The Keto lifestyle

The keto diet is one of the main treatments for kids with epileptic seizures. Fasting was used 500BC to treat seizures and in the 1920’s it was metabolically mimicked by the keto diet. The modern era brought antiepileptic medicine into play which declined the keto treatment – kids literally received carbs and sugar in the hospital! Luckily, for the past 15 years, the history of keto treatment has won it back and is it again in use as the most effective treatment for childhood epilepsy. 🧠

We live in an era where keto is still very new as a lifestyle diet. You will hear medical experts say don’t try it when pregnant or don’t do it for longer than 6 months because it is so new that there isn’t enough evidence to prove anything. Also, when following the keto diet for epileptic reasons it has been shown to have long-term side effects like gallstones, however, we won’t ever restrict carb intake as low as these patients do. 🥬🥒

In America, the keto diet flamed up as it is a fast short-term weight loss diet without the hunger that you experience with the more traditional diets. Unfortunately together with this flame-up came massive amounts of “keto-friendly” products that are not keto, they are often processed, refined and loaded with carbs because keto has no governing body or rule in place that prohibits producers to place a keto sticker on a bag of unhealthy cookies.

This causes a lot of hate speech about how unhealthy keto is. Loading up with refined fats was not the idea of keto, to begin with. Another reason for hate speech is that people (typical Americans) start keto as a means to lose weight, and then go off the diet in the sense that they start consuming carbs, but they continue to consume loads of fat too.

Keto is meant to be an anti-inflammatory diet from eating good quality fat. There are however lazy and dirty versions that can also put you in ketosis (burning fat for energy). These styles are more attainable in social situations, but make it your goal to move towards clean keto for optimal weight loss and major health benefits.

Click here to see more about the different styles.

Low-carb diets are considered the most effective for weight loss.  However, it’s still hard to commit to long-term because we are surrounded by carbs and sugar. Carbohydrates and sugar are cheap and provide dopamine spikes that will keep us coming back for more. We get addicted without noticing it. The groceries we buy are loaded with sugar because if we like it we’ll buy more.

Currently, the globe supports a high-carb diet as healthy, meaning the gym, grocery stores, and maybe even your doctor won’t support this new trend. It may take another 30 years for the world to change on all levels.

• 12-24 hours: ketones get produced
• 4-5 days: keto-flu (brain fog, fatigue, dehydration)
• 1 week: weight loss, more energy, clear mind
• 2 weeks: decreased hunger, more energy
• 4 weeks: decreased insulin, weight loss, focus & energy
• 5 weeks+: fat loss, no more cravings, or hunger, stable mood, focus & energy
• 3 months: a new set of healthy red blood cells & optimal body function, continued fat loss

Month 1 – the hard part
It is absolutely crucial that your body gets deprived of all sorts of carbs and sugar. Stay away from takeaways and dining out and be careful with sauces and spices. Salt, pepper and herbs are good! See how close you can stay to pure food that has no added stuff. Eggs, meat & green veg. The better you can stick to this, the quicker your results will be.

Month 2 – this is life!
Once you are fat-adapted (1–3 months), you can get away with eating more carbs while still burning fat as an energy source. In this phase, you will probably not miss carbs, but life has its demands. You can reintroduce restaurants, takeaways and snacks while learning to make good choices when tempted. It is also possible to fall back into old habits in this phase, so decide now how you will come back to keto.

Month 3 – it’s a lifestyle
Because I know keto will change your life, I’m confident that you will want to stay on it. However, there will probably be times that you go off keto. I wish I could be on keto always, but my life doesn’t work that way. We’ve decided; At home, we eat keto, when we dine out we try to keep it close to keto, and on holidays with family, we take a break but get right back to keto when we’re back home.

I suggest you weigh and measure yourself before you start, and then daily or weekly thereafter. If you like to journal then it’s a great idea to make notes of what’s happening to your brain, mood, energy and body. You will be amazed at how things change.

Click here to download a weight & measure chart.

