The convergence of two popular health and wellness trends, the keto diet and the OMAD (One Meal A Day) approach, has garnered significant attention. This article delves into the potential benefits, practical implementation, and possible risks associated with combining these two dietary strategies.
Understanding OMAD
OMAD, an acronym for "One Meal A Day," represents a form of intermittent fasting (IF). Also known as the 23:1 method, OMAD involves 23 hours of fasting followed by a one-hour eating window. In essence, it's a time-restricted eating pattern where all daily calorie needs are met within a single meal.
The Keto Diet: A Primer
The ketogenic (keto) diet is a low-carbohydrate, high-fat dietary approach designed to shift the body's primary fuel source from glucose to ketones. This metabolic state, known as ketosis, is achieved by drastically reducing carbohydrate intake (typically to 20-50 grams per day) and increasing the consumption of healthy fats.
Synergistic Effects: How OMAD and Keto Work Together
Combining OMAD with a keto diet can potentially amplify the benefits of each individual approach. OMAD restricts the overall eating window, naturally limiting calorie intake, while the keto diet promotes fat burning and sustained energy levels through ketosis.
Enhanced Ketosis
The OMAD diet doesn’t specify what foods you ought to eat but instead focuses on when and how often you eat. This means your one meal a day will be packed full of all the nutrient-dense goodness of Keto foods. By significantly limiting carbohydrate consumption, the keto diet facilitates the entry into and maintenance of ketosis. The extended fasting periods inherent in OMAD further encourage the body to utilize stored fat for energy, deepening the state of ketosis. Pairing OMAD with Keto helps you stay in ketosis with little thought required. There’s only one meal to consider so as long as it's piled high with Keto-only foods you can be certain you’re in ketosis.
Read also: Keto Diet Meal Prep Ideas
Simplified Keto
Let’s be honest, going Keto can be a faff. There’s a large number of foods completely off-limits and this can be stressful to consider and organise when it’s new to you. With only one meal a day to plan and prepare your Keto routine can become a lot simpler. With only one meal a day to think about, prepare and clean up, you’ll find yourself with a lot more time.
Weight Loss
The OMAD diet means your body will stay in ketosis, and burn fat due to the reduced number of calories eaten only once a day.
Potential Benefits of Keto OMAD
Weight Management
The combination of OMAD and keto can be a powerful tool for weight loss and overall health improvement. By restricting carbohydrate intake and increasing fat intake, the Keto diet can help induce ketosis and promote fat as a source of energy. Individuals can further limit caloric intake and promote weight loss by consuming all daily calories in one meal with the OMAD diet.
Improved Insulin Sensitivity
The Keto diet can make your body more sensitive to insulin and help you control your blood sugar levels, benefiting individuals with type 2 diabetes or pre-diabetes.
Increased Energy Levels
By inducing ketosis and promoting fat as a source of energy, the Keto diet can increase energy levels. Additionally, OMAD can lead to increased energy levels by reducing overall caloric intake and promoting cellular repair and regeneration during fasting. By only eating during a short window of time each day, the body can focus its energy on other processes such as digestion, cellular repair, and hormone regulation.
Read also: A Deep Dive into the Carnivore Keto Diet
Mental Clarity
The Keto diet has improved brain function and increased mental clarity.
Autophagy and Cellular Repair
Intermittent fasting has been shown to induce autophagy, a survival mechanism in which the body destroys damaged cells and recycles functional parts for cellular repair. It is likely that at least low levels of autophagy are being activated by extending your daily fasting window to around 24 hours.
Longevity
OMAD and fasting show a lot of promise in the area of longevity. This may be due at least partly to the aforementioned process of autophagy.
Enhanced Digestion
Fasting for most of the day allows the digestive system to rest. This can help reduce gastrointestinal irritation and inflammation linked to food sensitivities, especially in those with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) or other gastrointestinal disorders.
Mood Enhancement
OMAD involves prolonged fasting periods, which helps keep blood sugar levels stable and may explain why consuming only one meal per day can improve moods and emotional well-being.
