This past summer, I tried keto for ten weeks while I was at an internship. And it worked. My meals were arguably not healthy, and to be honest, I might’ve lost the weight simply because I wasn’t eating enough and exercising more than usual.
The ketogenic diet, or keto, is a low-carb, moderate protein, a higher-fat diet that helps burn fat quickly. The reduction in carb intakes puts your body in a metabolic state called ketosis, where fat is burned for energy. Keto is specifically useful for losing excess body fat quickly, usually for medical reasons, or for improving type 2 diabetes.
I didn’t eat breakfast; I ate a small salad for lunch; for dinner, I had a sandwich. I ran a mile each day and then did a core workout- sometimes twice a day.
I lost seven pounds.
At that point, I got off the keto diet, gained a few pounds back, and decided, “Hey, let’s lose some more weight.”
I got back on the keto diet. This time though, I was at Xavier (not living alone, like I was during the summer), and I would make dinner for both me and my roommate. This makes it hard as Keto uses a lot of cheese in some recipes while my roommate is lactose intolerant. That presented its own challenge.
I tried working out four times a week: this time doing three miles on the elliptical. I would sometimes eat breakfast or sometimes eat lunch: more average-sized meals. I would always eat dinner.
The problem: I stress eat chocolate. I am in five project-based classes; two of which are my theses classes: art and computer science. It’s safe to say I’m pretty stressed. So yeah, I think I cheated.
Either way, I gained four pounds while on the diet. In the end, I’ve given up on it, maybe until I live alone again.