Has anyone in the strength sports community not heard of the keto diet, unless they’ve been living under a rock? This diet allows you to consume as much bacon and avocado as you want, while simultaneously burning fat, preserving muscle, and excelling in your sport, by simply eliminating carbohydrates. However, can it enhance your strength?
Despite the continuous rise in popularity of the ketogenic diet since its introduction to the mainstream years ago, its impact in the field of nutrition remains significant. Although some argue that it can enhance the performance of strength athletes, there is still ongoing debate surrounding its effectiveness.
Keto Diet and Ketosis
The ketogenic diet, also known as keto, aims to maintain the body in a continuous state of ketosis, wherein the body produces ketones from fats for energy instead of relying on carbohydrates, which are the body’s main and preferred source of energy.
Some variations of a keto diet completely eliminate carbohydrates, while a standard one consists of 70 percent of total calories from fat, 25 percent from protein, and only five percent (approximately 50 grams) from carbohydrates.
stop eating carbs
— a sure sign is when your breath starts to smell of acetone, a ketosis by-product.
For a person weighing 140 pounds, around 50 grams of protein per day, or 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight, is the recommended daily allowance (RDA).
However, an analysis published in the journal Food & Function argues that the recommended daily allowance (RDA) is not enough to adequately support the development of strength and muscle during physical activity. To illustrate, a person weighing 140 pounds who engages in high levels of physical activity would require twice the RDA, equivalent to 100 grams of protein daily.
Many people on the Keto diet are not consuming enough protein, which is a considerable amount required. This is partly due to the confusion surrounding the macronutrients (fat, protein, and carbs) on Keto. To clarify, a modified version of the Ketogenic diet consists of high fat, moderate to high protein, and extremely low carbohydrate intake. In terms of calories, it consists of approximately 60% fat, 30% protein, and less than 10% carbohydrates.
However, it is often overlooked that a gram of fat holds 9 calories, while a gram of protein or carbohydrate contains only 4 calories. Protein and carbohydrates are less energy dense compared to fat. Therefore, on a 60/30/10 Keto diet, it is important to consume a larger portion of protein in relation to fat, considering their mass. This should be considered when planning low-carb meals.
In brief, the body’s ATP-CP energy system is primarily utilized by strength athletes when they perform exercises with low repetitions, such as one to three reps. This energy system supplies the body with a limited amount of energy in rapid bursts, making it suitable for short duration workouts.
Dr. Mike T. Nelson, CSCS, an adjunct professor at the Carrick Institute, questions the energy source utilized by strength athletes due to the lack of sufficient direct data.
Ketosis may be acceptable for athletes engaged in Olympic lifting and powerlifting as they primarily rely on the ATP-CP energy system due to the intense explosive power required and short duration of time involved. These athletes often have prolonged rest periods between their brief, high-intensity exertions.
He clarifies that keeping sets between approximately one and three reps with extensive rest periods of three to five minutes can sufficiently restore ATP levels (a form of energy transfer within cells) even if you are in a state of ketosis. However, if you increase the volume, it will be necessary to consume carbohydrates in order to replenish the body’s energy reserves that become active once ATP-CP is depleted.
How Keto Preserves Muscle
Multiple studies have shown that the properties of Keto may provide an explanation for individuals achieving increased strength and power, while also preserving muscle, in the absence of carbohydrates.
Take into consideration the following:
- Beta-hydroxybutryate (BHB)—the main energy ketone—interacts with leucine to promote muscle protein synthesis and prevent muscle breakdown.
- Low carb diets are generally higher in protein (the crucial ingredient for muscle growth) than high-carb diets.
- The Keto diet may increase adrenaline, which inhibits muscle breakdown.
- A small study found that a Keto diet increased testosterone (an anabolic hormone) vs. a high-carb western diet.
- Another study found that a Keto diet increased IGF-1 (another growth factor) in skeletal muscle vs. a high-carb western diet.
It should not be implied that Keto is the most effective diet for building muscle. If your goal is to significantly increase muscle mass, it is recommended to consume carbohydrates along with protein during your strength training sessions to stimulate the production of insulin, which is also responsible for fat storage.
Although both groups had similar strength gains, bodybuilders who followed a high-carb diet experienced greater muscle gains compared to those on a Keto diet, with only the high-carb group showing statistically significant results.
However, if your main objective is not solely focused on building muscle, it is still possible to increase or sustain muscle on a Keto diet. Keep in mind that you must consume an excess of calories, an ample amount of protein, and engage in a strength training regimen. Without these three components, achieving lean muscle mass on Keto will pose a challenge.
How To Build Strength On Keto
Strength training on Keto is simple. All you need to do is consume sufficient protein, engage in weightlifting, and allow your muscles adequate time to recuperate after each session.
If you want to build muscle, increase your intake of fat and protein calories. Beginning with a 10% increase in your daily calorie intake is a suitable starting point, but it is advisable to experiment to determine the most effective approach for your body.
When it comes to weight training, you have numerous options available. If your goal is to build muscle, consider following a program that focuses on low repetitions and heavy weights.
When Keto is a Terrible Choice for Strength Athletes
Engaging in high-repetition activities leads to a reliance on carbohydrates by the energy systems, making the keto diet less suitable for strength sports that involve extensive volume. Hence, individuals who prioritize functional fitness, CrossFit, strongman, bodybuilding, or any strength sport that involves high volume are advised to avoid the keto diet.
Dr. Mike Israetel, an assistant professor of nutrition, exercise science, and public health at Temple University and co-founder of fitness company Renaissance Periodization, warns that as the volume of training increases, the effectiveness of keto diminishes. He strongly advises against following a keto diet for sets consisting of more than six repetitions and states that attempting to pursue keto while engaging in CrossFit, in particular, is an exceptionally ill-suited combination.
The body predominantly relies on the glycolytic energy system, fueled by glucose derived from carbohydrates, when engaging in high-intensity workouts lasting from one to three minutes. If an individual is in ketosis, their glycolytic system lacks efficiency, leading to a decline in performance.
Surprisingly, individuals following the keto diet may not have reduced glycogen levels in their muscles. Nonetheless, when in ketosis, if the body believes it needs to rely on ketones for energy, it might not efficiently utilize the stored carbohydrates. Even if the body possesses all the necessary components for its glycolytic system, it will not function optimally, or perhaps not function at all.
According to Nelson, the problem lies in accessing rather than the quantity of what is being stored. Comparing it to a gas tanker truck that gets stopped on the side of the road due to running out of gas, it is not that there is no gas in the truck; rather, there is no direct connection to the engine.
Although the volume is usually lower, strongman still operates under the same rules. This sport usually demands around 30 to 90 seconds of continuous and consistent effort, making it reliant on carbohydrates as its primary energy source.
According to Israetel, transitioning from shorter events to longer events such as stone loading and log for reps, and deadlift for reps would result in paying the price of ketosis. This means that there would be a few missed reps on all exercises. However, it is not advisable for enhancing performance.
Athletes engaged in endurance running may exhibit satisfactory performance with ketosis due to the low intensity nature of their sport, allowing them to effectively utilize ketones as a fuel source.
It is worth mentioning that although ketosis may aid in reducing fat, it is likely not beneficial for building muscles. One reason for this is that insulin, contrary to the misconception of minimizing it completely, is actually very effective for promoting muscle growth.
Israetel states that within the bodybuilding community, low-carb diets like keto are highly favored during fat loss stages, but very few bodybuilders continue with low carbs during muscle gain phases.