Don’t snack
Whenever you eat, your body releases insulin. Insulin’s job is to remove sugar in your blood to be stored as fat for later use. The more sugar, the more insulin, aka more stored fat for later use. Unfortunately, we rarely use that stored energy because we’ll just eat again. Use stored energy and stop storing energy.

Eat less frequently
If your body doesn’t get food in, it uses stored energy. When you stop eating carbs, eating less frequently will be easy. Start with 3 meals a day and see if you can scale it down to 2 meals (skip breakfast). If you are hungry, add more fat to a meal.

Avoid sugar and carbohydrates
Sugar in your blood spikes insulin (fat storing). This in turn causes a burst of cravings, causing you to eat more, and more storing. However, if you don’t eat the sugar (or carbs, which get turned into sugar by your body), you get very low to zero insulin release.

Don’t overeat
Eating frequently can cause eating too much as well as using incoming food as energy instead of using stored energy. It is also very difficult to overeat on veg and fat, so make sure they come first at meal time. Ps. Too much protein can cause insulin release.

If you’re not hungry, it merely means your body is eating its own fat. 💪

Intermittent fasting
It’s nothing else than taking periods off from eating. The benefits are insane! Not just for fat loss, ketone production and craving control but for your brain, gut, heart, liver and longevity. I recommend 16:8 (16 hours fasting and 8 hours eating window). Stop eating after dinner and eat again for lunch the next day.

Only eat when you’re hungry
Most of us are (or were) used to a mainly-carbohydrate diet, which is less satiating than fat or protein, leaving us needing to eat more often. Carbs also provide only half of the energy that fat provides, so we eat bigger volumes of bread than eggs for instance. So leaving carbs out means we have to be cautious of not maintaining the volume and trying to eat meal times like we used to just because we’re in the habit of doing so. It is very possible to skip meals because you’re just not hungry. Don’t force yourself to eat. Carbs bloat us up, so if you’re used to eating until you’re stuffed (bloated), be cautious because you won’t reach that point with fat and protein, you’ll just overeat.

I understand it can be daunting to throw all your cereal and pasta out. If you’re not ready or don’t see yourself doing this for life, try sticking strictly to it for 1-3 months. The benefits will be amazing! 

 For the best results, it’s absolutely crucial that your body gets deprived of all sorts of carbs and sugar. Stay away from takeaways and dining out and be careful with sauces and spices. Salt, pepper and herbs are good. See how close you can stay to pure food that has no added stuff. Eggs, meat & green veg. The better you can stick to this, the quicker your results will be.

Lock your sugar and carbs away! Make sure you have enough good fats (coconut oil, seeds, fatty meats, cheese, cream, etc.) to sustain you.

When you consume carbs or sugar your pancreas releases insulin to regulate the amount of glucose in your blood. A lot of sugar and carb consumption over time causes your cells to reject absorption. This causes your pancreas to release even more insulin. It’s like talking to someone with earplugs who doesn’t hear you until you start shouting. The feedback circuitry for insulin doesn’t “hear” the insulin, so a signal is sent back to the pancreas, telling it to send more. This is called insulin resistance, which is a state of being prediabetic.

Some familiar symptoms of insulin resistance:
• cravings for sweets
• not satisfied after eating
• frequently hungry
• improved mood after eating
• tired after meals
• impaired eyesight
• worsened memory
• belly fat
• liver fat
• fatigue
• high blood pressure
• fluid retention
• frequent urination at night
• PCOS
• stuck metabolism (struggle to lose weight)

Over time this strain on the pancreas becomes so much that it completely stops releasing insulin. Without insulin, you are diabetic. 

Get insulin sensitive again

Zero sugar and carb consumption gives your pancreas a break because there’s very little need to release insulin. Bonus, when there’s no insulin release you can burn fat. Fasting between meals gives your pancreas and cells a break. Adding a good amount of veggies raises potassium and lessens the need for insulin, lowering resistance.

