter weights. You must realize your body is going through many changes adapting to high fat foods. Your strength will come Continue reading >>
How Much Protein On Keto
When on the ketogenic diet, you have to pay some attention to how many calories in what proportions you’re consuming. In addition to carbs and fat, you need to know how much protein on keto is safe. Before I give you the magic answer, let’s look at some of the differences and potential dangers when consuming protein on a low carb diet. The first of many to pioneer the keto movement was the Atkins diet in the early 2000s. It’s not really a ketogenic diet, but more like a kind of low-carb diet. Basically, you restrict your carbohydrates to almost zero and eat more fat and protein. Sounds ketotic, and it will definitely establish nutritional ketosis at least every once in a while. However, the Atkins diet promotes eating protein until satiated, which is quite an ambiguous recommendation. There are potentially no limits to the foods you’re allowed to eat, such as fish, meat, eggs, sausages, nuts, oils, cheese etc. – all the keto goodies. What’s wrong with that, you may ask? The thing is that protein is the only macronutrient that cannot be stored within the body. Carbs get stored as liver and muscle glycogen (100-500 grams) Fat and extra carbs get stored as triglycerides in the adipose tissue (infinite) Protein needs to be converted into glucose through gluconeogenesis first before it can be stored within the body. So, it doesn’t matter how little carbohydrates you consume, if you still eat too much protein. If there’s excess glucose running through the bloodstream, you won’t shift into ketosis. Herein lies the difference between a low carb diet and a ketogenic one – one maintains a sugar burning metabolism, whereas the other switches over to ketones. But how much is too much? In order to establish nutritional ketosis, you need to keep stable blood sugar Continue reading >>
Finding Your Optimal Protein Intake For A Ketogenic Diet
When embarking on a ketogenic diet for health or fat loss, finding the optimum protein intake can be very confusing for many beginners. For smooth adaptation in the transition to a ketogenic metabolism I typically guide people using a caloric spread of around 70-80% fat, 15-25% protein, and 5% carbohydrate from green fibrous vegetables – but this ratio varies for every individual and using percentages is confusing and misleading in many cases. The best way to look at macronutrients is not in percentage ratios, but in grams. The slew of bloggers and gurus spouting so much conflicting information leads many into a mental stalemate about how much protein they should be eating. This article lays out the metrics I most commonly use to quantify how much protein an individual should intake – there is no magic ratio and the needs, preferences, and goals of the individual determine the amount of protein they will likely require on their ketogenic diet which usually lies within a relatively broad range of 1-2.2g/kg (and in some cases even higher *cringe say the protein-phobic) of bodyweight or .5-1g/lb of lean body mass (Lean Body Mass equals Body Weight minus Body Fat). Myth: “Too much” protein turns immediately into sugar I almost always recommend people increase their intake of fish and seafoods in order to get the vital nutrient DHA into their central nervous system and mitochondrial membranes. We see amazing results when people opt for more fish and less red meat, which I also love, but land mammals are not nearly as nutrient dense as seafoods with their incredible levels of DHA, EPA, selenium, and iodine. Sometimes this means they will be eating more protein than they believe will allow them to be “ketogenic”, this protein-phobia can be counterproductive, which Continue reading >>
- Diet Soda Intake and Risk of Incident Metabolic Syndrome and Type 2 Diabetes in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA)*
- The effect of a low-carbohydrate, ketogenic diet versus a low-glycemic index diet on glycemic control in type 2 diabetes mellitus
- Pre-diabetes goes into remission on higher protein, lower carbohydrate diet (Zone diet balance)
Ketogenic Diet: Your Complete Meal Plan And Supplement Guide
So you've heard the arguments, weighed out the challenges and benefits, and decided you're all in. You're going keto. First off, you're in good company. More people—and more athletes—than ever are embracing a very low-carb, high-fat diet and sticking with it for months, or even years, on end. Once they successfully make the switch from using carbohydrates to using fat and ketones for fuel, they find they're leaner, healthier, and more mentally focused than ever. But for every lifter who ends up loving this approach, you'll find another who had a miserable experience and bailed after just a few days. This is a shame, because they probably could have felt great if they had simply had a better plan—or a plan at all. I'm not here to sell you on nutritional ketosis or explain what it is or the big-picture benefits it can provide. That's the domain of other articles. With the help of Myoplex athlete and longtime keto-adapted athlete Jason Wittrock, I'm here to provide you with your best induction experience. Here's what you need to know to ace your nutrition and supplementation during the crucial first month of ketogenic dieting, along with a complete sample meal plan! Your Must-Have (And Must-Not-Have) Keto Food List Feeling ready to start buying groceries? Slow down there, chief. Go through the pantry, fridge, freezer, and secret stashes under the bed, and get rid of foods with any significant carb content. In the first few days, you could end up craving them—badly. Sorry, no fruit for now. Even carrots and onions are too high-glycemic to work with keto, Wittrock says. Got that done? Cool. Now, here are some of the staples you should build your ketogenic diet around: Fatty nuts and seeds: cashews, macadamia nuts, pumpkin seeds Avocado Whole eggs Full-fat cheese Beef Continue reading >>
- 7-Day Ketogenic Diet Meal Plan to Fight Cancer, Heart Diseases, Diabetes, Obesity and More!
