I have never had to change my eating habits or place restrictions on how much food I eat. But like many others, I was unable to avoid putting on a few extra pounds over the course of the previous two years as a result of turning to carb-based snacks to keep me going throughout different lockdowns. But now I need to shed some pounds pretty quick for a big event, so I gave a thought to the ketogenic diet. I tried the keto diet for a whole month to see if it really worked.
I usually avoid following strict food plans or diets. Atkins? I’ve never heard of them. The Whole30 diet? I won’t even be bothering with it. The Paleo strategy? It’s best to keep some things in the annals of history.
I was trying to drop some weight before the big day I was attending, so I was drawn to the ketogenic diet plan because of its simplicity.
Learn the details of my 30-day carbohydrate restriction, including how I achieved it, my triumphs, setbacks, and outcomes, as well as the lessons I learned about ketogenic weight reduction that will be with me forever.
Ketogenic Diet: What Is It & What Are The Basics?
A ketogenic diet consists of eating high-fat, low-carbohydrate foods while getting enough protein. This group of foods includes low-carb, high-fiber vegetables including broccoli, asparagus, cabbage, avocados, and lettuce, as well as meat, chicken, eggs, fish, cheeses, nuts, seeds, and different butters and oils. Most people agree that one of the best diets for weight loss is the Keto diet.
What makes Keto’s fat-burning benefits superior to those of other diets, though? Normal conditions cause your body to use carbs as fuel. The lack of carbohydrates in the Keto diet stimulates your liver to start generating molecules called ketones, which aid in your body’s breakdown of fats for energy. Usually, this process happens spontaneously following extended periods of exercise or fasting.
The most critical aspect of doing Keto correctly is understanding your macros. The three food components that make up your daily nutrition are called macronutrients: fat, protein, and carbs. Depending on the individual, eating no more than 20–50 grams of net carbohydrates per day is permitted when following the strict keto diet. To enter ketosis, you must also ensure that you are consuming adequate fats in your diet. You will need to utilize a calorie calculator or seek the assistance of a nutritional specialist to determine the precise amount for your daily macros and calorie objectives.
How I Followed My Ketogenic Diet Plan
I was able to get started thanks to these four things:
- Clear Target
- Perfect Meal Plan
- Concentrating Primarily On Carbohydrates
- Using A Friend As A Point of Reference
About a month prior to the wedding, I began the ketogenic diet in an attempt to shed ten pounds. A low-calorie diet can help you lose one to two pounds a week, so losing ten pounds in four weeks doesn’t seem excessive. I believed that losing 20 pounds would be simple if the keto diet plan was as effective as it has been praised.
I studied the diet for many weeks prior to starting, made a schedule, and looked up inspirational keto-focused Instagram profiles. This final step turned out to be the most crucial for my quest, as I quickly discovered.
The Biggest Challenges I Faced While Doing The Keto Diet
It’s Tough to Eat Just 20 Grams of Carbs a Day
The ketogenic diet is a high-fat, low-carbohydrate diet. It is, however, quite low in carbohydrates—you’re “allowed” to eat a mere 20 grams per day, which is incredibly little. Some keto dieters stick to a net-carb strategy, which lets you consume more carbohydrates in a given day by deducting the grams of fiber from the overall number of carbohydrates in a product. For the sake of simplicity and my 30-day diet, I stayed with total carbohydrates.
Related: Carb and Fat Ratio Guide For Optimizing Ketosis
I tried to consume 20 g a day, which was two for breakfast, five at lunch, three for snacks, and ten for dinner. I discovered that if my goal was 20, I would fall short of 30. I considered that to be successful enough.
Making a lot of plans was essential to attaining my target. Every weekend for the next week, I prepared the three dinners, sides, and snacks. I found it simpler to control the occasional cravings and hunger pangs if I knew ahead of time what I was having. The significance of making plans for a ketogenic diet cannot be overstated.
This Diet May Include Very Few Calories
You consume fewer calories when you keep your carbohydrate intake around 20 g. Because we consume a lot of them, foods high in carbohydrates can account for a significant portion of calories. You can drastically lower your calorie consumption by cutting back on carbohydrates.
You would think it would be simple to consume too many calories with the amount of fat and protein there is. But on certain days, I found it difficult to consume more than 1,200 calories. I tried to consume 1,800 calories a day, but virtually never made it. That calorie shortfall, even without the low-carbohydrate count, is sufficient to cause weight reduction.
Eating Same Food Every Day Was Very Hard
I consumed a lot of meat, especially chicken and steak, bacon, cheese, and eggs. Eating processed pork products every morning was a major shift for someone whose diet is usually more plant-based and whole-food focused.
Related: Can You Eat Pretzels On Keto Diet?
I Experienced The Keto Flu For One Day
You’ll come across the term “keto flu” in keto blogs and forums. For me, it was a true event, but it won’t happen to everyone.
You may feel tired, mentally foggy, and even agitated when your body begins to rely more on ketones from the fat you’re burning than on glucose from carbs. My “keto flu” only persisted for one day, and after that, I never again felt its symptoms.
Here Are The Results I Got From Doing Keto Diet For 30-Days
I Overcame My Weight Loss Objective
I intended to shed twenty pounds, but I soon gained more weight than I had. Before the wedding, I reached 26 pounds after losing 20 pounds in three weeks.
It’s crucial to keep in mind that you will shed a few pounds during the initial days of any low-carb diet. Your body is losing water weight, which explains why. During the wedding weekend, I resumed my regular eating habits and gained 4 pounds because my water weight returned when I started eating carbohydrates again.
I Was More Energized, But Not All the Time
I didn’t have the usual mid-afternoon energy slumps when I was following the ketogenic diet; instead, I had an abundance of energy. Having said that, going to the gym was difficult at times. When you don’t eat carbohydrates, your body must use fat for energy, which can sometimes make you feel exhausted during a workout because it takes more effort to release the fat for use as fuel. That’s alright. Continue and give it another go tomorrow.
Thanks To Keto Diet, I Now Consume Less Sugar
The ketogenic diet forbids eating sugar, and the majority of the low-carb sugar alternatives don’t work for me.
Not that my cravings just vanished, mind you. During the initial days, there were intense cravings for Coke, peanut butter cups, or even simply a banana. This is where having a companion who holds you accountable really helps. As with me, you may discover that many of the things you used to consume frequently are now simply too sweet to eat when you return to your regular eating schedule.
Takeaway
I can’t eat that much bacon to maintain a ketogenic diet, so I won’t be sticking to it long-term, but I do plan to go back to it several times a year. If nothing else, my month-long experiment reduced my intake of refined carbohydrates and sugar.
It’s crucial that you see your doctor before beginning this diet because not everyone can follow the ketogenic diet. Undoubtedly, there are many individuals who shouldn’t follow this diet, such as those who are nursing a baby or pregnant, as well as those who have diseases like liver, heart, or blood sugar problems.
That being said, the keto diet could be the chance you’ve been waiting for if you’re in good health and want to lose weight quickly. I only hope bacon is real food for you.