Here’s a cool video about insulin. (5:30 min)

The first week or two will probably look great on the scale because you will lose a lot of water weight. The 2 weeks after that you will probably not lose that much, but don’t lose hope, your body is learning. After the first month, you will slowly but surely start losing again as your body is becoming better at fat-burning. After a few months, you can expect to see a drastic overall weight loss.

Losing weight quickly just means you’ll be able to pick it up just as quick. It also stresses your body, telling it to hold on to what it has because you’re probably dying! 🙄 Get your mindset right and decide to stick it out for a month or more.

The quicker you can remove all carbs, sugar and constant snacking from your diet, the quicker your body will adapt to running on fat and the easier your journey will be.

Energy source
Carbs and sugar are quick energy sources, providing you with a burst of energy during a workout. Refined carbs (or sugar) even quicker, however, it causes a fall just as quick. 

Fat, on the other hand, is not your body’s first choice of energy. It takes longer to tap into, especially if your body is not used to ever making ketones.

Keto & gym
When you start keto your body is slowly depleting the stored sugar. You may experience muscle weakness and tiredness. Try light exercises like walking and give your body time to adapt. Do not eat any carbs or sugar, it needs to learn to go without it. The quicker it starts making ketones, the quicker you can have your energy back. Once you’ve passed the keto-adaptation phase you’ll experience a stable energy level and mental alertness like you’ve never experienced before. It’s worth the effort.

Fuel up & fast
If you feel lethargic or get a headache, remember your minerals. The quickest way to feel better is a bit of pink salt in your water.
Tip: Working out while fasting is a great way to get your body into fat adaptation quicker. But, your goal of exercise should be to strengthen your body, not weight loss.

The main reason people abandon a diet… hunger.

Hunger is a natural instinct
What you ate has a big influence on how quickly you will become hungry again. Differentiate between hunger (I can eat a plate full of veggies and protein) versus appetite (that doughnut looks delicious, I want to eat it). We live in a time where people’s lives turn around food. Foods are made to pull you in, and desiring them becomes so great that you struggle to resist them. This is unnatural and not healthy.

Determine if you are truly hungry

1. Can you eat a full meal of healthy food right now?
2. Are you perhaps only thirsty?
3. Are you bored, stressed, sad, or lonely?
4. Was there an external cue like walking past a bakery that made you feel hungry?
5. Are you wanting food out of habit or because it is eating time?

Reduce hunger
Keto will stop your body from releasing insulin, and start releasing ketones, which will stop cravings and provide a feeling of fullness during the day. Don’t snack, as it will release insulin and create cravings for more eating.

Conquer hunger (4 R’s)

1. Replenish: Eat decent meals with low carbs and enough protein and fat. If you can, take the time out and make your meal an experience without multi-tasking. After eating you shouldn’t be hungry anymore.
2. Rehydrate: Are you thirsty? Drink water to determine if it is true hunger.
3. Redirect: Wanting to eat soon after meals, redirect your focus (work, friends, reading).
4. Relax: Take a moment and analyse these feelings. Learn from them. Some days you will be more hungry than on other days and that is okay!

When you start keto you have enough carbs in your system to use as energy for a few days. Your brain has the biggest need as it runs on glucose (aka sugar). When you run out of glucose your liver must create ketones so that your brain can continue to function, but this time on ketones, which is actually much better brain food than glucose. 

If you can stick to a complete shutdown of ALL carbs, your liver will quickly get to work creating ketones. Remember, it’s something new so your body has to adapt and learn. However, if you don’t completely shut it down, your body will take the little bit of glucose it gets (one bite of cake won’t hurt, right?) because that is what it knows, not needing to create ketones, leaving you tired, sluggish and with brain fog and cravings. Bite the bullet and stay away from carbs! You can add it later when your body has adapted. Here is a video explaining this. (7 min) 

Fun fact: If you crave sugar and carbs, then you know what your body is busy burning for energy – sugar. The faster you move away from sugar, the quicker your cravings will go.

