Consuming high levels of protein in ones’ diet controls the level of insulin; “the master hormone of human metabolism.” Insulin helps regulate blood pressure, cholesterol, triglycerides, and fat storage. Ingesting carbohydrates the body produces a hormone called insulin. Research has shown that high levels of insulin, inhibits the breakdown of fatty deposits in the body. In contrast, low intake of carbohydrates keeps the insulin levels low, forcing production of a counterbalancing hormone called glucagone, which seeks energy from the body’s supply of stored fat. With that in mind, the body loses weight. Doing this long enough the fat melts away.
The initial phase of the diet (when carbohydrates are severely restricted) will almost certainly put you in a state of ketosis, which happens when fat breaks down to the point where ketone bodies are produced and excreted into the urine. Ketones are incompletely burned fat. So that any ketones you get rid of without actually using them for energy, means you are ditching unwanted fat without having to actually burn it off.
One might ask if ketosis is dangerous? Not at all, ketones are the natural by-product of fat breakdown. They are normal and important sources of energy. The most important way of ridding the body of ketones is fluid intake. A minimum of 64 oz of water-based fluids daily is urged in order to flush the body’s cells of “fat waste” out.
While in ketosis, exercise such as resistance training is encouraged because it stimulates the release of growth hormone more quickly than aerobic exercise. It is important because growth hormone shifts the metabolism to the preferential use of stored fat for energy. In essence, while in the state of ketosis, combined with resistance training, you increase the rate of burning fat.
Sources: Eades, M. Protein Power, 1998, Bantam Books. Bonnie Brehm, PhD, assistant professor of nutrition, the University of Cincinnati’s College of Allied Health Sciences, Cincinnati. Susan B. Roberts, PhD, professor of nutrition and psychiatry, Tuffs University, Boston
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