Is Keto the New Atkins? All You Need to Know – Simplified!
Do you see that magazine in front of you? Well, the chances of you opening the magazine and finding an article about one of the many diets that are popular nowadays are very high. Ranging from the Mediterranean diet to Dash diet, any person in the world can find any diet they want. Two of the most popular ones at the moment all around the globe are the Keto and Atkins diets. Many people turn to the first one, and the question is why? Is it really that good and better than Atkins? Take a look as we try to simplify the Keto diet for you and help you make up your mind (in case you’re not sure which one is better for you).
What is Keto diet?
Also known as the ketogenic diet, low carb diet or low carb high fat (LCHF), this type of nutrition is gaining popularity all around the globe. While on Keto, you definitely need to plan your meals in advance. However, don’t think that you are not allowed to eat carbs at all – you have to, but make sure that your carb intake is limited. This means that you have to eat a lot of vegetables (above ground vegetables such as broccoli and cauliflower), nuts and dairy, and stay away from wheat (such as pasta or bread), starch (potatoes and beans) and fruit. Another crucial component of this diet is eating meat, primarily importantly fish, beef, lamb and poultry. Also bear in mind that your Keto diet should be high in fat (70%), moderate in protein (25%) and very low in carbs (only 5%).
How does it work?
This is the story: when you eat something that’s high in fat, your body produces ketones, molecules that are there to be converted by your body and be used as an energy source. If you are wandering what are ketones and why is this diet different, here are some answers for you – by lowering the amount of carbs in your body, your body will enter the state of ketosis, meaning that it will use the debris of the fat that’s in the liver. These breakdowns of fat are called ketones, and they are there to fuel your body once you start this new diet. So, if you want to be a Keto practitioner, your main goal is to get your body to enter the state of ketosis – not through starvation on calories, but through the starvation of carbohydrates. Note down that the number of calories is important here as well – it’s not true that you can eat whatever the hell you want and still consider yourself as a Keto practitioner; the number of calories should be kept limited, of course.
What are the benefits of this diet?
The benefits of Keto are numerous, and they range from weight loss to therapeutic medical benefits. So, basically, everyone can benefit from this diet. The most important (or perhaps the most popular) benefit is weight loss, as your body will use your fat as an energy source and thus burn it. Your insulin levels will drop significantly which will result in your body being a true fat burning machine. However, many use this diet to control blood sugar, and prevent diabetes (once your body enters the state of ketosis, your blood sugar levels will drop). There are many more advantages, and you should also consider this diet if you desire to achieve the following:
- mental focus
- increased energy
- fight epilepsy
- control your cholesterol levels and blood pressure
- get rid of acne
Keto can significantly help you with any of this, if you stay true to its rules.
Keto vs. Atkins
Ok, now we know what Keto is, but what about the other one we keep blabbing about? The Atkins diet took us by storm in the early 2000s, when more and more people started paying attention to the intake of carbs. But how do these two differ? Atkins and Keto are very similar in the first phase, in which they have to take care of the carb intake. At this point, both diets have similar results, but it’s after the first phase that the differences begin. People who are on the Keto diet will keep their diet the same, while the ones who are on the Atkins diet will start to increase the intake of carbs (in the next 3 phases people go from 25g to 100g of carbs a day), and this puts them into the glucose mode (which is totally different from the idea of Keto). Even though the initial weight loss results are somewhat more visible on Atkins, these effects are not long-lasting.
Hopefully, we managed to simplify a bit these two dietary plans. At least, that’s what we wanted. But nothing is that simple of course, and it doesn’t matter what kind of diet you want to try out, it would be best to discuss it with a nutritionist or a doctor, as you never know what side effects a diet can cause.
