I’m considering a keto diet in order to trim some body fat and hopefully relieve my sleep apnea. Is this diet suitable for a powerlifter who is training to gain strength at the same time?
Brian Carroll Answered question July 16, 2018
I’ve used the keto diet twice for relatively short periods of time to drop some weight.
What I liked
- Everything tastes good since you get to eat so much oil, butter and red meat.
- It’s easy to stay on even when traveling (I travel for business a fair amount.). I could get a steak anywhere, whole eggs for breakfast anywhere. Salads with extra cheese, red meat and oil/vinegar easy.
- Weight loss comes fast.
What I didn’t like
- I couldn’t control my weight easily. I had a target in mind and I kept dropping even when adding extreme amounts of fat. I got up to 350g+ a day and couldn’t dial my weight in. This is a BIG problem for an equipped lifter targeting a particular weight class.
- I was weak as a kitten and super flat after the glycogen stores were depleted.
- The consequences of messing up are significant. Knock yourself out of ketosis and it takes time to get back in.
- A lot of the weight is water and glycogen in the short run. It comes back as soon as you reintroduce carbs.
In the short run- I don’t like it. Outside of the current trendiness of keto, I look at this as a serious lifestyle change. If you are willing to commit to it FOREVER and stick to it no matter what, maybe it could work well for you in the long run. But if you are looking for something shorter term and aren’t willing to make a big lifestyle change, I’d recommend just cleaning up your diet some. I’ll bet you eat like crap now, don’t you? Admit it. Your diet sucks.
You want to lose a few pounds and stop sleeping like you’re in a choke hold right? And still train like a powerlifter?
Easy. You need two things. A filter question for food- for everything you eat just ask yourself: “Is this a healthy choice?” If no, don’t consume. If yes, go ahead. That alone will clean up your eating a lot and promote some weight loss. Any reasonably intelligent adult should be able to correctly answer that question. The other thing you need is more movement. Don’t start training for a marathon. Just go for 2-3 more 10-20 minute walks per day. Start with that. See where you get in 90 days. Your goal isn’t extreme, don’t make an extreme nutritional change to accomplish such a simple goal.
Daniel Dalenberg Answered question July 12, 2018
