The Ketogenic “Keto” Diet is our most intensive diet. The Keto Diet is designed to restore your body from the inside out. 

Ketosis is a biological process the body goes through to help us persist when food intake is low. During ketosis, our bodies yield “ketones”, which are the breakdown of fats in the liver. The basic aim of an accurately calculated ketogenic diet is to force your body into this metabolic state and we achieve this by starving it of carbs, not calories. Keto pushes you to consume a higher portion of healthy fats over carbs and by doing so, your body will burn ketones as it's energy source. Your metabolic state will change from sugar burning (glucose) to fat-burning (ketones). This is ketosis, when your liver converts fat into ketones that go on to fuel your body. Cura Kitchen Keto meal plan puts your body into this optimal ketonic level which provides many health, weight loss, physical and mental performance benefits.

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Benefits of a Ketogenic Diet

The are numerous benefits to the Keto Diet. The following is a breakdown of the wonderful benefits of Keto:

 

Weight Loss

The Keto Diet specifically uses your body fat as an energy source. On Keto, your insulin (a fat-storing hormone) level drops greatly, which turns your body into a fat-burning machine.

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Control Blood Sugar

Keto naturally lowers blood sugar levels due to the type of foods you eat. Studies show that the ketogenic diet is a more effective way to manage and prevent diabetes compared to low-calorie diets.

 

Mental Focus

Many people use the ketogenic diet specifically for the increased mental performance. Ketones are a great source of fuel for the brain. When you lower carb intake, you avoid spikes in blood sugar, which helps improve focus and concentration. The brain loves ketones and you will notice a nootropic boost as soon as you go into deep ketosis.

 

Acne

It is common to experience improvements in your skin when you switch your diet to keto. Studies have found evidence to support the ketogenic diet reduces skin issues (i.e. skin lesions and inflammation). Studies have also shown that high-carb diets can potentially increase acne.

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What can you eat on a ketogenic diet?

On the ketogenic diet, you derive most of your calories –  approximately 70-80% – from fat. If you are consuming this much fat, it needs to be healthy, unprocessed and made up of Saturated Fatty Acids (SFAs). The remainder of your nutritional macros should consist of 10-20% protein and 5% carbs.

Avocados, eggs, coconut oil, leafy greens, MCT oil, and butter will feature heavily in your diet.

 

If you are using the ketogenic diet to lose weight you will need to create a caloric deficit, so eat a little less fat. By doing this, you will use your own body fat stores for fuel. This means that a portion of your daily caloric usage will actually be from your body fat stores, not nutritional fat.

 

Most of your ketogenic plate should be covered in leafy green vegetables, one fifth should be protein cooked in butter or smothered in a healthy fat such as olive, coconut or avocado oil – these are the Keto superfoods.

 

A common mistake made by people first trying the ketogenic diet is that they don’t eat enough fiber. Be sure to consume plenty of leafy greens such as spinach, kale, broccoli, chard, bok choi, cabbage, celery, watercress, lettuce, courgettes, and spring onion.

 

Leafy greens are essential for healthy gut bacteria. Without a healthy gut, you can reach a weight loss plateau, suffer from inflammation and a number of neurological diseases are also linked to poor gut health. So get your greens in.

 

Cura Kitchen will limit your carbohydrates to ensure you maintain optimal ketosis levels. When you get carbs in your meal it will come from vegetables and nuts. We do not serve dairy or refined carbohydrates such as wheat (bread, pasta, cereals), starch (potatoes, beans, legumes) or certain types of fruit. The exception to this are avocados, star fruit (when in season), and berries which we provide in moderation.

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The keto diet can be very limited and restrictive, the following are a good list of foods you want to eat and foods you’ll want to avoid while on a keto diet:

 

Good Foods

Meats – Fish, Beef, Lamb, Poultry, Eggs, etc.

Leafy green – Spinach, Kale, Arugula, etc.

Vegetables – Broccoli, Cauliflower, Cucumbers, etc.

Nuts and seeds – Walnuts, Sunflower seeds, Almonds, etc.

Avocado and berries – Raspberries, Blackberries, Strawberries, etc.

Fats – Coconut oil, Olive oil, etc.

 

Bad Foods

Grains – Wheat, Corn, Rice, Cereal, etc.

Sugar – Honey, Agave, Maple syrup, etc.

Fruit – Apples, Bananas, Oranges, etc.

Tubers – Potatoes, Yams, etc.