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If you are not getting enough fats in your meals on the keto diet, you are not alone. We have been taught that fat should be avoided and used in moderation.
But:
with the keto diet, that rule is out the door. On the keto diet, we push healthy fats so that our primary source of daily calories is fat. Learn which fats and oils work on the keto diet.
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Keto Diet Fats are important. So important, that they make up to 75% of your daily caloric intake.
Your daily fat intake can come from:
- fattier cuts of meat,
- fruit such as avocado, and
- oils such as coconut oil, avocado oil, and olive oil.
Other sources of fat include butter, ghee, nuts and seeds, and fats from meat such as chicken fat, bacon grease, and lard.
Eat Fat and Still Lose Weight
Yes, it’s hard to believe, but the keto diet allows these fats. You can eat them and still lose weight!
The keto diet works by restricting the foods that convert to glucose in the body. Processed, grain-based, and high sugar foods are eliminated. These foods typically contain carbohydrates that are converted to glucose in the body.
Restricting these foods limits glucose. This eventually causes your body to look for another fuel source. Fat.
Once your body converts to burning fat or moves into a state of ketosis, you are racing toward your goal of losing the weight and primarily the fat.
When planning your meals on the keto diet you need to think about fattier cuts of meat. Opposite to
Fats to Consider on the Keto Diet
Avocado
Avocado is a food we often think about as a fat, but in reality because of the seed, it is also technically a fruit. Filling, satisfying and high fiber, avocados are a great addition to the keto diet.
Highly nutritious, avocados are good sources of vitamin K, folate, vitamin C, potassium, vitamins B5 and B6 and vitamin E.
100 grams of avocado contains approximately 160 calories, 2 grams of protein, 15 grams of fats, and 9 grams of carbohydrates. While the number of carbohydrates may make you take a step back at first glance, the great thing is 7 of those grams of carbohydrates are fiber. This means that a 100-gram serving has 2 net carbohydrates. What a deal!
The primary fat in avocados is
Interest in adding healthy plant-based fats to the diet is on the rise. And with that interest, there has been an expansion of new products you can purchase that are avocado-based.
So if you are someone that doesn't care for the texture of the avocado fruit, then you can still add it to your diet in the form of cooking spray to mayonnaise to avocado oil. Amazon has a good selection of Avocado Products.
So go ahead and indulge in avocado.
Coconut Oil
Coconut oil is an interesting oil because it is a solid at room temperature. It offers many health benefits, especially when considering the keto diet. Expressed from the flesh of coconuts, it is often categorized as either unrefined or refined.
Refined coconut oil has been processed, which causes it to lose much of its coconut flavor. This processing is also suggested to contribute to
So to take advantage of coconut oil benefits and look for cold-pressed varieties. They have processing that limits the temperature effects and allows the coconut oil to retain benefits.
Coconut oil is considered a saturated fat. Saturated fats should be limited. But coconut oil contains over 50% of its fat as lauric acid, which is a medium-chain fatty acid.
Lauric acid was studied and found when ingested to increase HDL or good cholesterol levels. Other studies found that while coconut oil will increase total and LDL or bad cholesterol levels, it does so less than butter.
Another benefit of coconut oil is that it is made up of medium-chain fatty acids. They provide a good energy boost. Sent directly to the liver, coconut oil will give you an energy boost or will be converted to ketones by the liver.
Coconut oil makes a good keto cooking oil. So stir a tablespoon into your morning coffee, cook your eggs, or use for baking or frying your meals to add fat to your keto diet.
Lastly, coconut oil is a key component of Fat Bombs. These high fat treats are a great way to include adequate fat in your diet which helps manage food cravings. Check out this Sweet and Savory Fat Bomb Cookbook.
Butter
In the past Butter was
Lauric acid has been studied and found to raise HDL cholesterol, the good cholesterol. Conjugated linoleic acid was studied for its effect on reducing fat and increasing muscle mass.
Besides saturated fats, butter is a good source of vitamin A, vitamin K, and vitamin E as well as selenium and iodine, both of which are building blocks of thyroid hormone.
Grass-fed forms of butter, such as the popular butter brand KerryGold have a higher nutrient content than standard forms of butter and may be worth the extra cost.
Ghee
Ghee is a type of clarified butter. To clarify butter is a process that separates milk solids from the fat. Ghee is prepared by melting and then simmering butter on very low heat. Any impurities are skimmed off the top of the melted butter. Some milk solids will separate and settle to the bottom. What is kept
Because milk solids are removed, Ghee is less likely to spoil and less likely to burn than butter. The removal of milk solids may make Ghee be a good option for people who are lactose intolerant.
Olive Oil
Olive Oil is the staple at my house for cooking. It can be used for cooking, in baking, for drizzling, and for dressings. It replaced common vegetable oils in my cooking years ago.
