Keto Diet: A Beginner's Guide

You've probably heard of the ketogenic diet, also known as the keto diet. It's an extremely low-carb, high fat diet that puts your body into a metabolic state known as ketosis, in which you become a fat-burning machine. When your body is in ketosis, it turns fat into ketones in the liver and sends them into your bloodstream to fuel muscles and other tissues.

There are a few different versions of the keto diet. These include:

Standard keto diet, which is very low-carb (5 percent) and high-fat (75 percent).

Cyclical keto diet, which involves a number of days of low-carb eating followed by a shorter period of carb loading.

Targeted keto diet, which lets you add carbs for workouts and is primarily used by athletes.

High-protein keto diet, which has a macronutrient ratio of 60 percent fat, 35 percent protein and five percent carbs and is used primarily by bodybuilders.

The standard keto diet and the cyclical keto diet have been more extensively studied than the targeted and high-protein diets, and the most recommended is the standard keto diet.

Benefits of the Keto Diet

A large body of research shows that the keto diet is effective for losing weight and reducing the risk of a wide range of diseases. Some studies show that a ketogenic diet is healthier and more effective for disease prevention than a low-fat diet.

A study of 53 obese women compared the effects of a ketogenic diet and a calorie-restricted diet on weight loss and cardiovascular risk factors. After six months, researchers found that the very low-carb diet was more effective than a low-fat, calorie-restricted diet for short-term weight loss, and it had no negative effects on the primary cardiovascular risk factors of otherwise healthy women.

Although the keto diet was originally formulated to treat epilepsy and other neurological diseases, research shows that it has other far-reaching health benefits, including:

Reducing the risk of heart disease by lowering body fat, HDL cholesterol, blood sugar, and blood pressure.

Slowing tumor growth in several types of cancer.

Reducing symptoms of Alzheimer's and slowing its progression.

Improving symptoms of Parkinson's disease.

Aiding in recovery after a concussion or other traumatic brain injury.

Improving acne through lower insulin levels with less sugar and processed foods in the diet.

Drawbacks of the Keto Diet

The main drawback of the keto diet is that it can be difficult to stick with for some people. Although your caloric intake isn't restricted, the types of foods you can eat are limited. For those who "cheat" too much or who fall off the diet, the resulting weight gain will likely be swift and disheartening.

Another drawback is the keto flu, which may occur in the early days of the keto diet and involves flulike symptoms that usually disappear in a few days.

For those who can make the ketogenic diet a successful lifestyle choice, eating a low-carb, high-fat diet can produce excellent results for both body composition and disease prevention.

Maximize your Keto Diet Results

If the Keto Diet is for you, maximizing your results is going to be a priority. Thrive Naturals has formulated the ultimate Keto boosting metabolic ketosis support with Keto Max. Including the best and highest potency exogenous BHB Salts (goBHB Keto Salts), Keto Max helps you maximize your results for quicker weight loss.

Alternatives to the Keto Diet

If you know yourself well enough to know that going extremely low-carb is far too much to ask of yourself, all is not lost. Striving for a mostly plant-based diet and getting plenty of weight-shedding, disease-preventing exercise each week will lead to weight loss, although this way of eating is more of a long-haul approach, since the weight will come off more slowly than on the ketogenic diet.

Thrive Naturals also offers several research-based supplements that can help maximize your fat burning and promote weight loss results through various mechanisms. These include:

Forskolin has been shown in clinical studies to increase the body's fat burn while supporting the building of lean muscle.

Garcinia Cambogia helps block the formation of fat, and it improves the mood and suppresses the appetite.

Raspberry ketones, which increase levels of the hormone adiponectin, which promote the breakdown of fat cells in the body, which are converted into energy.

Whether you choose the keto diet or another way of eating, supplementation can help rev up and maximize your weight loss results. Whatever diet you choose, make small, incremental lifestyle changes that are sustainable, and you'll enjoy a healthier, trimmer body for years to come.

Sources:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2633336

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12679447

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18700873

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16180224

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