Why do I need to eat fat on a Ketogenic Diet?

(David) #1

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I want to start my saying, I eat lots of fat on my Ketogenic diet, probably around 75%, I just don’t understand the reason why I need to. I re-started doing a ketogenic diet a few weeks ago, primarily to loose weight, but also to improve insulin sensitivity and other health benefits. The research that has been done on this diet is compelling to say the least, and for me it is a bit easier than other methods I’ve tried in the past. However, I am a little confused on some of the more technical aspects.

I understand that my body needs protein, there are essential amino acids, it helps to maintain muscle mass, repair and build new cells, etc… And, I know that some (although VERY little) carbohydrates are unavoidable since you need to eat some vegetables broccoli, asparagus, leafy greens, etc… The explanation that was given to me regarding carbohydrates was… that the human body has absolutely NO NEED for them, since it can make glucose, but that the body does need the vitamins, nutrients, minerals, and fiber… and those things would be very hard if not impossible to get without eating vegetables, which in reasonable quantities, have a negligible amount of carbohydrates, and that as long as you stay below 20 grams of carbs per day, you are fine.

But… WHY DO I NEED TO EAT SO MUCH FAT!!!

I know that there are essential fatty acids that my body needs, and I know that some vitamins are fat soluble, and need a certain amount of fat for absorption of those vitamin, and that the body also needs a certain amount of fat for hormone production. What I do NOT understand, is WHY DOES THE BODY NEED SO MUCH FAT?!?!?!

Keto guidelines dictate that a person eat between 60-80% of their calories from fat. But… WHY SO MUCH!!! Assuming I eat a reasonable amount of protien, I eat vegetables, and I eat some fat… wouldn’t that be fine?! I mean… the idea is… so long as I eat like that, doesn’t that mean that my body will have to rely more on my stored bodyfat for ketone fuel?! AND… if I eat a lot of dietary fat… why would my body need to use my bodyfat reserves if I am supplying all the fat is needs from my dietary intake???

Then, you have all these people who take MCT oil, and get creative with all kinds of ways to increase the fat content of their diet, so they can make sure that their diet is up in the 65-80% fat range. Why is it so important to take so much dietary fat, when I thought that was what my bodyfat was for???

Can someone please explain this to me???

#2

@PaulL just posted this excellent brief explanation.

#3

You answered your own question. There are only three macronutrients: fat, carbs, and protein. If you cut way back on one or two of them, then you need to increase the other one or two (or you’ll be chronically undernourished each day). So, if you want to decrease carbs and “eat a reasonable amount of protein,” your only remaining option is fat. Pretty simple, actually. If you move one lever down or up, the other levels have to move unless you want to undereat, calorie-wise.

#4

If you are eating fat to satiety and not gorging yourself on added/extraneous dietary fat, yes, you will turn to your bodyfat stores for energy (and weight loss).

(David) #5

Thank you for your answer Doctor, but is the 60-80% of daily calories really necessary, or can it be less like 40-50% of my daily calories?! The reason is because I have not been loosing weight on my ketogenic diet, except for the initial water-weight loss from the first week. I am 5ft 7inches tall, and I weight 217 pounds. I’m probably right about at 30% body fat. I have been doing keto for just over a months now. I lost like 6-7 pounds of water weight the first week. Four weeks in a row after that, and I have neither lost of gained another pound. Internet sources state that I need to create a calorie deficit to loose weight, but I find it hard to decrease my calories while maintaining the percentage fat at 70%, it also brings my protein grams low, also… how do I know how many calories I should be eating to safely loose weight?!

#6

I think there can be individual variation here. It could be that there hasn’t been enough time. I’ll tell you when I went away from keto and came back to it, my results were not as immediate as the first time. But, it’s possible that if you’re in ketosis but not losing weight, you may do a little better swapping out some of the fat for protein. That hasn’t been my experience but this is where other people on these forums have had very different results. So maybe try it. I think the fact that we all have to try this stuff for ourselves can be frustrating sometimes, so I sympathize. Beyond the basic principles that most of us agree on, everyone has an opinion about the rest. With patience you’ll get to know what works best for you.

just an addl note, I think most people find it not helpful to think of macros by percentage. Keep carbs under 20g, protein you can play with some but there are various equations out there, and fat to satiety (not to some calorie limit or goal).

(David) #7

I get what you are saying, but… since doing keto five weeks ago… I ONLY lost weight the first week, which was just water weight. I am 5ft 7inches tall, and I weight 217 pounds, at about 30% bodyfat. I lost only 6-7 pounds, all of which occurred the very first week. For the next 4 weeks, my body-weight has remained the same. Week after week it hovers between 216-218. I eat no carbs outside of maybe a cup of asparagus, broccoli, and/or leafy greens (Spinach and Kale). I eat a LOT of heavy cream, butter, red meat, and pork to keep my fat and protein high, but I am not loosing weight?!

Internet sources say that to loose weight, even on keto… I have to lower my calorie intake, but I find it hard to lower my total calories, while simultaneously maintaining a 60-80% fat ratio, and find that it means I have to lower my protein intake, which I don’t know is good. I get that the calories from fat need to go up on a ketogenic diet, but does it have to be up at 60-80%?! What about 40-50%??? Why would that not work well??? I mean the goal is to get my body to use my stored bodyfat, can’t it use that to compensate?!