Read also: Easy Low-Carb Cheese Crackers
Skin Health
Fasting has been shown to slow skin aging and mitigate the effects of free radicals.
Getting Started with Keto OMAD
Gradual Transition
It’s generally advised to gradually reduce meals to give your body time to adjust to prolonged fasting periods. Abruptly reducing meal frequency from three to one can lead to unwanted side effects such as Intermittent fasting fatigue, dizziness, hunger, and cravings. This can make the transition into a successful OMAD schedule challenging. Those new to fasting may benefit from starting with two meals daily, slowly prolonging their fasting periods until they achieve a one-hour eating window. A 16:8 intermittent fast can be an excellent starting point to ease into an OMAD routine.
Keto Adaptation
Combining OMAD with a nutritious low-carb diet such as Healthy Keto® can enhance the health benefits of fasting and speed up metabolic adaptation to caloric restriction. Limiting carbohydrate intake and obtaining the majority of calories from healthy fats maintains steady blood sugar levels. This helps keep the body in ketosis even when you break your 23-hour fast.
Meal Timing
While you can eat at any time of the day, late afternoons or early evenings are often the best times to eat OMAD. The optimal timing for OMAD meals varies based on individual schedules and preferences. However, many people opt to have their meal during dinner time. This allows for a fulfilling end to the day and makes it easier to share meals with family or friends.
Macronutrient Focus
The key to successfully combining OMAD and Keto is to ensure that the one meal consumed during the OMAD diet is high in healthy fats and low in carbohydrates to support ketosis. This can include foods such as avocado, nuts, oils, fatty cuts of meat, and low-carb vegetables.
Foods to Include
When following the Combination of OMAD and Keto, it’s important to choose nutrient-dense, whole foods for the one meal consumed during OMAD. Some examples of high-fat, low-carb foods include:
- Avocado
- Nuts
- Oils
- Fatty cuts of meat (such as bacon or steak)
- Cheese
- Eggs
- Coconut products (such as coconut milk or coconut flour)
- Full-fat dairy products (such as heavy cream or butter)
- Low-carb vegetables (such as leafy greens or broccoli)
Foods to Avoid
When following the Combination of OMAD and Keto, it’s important to avoid foods high in carbohydrates and sugar. Foods to avoid include:
- Sugary drinks
- Grains (such as bread, pasta, or rice)
- Sweets (such as candy or pastries)
- High-carb fruits (such as bananas or grapes)
- Processed foods (such as snack bars or crackers)
Potential Risks and Considerations
Nutrient Deficiencies
Limiting food intake to once daily can increase the risk of nutrient deficiencies, especially if OMAD is combined with a diet high in processed foods, refined carbs, and sugary foods. Common symptoms of nutrient deficiencies on OMAD include night blindness, bleeding gums, depression, weakness, and fatigue. However, those following a nutrient-dense, whole-food diet plan such as Healthy Keto can get most of their required vitamins and minerals in just one meal. In addition, it’s recommended to incorporate high-quality dietary supplements containing vitamins and trace minerals to promote a healthy body and reduce the risk of deficiencies when practicing OMAD.
Disordered Eating
OMAD can lead to disordered eating in those with a history of binge eating or anorexia. In addition, some people experience extreme hunger and stress when following OMAD, which can lead to overeating at mealtime.
Individual Needs
Athletes often have increased calorie and nutrient needs and can find it challenging to consume enough food in one meal to meet all nutritional requirements. Highly active individuals may discover that OMAD can’t sustain their activity level, resulting in reduced performance, fatigue, and excessive weight loss.
Medical Conditions
Intermittent fasting can trigger profound metabolic and hormonal changes. To minimize the risk of health issues, it’s crucial to discuss OMAD with a healthcare professional if you have diabetes, high blood pressure, or are taking prescription medications.
Not a Balanced Approach
The Combination of OMAD and Keto can be challenging to stick to long-term and may not be a balanced and sustainable approach for everyone.
Possible Drawbacks
A possible drawback is diarrhea or loose, watery stools when breaking the fast. Moreover, fasting all day and focusing on just one large meal may lead to binge eating and feeling a loss of control around food.