Most of us have experienced low carb before – minimising sugar or trying to make healthier choices when it comes to carbs. The next level is dirty keto – eating what we used to eat, but this time cutting carbs and sugar as far as we know best. To make it more comfortable we often add a few new things like diet sodas, sweeteners and extra fatty meats and oils.

This is a great start, however as we grow in this journey and learn more, we slowly but surely opt for healthier choices. Until we reach a place called clean keto. Most people don’t reach this point 100% fully, because it’s expensive. It means finding the best and most nutritious food in a fast-food, cheap-additive, bad-quality world.

You don’t have to go from dirty to clean in one day, nor do you have to fit in only one category – baby steps. Perhaps buy one spice that is better for you than what you bought last month. 

In the long run, we ultimately want to learn to make better choices. Especially if we look into benefits like longevity, healthy skin and work against inflammation. Below are some healthy swaps to try.

• sunflower oil > olive oil / avocado oil / coconut oil 
• margarine > butter / ghee
• table salt > pink Himalayan salt
• soda > sparkling water
• rice / potato / pizza > cauliflower
• buns > portobello mushrooms
• pasta > zucchini noodles
• tortilla > lettuce / cabbage
• sugary fruits > berries
• sugar > Erytherol, Xylitol, Stevia
• milk > cream/ almond milk
• low-fat sweetened yoghurt > high-fat Greek yoghurt

You’ll find it easier every day because you will feel good and enjoy real food.

If you still find yourself struggling to eat all that veggies and can’t seem to know what to buy, have a look at this very simplistic beginners-keto video (12:10) Check in the description for the video’s timeline, to skip to the parts that you need.

Have you ever seen a baby trying a new food for the first time? Eyes tearing, mouth pouting, oh and that shudders, just for a bite of peaches!

Keto food can be somewhat new to us, especially because we are used to sugar-dopamine fixes. But a “mind switch” makes all the difference in how you see this new kind of food. Make it an experience and explore new horizons with your tastebuds. Ask yourself, why are you choosing this new kind of food? Why is it important for you to learn to eat it?

Remember the time when margarine was good and butter bad? When egg yolk was a no-go, only eat the white. Your body is one big chemistry lab. Some things it makes, other things it takes in and transforms into something else. It is important that we give it the things it needs, but also to make sure when the lab mixes things together that it produces something good.

1. Unsaturated fat (poly- & mono-)

• Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA)
  This includes Omega 3 and -6 fatty acids. Our bodies need them for brain function and cell growth and are good for our hearts in many ways. Our bodies do not make essential fatty acids, so your body is relying on you to eat them. Our body needs both of them, BUT for them to be balanced. However with the typical “modern-day diet”, we consume way more Omega 6 than Omega 3. Omega 6 (fats solid at room temperature, like bacon and beef), Omega 3 (fish). Think of it as all the processed, fast food oils and processed meats versus good quality meats and fish oils. As a beginner in the keto journey, start by being aware of them, reading the labels and seeing what you’re consuming. But, good news, you’ve probably already decreased your Omega 6 intake by just being on keto.

• Monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA)
  They are not essential fats, our body can produce them. However it is good for us, and our bodies process it well (olives, avos, peanuts).

2. Saturated fat

Our bodies can make saturated fats (therefore not essential). We can also consume it by eating things like bacon or beef. Your lab also converts carbs into saturated fat. So, even though the label on a packet of sugar will not say it contains saturated fats, your body will convert it as such. People with heart diseases most often have a high saturated fat count due to a simultaneous high-carb, high-fat diet.

3. Trans fat 👹

AKA the devil. It’s not essential and your body does not make it or need it. It is man-made fat that has no nutritional value found in fake butter and fats. It used to be very popular because it makes cakes look great and adds a long shelf life. It is a stiff and rigid fat, causing red blood cells that are supposed to be squishy and pliable to get stiff and not be able to get through tight spaces like clogged arteries. We all know where that leads. It is also highly inflammatory causing problems all over your body. Trans fat in a person’s body is a greater indication if they are at high risk for a heart attack than high cholesterol is. Unfortunately, this fat is inexpensive and ideal for baking so you’ll find it in cookies, pizza, doughnuts, microwave popcorn, fried food, creamer, margarine, etc.)

