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How Intermittent Fasting & Ketogenic Diets Compare
If you need to lose some calories and enhance your health, there are numerous tactics available that may help. However, in this post we will give attention to two of the most famous methods; Keto vs Intermittent fasting.
What is a Keto Diet?
A ketogenic diet or simple keto diet is a high-fat, and low-carb diet that is eaten to put the body in ketosis.
The Keto diet is a very different eating approach than you’re probably used to that can also help you lose weight, improve your health and energy levels and even reduce your risk of diabetes or heart disease.
The ketogenic diet was created in the 1920s by Dr. Roussell as an alternative treatment for epilepsy patients who didn’t respond well to medication.
Keto Diet Benefits
Below are some of the benefits associated with the keto diet:
- Accelerate weight loss
Consuming the keto diet is a great way to lose weight because this diet reduces the impact of hunger-inducing hormones to the bare minimum. When you don’t eat much, you lose more weight. Simple.
- Reduces risk of diabetes
Research has proven that eating processed foods high in calories exposes people to diseases such as diabetes. Because keto diets are low-carb, those who consume them have a lower risk of exposure to diseases such as diabetes.
- Improve the health of your heart
When you consume too much cholesterol, you will have a high risk of heart-related ailments. Thankfully, healthy keto diets such as avocados which are low in cholesterol, are here to substitute for unhealthy high cholesterol and calorie foods.
- Helpful for the brain
Ketogenic diets produce ketones that can treat brain-related diseases such as Alzheimer’s.
Keto Diet Plan
When you first start eating keto, it could be tough to know what to eat and what not to ingest.
If you are planning your keto diet plan, then consider the following:
- High fiber foods
Since keto involves calorie restrictions, you have to find food sources that will stand in place of carbs. High-fiber foods such as oatmeal, flaxseeds, and almonds are important in helping you achieve ketosis because they suppress hunger and make you stay for a long period without eating.
- Protein
This comprises lean meats such as chicken breast, fish/seafood, and egg whites.
- Fruits and vegetables
Fruits are an important ally of good health. However, some fruits may contain high carb content. So, the most ideal fruit for a keto diet is one that has low carb content. Some of the fruits to add to your keto diet plan include carrots, apples, cucumbers, and avocados. However, you should take caution and not consume these fruits in large quantities to avoid the accumulation of carbs.
- Cheese
These are other sources of food you can add to your keto diet plan. There are several types of cheese and the majority of them are keto friendly because they have a very low carb content.
What is Intermittent Fasting?
Intermittent fasting, commonly known as time-restricted feeding (TRF), is a dieting approach in which you eat only within a specific period each day. You can choose to eat all your meals within that period or have them spread out over multiple days. This eating pattern aims to ensure you get enough calories to compensate for when you’re not consuming enough.
How Does It Work?
Intermittent fasting causes your body to burn fat more efficiently than when you eat regularly, especially if you’re trying to lose weight. Many people who follow a periodic fast report losing weight without feeling hungry.
This may be because their bodies are positioned for ketosis, a metabolic state in which glucose (sugar) is converted into ketones and the body enters a state known as ketosis. This boosts energy production by the muscles or brain cells and accelerates metabolism and fat oxidation during exercise.
Intermittent Fasting Benefits
Intermittent fasting is a great way to get in shape, lose weight and improve your health. Here are some of the benefits:
- It increases insulin sensitivity, making you less likely to store fat. That makes it easier to burn calories by exercising more or making healthier choices at every meal throughout the day. When you fast regularly, your body responds by burning fat instead of storing it as calories.
- In addition, intermittent fasting can help reduce inflammation in the body and prevent diseases like cancer or heart disease—it also helps regulate blood sugar levels so that they stay steady throughout the day rather than skyrocketing as we eat more often during our daily routine.
Difference Between Intermittent Fasting and Keto
The main difference between intermittent fasting and keto diets is their respective macronutrient breakdowns. The typical intermittent fasting protocol involves eating all day long but only restricting calories after 11 pm or 8 hours before bedtime (e.g., skipping breakfast).
