What Can a Vegetarian Eat When Following the KETO Diet

Keto is one of the diets that has been gaining popularity over the last few years. It is a high protein, and high fat diet that is low in carbohydrates. The goal of the diet is to send your body into a state of ketosis where your body stops burning glucose (the substance provided by carbs) and burns ketones (a substance produced by fat). It speeds up your metabolism, reduces your hunger, increases your muscle mass, and decreases your blood pressure and risk of heart disease.

It really is a fantastic diet, but it can be hard for non-meat eaters to participate in it. It may be difficult, but it is not impossible, for some people who don’t eat meat to live a keto lifestyle. Vegans cannot really participate in a keto diet because they cannot get all 9 essential amino acids that are needed for the body to function without eating some type of animal product. But simple vegetarians can achieve ketosis and gain its benefits.

In order to achieve ketosis, a person has to limit their net carb intake to 20 grams a day. This means you have to avoid a lot of plant based protein sources, like quinoa, legumes, lentils, and buckwheat. They have too many carbs to achieve ketosis. You also have to stay away from certain milk and low fat dairy products, starchy veggies, and fruits – not including certain berries.

The best non plant based sources of protein that let you achieve ketosis are below:

Egg

Eggs are one of the best sources of high quality protein in the world. They not only contain the majority of amino acids that you need, but they also contain choli which increases brain functionality.

Greek yogurt

Greek yogurt is a powerful source of protein; 170 grams of Greek yogurt has 15-20 grams of protein.

Hemp Seeds

Hemp seeds have a lot of protein while avoiding having a lot of starch.