Benefits of the Ketogenic Diet for Athletes
The Benefits of Implementing the Ketogenic Diet as an Athlete
The ketogenic diet is a name for low-carb diets, in which fat is used as an alternative energy source to carbohydrates. As such, keto is a diet that prioritises fat consumption above both carbohydrates and proteins.
The ketogenic diet is a style of eating that enables our bodies to utilise the fat-burning processes that we’ve evolved naturally over thousands of years.
The use of low-carb diets to aid weight reduction and increase athletic performance in athletes is still being researched.
In some instances, the ketogenic diet may be superior to the traditional method of a low-fat, high-carb diet for athletes, as this site indicates.
Read on to learn more about this fascinating lifestyle!
The Potential Advantages of the Keto Diet for Athletes
The keto diet's effect on losing weight is a big part of its attraction. Losing extra body fat can improve your performance in some sports.
For example, weight loss might be advantageous during long-distance cycling races or if you wish to be lighter as a runner since you will have less weight to carry over a certain distance.
As the keto diet helps you lose weight, this diet may also aid those who need to bend over without feeling limited, such as in fitness contests, rowing and Mixed Martial Arts.
In addition, some studies have found that the keto diet lowers what are called “inflammatory markers” in the blood. Prolonged, intense, and severe exercise can set off an inflammatory reaction.
As a result, any dietary strategy that reduces inflammation may be advantageous for active people.
Keto’s anti-inflammatory effect may be connected to the kind of high-fat and low-sugar foods included in the diet.
The ketogenic diet is also beneficial for people who suffer from digestive discomfort when exercising, particularly those with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). In particular, the keto diet can help relieve gastrointestinal symptoms.
However, in some people, the lack of fibre and carbs in this diet may contribute to stomach issues, so this is something to bear in mind.
A Ketogenic Diet Can Help You to Lose Weight Quickly
The keto diet first became popular in the 1970s for weight loss treatment. Studies show that, if you are looking for a diet to follow for just 3-6 months for weight loss, then the ketogenic diet can be fast-acting and efficient.
In addition, research indicates that high-fat, moderate-protein diets like keto preserve the body’s lean muscle mass in the short term (24 weeks) and contribute to increased satiety, which means you feel fuller for longer.
However, studies of the longer-term effects of the keto diet are limited.
The mechanisms underlying the ketogenic diet’s positive impact on weight loss are still a matter of debate. Here’s a summary of the weight loss effect of keto:
A high-fat diet has a high-satiety effect, meaning you feel satisfied for longer and so eat less.
When carbohydrates are no longer your main fuel source, you enter glucose deficiency, so that the body switches to producing energy from fats.
The keto diet contributes to a reduction of the body’s fat-making process and triggers a fat breakdown.
Keto Can Improve Your Performance in Endurance Sports
The ketogenic diet isn't simply for losing weight. Many endurance athletes seek to improve their performance by following this low-carb, high-fat style of eating.
For example, research done by Saint Louis University compared people who followed a ketogenic diet to those who followed a high-carb diet. In the study, endurance athletes, such as marathon runners and long-distance bikers, benefited more from keto than athletes who require quick bursts of energy.
Dr. Clifton Page of the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine stated, "The ketogenic diet is advantageous for endurance athletes following the adaptation phase.”
The adaptation phase refers to the period in which the body adjusts to using fat as its primary energy source instead of carbs.
As such, according to the research, the keto diet can help athletes regulate their body weight, lose fat, and maintain muscle mass. Endurance athletes have been proven to adapt to the keto diet and perform better than their high-carb, low-fat competitors in some sports.
However, those who followed a ketogenic diet fared worse in anaerobic workouts designed to improve strength than those who ingested carbs.
Anaerobic activities include short-term training methods such as weight lifting, running and jumping.
Depending on the challenge, people on keto diets performed 4-15% worse than those on high-carb diets.
Potential Disadvantages of the Keto Diet for Athletes
Although the ketogenic diet can help you lose weight fast, keto permits just a modest intake of protein, since consuming too much protein can impede ketosis (the state in which the body uses fat for fuel instead of glucose).
As such, athletes and active people who want to develop muscle mass may need to consume more protein than keto allows.
Also, the keto diet may lower the performance of those who engage in high-intensity exercises, such as spin classes, tennis, sprints and CrossFit. This is because, for these activities, carbohydrates are the principal fuel source.
As such, on the keto diet, you may feel a higher level of exertion, a faster heart rate and less power during these sorts of sports. This might restrict your capacity to exercise.
The keto diet can also be harmful to athletes who require a specific quantity of calories to maintain all of their physical prowess.
If the diet suppresses your appetite and causes you to eat less, you may find it difficult to recover and increase your fitness level.
If you follow the keto diet, you may lose out on several essential nutrients, particularly for athletes. If you lose micronutrients and electrolytes via sweat during exercise and your diet does not provide adequate levels of these, you may need to supplement them.
