I Did The Keto Diet For A Month And Here's How It Went

Outfit: Top - Mango (size up for slouchy fit!) / Shorts - Custom

I'm not a diet person in the slightest. I usually get bored with it easily or just have too much of a sugar craving that I bail. I don't try diets out a lot, so when I decided to embark on the keto journey, I went into it thinking "I'll be done with it within a week". And now here we are, a month later and I have never ever been stricter with myself. It's a miracle. 

I decided to do the keto diet at the beginning of August with my mum for a few reasons. 

a.) I wanted to kickstart some extra weight loss.

b.) I wanted to test myself and cut carbs and sugar for a while. 

c.) I thought, "hey, this may just help with my bloating". 

So Mum and I decided to do it together, and honestly I'm glad that I had a partner in this because there were days I needed the motivation. But surprisingly there were not as many down days as I thought there would be. I thought I would be craving carbs and sugar, but I could survive without them. Or I had alternatives. 

The Keto Diet kickstarts the body into ketosis, which is a metabolic process where the body uses fat as fuel for energy as opposed to carbs. This happens because you ultimately reduce your carb intake so then your body has to search for other fuel for you to go throughout the day. 

So you cut carbs completely and I'm talking the complex carbs like pasta, rice, potatoes, carrots etc. Yep, even some vegetables because fun fact, they also hold carb levels that can be high. Another shocker? You can't have fruit. Next to no fruit, which sucked because I thought it would be my saving grace during sugar craving moments. But thank the heavens, you can have berries because they are low in "net carbs", which I'll explain in a moment. So strawberries, raspberries, blueberries and blackberries are a yes on the diet. 

Green veggies are your friends on this one, plus tomatoes and avocados. You can eat avocados like you life depends on it. The other shocker - cheese. I'll say it again, thank the heavens for cheese because it just made this diet all the more enjoyable. Also, butter and cream - a yes. Shocking again, I know. Of course you can also eat meat and seafood, it's recommended that you do alongside nuts, eggs and coconut. Check out the full recommended list here so I don't drone on. 

And so, back at the beginning of August I started this diet and let me tell you it wasn't as bad or hard as I thought it would be, so much so that I kind of don't want it to end. 

Now for any of my friends who are reading this, know I have been on the diet and beg me to stop because they want me to eat junk with them (especially you, Mehr), don't worry I am... kind of. Of course it's important to have balance and I plan on eating a big bowl of pasta one of these days, but I've really seen and felt the effects on my body, which I want to continue. 

I can't tell you in numbers whether I've lost weight because go figure, I don't have a scale. BUT, I feel it and see it in the mirror. Honestly, scales sometimes drive me a little insane because the number will be more than I think and I'll just go into a downward spiral. Yet if I see change in the mirror, major visible change, then I know whatever I'm doing it working and that's happened over this month on keto. 

That's not to say I didn't have my down days. 

Around the middle of the second week, I had a slight case of what they call "the keto flu"; not actually a flu but you may feel a little bit nauseous, slightly ill in the "cold" department, very low on energy and so on. On the day I did feel like that, I kind of had to break the protocol of the diet and have a touch of sugar. And after that day, I was completely fine again. Of course your body is going through a lot within that first week or so as it kickstarts into this new metabolic process, so if you do decide to take on the keto diet, don't be afraid when you feel a bit crap. Just modify for the day and make sure you look after yourself first. It's just a diet, it's not your life. 

  

Just a few shameless meal pics to remember I did this diet. 1. Seed Cafe Hummus & Pumpkin Bowl (minus the carbs) / 2. Plus Nine Four Minced Lamb & Salad (I did not eat the tortilla at the bottom) / 3. Cheers Pub Chicken, Broccoli & Avocado Salad

Look I'm no nutritionist or heath expert, I'm just a girl who wanted to try a diet out to see if it would help her and it did! But I do want to warn you to check with your regular health expert before you do this diet. It's important to put your health first and make your body is okay to go into a new process.

But I will say that I enjoyed the diet to the point where I don't want to end it completely. Of course, I know that the diet needs to be broken and I'm doing that now. However, I plan on keeping up a regular routine of keto, whereby I reduce my complex carb intake to 2 days, 3 days max a week because that works for my digestion without completely bloating me up. I'm also going to keep the sugar intake low too, but if I do I'm going to choose fruits over chocolate. Good God, did I just say that? Did I just write that out on the internet? Ooh, this diet has changed me. 

I don't think I'd ever say I enjoyed a diet, but this one came pretty close to enjoyment and it made me a lot stricter. I learnt how to go out and eat comfortably and happily, which sometimes can be hard on diets! This was one was a lot easier to work around so that's a plus. Also, having a partner to do this with kept up the morale, so thank you Mumma. 

