Keto or Paleo? Podcast on Paleo Quick Tip of the Day.

The world of nutrition and fitness, health and wellness is as fraught with fads and fashions, unfortunately, just like almost everything else.  The cutting edge thing right now is the ketogenic diet!

Forget paleo diet- in this iteration of the perfect human diet, we go beyond paleo- we don’t just go “low carb”, we go virtually no carbohydrates!  Actually, that’s not quite true: perhaps 25 grams per day of so is permissible.  One medium banana has 27 grams of carbs, so you get the idea- ketogenic is almost no carbs at all!  Even things like your daily paleo green smoothie, such as I recommend with green and cruciferous veggies, kefir and, probably contains more carbs than that, probably about 30 grams or so.  Still quite low carb, but not quite keto carb level!

On the side of the ketogenic diet, it is definitely true that this way of eating can be incredibly therapeutic!  It has been used successfully for literally thousands of years, going back to ancient Greek times, in the treatment of epilepsy.  Fasting was recommended to treat epilepsy in 400 BC!  And Jesus recommended it in the book of Mark:  And he said unto them, This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting. 

He was referring to the a young boy, who lay thrashing and foaming at the mouth, which is a symptom of epilepsy.  Now, it must be noted that fasting is, in itself- ketogenic.  If you stop eating altogether, after a certain point you will begin burning stored fat for fuel- you are then ketogenic!  It really is that simple.  Humans have been going in and out of ketosis for all of history.

The difference today is that now, in this age of agriculture as opposed to hunting and gathering Neolithic times, we are absolutely surrounded with carbohydrates, protein, and all kinds of sugars, day and night!  And, of course, it is killing us, making us fat and sick, diabetic and prone to all sorts of autoimmune disease.  Going back to a Paleo type of diet, with fat and protein, and a few natural carbs like berries or sweet potato is the antidote.

But now, since everyone likes to go to extremes, ketogenic is seen as the way to go.  My take?  Well, aside from the fact that my moniker is PaleoJay, you must know which side I will come down on, right?   Well, I do say paleo is a wonderful way to cure most ills of modern life, but a ketogenic does indeed have its place.  It is wonderful as a therapeutic tool!

I go in and out of ketosis all the time!  Intermittent fasting is an in-between way of having the best of both worlds.  You know: eat supper at around 4 PM, and don’t eat again until 10 or 11 AM the next day.  Actually, this is kind of my daily routing now, so I kind of fast every single day.  It doesn’t feel like it, but I am.  My body just starts burning fat after 4 PM, and all through the night.  

In addition, I rarely have carbs in the morning, except for my paleo smoothie, coffee with coconut oil and heavy cream, and a couple of eggs.  Maybe bacon, on a really good day!  So actually, my keto continues on until lunch/supper (I usually only eat two meals per day).  

So what I guess I’m saying is that if you have an autoimmune disease, like type 2 diabetes, Alzheimer’s, or any of the myriad other diseases that are autoimmune, including cancer and heart disease- by all means- go on a strict ketogenic diet!  Lots and lots of fat, limited protein, (excess protein is turned into carbs by the body), and really no carbs at all.  You will pretty much be eating lots of fat, with just a bit of protein, and then fasting on top of it.  

It is a therapy.  Keto can be very effective in rectifying deep damage caused by our modern, faulty diet.  Do it until you are free of the autoimmune condition you suffer!  It probably won’t even take that long- often, modern disease can be reversed by fasting, going Keto if it will take a while so you don’t starve outright, and getting adequate sleep, sun exposure, and natural exercise.

After you are well, and happy, and ready to enjoy a healthy life? Go Paleo, young man or woman!

Paleo Quick Tip of the Day 34- Fat is Our Friend

Good Fats

PQTD #34  The One Paleo Food You Don’t Eat Nearly Enough of... FAT

The one thing that almost no one, including paleo lifestyle folks eats enough of is indeed FAT! Good, satisfying, God made fat, as in kill and eat the fatted calf, and cook it in cream and coconut oil!

I have just finished Jimmy Moore’s latest book Keto Clarity, and I must say that, although I am quite paleolithic in my diet, even I do not eat enough fat!  I eat a lot by normal standards, but not up to 80% of my diet by any means...  And, to get to a ketogenic (or fat burning) state where the body and brain is running on ketones, which are the human bodies perfect fuel- fat needs to make up at least 50% or so of the diet!

I mean real fat, as I said above: NOT crisco, margarine, vegetable oils, cool whip, or any other MAN made fake fat or food.  I mean heavy whipping cream, pastured butter, coconut oil, avocados, eggs (especially the yolks) full fat cream cheese, sour cream, bacon and cream cheese!  These foods, along with green leafy and cruciferous veggies and a small amount of protein from your grass fed beef, seafood, pork and chicken become the ketones that your body needs to run best on.  AND, once you get the process underway by eating enough fats to kick start your switch over to a fat burning ancestral human instead of a SAD sugar burning modern American, why then your body can supplement the process by easily accessing and burning your OWN fat stores!  Now this is a big win win.

