Combining IF with keto, is it going too far or is it an alliance for the ages? Check out space below to unravel the most popular health mystery of the 21st century.
In this era of progressive transformations and blinding fitness achievements, nobody has been untouched by the myths and legends of the keto diet. If you have ever struggled with heavyweight and bulky posterior then chances are that you may have considered or must have at least thought about the following keto.
Keto diet has become much more than just a mere weight-loss plan. This very low carb, the high-fat diet has taken the health industry by storm and medical professionals, health bloggers, dieticians, trainers and even writers want to associate themselves with this highly effective weight-loss method.
Everybody wants a piece of the pie; we see the internet being flooded with hybrid keto diets for people with restricted food library; vegetarian, vegan, everybody can allegedly be the part of the trailing blaze. Once such permutation of keto that is making people go gaga on the internet is the pathbreaking partnership of keto diet with intermittent fasting.
For our friends who live under the rock – Intermittent fasting is an eating pattern, which talks about instituting a system of cyclic fasting and eating.
Although, combining a high-fat diet with an eating pattern that keeps you hungry for the major part of the week does not sound that bad of an option, but let’s reflect on this further to see if it’s just fat, or the argument also holds some real water.
How is Keto different from Intermittent fasting?
This is one of the most commonly asked questions on the whole Keto and IF matter, and it’s only logical because both Keto and IF are supposed to be diet arrangements that help people lose a ton of weight.
Then how different can they be, right? Well wrong. We won’t say that comparing IF to keto is like comparing apple to oranges, instead, it’s actually like comparing superheroes to their superpowers. You see, superheroes are known to be these incredible figures with the intent of doing immediate justice, and a superpower is a medium that helps them to achieve that state of justice. Superpowers make the superhero more potent than everybody else.
Exactly like that, the keto diet is an intent for doing good, and IF is the superpower that helps the superhero infuse a change which is immediate and fruitful.
IF amplifies the effect of a keto diet, and an individual who strives to lose weight with the help of this combo arrangement can make leaps and bounds of progress towards reaching their health goals faster than everyone else.
Fundamentally, intermittent fasting is supposed to be an eating pattern that involves limited or no eating for longer periods, a highly beneficial approach providing numerous health benefits such as, better digestion, faster metabolism and better brain functioning. On the other hand, Keto is an attempt to help our body choose healthier options as energy sources, instead of those who result in an excess fat stocking.
How can these two work together?
Both, Keto and Intermittent Fasting are the antidotes for the same poison, they share numerous health benefits and proffer great health possibilities.
Like Keto, fasting is also based around the principle of encouraging the breakdown of fat to fulfil the body’s energy requirements by completely exhausting the stocks of liver stored glucose. Studies shows that long periods of fasting during keto can exponentially increase the pace of ketosis which can greatly accelerate the weight-loss process.
It’s still early to comment on the overall impact of this combination on the long term health of an individual, although one can be certain that combining both these diet plan can reap some amazing weight-loss outcomes.
7 important tips for a better experience
Now that we have understood the numerous health benefits of this paired partnership, it’s imperative to be also aware of the practical know-how of their combined application. Both Keto and IF, are extremely complex diet methods and slight inattention or a lack in research can lead to a highly frustrating ordeal with no real weight-loss results.
However, you can rest easy because we have prepared for you a list of important tips that will help you effectively combine both the diet methods by averting every obstruction that delays the attainment of speedy ketosis.
So let’s do a rundown of these 7 easy-to-follow tips that will make your IF with keto experience a lot easier and a much more effective.
Pick the right foods
This is a common mistake among fasters, people who do the hard work of staying hungry for almost 16-18 hours before their next meal usually end-up sabotaging all their laborious effort by choosing the wrong food to break their fast, it can happen because of the uncontrollable food temptation or just due to utter lack of awareness.
However, one should realize that it’s not about the way you start the fast instead, it’s about the way you end it, and since keto is such a restrictive diet, it becomes exceedingly important to choose the right, good fat food sources to break your fast.
One should only consume food sources which are keto allowed and should limit protein intake, as excessive protein can interfere with the ketosis process.
Drink plenty of water
One is always advised to drink plenty of water during any diet plan, but possibly it becomes especially necessary to incorporate an ample amount of water in your day while the following keto.
During Keto, your kidney works overtime and as a result, you end up discharging a lot of water in the form of excretion, so to avoid possibilities of “Keto Flu”, or dehydration, one should be sure to keep up their water intake. It is also advised to add cucumber to your water to avoid any dangerous health problems.
Stay clear of sugary drinks
A lot of fitness fanatics put their trust in sugar-free drinks, totally missing out on the fact that artificial sugar can be extremely harmful and can completely corrupt all their active efforts. One should stay clear of all kinds of energy drinks, diet sodas and flavoured water. Artificial sugars are also believed to be possible triggers of food cravings and taste temptations.
Plan out a constructive time management system
An ample amount of free time and boredom can lead to exciting feelings of snacking and drinking. It’s crucial to have a time management system that won’t let you sit idle so that you don’t end up plonking your leisure time with processed food and sugary drinks during fasting. Institute activities like reading, painting or yoga in your routine.
Get proper sleep
Make sure that you get enough sleep every night, fasting with insufficient sleeping time can cause some real irritation and can make you feel fuzzy and angry. So, it’s very important to plan out a sleep design that harmoniously aligns with your eating pattern.
Don’t stress
High-stress levels can trigger feelings of confusion and anxiety in an individual which can lead to a sentiment of immediate pleasure that can inevitably provoke overeating and other bad habits. So, calm your bad receptors by getting proper sleep and positive thinking.
Exercise Daily
The lack of love for exercising is the reason why we constantly look for easier weight-loss solutions, but the fact that regular exercise leads us to an overall healthy life still shines like a Sunday beach sun. We should not undermine the importance of regular physical activity and should plan out an exercise system that will constantly keep us on our toes and will also keep our mind away from food.
What are some possible health risks?
When you have been struggling with heavyweight issues all your life, then it becomes very difficult to not get seduced by every little possibility that can help you lose a ton of weight immediately.
However, one should realize that there is a lot more to life, than just accomplishing immediate weight-loss goals, and should always lunge towards long term health benefits rather than short term weight-loss effects.
Both, keto and IF are restrictive diet methods and their unregulated application for a long time can put extreme pressure on your digestive organs. It’s already very tough to individually follow both these diets, and inducting a system that requires their combined application can be tricky and should not be done without proper guidance and superlative medical supervision.
The times of today are greatly inspired by the need of social interaction and outgoing arrangements, hence, it becomes extra difficult to stick to such a restrictive diet system which necessarily puts you away from your peer group by virtually putting a red mark on everything you can eat or drink.
Final Verdict
Intermittent fasting with keto can reap some wonderful health benefits for people who can handle to follow this heavily restricted diet system.
However, both these diets are already very tough to follow an individual. So, people with a health history and other mental or physical conditions should not feel any shame in steering clear of this hybrid diet arrangement of the two toughest diets.
Proper guidance and medical supervision are also necessary for all those who consider following intermittent fasting with keto.