Keto

Today I'll talk about keto. I was introduced to the concept by our kitchen contractor, Paul. He lost some weight and told me he had gone "keto". I didn't even know how to spell it, but soon was pretty well informed due to some judicious google-ing. Basically you avoid sugar and carbs which are one and the same. The healthiest keto diet features lots of green veg and a good balance of healthy fats and protein. Dr Eric Berg on youtube has lots of informative videos.   In my situation I realized that I was generally eating toast and drinking coffee, with sugar and milk (my delicious homemade latte) for breakfast. Toast = carbs and sugar is sugar = carbs. I love potato chips. Lay's potato chips btw. They are carbs.
  I also have never been much of a breakfast eater - for 15 years (thru 2005) I was a traffic reporter on radio and TV and was on the air at 5 am. I drank coffee non stop and almost never ate a thing until I got home at 9:30 am.  So when I read about intermittent fasting (which is also recommended on keto) I realized I naturally did that for years while working (almost, the sugar and milk in the coffee broke my fast somewhat) and I have always been slender. My bff is slender and she never eats until dinnertime. She's an intermittent faster and doesn't know it! She just follows her body's signals and eats when she is actually hungry.
The benefits of keto are weight loss and less joint inflammation - which is arthritis.  In my case I lost 10 pounds almost effortlessly and could feel that my aches and pains were definitely lessened.  When I stopped watching carb intake I gained back the weight and felt the joint pain again.   I don't follow the 'diet' religiously but I do my version. I don't eat until about noon, just my apple cider vinegar in a big glass of water and black coffee till then. I don't buy Lays. I read labels and choose my food more thoughtfully. I have my favorite keto friendly foods: egg salad - really anything egg, poached, scrambled etc. Avocado, broccoli, asparagus, cheese/salami (who doesn't love a good cheese plate? - just avoid the crackers!, almonds and other nuts..and again an emphasis on green veg. I have never been a big fruit eater and fruit is very sugary, so I don't miss fruit. I do have keto friendly blueberries on my yogurt sometimes.
xo,
La