Some of What I've Learned About Keto and Healthy Dieting

It has come to my attention that I need to provide some concise information about the Ketogenic Diet, aka. Keto, as I'm following it. If you have differing information, please feel free to share (with links, where possible) in comments.

The Fallacy of Low-Fat Diets
In order to avoid duplicating whole or partial articles, within my post, I'm adding links here. Any text, with a given link, is my notes and commentary.

• How the Ideology of Low Fat Conquered America. This is the longest, most comprehensive, article I found. It is a bit repetitive though. And it only covers information available as of 2008. So it is a bit "behind the times". But if you balance it with the following articles, I think the aggregate will make sense.
• 2: The Origin of the Low-Fat, High-Carbohydrate Diet. I thought about skipping the first article, and just adding this one, but this is missing a few points that I consider critical. If it turns out that Keto is not a fit for you, try reading the list of articles, on the side-bar, on this page.
• The History of the Low-Fat Diet. Short and concise, with good conclusions. And she's a dietitian to boot.
• Low-Fat Diet. Hopefully everyone can translate the occasional typo's and other errors, and get the useful information from this article.
• I was unable to find a reference to the galvanizing point, that I have referenced IRL, previous to now. So I'm going to try to stop using it. Though if I find a reputable reference to it, I may link it in later.

Overall, I'm of the opinion that (at least for me) the standard low-fat diet would do more harm than good. At the very least, I believe the data above shows the futility of following the much-lauded original low-fat diet. And I am prepared to believe that there may be different low-fat, or reduced calorie diets, that work better for some people. 
As always, don't just take my word for it....

KETO IS NOT FOR EVERYONE!
PLEASE check with your doctor first, BEFORE beginning such a serious diet plan! At the very least, be sure you are properly monitored, by a licensed physician.
Potential complications of Keto seem to stem primarily from "ketoacidosis". Symptoms and causes are explained here;  Ketoacidosis. So keep watch on your health, while on this or any other intensive diet or exercise routine.

Keto Food Pyramid 
The keto food pyramid is almost the opposite of the "standard" American food pyramid, that most Americans are familiar with. I'm going to give the percentages that I use below. What you wind up with may be a bit different. This is just a sort of "Rule of Thumb".

• On top are the Carbohydrates. This makes up only about 5% of my calories.
• In the middle, we have Protein. I keep it under about 20% each day.
• And at the base is Fat. And, yes, that means I get 75% of my calories here!

It actually takes some creativity to pack that much fat in. But I'll get more into that elsewhere. Check out my "Keto Friendly" recipes and "Tips", posted on this blog.

Ketogenesis Explained
Burning FAT, instead of sugar, for the vast majority of daily energy, provides much more stable and sustainable energy without causing spikes in blood sugar. Thereby, the lack of blood sugar drop allows for a greater overall sense of satisfaction, even with significantly smaller meals.
The calories taken in, in the form of fat, enter the bloodstream much more slowly than simple carbohydrates. So there is never a spike. And the produced energy lasts for hours, and diminishes slowly, rather than crashing sharply.
In case you want the more complex scientific explanation, check out this link;
Ketogenesis. 

My Own Experience - My Rules for Myself
I will not try to tell you that starting Keto isn't a challenge. Even though I was already on the Atkins Diet, taking that big step up was a serious adjustment. At the beginning, it took a LOT of getting used to. How to prepare food. How to avoid having to eat chunks of solid fat (I did some of that early on) just to keep my percentages in balance.
And of course there is going to be a struggle with hunger, in the beginning.

Based on everything I learned, from blogs, YouTube, and articles, it takes about 3 months of doing it correctly, before you are able to consider yourself to be all the way on Keto. So, unlike many other diets, there are No cheat days. It is Super Critical that you find treats and tricks to keep yourself going, without eating anything that costs more than 4 carbs. That's all it takes to spike your blood sugar and kick you out of ketosis. If you do miss the mark, Do Not Panic. Looking back doesn't help. Just focus on doing better, going forward.

