When Stephen and mention we are doing the Keto diet, we
often get asked the same questions. Here is a quick “questions and answers”
that might answer some of your questions and concerns.
Q: What exactly does
your diet consist of? What can you eat and what can’t you?
A: It’s a low carbohydrates diet. So anything that has a lot of carbohydrates we avoid. Our diet consists of about 70% fat, 15% proteins and 5% fat. I
personally take about 1300 calories a day but it varies depending on how hungry
or active I am, I don’t really count calories unless I am not losing any
weight. I am also staying under 20g of carbohydrates a day. If you’d like to see what
your calories and carbohydrates consumption should be based on your height, weight and
goals, please visit this
website.
Now, what do we eat? A simply rule is that meats, fat and
green veggies are okay to eat. Beginners often want a list of what is OK and
what is not. It’s really not that easy… Per example, meats are okay but Italian
sausages can have up to 4 carbohydrates per sausage (which is a lot). So you really
have to check the nutrition in all that you eat. To see how many carbohydrates you have
in some food, look at the nutrition information and next to carbohydrates
you’ll see how many carbohydrates per portions (mentioned in the package) it has. Always subtract the proteins from the total amount of carbohydrates.
Sometimes there aren't any nutritional facts on the package.
In that case you can use My Fitness Pall or Google. Just enter the name of what
you’re looking for and you should have the charts for it.
Q: Aren’t you worried
about eating “too much fat?” Isn't that unhealthy?
If you eat the right types of fat, it is not unhealthy. I
could elaborate on this but really, this
link explains it perfectly. Give it a read, even if you aren't on Keto. It’s really
interesting.
Q: Does Keto limit
you when you go out?
Not really no, if we want to go for a nice supper we just
go. We've been out with friends and family while on Keto. It’s not really that
difficult to find what to eat in restaurants. In a pizza place, eat the top of
the pizza, just no crust… In a fancy restaurant, steak and veggies… The only thing
that really changed is how often we actually want to go out. I mean it’s we are
much less likely to go to McDonald’s when we will pay for a full burger but
just have the patty and the cheese… So our fast food eating has been
dramatically going down but we still eat out on some occasions.
Q: Are there risks to
follow the Keto diet? Who should be on Keto and who shouldn't be?
I guess the risks would be to lose weight ha… No seriously,
you should ask your doctor about going on a Low carbohydrates, high fat diet. If your
doctor is 100% closed to the idea I’d get a second opinion but please consult especially if you already have any type of physical complication. I know Keto
can be dangerous during pregnancy and nursing… I’m not pregnant and my kids
have been breastfed for a really long time. So, if my supply did drop, it
really wouldn't matter much to me or to them.
Q: Does it really
work?
So far I've lost 40lbs and Stephen probably lost around the
same… It makes a huge difference. If you’re morbidly obese or obese you’ll lose
weight very fast. If you’re looking to lose 10lbs but are already at a healthy
weight, you might take a little longer to get there. However, I've heard that
Keto defines changes your body in general (in a good way). So 200lbs or 10lbs
it’s all good.
Q: Do you have to
exercise?
I don’t exercise except for cleaning and walking. I still
lose weight but I’m sure I could lose more from exercising besides, exercise is
never a bad idea…
Q: Do your kids
follow your diet?
Nooooo, children need to gain weight, not lose any. They also
don’t need to diet… It’s fairly easy to adapt our diet to theirs. We usually just
cook rice, pasta or couscous or add bread to our meals and give it to the kids.
Q: What have been the
real benefits?
Except for losing weight, I have much more energy, I feel
better, healthier… I am pretty happy with the changes my body is overcoming. My
skin also looks healthier, much less pimples throughout my cycle… Everything is
good really.
Q: What food that you
can’t eat do you miss?
Fries. Like really greasy yummy salty fries. I also miss
bread when I pass by a bakery and smell fresh bread. Bacon takes care of those
cravings though.
Q: Do you plan on
doing this diet forever? You’ll gain all the weight back…
We always say we plan on being on Keto until we reach our weight
goals. Then we’ll see. As long as we are healthy while on Keto, I don’t see a
need to stop unless we want to. Like any diet, there always IS a chance that
you gain all or some of the weight back. Studies seem to agree that losing
weight at a regular rate and changing bad habits could contribute to keeping
the weight off. So far, we've made great changes in our dietary lives and we've
been slowly losing weight, not too fast, not too slow… So anyways, I’m not
saying it’s impossible for us to regain some weight, but it’s a risk with any
diet… Hell it’s a risk as soon as you eat.
Q: Does being on Keto
cost more grocery wise?
Actually yes. We've noticed an increase of 200$ per month
extra on groceries. However, our fast food prices went down 100$. So let’s say
it costs us an extra 100$ a month but we eat much better. We weren't sure it
was going to cost us more at first but the truth is that a pack of 30 chicken
nuggets for 10$ gives us at least 3 meals while 2 steaks for 10$ makes one
meal. We aren't complaining though, we look for specials and deal with the
price difference.
Q: How would you
transit form Keto to a regular diet?
I have no idea. Probably following the Atkins diet? Incorporating
a few more carbohydrates every day. I don’t believe I’ll ever feel the same love I've
once felt about carbohydrates, but I do want to eventually be able to have some bread,
some couscous… A bit of everything.
I hope this answers some questions. I’m by no means a health
professional and I would highly suggest consulting your doctor before starting
Keto but it works for us and we love this new lifestyle. Don’t hesitate to ask
any more questions.
