Fitness myths

[88 Bronco]

Well, I was a two sport athlete in High School and competed on a Division 1 Track and Field team in college (I'm 23), so I've always worked out. When I was competing, us throwers used to say: "why run and puke when you can throw and eat?" Being big (not fat) was an advantage in the sport and our heavy training necessitated lots of calories. Because I didn't need to maintain a girlish figure I very much ate what I wanted when I wanted it. After I quit competing I wanted to lose the extra weight because I knew it no longer served a purpose and was unhealthy. It also made me less attractive to potential lady friends. At least the hot ones.

 

I didn't have the healthiest relationship with food growing up. My family doesn't really have an obesity problem, but certain stressors and questionable parenting decisions led to me viewing food as a fun activity, a pastime, or a coping mechanism instead of what it really is: nourishment and fuel for the body. That's why I say one of the big things I had to overcome (and eventually did via keto) was changing my relationship with food. I've become very in-tune with my body and can tell when I'm hungry versus when I'm bored. I no longer eat out of boredom.

 

I'd tried various portion control methods, counting calories, eliminating certain foods from my diet, etc. but never saw sustained results. I saw results, but not significant and never long-lasting. I was often hungry, lethargic, pissy, or otherwise just unsatisfied.

 

I'm a redditor and came across r/keto and began to read. At first I was skeptical because it went against a lot of the things I previously held as fact and it forbade me from eating certain foods I used to love like most fruits, for example. And bread. My god, no more bread. But I also saw people getting fantastic results, frequently commenting on how effortless the maintenance is once one gets through the initiation period, and generally giving them a much better outlook on life.

 

Things like this became the norm for me to see: http://www.reddit.com/r/keto/comments/1s9xf7/doctors_said_i_wouldnt_live_to_see_30my_30th/

http://www.reddit.com/r/keto/comments/1nq72h/pics_the_wife_and_i_after_6_months_of_keto_shes/

http://www.reddit.com/r/keto/comments/1o7lwr/photo_friday_pics_combined_weight_loss_of_over/

http://www.reddit.com/r/keto/comments/1ik2e1/i_have_said_goodbye_to_the_700s_600s_500s_and_now/

 

After doing my due diligence I decided to give it a shot. The science began to make sense and was backed by a number of scientific studies. Ketogenic diets have been used as a theraputic treatment for many years. Dr. Eric Westman of Duke University published a sort of handbook that became my keto bible. At my highest recorded weight I was 264 pounds (though it's very possible I got above that at times) and I currently fluctuate between 203-205. 185ish is my goal and is closer to ideal for my height (6 feet).

 

It just worked for me. Keto flu (the initiation period where the body is entering/adjusting to ketosis) was a ****** but it was just smooth sailing after that. I'm never hungry and always satiated, my brain seems to be functioning clearer, and I've found that I don't really miss the foods I can no longer eat. And even during weeks where I didn't work out as often I was still losing weight. Now, I lost 60 pounds in a year so my weight loss was very much at a slow, steady and healthy pace.

 

I don't know, man. It just worked for me and now it's just second nature. One of the things that was important to me was sustainability. I have a general dislike for the word "diet" because I think it implies a short-term endeavor. That's also why I think a lot of diets fail. Someone loses the weight, returns to their old eating habits and before they know it has gained their original weight back and then some. I know that happened to me.

I know not everyone is the same and what works for one may not work for someone else. That's why I don't belittle anyone for their dietary choices if the general idea is to maintain a healthy weight. There are a number of ways that one can achieve that goal and there's not one answer that's right for everyone. Besides, of course, the general principle of maintaining a caloric deficit when losing weight. Keto is what worked for me and I'm very happy about that. Not in a proselytizing sort of way, mind you. At least I hope it doesn't come across that way. I don't try to convert anyone to keto, but if someone has questions I generally try to be helpful and answer them honestly.

 

Sorry for the wall of text.

 

I do have to wonder if all these people would get the similar results by just eating healthier in general.

 

I just see Keto as another Atkins, Paleo, South Beach, ect, ect, ect, Yes, there are success stories in every one of those plans, but the ratio I threw out earlier with in a calorie deficit situation will always equal fat loss. Hitting a good split between macro-nutrients and burning what you eat will result in maintenance. Eating a well distributed calorie surplus will equal mass growth.

[neverlosethefeeling]

I do have to wonder if all these people would get the similar results by just eating healthier in general.

 

I just see Keto as another Atkins, Paleo, South Beach, ect, ect, ect, Yes, there are success stories in every one of those plans, but the ratio I threw out earlier with in a calorie deficit situation will always equal fat loss. Hitting a good split between macro-nutrients and burning what you eat will result in maintenance. Eating a well distributed calorie surplus will equal mass growth.

 

The reason I don't think Keto is like Atkins, Paleo, South Beach, etc is because its fundamental goal is to change your body's metabolism from depending on carbs as its primary source of fuel to depending on fat. None of the others can claim that.