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How Much Protein Do I Need: Protein Myths Busted
How Much Protein Do I Need: Protein Myths Busted When Clients Ask, Why Do I Need Protein, Can You Answer? As a trainer, youve heard it all when it comes to protein. There are myths galore about protein, from too much is damaging to your body to the idea that protein isnt important unless youre a serious lifter. Lets take a closer look at the function and role of protein, controversial myths, and offer some tips on protein intake. Then, youll be able to answer the question, how much protein do I really need. Protein is an essential nutrient that plays a huge role in helping to keep clients healthy. Further, its essential to building muscle mass. While some clients might be quick to jump on a high protein diet, others might do the opposite due to preferences or belief in myths. Either way, dietary protein consists of amino acids that are responsible for everything. For example, our structure, hormones, enzymes, and immune chemicals all need protein. Because theres such an ongoing functional need for amino acids, keeping a consistent pool of them is like keeping a sink full without a drain plug. Theyre constantly lost as theyre broken down which means theres an ongoing need to consume a diet high in protein rich foods. This is especially the case in goals that involve muscle growth and weight loss. Our clients must realize protein supplies the building blocks of muscle and connective tissue (like ligaments and tendons). So, in the case of resistance training, the body is intentionally breaking down muscle tissue to force it to adapt and build bigger or stronger lean body mass. Therefore, achieving a specific protein intake each day is essential for health, fitness, and weight loss goals. Oftentimes, clients looking for weight loss will consider a low-carb, high-protein di Continue reading >>
A Comprehensive Guide To Bodybuilding On The Ketogenic Diet
A common belief among bodybuilders is that carbohydrates are essential for building the best physiques. However, carbohydrates have little to do with the success of many bodybuilders. The key to improving body composition is not through little intricacies like eating the right amount of carbs at the right times. The best bodies are built by implementing five simple principles, whether you are on the ketogenic diet or not. The Five Most Important Bodybuilding Principles The bodybuilding world is filled with radical concepts, silly supplements, and plenty of bro science, but these things — regardless of how hotly debated they are — may only provide you with a 1 to 2% boost in results. What you are really looking for is the tried and true bodybuilding principles that are backed by decades of science. The best results come from following the simple principles that will give you 80% of the results for the price of some hard work and discipline, not that $50 supplement that only leads to a 1% boost in performance. Here are the five principles every bodybuilder must follow: Train hard enough. You must give your muscles a stimulus to grow. Eat enough protein. You must give your muscles the building blocks they need to grow and your body the energy it needs to function. Eat the right amount of calories. Whether you want to cut body fat or increase muscle mass, it is important to eat the right amount of calories. On the ketogenic diet, you will manipulate your calorie consumption by eating more or less fat. Take care of your hormones. Resistance training, adequate nutrition, essential fatty acids and proper sleep should be your primary focus to increase your testosterone and HGH. Too much stress will put your body into a catabolic state that breaks down muscle for energy. Dri Continue reading >>
Ketogenic Diet For Bodybuilders: The Complete Guide
On of the phases in our How to get shredded in 12 week is a transition into a ketogenic diet. Why is this? As discussed in our Introduction to the Ketogenic Diet, the diet offers numerous benefits for the broad population such as weight loss, reduced sugar cravings, fat loss, mood stabilisation and more. Since our introduction we've received numerous questions from clients and trainees about the ketogenic diet for bodybuilders including: What is the ketogenic diet for bodybuilding? Should the ketogenic diet be used by bodybuilders and how effective is it? What types of keto diet should I follow if I am a bodybuilding competitor? What are the best ketogenic diet food choices? Are cheat meals allowed on a ketogenic diet? What should my target macros be on a ketogenic diet? What is the ketogenic diet food pyramid? This post aims to answer these ketogenic diet for bodybuilding questions and more. Let's get started. The Ketogenic Diet in Bodybuilding The Ketogenic Diet is becoming more mainstream and now it has captured the attention of bodybuilders around the world. The diet offers an effective way to achieve body composition, weight loss and fat loss with minimal lean muscle loss. What are the other benefits of ketogenic diet for bodybuilders? Ability to build muscles with minimal fat levels increasing When on a cutting/shredding diet you will see minimal muscle and structure loss Your body will secrete an increased amount of serum anabolic hormones naturally What's so effective about the ketogenic diet? The ketogenic diet improves the body's fat burning ability while lowering insulin levels, carbohydrate intake and improving fat digestion. The results of this diet are called “ketosis” – this is a state in which your body will go once it starts using fat for fuel as Continue reading >>
