PERSONAL TRAINING: NUTRITION 401: The Caveman Diet
Ketones and Fat Loss
Initially, you may experience light-headedness, fatigue, general irritability, or flu-like symptoms, but these problems usually only last a few days. These deleterious effects occur because your brain takes a period of time to switch from using carbohydrates to ketones for energy.
Ketones are produced in the body when you begin to use your own fat stores to produce energy. That headache that you may suffer the first few days is an indicator that you have gotten your body’s chemistry to do exactly what you wanted – to start burning fat for energy.
Supplements That Work to Get You Over the Effects of Ketosis
The temporary negative effects of ketones can be ameliorated with regular eating – as often as every two hours. Supplementation with fish oil helps to stabilize insulin levels and keep your energy on an even keel. If you suffer from sugar cravings, you can use glycine to curb your urges.
Glycine is a non-essential amino acid that has a sweet taste. It has many applications in nutrition, including acting as a precursor to glutathione, one of the most powerful antioxidants in the body.
Glycine raises growth hormone and produces a soothing effect on the body, which is one way that it reduces sugar cravings.
Other supplements that help to reduce the period of adaptation include a good multivitamin and antioxidant formula, and a green drink. The multivitamin / antioxidant formulas serve as nutritional insurance and buffer stress levels, while green drinks alkalize the digestive tract. Increased acidity in the gut from high protein foods may also be a cause of carbohydrate cravings; it is basically a defense mechanism by your body to maintain-homeostasis. Here at our center in New York, our athletes and personal training clients make use of both to get the best results.