You've  already seen my version of the food pyramid. I'm currently working with about 1600 calories a day (per doctor's orders). And even though that doesn't sound like a lot, I'm rarely actually hungry.
I've been on Keto for about 2 years now. I eat what most people would consider fairly small meals. But they are rich, flavorful (to my bland pallet) and calorie dense. I enjoy my food! Food, with plenty of fat in it, is moist and delicious. And I'm constantly looking for and creating new recipes to replace the things I'm missing.

I'm not losing a ton of weight fast. I'm not trying to. It's just not healthy. I know a lot of folks look in the mirror, especially at the end of the winter, and say something to the effect of; "OMG! How am I ever going to fit into my swimsuit this summer?"
Sadly, that is just NOT the time to be worrying about it.
If you get on (AND STAY ON) a sustainable weight loss/maintenance plan, you need never worry about that swimsuit again. Yo-yo dieting is for fools, because it's extremely hard on you body.
I've found it helpful to follow one or more gurus, on YouTube (some have their own sites as well. Check out;  Ruled.Me at their home, and RuledMe on YouTube, for example.

I'm the first to acknowledge that it's difficult to get up; from my desk, off the couch, or sometimes out of bed, to exercise. Most of the time, the exercise I get is forced on me (walking the halls of the hospital to get to my cancer treatments and doctor's appointments, for instance). I have found that, when I do get some exercise, I feel better. My body hurts less when my muscles are strong enough to give better support. 
So I've started doing little things, to make myself exercise more:

• Take a longer way. At the hospital, or out and about, I'll only take the shortest way to where I'm going if I'm rushed. And then I'm moving faster, so I'm still doing better. You don't have to take the longest way. Just do a little more than you have to. Eventually it becomes a habit.
• I get a few more "steps" in by adding extra trips. If I need 4 things our of the 'fridge, I make at least 2 trips, even if I could carry all of them at once.
• When my migraines permit, I turn on some bouncy music, while I'm cooking, and dance like no one's watching. It may not register on my FitBit, but it gets the blood going, helps me wake up, and usually improves my mood.
• Sometimes, especially if my back is hurting, I'll do some "Rockette Kicks" (description to be included in a future post). It works well with the music, for tempo.
• Occasionally after I fill the kettle, I use it as a weight bell. A few rep's with each arm, to strengthen my shoulders (I've recently learned to avoid it if my bursitis is acting up). And then I put it on the fire, to heat for my coffee.
• Cooking my own food can also be energy intensive. For example, I usually cook at least 3-4 recipes of my beets (see Roasted Beets with Turmeric and Ginger) at a time, and that takes quite a bit of energy. And whisking the bacon fat and coconut oil into my egg, for breakfast is a little as well.
• The simple truth is;  Any Exercise you do is better than nothing. Just get moving, no matter what you do.

In my opinion, the biggest problem regarding the way people eat, is combining fat and carbohydrates together (especially saturated fats combined with sugar or other simple carbohydrates). Personally, I have cut out just about all use of natural or processed sugar. That also includes any "sugar" substance, that contains "calories from sugar", and especially High Fructose Corn Syrup [HFCS] (just one of hundreds of "toxic waste" substances that are regularly added to American processed foods). I do still include some foods with extremely low calories from sugar (mostly Russel Stover's and Reece's chocolates). If you try to completely give up treats, I can almost guarantee that you will wind up failing with any diet. Thus far, I do not subscribe to the theory that people should eliminate all sweeteners. I think that is just going too far and not maintainable. Just try to keep it as natural as possible and everything in moderation.

I will say that I try to also stay away from (what I refer to as) toxic waste in my food. In general, if you can't pronounce it, Don't Eat It. Read the labels on your food. Know what you are eating. And thereby take responsibility for what you put in your body.
If you don't know what you are eating, how can you possibly make better choices?

Please Do Your Own Research 
This is just to get you started. No One is ever going to be able to do all the work for you. Among other things, you should tailor your diet to your own, very specific needs and physiology. 
Diet is an enormous topic, with a wide variety of options and opinions. My choice may not work to fill your needs. Try to keep from allowing anyone to make your health maintenance choices for you.
If you discover evidence, while doing your research, that any of my assertions are in error, PLEASE comment with one or more links. I will be happy to fact check it for myself, and reply.

Comments are welcome. And if you'd like to offer support, or if you appreciate the provided information, please use the following link:

Help LilMischif