Whether you’re new to keto, a seasoned veteran looking for new recipes, or just thinking about trying low carb because you think it’ll help you with your goals, this free 7-day keto meal plan with a grocery list for beginners is going to benefit you.
What Is The Keto Diet
By going keto, you’re fundamentally changing the way that your body uses food for energy. Instead of being dependent on carbohydrates and glycogen, instead you’re going to be a fat fueled machine. The ketogenic diet, in short, is a way of eating that balances macronutrients (the things that make up calories) into high fat, moderate protein, and low (or very little) carbohydrates. Traditionally speaking, the keto diet has been used in medicine to help people with things like epilepsy or cancer, and nowadays, it has gained traction for helping individuals that are pre-diabetic, severely overweight, looking to lose weight quick, and more.
What Is A Keto Meal Plan
A keto meal plan is just what it sounds like - a meal plan to follow for 7-days that is nutritious, delicious, extremely low carb, and something that you can follow while focusing more on how you feel, rather than what to eat. Since the keto diet is so restrictive, and you cannot really eat out (hardly at all, at least without a little planning ahead), a keto meal plan is simple, straightforward, and easy to eat saving you both time and money.
Who Is The Keto Diet Meal Plan For
The keto diet is great for individuals who suffer from neurological diseases, like epilepsy, cancer, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), migraines, concussions, and Alzheimer’s. In diet culture, the ketogenic diet is widely adopted for helping individuals who need to lose a significant amount of weight (we’re talking 40 lbs plus), who are potentially pre-diabetic or type II diabetic, and more. When you reduce carbohydrates, it helps to reduce blood sugar and insulin levels, teaching the body to use dietary fat and stored body fat for your metabolic processes and energy pathways. [R]
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Who Is the Keto Diet Meal Plan For
The Keto diet, since it eliminates (basically) carbohydrates altogether, may not be a good idea for someone who experiences low blood pressure, kidney stones, constipation, who experiences nutrient deficiencies or heart disease. Keto is also NOT a good idea for anyone who has had issues with their internal organs, such as their pancreas, liver, gallbladder, or thyroid, as the intended effects are contradicted in these types of individuals. [R]
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Who Is The Keto Diet Meal Plan Not For
Individuals who are performing regular, heavy exercise, involving weight training are not recommended to go keto. Individuals who work laborious jobs, who enjoy outdoor activities, and who are active with their families and friends are also not recommended to go the keto diet meal plan route. The reason? Keto limits both protein and carbohydrates, which are the main sources of energy and macronutrients required to build, rebuild, and sustain muscle mass in the body. Individuals who do not need to lose more than 10-20 lbs are also not recommended to go keto, as people on the ketogenic diet initially experience rapid weight loss up to 10 lbs in two weeks or less. This diet has a diuretic effect, and some early weight loss is due to water weight loss followed by a fat loss. [R]
How Long Can You Be Keto
A ketogenic diet may be followed for a minimum of 2 to 3 weeks up to 6 to 12 months. Close monitoring of renal functions while on a ketogenic diet is imperative, and the transition from a ketogenic diet to a standard diet should be gradual and well-controlled.
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Does The Ketogenic Diet Work
The typical American diet is comprised of anywhere from 30-55% of total daily calories from carbohydrates (around 200-350g per day). While processed and fast food has become a cheaper and faster alternative to real food, this means that refined carbohydrates and sugar-laden foods are being consumed at a higher rate than ever. This has contributed to a 44% increased prevalence of metabolic syndrome and obesity, a 26% increase in developing diabetes mellitus, and nearly 45% of cardiometabolic deaths were associated with suboptimal intakes of 10 dietary factors (nutrients from real food). [R]
That all being said, a recent systemic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials comparing the long-term effects (greater than 1 year) of dietary interventions on weight loss showed no sound evidence for recommending low-fat diets. In fact, low-carbohydrate diets led to significantly greater weight loss compared to low-fat interventions. [R] So that being said, it may be better to just limit processed and refined carbohydrates, in general, as compared to going keto, to reduce overall weight and improve metabolic conditions.
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The Problem With The Keto Diet
In the keto diet specifically, due to the severely limiting foods, rules, and restrictions, long-term compliance is low. While the keto diet can help with significant weight loss in a very short amount of time, individuals may also experience the ‘keto flu’, nausea, vomiting, leg cramps, bad breath, digestive issues, nutrient deficiencies, rebound weight gain, brain fog, a lack of mental clarity, and many other symtoms. If you experience this, we do recommend that you stop the diet and start to reduce the amount of fat you’re consuming, while increasing both protein and carbohydrates.
The other problem with the keto diet and keto diet meal plans it that they can reinforce stigmas, rules, restrictions, and the diet culture mentality. Inherently, natural food grown and sourced from the Earth is not bad for you. Often times the bigger thing to address with individuals is not penalizing food, but rather, taking a good hard look at the lifestyle choices, behaviors, food consumption, and access to food, that are contributing to an individuals weight gain and loss of overall health.
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Nutrition Coaching For The Keto Diet
Nutrition coaching is an immersive experience where you can work 1:1 with a dedicated nutritionist or professional nutrition coach to not only refine and improve your overall relationship with food, but to transcend your health with best practices and health in mind. For some, this might mean implementing the keto diet and following the keto diet meal plan. For others, this might mean following a more balanced, lower carbohydrate focused lifestyle, while improving food quality and food choices along the way.
While for others, this might mean following a high carbohydrate and low fat lifestyle, to optimize body composition and athletic performance outcomes. Whatever your goal, whatever your path, working 1:1 with a nutrition coach for your health, lifestyle, and fitness goals is the best way to get directed information for you and your life, rather than the generalized information and cookie cutter plans you can find on the internet.
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Following The Free 7 Day Keto Diet Meal Plan For Beginners
By downloading the free 7 day keto diet meal plan for beginners as provided by the professionals at The Swole Kitchen, you’re going to gain access to a 7-day rubric that you can prep, follow, and monitor your progress with. It does come with recipes and a grocery list so that you know exactly what and how much of each ingredient and food item to get at the grocery store without having to guess. In coaching with The Swole Kitchen, you can get meal plans like this each week, curated to you, your lifestyle, routines and food preferences, to take your health, fitness, and nutritional knowledge to the next level.
RECOMMENDED: Schedule A Free 1:1 Nutrition Consultation
7-Day Keto Diet Meal Plan For Beginners: Takeaway
While the keto diet and keto diet meal plan for beginners can definitely help, it can also not be the right path forward for some individuals. When approaching a keto diet or keto diet lifestyle, we recommend consulting and working with a dedicated 1:1 nutrition coach to optimize your experience, have a soundboard, and to make sure that you’re being as nutritious as possible, to avoid any negative and unwanted side effects of the keto diet and going low/no carb.
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