On the other hand, if you’re following a standard keto protocol, then you’ll probably eat most meals with fats or oils being used as your main source of calories instead of carbohydrates like rice or potatoes, which are usually partaken when eating out at restaurants or on days where we feel like having something sweet instead.
Intermittent fasting and ketogenic dieting aim to help you lose weight, differently. Intermittent fasting is a time-restricted eating pattern that requires you to fast or eat only during a certain window every day for an extended period, while keto is an extremely low-carbohydrate diet that mimics your body’s natural processes by burning fat for fuel rather than carbohydrates.
Which one is better, keto or intermittent fasting?
In recent years, the Keto diet has become more and more well-known. It is a high-fat, moderate-protein, low-carb eating regimen. The ketogenic diet offers several health advantages. Gaining mental clarity, lowering blood pressure, and losing weight are a few of them.
Intermittent fasting (IF) is another popular way to lose weight without counting calories or tracking anything else on your calendar: you simply fast between certain hours every day or week, depending on how often you choose.
Deciding which is better between keto and intermittent fasting is not limited to a yes or no answer. If you want to lose weight easily, it is best to combine the keto diet and intermittent fasting simultaneously.
Does intermittent fasting put you in a state of ketosis?
No, because It takes approximately 50 hours for the human body to deplete the excess glycogen reserve in the liver and muscle.
If you go on the 16/8 intermittent fasting whilst consuming carbohydrates daily, you can’t trigger ketosis. However, if during the fast you consume only low-carb foods, you could induce ketosis for some hours. This is known as intermittent ketosis.
So, extended fasts complimented with ketogenic diets can induce ketosis easily.
FAQs
Is the keto diet better than intermittent fasting?
Ketogenic diets are the way for those who want to lose weight without feeling they are missing something. Keto diets than IF are better because they are easier to carry on for longer.
Can you lose weight by doing intermittent fasting without doing keto?
Yes, you can lose weight by just doing intermittent fasting without combining it with a keto diet. However, for best results complimenting it with a keto will be a game changer for most people. Make sure your calorie loss exceeds the total gains during the period.
Is intermittent fasting also keto?
Intermittent fasting is only keto when you avoid high-carb foods during your free period. You can combine both intermittent fasting and keto at the same time otherwise known as intermittent ketosis.
Conclusion
Intermittent Fasting as a lifestyle involves eating less than your usual caloric intake sometimes to increase autophagy and improve health, this puts the body in a state known as ketosis, which is a state when fat is burnt for energy instead of sugar or carbohydrates.
As you can see, intermittent fasting and the keto diet are not the same things. Although one may always be superior to the other, both have advantages and downsides. The key point from this blog post is that both will help you lose weight differently. So, intermittent fasting vs. keto diets – which one is appropriate for your body? Well, the choice is yours.
References
- Vasim I, Majeed CN, DeBoer MD. Intermittent Fasting and Metabolic Health. Nutrients. 2022 Jan 31;14(3):631. doi: 10.3390/nu14030631. PMID: 35276989; PMCID: PMC8839325.
- Grundler F, Séralini G-E, Mesnage R, Peynet V and Wilhelmi de Toledo F (2021) Excretion of Heavy Metals and Glyphosate in Urine and Hair Before and After Long-Term Fasting in Humans. Front. Nutr. 8:708069. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2021.708069
- Napoleão A, Fernandes L, Miranda C, Marum AP. Effects of Calorie Restriction on Health Span and Insulin Resistance: Classic Calorie Restriction Diet vs. Ketosis-Inducing Diet. Nutrients. 2021 Apr 15;13(4):1302. doi: 10.3390/nu13041302. PMID: 33920973; PMCID: PMC8071299.
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William is from Canada, he is passionate nutrition & wellness writer. William understands that the topic of wellness is still not well understood, so his goal is to enlighten and teach people how to live healthier and happier in their bodies.