So if you were considering the keto diet in your future, here's my recommendations: first, check with your GP or nutritionist to make sure you're in the right capacity to take on the restrictive diet. Secondly, have something or someone to keep you going on it. Third, make sure you're comfortable with the food options you have available to you. And if you don't enjoy it, don't do it. It's not worth it if you are literally forcing yourself to do it. 

There's my experience for you. If you want to know more or want recipes that we tried, let me know! I'd love to share more.

Sending you lots of love and hoping you're staying safe,

Emily xx

The 16:8 Intermittent Fasting Diet: Here's How I Do It And Why

Over the past few years, health and fitness have become major priorities of my life. I didn't think I'd ever get into writing about it, but since I'm quite focused on it, I thought it would be great to share. 

Today's post is all about a diet. And I know what you're already thinking when you see the word diet - ugh, no please, I'm about to hate myself. But think again because I'm talking about intermittent fasting, specifically the 16:8 intermittent fasting diet. 

What is intermittent fasting? Basically, you spend a longer period of your day fasting, abstaining from food and a shorter period eating and fuelling your body. This type of diet is considered to be far more flexible than other diets because you can essentially eat what you want during that shorter time period, but for proper results, you won't be stuffing your face with all the junk after fasting. 

Intermittent fasting has been around for a very long time, originally being practiced in religions and cultures worldwide, but it's now being picked up as a good plan for weight loss that celebrities love. Queen Jennifer Aniston recently revealed she's on it too. Have I caught your interest now? 

Now before Jen Aniston revealed her love for the diet, my Mum and I have done it for a few months on and off, probably starting from the beginning of the year so we aren't rookies here. We have been practicing the 16:8 intermittent fasting which is when we spend 16 hours fasting and 8 hours eating. 

The reason I turned to the diet is to manage my bloating more than anything. My tum-tum has a mind of its own and loves to bloat a lot. A lot. So in limiting my nutritional hours, I give more time for my body to digest fully that which is already inside, aiding the bloating. Of course, it also works for weight loss too so that's a plus. As well as this, the diet is also believed to "improve blood sugar control, boost brain function and enhance longevity."(Healthline)

So this all sounds fine and dandy right? It actually is! It's pretty simple and is super flexible. I've found that other diets can make you overthink everything you put in your mouth and even rethink plans to go out because you're not sure you can even eat! Now why would you want to live like that? I'm sorry, but life is too short to not eat pasta and chocolate.

That being said it's important to understand that you should still be healthy on this diet. Yes you can have your little bit of sugar and carbs, but make sure you balance that out with your veggies and protein - maybe make those two more of a priority. 

I also workout on this plan - I'm in the gym 6 days a week. So how do you balance intermittent fasting if you're a gym-goer? Well what I don't like to eat before the gym in the morning because it makes me queasy. So I plan my fasting like so:

Food intake period: 12pm - 8pm

Fasting period: 8pm - 12pm

I usually head to the gym between 8am-10am (depending on the day), spend two hours there working and sweating my butt off, then by the time I'm done my fasting period is over! I can come home and have lunch. Now this may not work for everyone because some people may need a little something before you go to workout. This is where the flexibility of the diet comes in - you pick your fasting time and eating time. It's all up to you. 

What if you get a bit peckish during the fasting time? Well you can drink water, plain teas and black coffee (no added sugar or milk). I drink a lot of water, so that keeps my hunger at bay. However if you really feel like you're low on energy and about to collapse, then cut your fasting short! It's not worth it if you aren't feeling 100%. 

Example Meal: I actually ate this today - an omelette filled with onions, tomatoes and green chillies and a mukunuwenna salad (aka dwarf copperleaf, kind of like spinach but not...)

When it comes to eating, I have a protein & veggie heavy meals with a bit of carbs when I really need them. I usually have 2 proper meals, maybe 3 sometimes if I'm really in need and I'll have snacks in between, just so that my body gets the full nourishment. I'm trying to decrease the amount of carbs and sugar I intake more now too, to see what extra benefits it gives me. I'll let you know what happens there. 

I now do this pretty much everyday because it really helps my digestive system, but to start off I'd suggest you go with once or twice a week to get into the flow of it. Once you feel comfortable, then you can up the amount of days you intermittent fast! Also, make sure you take breaks too. So if you're doing it for say 3 weeks straight, take a week off and allow your body to have a break too.

If you're rubbish at keeping track at these things, you can even try it with the DoFasting app, that helps you start off with different fasting periods & times, plus gives you a timer, recommended meals and even fitness plans. I'm not using it myself, but I've heard it can be quite handy!

I hope this gives you a good simple outline of the diet! What do you think? Would you like to know more or want me to record more of my process with it? If you want to learn more, I've got a few links here and here for you to read up on your own. If you're looking to go on a diet that doesn't make you want to die, I highly suggest this one!

Lots of Love, 

Emily xx