Of course, we are also talking about limiting carbs here dramatically- but it is quite easy to do so, once you are getting enough fat, because you are never hungry - fat is that satiating.

The health benefits of a ketogenic diet are amazing- for brain health, depression, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, headaches- it’s almost as if you name it, burning ketones from fat is the cure!  Not to mention the obvious, that the more fat you eat, the more fat your body loses...counterintuitive, but completely true nonetheless.

So, make yourself a big meal of , oh, 4 pastured eggs scrambled with sour cream, a few bacon strips, paleo coffee with a teaspoon or so of coconut oil dissolved in it and topped with whipped cream...still hungry?  Oh, I forgot your daily Paleo smoothie- along with all the veggies, kefir, eggs, berries and all the rest you are also going to add in a big slab of Kerrygold butter and an avocado...

Sip that along with your little breakfast, and I absolutely guarantee you won’t be hungry for a long, long time- you won’t want of need a snack, and your body will start to get the idea that hey- Fat is our friend!  We don’t need it on our bellies and thighs because we can get it from our food anytime we want!

Check out this episode!

Keto Clarity- a book about the Ketogenic diet by Jimmy Moore

Just a quick recommendation:

Keto Clarity, by the reknowned Jimmy Moore of Livin La Vida Low Carb podcast fame, is a book that YOU SHOULD READ!

And digest, and absorb, and above all: Apply!

Whether your complaint is relatively minor, like being overweight, headaches, or creeping diabesity...

Or major, as in Parkinson's, Epilepsy, or Cancer...

Your solution might well lie within these pages!

Here is the description and synopsis of this book, so you know what to expect:

Leading health blogger Jimmy Moore and researcher and internist Dr. Eric C. Westman join forces again to explain the powerful therapeutic effects of a ketogenic diet—one that combines a customized carbohydrate restriction, moderation of protein intake, and real food-based fats—which is emerging in the scientific literature as a means for improving a wide range of diseases, from Type 2 diabetes to Alzheimer’s and more. Simply eating a low-carb diet alone isn’t enough, and Moore and Westman tell you why.

Have you looked at a low-carb diet simply as a means to lose weight? What if you learned that combining a low-carb nutritional approach with a high fat intake produces a powerful therapeutic effect on a wide variety of health conditions that most people think requires medication to control? That’s what Keto Clarity is all about. Jimmy Moore, the world’s leading low-carb diet blogger and podcaster, has reunited with his Cholesterol Clarity coauthor Dr. Eric C. Westman, a practicing internist and low-carb diet researcher, to bring you the crystal-clear information you need to understand what a ketogenic diet is all about and why it may be the missing element in your pursuit of optimal health. This book includes exclusive interviews from twenty of the world’s foremost authorities from various fields bringing their depth of expertise and experience using this nutritional approach. Moore and Westman clearly explain why ketosis is normal, how this nutritional approach is being used therapeutically by many medical professionals, a step-by-step guide to help you produce more ketones and track your progress, real life success stories of people using a ketogenic diet, and more. The solid evidence for nutritional ketosis in dealing with many of the chronic health problems of our day is presented, including: epilepsy, Type 2 diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular disease, metabolic syndrome, polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), heartburn (GERD), nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). The good evidence for ketogenic diets is also shared in dealing with Alzheimer’s Disease (AD), Parkinson’s Disease, dementia, mental illness, schizophrenia, bipolar, depression, narcolepsy, and sleep disorders. Plus, you’ll get the details on the emerging science that is showing great promise in treating cancer, autism, migraines, chronic pain, brain injury, stroke, kidney disease and so much more. Keto Clarity is your definitive guide to the benefits of a low-carb, high-fat diet. Full details on Jimmy Moore’s yearlong n=1 scientific experiment of nutritional ketosis, in which he used sophisticated blood testing technology to track and monitor his production of ketones and blood sugar to achieve rather remarkable effects on his weight and health, is also presented as well as food shopping lists, 25+ low-carb, high-fat recipes, and a 21-day meal plan to get you going on your ketogenic lifestyle change. Keto Clarity gives you a whole new perspective on the work that the late, great Dr. Robert C. Atkins started in earnest with his promotion of the low-carb approach beginning in the 1960s. That revolution continues boldly in this book designed to shift your paradigm on diet and health forever!



AND SO, WHY WOULDN'T YOU WANT TO READ THIS BOOK?  

Jimmy breaks it all down, neatly, and in a highly applicable manner!

Keto Clarity