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That definitely has a role, the water loss from those depleted glycogen stores will result in huge reductions on the scale motivating the individual to stay on the diet.
But I think there are 3 other factors.
Keto diet forces you to watch your macros carefully. Otherwise, you'll probably blow past the 50g daily carb limit, and leave ketosis. This probably has an unintended fact of causing a calorie deficit in many.
There are relatively few snack/instant processed foods that are keto friendly. Even beef jerky often has added sugar. This prevents snacking, and forces the person to eat only during meals.
Finally, meat is one of the most keto friendly foods around, and it's also high in protein. The average keto dieter will get more calories from protein than a conventional dieter. In fact, studies show exactly this. When diets are matched for calories and % of calories from protein, keto does not perform better than a conventional diet for fat loss.
Agreed
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nlambert
It reduces glycogen and forces your body to begin burning ketones. That's the point. Where does it get these ketones? Fat cells. You absolutely do experience fat loss from being in ketosis. I didn't have 50 lbs worth of water or glycogen in my body.
Although I do agree that it is not permanently sustainable, it can be sustainable for a year or two. Where most fail with this type of diet is that they have no backup plan as to how to maintain the loss once achieved. I have a friend that originally introduced me to this diet who yoyos every few years. He doesn't exercise and is pretty consistent to drop 40 lbs and then gain it back +10 lbs once he drops the diet.
It's simply one tool in what should be an arsenal of tools for a person who is motivated to get in better shape. But it isn't a tool for everyone. It's merely an option for the first stepping stone to get to a goal for those who may have challenges with immediately beginning exercise. Use it to get to a weight in which you can begin to exercise and then dump it.
You don't need to be in ketosis to burn fat
My point isn't that ketosis doesn't work vis-a-vis caloric restriction - it's that the "magic" additional initial weight loss is fake, and there's a reason no long term study has shown ketosis or even low-carb to be superior to other diets.
Usually it's 50g total Carbs, or 20g NET carbs. The 20g net carbs is the easier one, as it allows you to subtract away fiber, and some sugar alcohols from your carbs.
I don't know of any keto diet that allows you to increase your daily allotted carbs, because the threshold for staying in ketosis is really very very low, you will quickly leave it. I know that for some athletes who insist on Keto, they will selectively eat carbs (dextrose only) right before exercise, and when done right, in the right amounts before physical activity, they can stay in Ketosis.
Yes, when I say "carbs", I mean "net carbs".
Well, OK, that makes sense; raising your net carbs causes you to leave ketosis, and yet there's a book called "Keto For Life", and other similar ones, that don't require you to stick with 20g/day net carbs for life.
Doesn't it depend in part on how you define "ketosis"? Because the keto test strips provide a range, from mild ketosis to higher levels of it. I hardly lost any weight on the keto diet, because I discovered when using the strips and was in the beginning stage of testing my results and cutting back on carbs as needed to hit the correct range, that I'd been in mild keto for the last 20 years on my basic low-carb maintenance diet. That's what the test strips indicated. I'd been hovering around mild keto, so I didn't have a sudden, radical change in diet. Just more like a moderate tweak.
I just do calories in calories out personally while keeping my protein on the higher side. Aldi has the 45 calorie high fiber bread for less than half the price of the Sara Lee version at walmart. They also have protein bread which has 10 g of protein per slice that I'll buy and make eggs with. I don't follow super strict All or nothing diets anymore it's all moderation.
My diet is very a typical compared to an average American though because it contains a lot less refined carbohydrates. However it's become a lifestyle at this point. Aside from occasional splurges at Cold Stone creamery this is my lifestyle.
All meat diets work because carbohydrates are addictive. You should naturally consume less calories if you eliminate not just carbohydrates but any sort of processed artificially sweetened foods like protein bars and the like. If I get marijuana in my system I can eat enough high protein high fat zero carb foods to maintain or gain weight. Calories in calories out.
Lions in the wild when they're munching on zebras they're going to gain weight if they eat too much zebra meat. Giving up carbohydrates doesn't automatically mean you shed weight. Generally most humans will though.
My point isn't that ketosis doesn't work vis-a-vis caloric restriction - it's that the "magic" additional initial weight loss is fake, and there's a reason no long term study has shown ketosis or even low-carb to be superior to other diets.
Where did I say that it was superior to any other diet? What I said was that it does work and it worked well for me. What works for one may not work the same for another, but that doesn't invalidate the results.
Your going off track. My initial point was simply that the initial apparent large drop in weight people get when going on very low-carb diet (compared to other diets) is due to muscle glycogen / water loss. I didn't say bodyfat wasn't burned.
It's a decent tool, especially for people who lead a sedentary lifestyle. It's just not magic.
Nor do I think it is ideal for what I think most people should be combining diet with - some resistance and various intensities of cardiovascular exercise - for an overall health / fitness plan.
Your going off track. My initial point was simply that the initial apparent large drop in weight people get when going on very low-carb diet (compared to other diets) is due to muscle glycogen / water loss. I didn't say bodyfat wasn't burned.
It's a decent tool, especially for people who lead a sedentary lifestyle. It's just not magic.
Nor do I think it is ideal for what I think most people should be combining diet with - some resistance and various intensities of cardiovascular exercise - for an overall health / fitness plan.
I think overall we're probably agreeing on a lot of the same points. Fair enough.
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