Why You Lose Weight On A Keto Diet
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“Regular” Diets Focus on Calories and Exercise
The ‘regular’ way to lose weight over a long period of time is to reduce the number of calories you take in and increase the number of calories you use as fuel in your daily activity. Science has discovered that this actually doesn’t work as well as we would like it to, and that is because calorie counting does not address cravings nor does it offer guidance on what type of food to eat for long term weight loss. Additional science has taught us that carbohydrates and sugar foods are what need to be removed from our diet, or greatly reduced from our diet, for long term weight loss.
From Burning Sugar to Burning Fat
The ketogenic diet works for weight loss because the intention is to force the body into ketosis. This is not a bad thing! It is a process, a metabolic state where most of the body’s energy comes from ketone bodies in the blood. Ketone bodies are molecules that occur when your body burns fat as an energy source. So what you are doing is setting up your body to stop using sugar (glucose) for energy and start using fat for energy.
Why does weight loss happen?
Our bodies normally run on glucose for energy. We can’t create glucose and only store 24 hours-worth in our muscles and liver. Once this glucose is no longer available, we begin to burn stored fat. The ketogenic diet, by eliminating glucose, causes the body to burn stored fat. And fat is what we want to lose.
Less Sugar Means Less Water Weight
There is a strong relationship between water retention and glycogen (glucose) that is stored in the body. If your body manages to store some extra glycogen, you also increase water retention. This happens literally from one day to the next. Hence, when you eliminate or reduce sugar from your diet, you reduce the likelihood of carrying extra weight that is simply extra water.
Reduced Appetite
Ketosis does not completely reduce your appetite but instead helps to reduce your cravings for food that can sometimes lead you to overeat. The heart, brain, and other muscle tissues “prefer” to burn ketones because this allows the body to conserve blood sugar. As a side effect, this is definitely one of the better ones. Your body is put in a state of not wanting to eat or overeat, making it much easier to lose weight.
There are many things one can do to curb their cravings or help kick start their bodies with any weight loss journey. I myself love my DOSE from Elevacity. It’s a yummy coffee or cocoa that gives me energy, focus, clarity, and so much more. You can see just what it is by visiting my Elevacity site.
For many, being Keto is more than a diet, it’s a way of life. Also, venturing into Intermitted Fasting has help open more doors for many. I will be doing a whole series on that, so stay tuned.
I have a wonderful section called My Keto Panty where you will find recipes, supplement, keto and low carb foods, meal plans and info on many keto friendly things. I also have many posts on Keto. See below for a quick list of my posts.
The main 4 things I love and recommend on a keto lifestyle are these —>
Meats from ButcherBox
Keto Essentials from KissmyKeto
Bone Broth from Kettle & Fire
Keto Cookies from EatNui
You can also check out these top picks on Amazon.
Check out all these posts —- >
The Health Benefits of Going Keto
What Can You Eat on a Keto Diet?
Tracking Your Macros to Stay in Ketosis
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