The Keto Diet: Bodybuilding Vs Fat Burning
The keto or ketogenic diet has become all the rage in the fitness and bodybuilding community. Many have viewed the as a godsend, a tool that can help an individual burn fight while maintaining a musculature physique. But not every keto program is the same. Some ketogenic programs are geared to individuals looking simply to lose weight while others are designed for those looking to gain muscle and lose fat all at once. Weight Loss Keto Keto for weight loss will focus on a specific balance of fats and protein. Fat loss keto will see an individual eating higher amounts of fat while keeping their protein intake lowered. This ensures that energy is being obtain through consuming fats which will put your body into the fat burning mode of ketosis. Bodybuilding Keto Once again much like the weight loss program of keto, you’ll see your carb intake lowered, focusing primarily on fats and protein. But rather than consuming more fats over protein the process is flipped. You’ll still eat the fats in order to use the nutrient as an energy source, but this time the increased protein will promote more muscle growth. This is exactly the kind of keto that a bodybuilder should follow if their looking to make some lean, quality gains. Similarities Whether you’re adhering to a weight loss program or you’re looking to make solid gains with keto, both diet programs are centered around the fact that your carb intake is going to be nonexistent if not significantly lowered. Carbs aren’t the devil nor is it your best friend. It’s a tool just like any of the other macronutrients. Eating starchy carbs while you’re on a keto diet will ultimately become counter productive. The idea of the diet is for an individual to get energy from fat and use it in order to shed fat off of the body. E Continue reading >>
In Depth Look At Ketogenic Diets And Ketosis
What exactly is Ketosis? The metabolic state of ketosis simply means that the quantity of ketone bodies in the blood have reached higher-than-normal levels. When the body is in a ketogenic state, this means that lipid energy metabolism is intact. The body will start breaking down your own body fat to fuel the body's normal, everyday functions. What's So Great About Being In Ketosis? Establishing this metabolic state of ketosis even for a short period of time has many outstanding benefits. Benefit 1 The main benefit of ketosis is that it increases the body's ability to utilize fats for fuel, which gets very lazy on a high-carbohydrate diet. When on high-carbohydrate diets, the body can usually expect an energy source to keep entering the body. But in the state of ketosis, the body has to become efficient at mobilizing fats as energy. Benefit 2 Ketosis has a protein-sparing effect, assuming that you are consuming adequate quantities of protein and calories—0.7 grams per pound of body weight per day—in the first place.[1] Once in ketosis, the body actually prefers ketones to glucose. Since the body has copious quantities of fat, this means there is no need to oxidize protein to generate glucose through gluconeogenesis. Benefit 3 Another benefit has to do with the low levels of insulin in the body, which causes greater lipolysis and free-glycerol release compared to a normal diet when insulin is around 80-120. Insulin has a lipolysis-blocking effect, which can inhibit the use of fatty acids as energy. Also, when insulin is brought to low levels, beneficial hormones are released in the body, such as growth hormone and other powerful growth factors. Benefit 4 Another small but very important benefit of the ketogenic diet is that when in the state of ketosis, ketones, alon Continue reading >>
Why Your High Protein Low Carb Diet Might Not Be A Keto Diet