(Frank) #8

Are you eating all this fat because you are hungry or because you are trying to hit a macro%? It was my experience that once I found myself force feeding myself to hit a number I started listening to my body and cut way back on my dietary fat intake. This was when the magic happened for me. The fat started coming off very quickly over the course of 3-4 months. It was during that time that I introduced omad and EF into my routine. Those kicked fat loss into high gear. Now that I’m close to or near my goal weight my hunger has kicked in again and I’m eating more regularly in order to achieve satiety. Still keeping carbs low and protein the same but dietary fat is on the rise again.

#9

Do you understand the difference between percentages and absolute values? Meaning, if you reduce your percentages of fat, something else (by definition) has to fill up the remaining spot to equal 100% of macros per day. In other words, if you reduce your fat percentages to 40% from 80%, by definition, carbs and/or protein will then fill in that space. This is somewhat what I was trying to get at above, but might not have done it very well.

(Frank) #10

That 75-80% ratio may come from dietary “or” body fat. Let your hunger instincts decide which one it needs to come from. Just think of your body fat as sticks of butter hanging off of you that your body uses itself for fuel.

#11

If I were you, I would start tracking carb grams, even if I thought I was always under the limit. I would also try to keep protein moderate, tracking for a short time just to make sure I can sort of eyeball what a certain number of protein grams looks like, and try to stay somewhere between 70-100g. Then I’d just eat whatever fat I need to in order not to be hungry. That’s it. I would try that for a few weeks before worrying any further.

(Brian) #12

I hope you are taking into account that a gram of fat is 9 calories while a gram of protein is 4 calories.

As a for instance, an egg has 6g of protein and 5g of fat. In calories, that works out to 24 calories worth of protein and 45 calories worth of fat. Kinda changes the perspective a little, doesn’t it?

(Sheri Knauer) #13

Perhaps you have some underlying metabolic issues that your body is working on fixing as well as going through the process of becoming fat adapted, which can take up to 6-8 weeks. Just make sure to keep your carbs 20g or less, don’t go overboard on protein, and eat fat until you are no longer hungry. Once you are fat adapted, you can incorporate some intermittent fasting to help bring your insulin level down. The longer you keep that insulin level low, the more your body will be able to tap into fat stores. Unless you are in a hurry to lose fat for some special event in X number of days, there is no need to rush. Stay the course and your body will respond positively. Also focus on other positive aspects of following a keto diet.

(David) #14

Thank you for your advise! Its just tricky for me to eat to satiety. The reason is because I rarely feel satiety when i am eating, and it can take quite a while after I eat to feel it. This in large part is how I ended up so overweight. When I eat… sometimes the hunger actually increases in the short term, causing me to overeat.

(David) #15

I understand what you are saying about percent values. My issue is that since I am not loosing weight, I will have to lower my caloric intake. I’m figuring out macros, but since my overall calories are going down, so will my fat and protien, but I want to keep my protein intake around 100-120 grams per day, since I am lifting weights, but its hard to maintain 60-80% of daily calories from fat, while keeping my protein up, and my calories down.

(David) #16

I do. That’s why I feel like I could do 50-55% fat, but even pushing to 60, while keeping my protein at around 100-120 per day, and my calories down is hard.

(David) #17

I’ll take your advise, and try this, but… generally when I use the urine ketone strips the paper turns anywhere from medium pink to maroon, so it would seem I am in ketosis based on that. I also can taste it too, I know that sounds weird, but I can. I get that ketone taste in my mouth, on the diet, and still have it.

#18

Starting keto is difficult.
The whole concept of human nutrition, as we have be told it, is turned on its head.
Then there is what style of food, what culinary tradition, is going to suit you most.
How to shop, and store this new grub…

But I think the answer to “Why so much fat?” is relatively easy. The answer is, “To change the physiology of probably almost all of our body’s cells”.

During the first few weeks and maybe months of keto we are advised to eat fat to satiety, that’s just enough to feel comfortable. This is a bit weird and takes some getting used to, as normally (or in the past, in our carb eating days) we would have biochemical signals to do with fullness associated with eating carbohydrates.

But it doesn’t matter if we get it wrong and eat too much fat, when we don’t recognise satiety, when we’re learning how to eat keto.

All this seemingly extra fat we eat, the butter and olive oil etc, changes how we metabolise fat. There is a development from fat metabolism primarily happening in the liver. The extra fat we eat gives our bodies something to play with, and slowly, slowly change occurs. We grow lots and lots of new mitochondria in almost every body cell. Each of these cells can then metabolise fat in situ, in the cell where the energy is needed.

When this happens we can then start burning our own stored body fat.

Mine has very much gone from under my chin: a new jaw line!

Yippee.

(Frank) #19

In your case I would slow down mealtime if possible and give your body a chance to “catchup “ to it’s satiety signals. Everything about this woe is a marathon and not a sprint. It’ll come. Keep the faith brother.

(David) #20

Thank you for the advise and encouragement! I will try that. Also, Congratulations on nearing your goal weight! I can’t wait to be where you are. Let me ask, did your cut back on your calories as the weight loss occurred, or did you keep it the same, and ABOUT how many calories were you eating in a day???