Keto Coaching

What is a ketogenic diet?

The ketogenic diet is a way of eating that promotes a state of nutritional ketosis, which is burning fat for fuel rather than sugar. During ketosis, the body generates ketones as a byproduct of fat metabolism. Specifically, this is achieved by limiting the dietary intake of carbohydrates. A properly formulated ketogenic diet also focuses on nutrient density, essential fatty acids, and protein prioritization. Importantly, ketosis is a natural and beneficial state, unlike ketoacidosis, which it is often confused with. Ketoacidosis occurs when there is too much sugar and ketones in the blood leading to an acidic state and can occur in type 1 diabetics and more rarely in type 2 diabetics, although this is not common.

Why live a ketogenic lifestyle?

The benefits of a ketogenic lifestyle are far-ranging and include but are not limited to:

• Suppression of inflammation Youm et. al. Steckhan et. al. which has implications for treating all kinds of autoimmune conditions.
• Increased energy Veech et. al.
• Improved mental clarity and function Pulsifer et. al. Tove Hallböök et. al. In fact, ketogenic diets are used to treat epilepsy and Alzheimer’s Gasior et. al. Hartman et. al. Reger et. al. Maalouf et. al.
• Blood sugar and insulin control (diabetes control for both type 1 and 2) Yancy et. al. Harris et. al. Boden et. al. Westman et. al.
• Weight loss Volek et. al. Bueno et. al. Brehm et. al. Volek et. al. Stern et. al. Yancy et. al.
• Improved heart health by decreasing triglycerides Wood et. al. and increasing “good” cholesterol (HDL) Minskin et. al.
• Improves metabolic syndrome Volek et. al. McSwiney et. al. Volek et. al. Volek et. al.
• Improved athletic performance Ma et. al.
• Can be used to treat some cancers Poff et. al.
• Increases mitochondria Rho et. al. Pitchthly et. al. Mitochondria quality and function are linked with aging D’Aquila et. al.
• Treating PCOS Mavropolous et. al. and enhancing fertility Kulak et. al.
• Improving anxiety Davidson et. al. Quinlan et. al.
• Improve fatty liver disease Musso et. al. Tendler et. al. Haghighatdoost et. al.
• Migrane management Di Lorenzo et. al.

Does Everyone Need Keto?

No. While keto can be essential for the management of many conditions, for the vast majority of individuals looking to loose weight or optimize health, a focus on lower carbohydrate and higher protein is sufficient to achieve their goals. There are many articles and sites that expound on the science behind low carb, high protein, and nutrient density but here are two of my favorites for both their clarity and well researched articles with excellent scientific references.

Optimising Nutrition by Marty Kendall

P:E Diet by Ted Naiman