In the 1970s Dr. Atkins popularized the ketogenic Diet. What a dream diet this was! Eat all you want and as long as you only eat protein and fat and do not consume carbohydrates, you will lose weight. It was a miracle! The caveat was pretty simple: You must eat HIGH fat, meaning 80% or more of your calories from fat. The rest of your calories would come from protein with trace carbs. Sedentary people were losing fat. Heck, I even saw an interview with Luther Vandross, the man whom we have all had in the background while making love at least once in our lives, stating that he went from "Fat Luther" to "Skinny Luther" by using the Atkins Diet. If it worked for the man who is responsible for more pregnancies than Flavor Flav, then this has to be legit. BUT, bad things happen when bodybuilding "GURUS" get wind of ideas like this. They make it even more idiotic! In the late 1990s the "keto" diet made a roaring comeback. Celebrities were using it. My neighbor who had a really fat butt was using it. Hell, even I tried it. But this was the actual ketogenic diet, meaning HIGH fat, moderate protein and trace carbs. This is a real keto diet. The body needs to be depleted of all glucose and carbs, AND you have to eat low protein. Marc Lobliner discusses why your high protein, low carb keto diet might not be putting you into ketosis. A ketogenic diet is low protein? Low protein? You heard me correct, low protein. The ketogenic diet, while good for the soccer mom whose only activity is loading groceries in her minivan, is HORRIBLE for bodybuilding! As bodybuilders we want about 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight per day (per ISSN and other guidelines) to build and maintain lean muscle mass. NO WAY can you get this when 80% of your diet is coming from pork rinds and pig butt. B Continue reading >>
Ketogenic Diet For Bodybuilding
Great bodybuilders and endurance athletes do two things very well: First, they know exactly how to train. Second, they feed their bodies the best possible food to achieve their training goals. But you're probably wondering: Am I really getting the most out of my food, or could I perform better on a ketogenic diet? Or maybe you are asking what is a ketogenic diet? Want to know what it is, then carry on reading... What is it? A ketogenic diet is one high in healthy fats, moderate in protein, and very low in carbohydrates. The keto diet forces the body to burn fat for energy, instead of carbohydrates, which is its default energy source. In a normal diet that contains high amounts of carbohydrates, the body converts carbs into glucose, which is used by the body, as well as the brain, for fuel and any leftover glucose that is not used is then stored as fat. In a ketogenic diet, also referred to as low-carb, the body has very little amounts of carbohydrates to turn into glucose, so it does the next best thing: it turns to the liver. The liver, then, takes the body’s fat supply and turns it into fatty acids, which are converted into ketones and so begins the metabolic process known as ketosis, which uses the body’s fat stores for energy. Now, I hear you say this is great for weight loss... ... but can a bodybuilder or a high endurance athlete follow this way of eating and have the energy needed for peak performance? The concern is: When you lower the amount of carbohydrates in your diet, you’re also lowering your glycogen levels, which is the default energy source for muscles during workouts, and when glycogen is lacking, so is performance. Then you may then wondering: Is there a ketogenic diet for bodybuilding and endurance athletes? The good news is: Strength Continue reading >>
Ketogenic Diets | Muscle Insider
For over 24-years, Vince Andrich has been the driving force behind many of the most innovative and successful companies in performance nutrition and sports supplements. His success developing go-to-market product strategies, as well as authoring numerous books and articles, have one common theme: find the science, or concept that actually helps bodybuilders in the real world. A: I dont think ketogenic diets are necessary to get into the kind of shape that will bring out a set of abs worthy of a shirtless summer. Even if you need to achieve ridiculously low levels of body fat for high-level bodybuilding competition, a ketogenic diet is not necessary and actually must be modified to work for bodybuilders. Let me explain: The term ketogenic diet refers to an eating program that contains almost no carbohydrate, has modest protein and requires consuming 4 grams of fat for every gram of protein and carbohydrate. This nutritional prescription is popular for the treatment of epilepsy and is often referred to as the 4:1:1 Diet or a standard ketogenic diet (SKD). Bodybuilders have used variations on the standard ketogenic diet theme to get shredded, and they can work quite well. The reason a recreational or competitive bodybuilder would want to use this method of dieting is simple: to get the body to use more stored body fat as fuel, which of course is the goal of any fat-loss plan. With a ketogenic diet, the strategy is to reduce carbohydrate intake to extremely low levels (less than 50 grams per day), which puts your body in a state of ketosis. That is, the severe reduction in carbohydrates causes your body to rapidly increase the quantity of ketones (or ketone bodies) in the blood. Ketones are a by-product of fat metabolism, and for proponents of this diet, being in a state o Continue reading >>
