Making Ketogenic Diets Work

The Truth
Ketogenic Diets (particularly Cyclic Ketogenic Diets) would be the most beneficial diets for achieving rapid, ultra low bodyfat levels with maximum muscle retention! Now, as with every such general statements you can find circumstantial exceptions. But done right - that they rarely are - fat deposits loss achievable with a ketogenic meals are nothing short of staggering! And, despite what people might let you know, you'll enjoy incredible high energy and overall sense of wellness.

The Perception
Despite these promises, more bodybuilders/shapers have had negative experiences than have seen positive results. The main criticisms are:
 Chronic lethargy Unbearable hunger Massive loss of gym performance Severe muscle loss
All of these criticisms derive from an inability to heed the caveat above: Ketogenic Diets must be done properly! It should be realised that they're a completely unique metabolic modality that adheres to not one of the previously accepted 'rules' of dieting. And there is no going half-way; 50 grams of carbs daily plus high protein intake is NOT ketogenic!
So how are ketogenic diets 'done properly'? Lets quickly take a look at the way they work.

Overview of Ketosis
Simply, the body, organs, muscles and brain may use either glucose or ketones for fuel. It may be the function of the liver and pancreas (primarily) to control that fuel supply plus they show a strong bias toward staying with glucose. Glucose could be the 'preferred' fuel because it is derived commonplace in the diet and easily accessible readily from liver and muscle stores. Ketones have to be deliberately synthesised with the liver; nevertheless the liver can readily synthesise glucose (a process generally known as 'gluconeogenesis' that utilizes amino acids (protein) or another metabolic intermediaries) too.

We do not get beta hydroxybutyrate, acetone, or acetoacetate (ketones) through the diet. The liver synthesises them only under duress; as being a last option in conditions of severe glucose deprivation like starvation. For the liver to become convinced that ketones include the order through the day, several conditions has to be met:
 Blood glucose must fall below 50mg/dl Low blood glucose levels must lead to low Insulin and elevated Glucagon Liver glycogen has to be low or 'empty' A plentiful availability of gluconeogenic substrates must NOT be available
At this aspect you should mention that it's not at all actually a question for being 'in' or 'out' of ketosis; we don't either totally run using ketones, or otherwise not. It is a gradual and careful transition so your mental faculties are constantly and evenly fuelled... ideally. Ketones SHOULD be manufactured in a small amount from blood glucose levels of about 60mg/dl. We consider inside us ketosis when there are greater concentrations of ketones than glucose inside the blood.

The the truth is that most people - especially weight trainers - have had an everyday intake of glucose for a good few decades, at the very least. The liver is perfectly capable of producing ketones however the highly efficient gluconeogenic pathways have the ability to maintain low-normal blood glucose above the ketogenic threshold.
Couple this with all the fact that everybody is at least partially insulin resistant and possess elevated fasting insulin (upper end of the normal range, anyway). The small volume of blood sugar levels from gluconeogenesis induces sufficient insulin release to blunt glucagon output along with the production of ketones.
Sudden glucose deprivation could have the consequence, initially, of lethargy, hunger, weakness etc for most people - until ketosis is achieved. And Ketosis will never be reached until the liver is forced to stop with gluconeogenesis and initiate producing ketones. As long as dietary protein is plenty then a liver continues to make glucose and not ketones. That's why no carb, high protein diets are NOT ketogenic.

Whats So Great About Ketosis Anyway?
When our bodies switches to running primarily on ketones numerous very cool the unexpected happens:
Lipolysis (bodyfat breakdown) is substantially increased Muscle catabolism (muscle loss) is substantially reduced Energy levels are maintained inside a high and stable state Subcutaneous fluid (aka 'water retention') is eliminated
Basically, when we're in ketosis the body is using fat (ketones) to fuel everything. As such, we are really not wearing down muscle to deliver glucose. That is, muscle has been spared because it has nothing to supply; fat is all your body needs (well, with a large extent). For the dieter this means substantially less muscle loss than is achievable on every other diet. Make sense?
As an added bonus, ketones yield only 7 calories per gram. This is greater than the equal mass of glucose but substantially less (22%, the truth is) compared to 9 calorie gram of fat from whence it came. We like metabolic inefficiencies similar to this. They mean we are able to eat more nevertheless the body doesn't get the calories.
Even cooler is ketones is not turned back in efas; the body excretes any excess inside urine! Speaking of which, there'll be a substantial amount of urine; the drop in muscle glycogen, low Insulin and low aldosterone all mean massive excretion of intra and extracellular fluid. For us which means hard, defined muscularity and quick, visible results.
Regarding energy, our brain actually REALLY likes ketones therefore we often feel fantastic in ketosis - clear headed, alert and positive. And because there exists never a shortage of fat to produce ketones, energy is high on a regular basis. Usually you even sleep less and wake feeling more refreshed when in ketosis.

