Description: The ketogenic diet is notoriously restrictive – there is a lot that you’re simply not able to eat. This article looks at the three different types of food you can and can’t eat on this diet.
Everyone these days is going on keto. You only need to head to your local gym to hear about Keto Supplement Pills and low-carb vegetables. So what foods are ideal to consume when you’re on a diet like this? What can you eat? If you’re not sure, don’t worry – we’re here to help. Let’s take a look at 3 tips about what to eat.
1. Get the right kind of fat and oil
60% of your calorie intake should be from fat and oil when you’re on a keto diet, so choose the dishes with this in mind. It has to be good quality fat, though – no junk food that will damage your body. Here is a brief overview of fatty ketogenic diet foods to eat and avoid:
- Eat plenty of saturated fat. For example, coconut oil, ghee, butter, and lard.
- Polyunsaturated fats that naturally occur in fatty fish and animal protein are great for you.
- Stay away from processed polyunsaturated fats in products such as margarine spread.
- Trans-fat is fat that has been chemically altered in order to last longer on a shelf. This is at the top of any list of ketogenic diet foods to avoid.
You can also get fat from other healthy oils, nuts, and seeds. Here is a list of healthy fat sources:
- Chia seeds
- Sesame oil
- MCT oil
- Hemp seeds
- Hazelnuts
- Avocado oil
- Walnut oil
- Brazil nuts
- Flaxseeds
- Olive oil
- Macadamia nuts
2. Try to minimize high-protein foods
In general, the higher the amount of protein on the ketogenic diet menu, the less you should eat. Around 20% of your diet should be made up of protein.
If you’re going to eat meat, we would recommend choosing grass-fed or pasture-raised animals. By doing this, you will minimize the number of steroid hormones and bacteria intake. We would also recommend eating fatty fish to get a great source of omega-3. There is no massive amount of red meat food that we would recommend avoiding, however, try to go for the fattier ratios of meat.
The most important thing that you’ll find mentioned in any ketogenic diet book is to manage your protein intake. If you take in too much protein, you could reduce your ketones production and increase glucose production. To achieve natural ketosis, it’s best to limit the amount of protein you eat. Here are some good tips that you can follow when it comes to meat-eating:
- Try to eat fish that has been caught in the wild such as flounder, catfish, cod, mackerel, salmon, trout, snapper, and tuna. The fattier the fish, the better this will be.
- Purchase eggs from your local market if you can. The key is to buy free-range eggs where the chickens were fed on bugs – this means that there will be the right quantity of omega-3 in them.
- Go for fattier cuts of beef during a ketogenic diet.
- Some of the best sources of nutrients in meat come from offal or organs like kidneys, heart, and liver.
- By all means, go for bacon and sausage, but make sure that it hasn’t been cured in sugar.
3. Eat only low-carb fruit and veg
Any ketogenic diet for beginners’ guide will tell you to cut down on carbs. The basis of the ketogenic diet is that carbohydrates are restricted because you will want your body to get used to burning fat stores rather than carbohydrates.
Vegetables are essential for a healthy keto diet, however, some of them can be quite high in sugar. So what are you going to eat? There are many different vegetables that are low in carbs and high in nutrients. Try to get about 15g a day of your carbs from nutrient-rich vegetables and low-calorie fruits such as the following:
- Cauliflower
- Cucumber
- Celery
- Broccoli
- Courgettes
- Raspberries
- Brussel sprouts
- Kale
- Spinach
- Lettuce
- Blueberries
- Cabbage
- Green beans
- Asparagus
- Capsicum
Cruciferous veg is best to go for, but make sure you purchase organic varieties so you are less likely to eat pesticide residues. Organic vegetables also have more nutrients, and if you can’t buy them, go for frozen vegetables. Vegetables growing below the ground need to be consumed in moderation because they often have a lot of sugar and carbohydrates, so don’t eat too much and use them only for adding flavor.
Conclusion: In order to reach ketosis, you’ll want to eat a lot of fat and consume as little carbohydrates as possible (one of the main ketogenic diet rules). Do this, and you’ll be well on your way to reaping the benefits. We hope that you’ve found this information useful and wish you all the best!
Have you had any success with dieting? Tell us all about it in the comment section below.
Author’s Bio: Christie is such an advocate of low-carb diets that she is currently working on an ebook entitled “how does the ketogenic diet work”. Formally a professional snowboarder, Christie sustained an injury that ended his career. She has now found passion in writing about sports, wellness, and diet.