A proper ketogenic diet induces a state of ketosis that results in numerous metabolic and biochemical process changes. Even the brain starts to run on ketone bodies.

 

Regarding ratios and calorie deficits: There was a professor (may have been Stanford, but I can find you the actual link later when I have more time) who wanted to teach his nutrition class that caloric deficits are the only thing that matters when the goal is weight loss. How did he illustrate his point? By eating nothing but Twinkies. And he managed to lose weight. Is it optimal? No. But the overarching theme is that caloric deficits alone will always result in weight loss.

[Cat]

Regarding ratios and calorie deficits: There was a professor (may have been Stanford, but I can find you the actual link later when I have more time) who wanted to teach his nutrition class that caloric deficits are the only thing that matters when the goal is weight loss. How did he illustrate his point? By eating nothing but Twinkies. And he managed to lose weight. Is it optimal? No. But the overarching theme is that caloric deficits alone will always result in weight loss.

 

 

Yep

[natty]

I haven't looked into it much but is there a real difference between a paleo diet and keto?  It seems like they're essentially the same except keto is much more strict.  

[88 Bronco]

The reason I don't think Keto is like Atkins, Paleo, South Beach, etc is because its fundamental goal is to change your body's metabolism from depending on carbs as its primary source of fuel to depending on fat. None of the others can claim that.

A proper ketogenic diet induces a state of ketosis that results in numerous metabolic and biochemical process changes. Even the brain starts to run on ketone bodies.

 

Regarding ratios and calorie deficits: There was a professor (may have been Stanford, but I can find you the actual link later when I have more time) who wanted to teach his nutrition class that caloric deficits are the only thing that matters when the goal is weight loss. How did he illustrate his point? By eating nothing but Twinkies. And he managed to lose weight. Is it optimal? No. But the overarching theme is that caloric deficits alone will always result in weight loss.

 

I don't think a calorie deficit is the end all to fitness. It's important to get a good mix of carb, proteins, and fats. I'll believe the idea that humans should have more fats and protein calories than carb based calories when Olympic athletes use that concept and win.

[Jase]

what you want in order to be fit is to reach a healthy weight and then find an equilibrium for eating so your weight isn't fluctuating between your feast/famine stages

 

In theory you shouldn't be in a calorie deficit most of the time.

[88 Bronco]

Cutting should be slow and steady, with a reasonable cheat day worked in occasionally. Bulking should be done a little faster with heavy emphasis place of gym efforts. Maintenance is homeostasis. 

[natty]

There's a lot to be said for eating good foods though obviously.  I've made a conscious effort more fibrous fruits (usually apples) every day and my shits have been fantastic.  

[neverlosethefeeling]

I haven't looked into it much but is there a real difference between a paleo diet and keto?  It seems like they're essentially the same except keto is much more strict.  

 

The short answer is it depends. There can be a many or few similarities depending on the individual. A keto person could be paleo and a paleo person could also be keto. But not always. They both restrict some of the same foods like sugar, processed oils, grains, legumes, pretty much anything that is a more recent addition to the human diet. But keto is low-carb and Paleo doesn't necessarily have to be.

 

Paleo takes a holistic approach to health by encouraging consumption of natural foods. My roommate was Paleo and put this up on our fridge:

 

 

Keto's main concern is with macro nutrient ratios to obtain a state of ketosis. The way we do that is by eating less than 50g of carbs (less than 20 is the ideal and what I shoot for) per day. In the typical Western carb-rich diet your body processes carbs for fuel first because it's metabolically inexpensive (it doesn't require a lot of energy) and its an abundant source. What your body can't use is then turned into and stored as fat. Your body only tries to break down fat for energy once carbs have been depleted. It requires much more ATP to break down fat, so your body won't elect to do that until it absolutely has to.

By restricting carbs to 20g per day (or what amounts to 5% of caloric intake) your body will be forced to switch from using carbs for energy to using fat as its primary energy source. Optimal macro nutrient ratios are 65% fat : 30% protein : 5% carbs.  When you become keto-adapted even your brain runs on fat in the form of ketone bodies produced by the liver. My personal version of a superfood is called Bulletproof Coffee. It is a cup of coffee mixed with 1tbsp grassfed butter and 1 tbsp coconut oil in a blender. It sounds disgusting but is absolutely heavenly.

 

If I can say it succinctly, Paleo focuses on eating whole foods while Keto focuses on eating foods to force and maintain ketosis. There can be a lot of overlap, but there doesn't have to be.

[neverlosethefeeling]

I don't think a calorie deficit is the end all to fitness. It's important to get a good mix of carb, proteins, and fats. I'll believe the idea that humans should have more fats and protein calories than carb based calories when Olympic athletes use that concept and win.

 

 

That model seems really suspect to me. Why is that your ideal?

[88 Bronco]

They will use every natural option for a competitive advantage. If low carb diets were effective and efficient for the human body, you'd see it there.