Doing it Right
From whats said above you'll realise that to get into ketosis:
Carbohydrate intake must be nil; Zero! Protein intake needs to be low - 25% of calories with a maximum Fat must account for 75%+ of calories
With low insulin (as a result of zero carbs) and calories at, or below maintenance, the dietary fat can not be deposited in adipose tissues. The low-ish protein implies that gluconeogenesis has decided to prove inadequate to keep blood glucose and, whether our bodies likes it or otherwise, there exists still each of the damned fat to lose.

And burn it can. The high fat is oxidised for cellular energy within the normal fashion but winds up generating quantities of Acetyl-CoA that exceed the capacity in the TCA cycle. The significant result's ketogenesis - synthesis of ketones from your excess Acetyl-CoA. In more lay terms: the high fat intake ''forces'' ketosis upon the body. This is how its 'done properly'.
Now simply get rid of everything you thought was true about fats. Firstly, fat will not ''make you fat''. Most with the details about the evils of saturated fats, particularly, is indeed disproportionate or plain wrong anyway; over a ketogenic diet it's doubly inapplicable. Saturated fats make ketosis fly. And don''t worry; your heart will likely be better than fine as well as your insulin sensitivity will NOT be reduced (there is no insulin around within the first place)!

Once in ketosis it isn't necessary, theoretically speaking, to maintain absolute zero carbs or low protein. But it really is still better in order to reap the highest rewards. Besides, assuming you might be training hard, you will still want to follow a cyclic ketogenic diet in places you arrive at eat all your carbs, fruit and whatever else, every 1-2 weeks, anyway (more on this in another article).
Don't be mistaken; 'performed correcly' does not make ketogenic dieting easy or fun to the culinary acrobats among you. They are by far the most restrictive diets you may use and never an alternative if you don't love animal products. Get out your nutritional almanac and figure out an 20:0:80 protein:carb:fat diet. Yeah, its boring. As an example, your writers daily ketogenic meals are 3100 Calories at 25:0.5:74.5 from only:

• 10 xxl Whole Eggs
• 160ml Pure Cream (40% fat)
• 400g Mince (15% fat)
• 60ml Flaxseed Oil
• 30g Whey Protein Isolate

Supplementation?
There are several supplements that assist in making Ketogenic diets more effective. However, many popular supplements would be wasted. Here can be an overview of the main ones:
 Chromium and ALA, while not insulin 'mimickers' numerous claim, increase insulin sensitivity leading to lower insulin levels, higher glucagon and a faster descent into deeper ketosis creatine is of a waste - for the most part, 30% might be adopted by the muscles that, without glycogen, can not be meaningfully 'volumised'. HMB (when it works) would/must be a fantastic supplement for minimising the catabolic period before ketosis is achieved Tribulus is excellent and comes recommended since it magnifies the elevated testosterone output of a ketogenic diet Carnitine in L or Acetyl-L form can be an almost essential supplement for Ketogenic Diets. L-Carnitine is essential to the formation of Ketones in the liver. Glutamine, free-form essential and branched-chain aminos are worthwhile for pre and post training. Just don't overdo the glutamine since it supports gluconeogenesis ECA stack weight reducers have become useful and important though don''t worry about the inclusion of HCA Flaxseed oil is a good along with think that you need 50% of your calories from essential essential fatty acids. 1-10% of calories is a lot more than sufficient. Whey Protein is optional - you don't want to much protein remember A soluble fibre supplement which is non-carbohydrate based is good. But walnuts are easier.
Conclusion
Ketogenic diets provide a host of unique benefits that cannot be ignored if you're chasing the supreme, low bodyfat figure or physique. However, they may not be the most user friendly of diets and then for any 'middle ground' compromise you could possibly prefer will be only the even worst worlds. Your choice would be to do them right or otherwise not in any respect.