Remember the time when margarine was good and butter bad? When egg yolk was a no-go, only eat the white. Your body is one big chemistry lab. Some things it makes, other things it takes in and transforms into something else. It is important that we give it the things it needs, but also to make sure when the lab mixes things together that it produces something good.

When you consume Omega 6 fats together with carbs (bacon with syrup or bread with butter), or when your lab has a lot of glucose available because you eat carbs/ sugar regularly, it will take the saturated fat (bacon) and keep it saturated (causing heart diseases). But when there’s not much glucose or you don’t consume that fat with sugar (keto lifestyle), your lab will turn the saturated fat into essential Omega 6 unsaturated fat. So, leave the bread, but eat the butter. 😁

Fibre
Even though fibre is considered a carbohydrate, our bodies cannot absorb it. For that reason, you can subtract it if you count carbs on a label. Fibre is very important for our digestive tract. If you experience digestive issues on keto, psyllium husk is a great fibre to add to food. Green veggies are loaded with fibre, however, take note of veggies that bloat you up and rather eat it steamed or less of it.

Polyols
Polyols, also known as sugar alcohols, are sweetener that also falls under the carb category. As with fibre, our bodies cannot absorb all of it, so you do not have to count it. However, be careful:

• Because it doesn’t get absorbed, over-consuming it can have a bloating or laxative effect.
• Some polyols are worse than sugar and will spike your blood sugar. If you see Maltitol, Maltodextrin or Dextrose, stay away! (Check your sweetener on the Glycemic lndex)
• Some sweeteners are bad for your health (gut bacteria, microbiome, insulin sensitivity), so minimise Aspartame, Saccharin and Sucralose (often found in carbonated drinks).
• It’s risky as a keto newbie because once you’ve tasted sweetness, it’s easy to fall back into old habits.

Eating fruit is healthy, right? And honey is better than table sugar, right?

Table sugar = 50% glucose, 50% fructose
Honey = 60% fructose, 40% glucose
Apple = ±43% glucose,  ±57% fructose

🍬 Your body holds ± 5 litres of blood, which holds ± 5g of glucose (1 teaspoon sugar or 100mg/dL glucose). This 5g of glucose is what your body will use for immediate energy. If you eat more sugar than what you immediately need then your body will move it to your fat cells for storage to maintain a normal level of blood sugar. A blood sugar level of less than 140 mg/dL is normal.

🍒 Fructose cannot be metabolised by your cells and goes straight to your liver. If you are in dying need of glucose your body can turn this fructose into glucose, otherwise, it will be stored in your liver and fat cells.

🍏 Let’s look at the scenario of eating an apple. A large apple is ± 10g glucose and ± 13g fructose. If you do not have glucose already in your bloodstream then your body will use the first 5g of glucose for energy and store the other 5g. The fructose will go to your liver, but since you already have glucose it will store the fructose as fat. Unless you live in famine, your body will never need that fructose. 

Fun facts
🍌 The riper a fruit, the more sugar it contains.
💯 Keeping your blood sugar below 100mg/dL will not spike your insulin.
🍯 Honey is a great antiseptic.

The truth 😁

• Fruits contain vitamins, minerals and fibre.
• The fibre in fruit slows the metabolism down which will keep you satiated for longer.
  
• Fructose doesn’t spike your insulin as much as glucose does.
• Fruits contain glucose and fructose.

