Written by Anssi Manninen, MHS
08 March 2007
A recent one-year study led by Dr. Christopher Gardner at the Stanford University Medical School provides more support for the very low-carb (ketogenic) weight-loss diets. Gardner and colleagues randomly assigned 311 overweight/obese women to follow the very low-carb Atkins diet, the moderate-carb Zone diet, the traditional high-carb/low-fat diet, or extremely low-fat Ornish diet. Compared with the subjects who were assigned to follow higher carb diets, the Atkins dieters cut more extra lard and had more favorable changes in related metabolic risk factors (e.g., blood lipids, blood sugar). Also, the Atkins diet didn't cause any adverse side effects. If you wish to try a very-low-carb diet for fat loss, here are some tips:
  • 1. The most important point is to keep carbohydrate intake very low. Choose only low-glycemic, high-fiber carb sources (vegetables, legumes, etc.). Also, make sure you take in adequate amounts of protein with every meal, but too high a protein intake inhibits ketogenesis. Good protein sources include fish (healthy fats!), eggs, lean meats and carbohydrate-free protein powders. You hardly need to limit fat intake during a very low-carbohydrate diet. However, avoid trans fats.
  • 2. The most useful supplements include multivitamin/mineral complexes, pure creatine powder or a carb-free creatine transport formula plus a well-designed, fat loss-enhancing supplement.
  • 3. Remember to drink lots of water and other calorie-free fluids. Also, make sure you take in adequate amounts of potassium and sodium.
  • 4. You may need to modify your resistance-training program. For example, it's a good idea to focus on heavier weights for fewer reps (3-8), because the energy is primarily derived from creatine phosphate stores. Ingesting creatine monohydrate at a dosage of 20-30 grams per day for two weeks increases intramuscular concentrations of free creatine and creatine phopshate by up to 30 percent. Consequently, creatine can be a useful supplement in the very low-carb diet.

 

Reference: Gardner CD et al. JAMA, 2007;297:969-977.