Like me you have probably seen all the varieties of olive oils marketed and wondered is there a difference?
In reality, there are many things that can impact the olive oil you select to cook with. Olives are typically harvested from October until February.
When they are harvested impacts their flavor. An early harvest produces an oil with a greener, sharper taste, and is thought to contain more healthful benefits. As the olive stays on the vine and continues to ripen, its color will darken and its flavor will become milder.
Knowledge of when to harvest the olive is important.
Harvesting too early can produce
Where the olives are grown, including weather, soil conditions, and how the olives are processed can also impact its flavor. Olives are primarily grown in Europe including Greece, Spain, Italy, and France, California, and Australia.
Olive oil is made by grinding olives into a paste and then extracting the oil. Cold extraction of olive oil means that the process is completed at a temperature no higher than 77 degrees. This results in a higher quality olive oil that benefits in taste, texture, and aroma.
Some olive oils may be filtered, providing a clear appearance and a longer shelf life. As would be expected, filtering often impacts the flavor of the olive oil.
Extra virgin olive oil is the highest quality grade of olive oil, typically providing the best taste, texture and aroma. Virgin olive oil is a lesser grade of olive oil.
Olive oils labeled as refined are filtered with charcoal or other physical filters, often with a resulting impact on taste. When you see a label of Pure olive oil, you are purchasing an oil that is primarily refined olive oil supplemented with virgin olive oil to improve its flavor.
For more information on selecting the best olive oil, take a peek at my post, 4 Things to Consider When Purchasing Olive Oil.
Bacon Grease
Bacon Grease is delicious fat to keep available. Growing up, my grandparents kept a jar of bacon grease by the stove. They would add a little to the
Adding bacon or bacon grease to your dish is a good way to increase the fat but also the flavor of the meat. For example, wrapping a chicken breast or a filet with bacon, just makes the meat more flavorful.
Cooking More and Looking for More Kitchen Storage
Consider adding a kitchen island for more counter space and storage. I love this open shelf model from Flora Home that comes with a convenient drawer and two shelves. Reasonably priced too!
If you are looking for more flexibility, this Windham Wood Top Kitchen Island comes with wheels on 2 feet for better portability. It also has open and closed storage areas and 2 drawers. An added bonus is a towel rack and hooks for additional organization. Take a look!
MCT Oil
MCT Oil or medium-chain triglyceride oil is derived from coconut oil. If you read many Keto blogs you will see a lot of reference to MCT oil. It has become desirable because it is composed of triglycerides that are medium length and easier to digest. Our bodies also process MCT oil in beneficial ways such as the conversion into ketones in the liver.
Suggested benefits to the ingestion of MCT oil include support of weight loss, increased energy, increased fat burning during exercise, to the potential benefit of health conditions such as diabetes, autism, Alzheimer’s disease, and Epilepsy.
The benefit to health conditions may be how easily MCT oil is converted into ketones in the liver. More research is needed in these areas b
Used as a daily supplement, and kept to moderate ingestion of 1-2 tablespoons per day, MCT oil may be a fat option to add to your keto diet.
Nuts and Seeds
Lastly, Nuts and Seeds are great fat to add to the keto diet. Typically, higher in fat than carbohydrates, good amounts of fiber, and packed with vitamins and nutrients, nuts and seeds are good supplements to the keto diet.
BUT: you do need to monitor your intake and portion because these tasty additions are not zero
Used as an addition to a recipe, they add great texture and flavor, with manageable amounts of carbohydrates.
I suggest using the USDA Food Composition Database to help you determine the carbohydrate impact of adding nuts and seeds to your recipe.
For example, pecans are my favorite nut. According to the USDA Food Composition Database, an ounce or 28 grams of these savory snacks contain 19 grams of fat, 2 grams of protein, 6 grams of carbohydrate, of which 2 grams is fiber.
So in that ounce of nuts, you are consuming 4 grams of “net” carbohydrates. To put this in perspective, an ounce is approximately 15 pecan halves. For me, it wouldn’t long to double this amount if I didn’t weigh my snack.
I always recommend a food scale for people on the keto diet. Check out this scale:
Ozeri ZK-14S Pronto Digital Multifunction Food Scale. Sleek and accurate, it instantly converts grams to ounces depending on your recipe units.
There you have it. The icing on the keto diet cake. The Keto Diet good fats that you can add to create tasty, satisfying meals to help you lose weight on the keto diet!
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Medical Disclaimer
This site contains general information about diet, health, fitness, and nutrition. This information should not be used to diagnose, treat, prevent, or cure any disease or condition. Please consult with your physician before using any dietary supplement or before beginning a diet or exercise program.
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