The other truth 😵

• There is no vitamin or mineral in fruits that you cannot get from vegetables, and vegetables don’t contain large amounts of sugar.
• Current day’s fruit are hybrids, they are made to be much sweeter with only half the vitamins and minerals.
• Store-bought pasteurised fruit juice is nothing else but sugar (fibre and natural vitamins lost)
• Glucose can be used as energy but very rarely, if ever, do we use fructose.
• Storing large amounts of fructose is a leading cause of fatty liver disease, insulin resistance, obesity and diabetes II.

The matter of the fact is, you do not need to consume sugar to get the vitamin benefit. Craving fruits means craving sugar. If you would like to eat fruits, go for the low-sugar fruits and do not use honey as a sugar replacement.

Low sugar fruits (keto-friendly)
berries (strawberries, blackberries, raspberries), lemons & limes

Mr Happy-now 🤓
I’ve been on keto for 4 months, I’ve lost a lot of weight and feel great. I’m not afraid of fat anymore, fat is good. I still enjoy my morning coffee with cream, however, I started adding a little bit of sugar. My breakfast is still healthy too, I eat eggs, bacon and sausage, but lately started enjoying bread and butter too. Is this okay, I mean I’m happy with my weight now.

Dear Cheater, congratulations on your weight loss, however, you will gain it all back if you continue to add carbs back. Remember why you started this journey and the effect carbs had on you. Keep your carb intake occasional before it gets out of control.

Mrs carb-nibbler 🙄
I’ve started the keto diet 3 weeks ago. I think it’s going good but I’m so tired and crave chips. The other day my sister brought doughnuts and I took a bite. Yesterday I got up and was so hungry so I ate an apple. Last night friends invited me over and I ate only a small handful of chips. I hope these cravings and tiredness will soon end. Please help.

Dear Nibbler. You have cravings because you eat small amounts of carbs. Eat decent meals with enough vegetables and healthy fats. If you give yourself tiny bits of carbs your body will not switch to ketosis but instead, run on very little carb fuel. You will stay tired and sluggish with a lot of cravings!

Out-of-control 😨
Please help me, I’m out of control. I’ve started keto but I get so hungry that I eat a whole block of cheese. I finished a jar of peanut butter yesterday and today I couldn’t control it anymore and ate a bag of cookies. Maybe keto is not for me.

Dearest Cheater, it’s going to be okay! You are new to keto, which means your body searches for an energy source. The amount of food you ate is collectively high in carbs, so your body craves more carbs. Stop snacking, and eat decent meals by filling your plate with green veggies and adding lots of fat like oils, eggs, fish and fatty meats. Eat until you are satisfied and then stop until the next meal. You will be fine!

Suffer-alone 😧
I’m the only one in my household that does keto. Everyone enjoys bread, chips and cake while I have to suffer. If I didn’t see their food it would’ve been easier. How can I get them on keto too?

Dear Loner, hang in there, it will get easier as your body adapts. Focus on all the things you cán enjoy, things that would make other people feel guilty eating. Do not starve yourself, make delicious food for yourself and create your own kind of treats. You’re getting leaner and healthier while enjoying fatty deliciousness. Soon they will see the change in you and might need you to help them go on keto too. A change in attitude can make all the difference.

Keto-ish 🤔
I’ve been on keto for a month now, I’ve seen the benefits but I really struggle to completely cut out carbs. We eat out often and I make the best possible choices but sometimes it’s keto-ish, like when I ordered wings and it was sticky, and other times I’ve ordered veggies then it is sugar carrots. I also cannot tell friends that invite us over to make food to accommodate me, I’ll just eat it. My husband is commenting on my choices and always asks me to cheat this one time. I want to do keto full on but I don’t know how.

Dear Ketonian, you are doing great, it will get easier. Make your reason for doing keto clear then your decisions will be much easier. Start telling your story to friends and family and I believe they will be more supportive than you think. Get comfortable talking to waiters, ask for no basting or what vegetables they serve. Cheating deliberately will result in many cheats, cheating accidentally will help you make better decisions next time. Soon you will naturally convince others to do keto too, just by embracing this new normal.

