Keto diet with intermittent fasting

That's what got me into Keto, learning how destructive sugar and carbs can be, the entirety of the food pyramid is a lie. We are groomed from an early age to consume anything we want, whenever we want. Our bodies suffer and organs shut down from the massive cortisol effects and insulin pumping constantly -our cells reject insulin because there's too much and the body goes into emergency mode, using sugar as fuel and stores the rest as fat. If you are constantly eating sugar and carbs you never give your body a chance to burn fat as fuel. A cancer survivor started the product line "Orgaine" because he knew how to kick cancer and disease permanently. In order to burn fat as fuel you need to change not only your diet, but your gut biome. If you want to stop feeling lethargic and being disease ridden, clean up your diet and quit sugar. Eating one healthy meal per day and fasting in between will prove to be very beneficial.

That's all there is to it.

 

Increasing fat intake to 60-70% and Protein 15-30% carbs will be made up by the increase in vegetable intake. Avoid white bread, pasta, rice, pastries, tortillas, literally anything made with wheat flour. Beer, wine and hard liquor should be avoided as there are carbs in the beverages and mixers. Drinking a glass of dry red wine or having a hard liquor cocktail like a whiskey or vodka would contribute about 5 carbs but without any nutritional value. It is recommended to avoid alcohol in favor of carbs from nutrient dense fruits and vegetables. This is the hardest part for me! Avoid dried fruit and trail mix containing dried fruits where the sugars are concentrated in the drying process. Consume fresh berries in heavy cream instead. Mangoes, bananas and table grapes are high in natural sugars and eating these will keep you from reaching or maintaining ketosis.

Honey and Agave are sugar, as is maple syrup and will lift you out of Keto. Juices can also be high in natural sugars and lack dietary fiber which is difficult to get on a Keto diet to begin with. Sodas should be avoided and replaced with some of the alternative beverages that are lightly flavored sparkling water. Many sauces like ketchup, and barbecue sauce as well as sweet pickles and relishes contain sugar. Replace these with additional spices, Tobasco, Fat rich mayonnaise and whole grain mustard.

Avoid meats that are cured with sugar such as honey baked ham or any ham that is sugar glazed or maple syrup cured, buy and consume a regular deli sliced ham instead. Use butter, coconut oil or ghee in your cooking.

This is by no means all inclusive and there are many guides for Keto online. The key is to, as mentioned above, to include intermittent fasting of at least 18 hours into your keto quest. This jump starts you body switching to available sources of energy. Everything will run just fine on ketones, in effect; better. The routine takes some getting used to and plenty of personal dedication to stay in ketosis.

One of my favorite treats are cream cheese filled jalapenos wrapped in bacon....

 

I'm known for, what we call, "armadillo eggs". I use cream cheese, a small piece of pepper jack cheese, a piece of fajita chicken, wrapped in bacon and either baked or grilled. A Mexican guy who worked for me one time told me how to sort the jalapeños to weed out the really hot ones. Wash them and look for ones with the small yellow viens, sort them out. Then rub the green ones and any with a rough texture get sorted out. The mildest are smooth skinned and all green skin.
I make them for most family get togethers.

 

I have fried pork rinds and guacamole dip. I mix a little diced tomato, jalapeno and lime juice into the guacamole. Other snacks can be celery sticks with no sugar added creamy peanut butter or cream cheese, cream cheese & sharp cheddar shotgun shells. Cream cheese and cheddar filled bacon wrapped jalapeno peppers, or just bacon. I like a dry smoked salmon Caesar salad with Marie's Caesar dressing with added minced garlic, too.

 

Check out Dr. Berg on YouTube. He's got great information to help balance things out.

 

You can certainly keep this up indefinitely, but you can also do what's called "dirty keto" and make some compromises, but sugar and high carbs aren't on that menu either. Essentially, you can eat more or even split up your meals instead of eating only one, and you can choose to eat some foods that aren't fully grass fed/finished, etc. I've reached my weight goal, but I also like the health benefits so I stay to the Keto lifestyle. I do "cheat" once per week and maybe I will eat a Wendy's meal or some bread or pasta with a meal, but I won't make it a regular food item. I also have not broken the sugar ban -that's essential to me. You can make your own limits, but I wouldn't try anything different until after a couple months and you really see results. I hope that helps!

 

@Alanaana Just remember, if you do switch diets, keep in mind the keto diet works only because we cut-out carbs and sugar. If we go back to eating whatever we want, the high fat will be toxic to your system with unregulated sugar and carb intake.