For example, you may need to add salt to your food and increase your consumption of low-carb salty items like pickles, meat or chicken stock.
In addition, a restricted eating plan might also make it difficult to satisfy your requirements of potassium, magnesium, vitamins A and C, and folate- so you may have to supplement these too.
8 Things to Ask Yourself When Starting a Ketogenic Diet
If you're considering starting a ketogenic diet as an athlete or fitness enthusiast, here are some useful questions to ask yourself as part of your research and preparation:
Are you willing to test your blood for the presence of ketones (the chemical that your liver produces to break down fats)?
Are you willing to drastically reduce your consumption of fruits, beans, potatoes, maize, grains, sweets and alcohol?
Do you enjoy eating lots of vegetables?
Do you like meals high in fat?
Are you prepared for some indigestion at first?
Can you locate dishes that satisfy the keto diet’s requirements if you dine out frequently?
Is there enough variety in the keto diet to keep you satisfied?
Are keto meals suitable for your sports activities? For example, can you keep them in your backpack, ride your bike or run with them, or pack them when you travel?
If you've answered "yes" to all or most of these questions, then the keto way of eating could be a good choice for you.
The Effects of the Keto Diet when You First Start
Keto can help you achieve your fitness and weight loss objectives.
You might not feel great at first, and suffer from what’s called the “keto flu”.
You should ensure that you stay hydrated by drinking 6-8 glasses of water a day.
You should eat enough healthy fats, like Omega 3-rich fish such as tuna and sardines, and adequate salt.
Cardiovascular exercises, like running and cycling, are your buddy.
Avoid trying a new workout during the first two weeks on the keto diet.
You might want to take a break from your favourite HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training) exercises such as mountain climbing while you’re on the keto diet.
Be sure to pay attention to your body and ensure you get enough nutrients.
What Foods You Can and Can’t Consume on Keto
Allowed Foods on the Ketogenic diet
To satisfy the ketogenic diet’s high-fat requirement, include fat in every meal and snack. Fat-rich foods include cocoa butter, olive oil, coconut oil, avocados, hazelnuts, almonds, walnuts, flax, sesame and chia seeds
Some dairy products may be allowed. For example, butter and hard cheeses are permissible. However, while dairy can be an important source of fat, other dairy products are high in natural lactose, so their consumption is restricted.
Protein, if consumed in moderation. Meat, fish, eggs, cheese, and free-range poultry are often preferred in the diet.
Most non-starchy vegetables are included in the diet: Cabbage, chard, kale, spinach, lettuce, cauliflower, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, asparagus, peppers, onions, garlic, mushrooms, cucumbers, celery and summer squash.
Fruits are limited due to their high carbohydrate content. However, foods such as whole avocado or guacamole prepared with avocado can be consumed in limited portions.
Dark chocolate (90% or higher cocoa solids), cocoa powder, unsweetened coffee and tea, unsweetened vinegar and mustard, herbs and spices can be included in the keto diet.
Prohibited Foods on the Ketogenic diet
All whole and refined grains, baked goods, added and natural sugars in foods and beverages, plus starchy vegetables such as potatoes, corn and winter squash.
All fruit juices, including freshly squeezed juices and instant juices.
More fruit than the limited quantity permitted.
More legumes, such as beans, lentils, and chickpeas than the limited quantity permitted.
High-carb wines, beers, and beverages with added sweeteners (cocktails, syrups and juice mixes, flavored alcohols). However, some keto programs allow small amounts of hard liquor or low-carb wine and beer.
For the Best Results on the Keto Diet, Be Sure to Exercise Too
As we’ve discussed, when you follow a ketogenic diet, your body uses fat for energy rather than carbs.
As a result, the keto diet can help you reduce your body fat and lose weight.
It’s important to maintain a calorie deficit, even while you follow this diet. To this end, cardio workouts can help you burn more fat and achieve your weight loss and fitness objectives faster.
In a study, 3 groups of 24 healthy males were separated into ketogenic-fed, non-nourished and control groups.
In an 8-week trial, there was a substantial decrease in visceral adipose tissue (a sign of obesity) and fat mass in the group that used a ketogenic diet in conjunction with endurance exercise compared to the group that did not.
The bottom Line on the benefits of Keto for athletes
Depending on the kind and intensity of exercise you do, the ketogenic diet can be recommended as an effective technique for lowering body weight and fat mass.
A key example of this is aerobic exercises, such as long-distance cycling or running marathons. These exercises are long-term exercises performed at low or moderate intensity.
These long-term, repeated activities can be beneficial by increasing the use of fats for energy rather than carbohydrates.
However, the keto diet may be less suitable if you prefer high-intensity, short-duration activities, such as anaerobic exercises like sprinting or weightlifting. For these sports, a high-fat, low-carb diet may lower performance.
As such, whether the ketogenic diet is right for you depends both on the exercises you enjoy and your health and fitness objectives.
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