Holiday-breaker 🤠
I’m doing great on keto and never ever cheat… until we go on holiday. I’ll mentally prepare myself to make the best possible decision, but then as soon as the first person offers me a sweet, I take it. Soon it’s cake and bread and before I know it I’m completely off of keto. What should I do?

Dear breaker, take your break! Once you are fully fat-adapted your body can switch quickly between burning carbs and burning fat. If holidays are a problem to committing to keto, take a break. However, be cautious to not overindulge in a mixture of fat and carbs. Protein will keep you satiated and vegetables will fill you quickly, so try eating that first before eating the carbs. If you wish to stick to keto no matter the holiday, talk to your family about your decision and make sure to take enough keto snacks and meals with you.

I remember the first time someone told me about a low-carb lifestyle and how amazing it was. And the second time a year or what later. I needed that, but not desperately enough. My response was always the same. “I’m glad it works for you but I can never expect other people to accommodate my diet, spend so much money on food and deprive my brain of its anti-depro carbs.” Until I got thát desperate. Today I’m that person telling other people to go low-carb. The irony. 😂 

My first experience
At the beginning of lockdown, March 2020, I decided now will be a good time to try keto – no social expectations and time to deal with whatever is going to happen. It was 11 days of horror! I starved myself as I was trying to avoid sugar while being scared of fat and not eating any vegetables.

My second experience
It took another 6 months before I tried it again, but this time more knowledgeable. I made sure to eat enough vegetables, loaded up on fat and ate only at meal times. I was hoping it will help me learn to control my cravings so that it won’t be so hard to maintain my weight. Instead, I got so much more!

The change
It changed me in ways that I didn’t though possible, resolving issues I didn’t realise I had. I thought it was normal to be tired after eating. My back inflammation was because of a narrow nerve canal, I thought. I’m tired when waking up because that’s who I am, I thought. I’m always bloated probably because of eating too much, I thought. Stiff joints, constipation, headache, acne, moodiness, lack of concentration, severe hormonal symptoms, belly fat, brain fog, depression… And then just like that, it all went away!

How things are now
I’m still that person that eats whatever others serve, but my passion for keto exploded so much that people are joining me. I realised keto doesn’t have to be expensive, but I want to spend money on it because my health relies on it! I do take breaks on holidays, still hoping I don’t have to because I feel it. But hey, that’s life and living it is now more enjoyable than ever before!

I struggle to not scrape a plate empty. Whatever is on my plate, I have to finish it. It’s a bad habit but it is just how I was brought up. I went to visit my mother for her birthday the other day and she has a cat. We call her Moana because she’s constantly meowing for anything edible.

Since it was my mother’s birthday I decided to eat a piece of cake. I knew the aftereffect of me eating the cake was bad but I nether the less ate it, and then I was thinking of Moana and decided to leave a piece of my cake for her. As I was about to give it to her all the very negative effects of carbs and cravings and more meowing of a hungry cat suddenly hit me, so I decided to rather throw that last piece of cake away.

This was a very big moment for me because I never throw food away! The negative effect was so real at that moment as I realised I have a Moana in my brain when I eat carbs. If I don’t want to torture the cat, why am I doing it to myself? Realising that gave me peace to throw it in the garbage bin.

🍽️ Intermittent fasting 

• 16/8h hours (every day or every other day
• eat only when you are hungry
• go 4 – 6 hours between meals
• no snacking
• improve brain cells
• reduce hunger
• lose weight
• blood pressure & cholesterol
• burning stored fat
• insulin sensitivity

Fat-fasting is when you are consuming mostly fat and zero carbs. It was first used to mimic a fast for epileptic children. It’s ideal for when you want to get into ketosis and reap health benefits quickly. This is the kind of no-carb diet that epileptic children follow, however for us it is recommended to not extend it to more than 3-5 days.

Fat-fast means eating 90% fat, 10% protein and 0% carbs. It can be bacon with extra fat, tuna with triple mayo (check your label or make your own), eggs or even just coconut oil in your coffee. This type of fast is very satiating and won’t require you to eat often. (No vegetables, as it contains carbs.)

