The average person wandering the streets today relies heavily on glucose (carbohydrates) for energy. When we switch to the ketogenic way of eating; low carb, moderate protein and high fat, the body changes its metabolic state into ketosis. With this new metabolism, our primary source of energy now comes from burning fat, either dietary fat and/or the stored fat (weight loss) on your body, instead of glucose (carbs).
HOW DOES NUTRITIONAL KETOSIS ENCOURAGE FAT LOSS?
Ketosis happens when glycogen stores in the body are depleted, due to lowering the daily intake of carbohydrate and sugar, moderating protein consumption and increasing dietary fat intake; the body begins to burn fat for fuel and the liver’s mitochondria start to produce ketone bodies for energy which feed the brain and muscle cells. This launches the body into a four-week fat-adaptation phase (depending on the individual’s metabolism) as the body begins to rev up its internal engine, Keto-style!
We live pretty darn well in a state of ketosis because we have plenty of fat energy stored in our body at all times – roughly 40,000+ calories of it! As opposed to the 2,000 calories we could only store at one time when we were sugar-burners – hence marathon runners constantly needing to replenish their energy stores before, during and after a race.
So, let’s run through this play by play…
First, you replace the carbs and sugars on your plate with healthy fats, in the next few days the glycogen stores in your body deplete, this stabilises your blood sugar and insulin levels (wahoo!). So your body then turns to fat as its alternative energy source and begins to burn the excess fat stored on your body.
The fab news is that weight loss is just ONE of the many benefits of ketosis. The keto way of eating can be utilised to help improve an array of illnesses from diabetes, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, balance cholesterol levels, metabolic syndrome, epilepsy, to hormonal imbalances, the list goes on. The key here is the production of ketones – ketosis doesn’t happen without ketone bodies. These are the main purpose of a ketogenic diet and are only produced in the liver when fat becomes the body’s primary fuel source.
WHAT ARE KETONES?
Glucose and ketones are the only fuel used by the brain. When we remove excess glucose, lipase breaks down fat, releasing stored triglycerides that go to the liver where they are converted into ketones and the brain gets a new lease of life, seriously; increased energy and focus, clearer thoughts, improved memory, you name it. Our body prefers to use ketones as a supplementary source of power, even before the days we began to farm and cultivate crops, dating all the way back to our hunter-gatherer ancestors; we ate less protein and carbs and would regularly be forced to fast due to the scarcity of food. Not to mention hunting for food during days of fasting (and we feel, as glucose-burners, we’re going to pass out sat at our desk if we don’t get an ‘energy bar’ snack in-between lunch and dinner!).
The bottom line: our body runs very naturally and efficiently on ketones. It’s innate for our bodies to convert stored fat and burn fat fuel for energy.