ketogenic diet for weight loss

Today, one of the trendiest and most common ways to lose weight is to follow a ketogenic diet. It is noteworthy that if this diet is observed, a person does not starve, but consumes fatty and high-calorie foods. The positive effect is obtained by limiting the amount of carbohydrates consumed and effectively reducing their use in food to zero.

ketogenic diet

Researchers show that following a ketogenic diet helps with diseases such as: epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, autism, Alzheimer's disease, cancer.

This diet is one of the varieties of low-carbohydrate diets, when the body does not receive carbohydrates with food, it is forced to expend fat for energy. In this case, the fat burning process is very effective. Metabolic changes or ketosis, in which ketone bodies go directly to the brain, the body uses energy.

With this diet the level of sugar and insulin in the blood decreases, so this diet is also prescribed for diabetics, but only if the patient has type 2 diabetes.

Rules for the ketogenic diet

When following a ketogenic diet, it is necessary to follow a few simple rules and recommendations, only in this case it is possible to achieve a positive result in the shortest possible time.

1. One of the main principles of the ketogenic diet is to drink plenty of fluids per day - at least 3-4 liters.
2. Any snacks during the day, excluding main meals, are excluded.
3. Active exercise is recommended while following a ketogenic diet.
4. The amount of protein eaten should be gradually reduced and brought to 1. 5 g per 1 kg of weight.
5. The level of carbohydrates consumed per day should also be gradually reduced, ultimately their amount should not be more than 20 g per day.
6. The main source of energy in the keto diet is fat, so don't worry about eating it.

Approved products

By following the ketogenic diet, you can eat the following foods:

1. Seafood - squid, oysters, crabs, lobsters, clams and mussels.
2. Fish - salmon, cod, catfish, halibut, mackerel, trout, tuna, flounder. You can eat fish in any form: fried, steamed, boiled and baked.
3. Meat - beef, pork, rabbit, poultry, veal. As in the case of fish, the meat can be used in any form: you can cook chops, roasts, steaks, the only thing to follow is that the fillet is more dense.
4. Chicken and quail eggs, which can be eaten both fried and boiled.
5. Offal: Liver, stomach, tongue, heart and lungs are some of the main sources of nutrients.
6. Sausages - bacon, ham, sausage. When buying these products, you should carefully read the composition so that there are no additives and sugar.
7. Raw cheeses - goat, cream, mozzarella, cheddar.
8. Healthy oils are natural olive and coconut oils. You can also eat avocado oil.
9. Nuts - peanuts, walnuts and pine nuts, cashews, almonds, pumpkin and flax seeds, hazelnuts.
10. Vegetables: all green vegetables, low in starch and carbohydrates, in addition, you can eat onions and tomatoes.
11. Butter and cream.
12. Strawberry.
13. From drinks you can drink green tea, weak black tea, mineral or boiled water.

Prohibited products

The following foods should not be consumed on a ketogenic diet:

1. Products that contain a large amount of sugar: juices, drinks, sweets, cakes, jams, pastries, ice cream, marshmallows.
2. Foods containing grains and starches: Sweets made from wheat flour, bread, cereals, rice and pasta.
3. All kinds of fruit.
4. All varieties of legumes.
5. Tubers and roots: parsnips, carrots, potatoes, Jerusalem artichokes.
6. Dietary and low-fat products - go through several stages of processing, as a result of which they may contain an excessive amount of carbohydrates.
7. Sauces like ketchup and mayonnaise, as they contain unhealthy sugar and fat.
8. Unhealthy fats, the main sources of which are margarine and processed vegetable oil, so the use of these products should also be eliminated from the diet or at least reduced.
9. Alcoholic products. Many alcoholic beverages contain a large amount of carbohydrates and, therefore, their use can override all dietary measures.
10. Sugar-free diet foods. Such products are usually heavily processed and filled with harmful chemicals.

Before starting a ketogenic diet, you should consult a specialist, since the list of allowed and prohibited foods can vary for each patient, based on the individual characteristics of the human body.

Ketogenic diet: menu of the week

A rough weekly menu for people on a ketogenic diet is as follows.

Monday

1. Breakfast. Eggs and cheese.
2. The lunch. Curd with cream.
3. Dinner. Chicken breast, cheese and brown rice.
4. afternoon tea. Cheese and some nuts.
5. Dinner. Vegetable salad, fish in any form, garnished with brown rice.

Tuesday

1. Breakfast. Omelette, ½ grapefruit, spinach.
2. The lunch. Cottage cheese.
3. Dinner. Vegetable salad, chicken breast, cheese.
4. afternoon tea. Cottage cheese.
5. Dinner. Steak with brown rice, salad with vegetables.

Wednesday

1. Breakfast. Omelette, homemade yogurt.
2. The lunch. Cheese, nuts.
3. Dinner. Chicken breast with broth, salad.
4. afternoon tea. Kefir, fruits.
5. Dinner. Fish, lettuce, brown rice.

Thursday

1. Breakfast. Cheese, hard-boiled eggs, orange.
2. The lunch. Homemade Kefir.
3. Dinner. Meat broth, brown rice.
4. afternoon tea. Cheese, almonds.
5. Dinner. Fish, broccoli.

Friday

1. Breakfast. Boiled eggs with sauce.
2. The lunch. Bacon or ham.
3. Dinner. Meat casserole with vegetables and mushrooms, salad.
4. afternoon tea. Kefir, lettuce.
5. Dinner. Chicken breast, rice

on Saturday

1. Breakfast. Omelette, salad.
2. The lunch. A cheese sandwich.
3. Dinner. Offal soup, fish.
4. afternoon tea. Cheese, hazelnuts.
5. Dinner. Pork steak, toast.

Sunday

1. Breakfast. Fried egg porridge, oatmeal or millet.
2. The lunch. Kefir and fruit.
3. Dinner. Vegetable soup with meat, chicken breast.
4. afternoon tea. Kefir and boiled beef.
5. Dinner. Fish, lettuce, brown rice, cheese.

Pros and cons of this diet

Following a ketogenic diet has a number of pros and cons that need to be considered before embarking on such a diet.

benefits:

1. The diet is tolerated quite easily, because a person, observing it, does not starve.
2. A small amount of carbohydrates consumed reduces insulin production, thus preventing the risk of developing cardiovascular disease.

Disadvantages:

1. Uncontrolled adherence to the ketogenic diet is fraught with a decrease in the level of acidity in the blood, which, in turn, can lead to the development of ketoacidosis, which in most cases ends in the death of the patient. However, this phenomenon develops quite rarely, mainly in people with diabetes.
2. The state of ketosis is dangerous for human health, since in this case the load on the kidneys increases significantly, and therefore there is a risk of developing urolithiasis and osteoporosis.
3. It is impossible to follow this diet for a long time, as a person begins to have digestive problems: constipation and nausea from the constant use of fatty foods.

Contraindications

It is impossible to follow a ketogenic diet for ailments such as: pathologies of the cardiovascular system, liver and kidney diseases, diabetes mellitus, metabolic disorders, progressive encephalopathy.

Before starting a ketogenic diet, you need to consult a specialist, weigh the pros and cons and prepare yourself. When following a diet, in order to avoid unpleasant consequences, you need to constantly consult with your doctor and strictly follow all his recommendations.