Here are a few things you can add to your grocery list if this is something you want to try: Butter/ghee, cream, full-fat mayo (no added sugar), Philadelphia, Créme Fraîche, pork crackling, Mascarpone, tuna, coconut oil, bacon, walnuts/macadamia nuts.

Very important, this is still fast, don’t indulge in the whole bottle of mayonnaise. If you’ve been struggling with hunger or cravings, this can be a great jump into keto – you shouldn’t be hungry at all! 

Here’s a link if you are interested in fat fasting or want fat-fasting recipes.

Have you experienced a rumbling tummy but you’re not hungry? 

A growling stomach is not necessarily a sign of hunger. It is most often just part of the digestion of food that can go on for hours after eating. Your digestive tract has small muscles, contracting and mixing food with digestive juices to get the nutrients out of the food. This process is noisy, but when there’s food in your stomach the sound is muffled. 

When you are hungry these muscles are largely inactive but they do move from time to time to do some housekeeping. With no food in your system, your hollow digestive tract is like an echo chamber. If you do not feel hungry you can ignore these sounds. The best thing you can give your digestive tract is to only eat when you’re hungry. Your metabolism continues to work even if it is relying on stored fat.

• Bright Line Eating – Susan Peirce Thompson
  Change your life by the way you view food.
• Dr Berg’s New Body Type Guide – Dr Eric Berg
  Discover the 7 principles of fat burning and how to work with your specific body type in becoming healthy and thin.
• The Magic Pill – Directed by Robert Tate
  Doctors, scientists and chefs around the globe combat illness with dietary changes, believing fat should be embraced as a source of fuel.
  
• Low-carb is lekker – Inè Reynierse
  Recipe book with the benefits of a low-carb lifestyle and how to make it an achievable, budget-friendly reality for friends and family.
  

• Intermittent fasting benefits
• Fat is your friend 
• Fat talk 
• The trouble with fructose 

Some people can’t get enough of it, others wish eggs weren’t part of Keto. Even though you don’t have to eat eggs, it is a great source of essential fats and protein at a super affordable price. Plus, it has zero carbs and is so versatile. I mean, what’s not to like? Maybe the picture will get you egg-cited.

• Omelette https://za.pinterest.com/pin/480618591489572371
• Quiche https://za.pinterest.com/pin/401875966758711297/
• Baked, boiled, scrambled, poached eggs
• Custard https://za.pinterest.com/pin/41587996550350398/
• Egg Muffins https://za.pinterest.com/pin/75083518777969429/
• Egg drop soup https://za.pinterest.com/pin/281543717862285/
• Egg loaf (french toast) https://za.pinterest.com/pin/98657048079168858/
• Egg salad https://za.pinterest.com/pin/24418022970161133/
• Bacon egg cups https://za.pinterest.com/pin/236227942946213696/
• Filled eggs https://za.pinterest.com/pin/382806037088311541/
• Egg noodles https://za.pinterest.com/pin/1030620695947688564/
• Cauliflower egg salad https://za.pinterest.com/pin/35114072086308287/
• Egg white chips https://za.pinterest.com/pin/186266134578957964/
• Egg bake https://za.pinterest.com/pin/846184217492015709/
• English Breakfast
• Pizza eggs https://za.pinterest.com/pin/166633254953963341/
• Egg benedict https://za.pinterest.com/pin/76561262402997557/
• Chaffle https://za.pinterest.com/pin/1196337388301635/

When I started keto I didn’t buy anything other than the usual eggs, meat and green veg. I slowly bought baking ingredients as recipes required them because I love baking! Baking keto-friendly goodies is however a whole new challenge as basically non of the traditional baking rules apply. I had to learn to follow a recipe like a beginner. Today I have a whole cupboard full of ingredients and still experiment with their different uses and effects.

You can search on Pinterest for some delicious keto-baked goodies recipes.