The keto diet is hugely popular on online forums such as Reddit.
Many enjoy the plan because it doesn’t restrict high fat foods most like such as cheese, steak and bacon.
However, carbs are out of the equations.
That means no bread, no pasta, and even no fruits like bananas.
Keto cycling could help those who find themselves craving carbs on the plan.
What is keto cycling?
Keto cycling is when you have, what is essentially, a cheat day when you eat higher carbs.
The keto diet aims to put the body into a state of ketosis. This is when it switches from using carbs as its primary source of fuel to fats. For many this helps the weight drop off.
Having one higher carb day can shift the body back out of ketosis.
Robert Santos-Prowse, R.D.N., author of The Ketogenic Mediterranean Diet, told Women’s Health that it can help to regulate your hormones on the diet.
He said: “There’s some indication that prolonged carb restriction may be disruptive to thyroid hormone levels, which can be particularly frustrating if you’re trying to do keto for weight loss.”
He also warned a high carb day might cause you to weigh more, but this is just temporary.
“When you get back into ketosis, this water weight should come back off,” he said.
An internet user revealed how the keto diet plan helped her to lose 6.5 stone.
The dieter, who goes by the screen name “imbatman4890”, posted her results on Reddit.
Sharing a before and after image, she wrote: “My goal was to lose 100lbs in one year…I’m 3 weeks and 9lbs away from my one year mark.”
The woman revealed she’d slimmed down from 18st 1lb to a much healthier 11st 7lb for her 5ft 2in frame, after embarking on the keto diet.
“Keto and strict exercise schedules,” she replied when asked how she managed to achieve her weight loss.
The usual breakdown for a keto diet is to get 70 per cent to 80 per cent of your daily calories from fat.
Twenty to 25 per cent should come from fat and five – 10 per cent from carbs.
So, if you get hungry between meals what can you have?
Keto diet snacks
- Nuts
- Olives
- Cheese
- Eggs
- Carrot sticks and cream cheese
- Jerky
- Pork scratchings
- Dark chocolate
Nutritionist Hebe Mills, founder of Hebe Mills Nutrition, is an associate nutritionist.
She runs her website and Instagram account where she posts recipes and wellness tips after being diagnosed with gluten intolerance and IBS.
She revealed the best keto foods, and told Express.co.uk: “It’s important to try and include a variety of foods while embarking on the diet to ensure you’re getting a range of nutrients.
“Focus on foods with a varied nutrient profile including.”
Best keto foods
- Seafood including salmon, shellfish and tuna
- Non-starchy vegetables such as spinach, broccoli, kale and cauliflower
- Avocados, nuts and seeds
- Berries