The ketogenic (keto) diet and One Meal a Day (OMAD) fasting are dietary strategies that have gained popularity for their potential to promote weight loss and improve metabolic health. The keto diet involves drastically reducing carbohydrate intake and replacing it with fat, which puts the body into a metabolic state called ketosis. When in ketosis, the body starts burning fat for energy instead of carbohydrates. OMAD, a form of intermittent fasting (IF), involves consuming all daily calories in a single meal within a one-hour window. This article explores the experiences of individuals who have combined keto and OMAD, examining the potential benefits, risks, and practical considerations.
Real-Life Transformations
Several individuals have shared their experiences with combining the keto diet and OMAD, highlighting significant weight loss and improvements in overall health.
A Mother's Journey to Health
One mother of four, who had struggled with weight gain after each pregnancy, found success with keto and fasting. After her fourth baby, she weighed 279 pounds and continued to gain weight while breastfeeding. She started the keto diet when her youngest child was a few months old and experienced immediate success. She wasn’t counting calories and was still successfully nursing her infant. She stayed on keto for a year, then switched to a low-carb diet.
About six months into keto, she added intermittent fasting, initially to manage symptoms of Hashimoto’s disease, a thyroid disorder. She started with a 16-hour fast and an 8-hour eating window, and her Hashimoto’s symptoms improved. She now experiments with different fasting windows, including 18-hour fasts, OMAD, and occasional days off from fasting.
Her meals typically include:
Read also: One Meal a Day Keto
- First Meal: Eggs with avocado, bacon, and hot sauce.
- Lunch: Leftovers like chicken fajitas with cauliflower rice.
- Snacks: String cheese, dark chocolate, almonds, or hard-boiled eggs.
- Dinner: Meatloaf with cauli mash, gravy, and a veggie.
- Dessert: Halo Top or dark chocolate with peanut butter.
She emphasizes the importance of finding what works for one's lifestyle and persevering through plateaus. She went from 295 pounds to around 185 pounds, losing about 110 pounds in 18 months and maintaining that weight for almost a year.
A Nurse's Path to Wellness
A registered nurse from Mississippi, who had struggled with her weight since childhood, embarked on a keto and intermittent fasting journey after reaching 294 pounds at age 34. Inspired by success stories she saw online, she started keto in January 2019 and was amazed at how she could eat good food without feeling restricted.
She incorporated a fasting regimen, starting with the 16:8 method and advancing to OMAD a couple of months later. She also experimented with extended fasting (longer than 24 hours) at the end of each month.
Her typical daily meals include:
- Breakfast: Two scrambled eggs with cheese and bacon.
- Lunch: Chicken Caesar salad.
- Snacks: Berries, pork rinds, Quest protein chips, or pickles.
- Dinner: Garlic butter shrimp with Palmini noodles.
- Dessert: Highkey chocolate chip cookies or Rebel ice cream.
She also started working out four to five days a week, combining cardio, HIIT, and weight training. Despite facing challenges, including contracting COVID-19 and the death of her father, she remained committed to her lifestyle changes. She lost 114 pounds in one year and two months.
Read also: Combining Keto and OMAD
She highlights the importance of staying focused on goals, incorporating fasting, and exercising.
Overcoming Emotional Eating
Another individual, a celebrity hair and makeup stylist, used food to cope with stress and anxiety following toxic relationships. Weighing almost 400lbs, she started the ketogenic diet and intermittent fasting, specifically the OMAD diet. She lost an incredible 240lbs over the last two years, and with the lost weight, she has added energy to work out. With CrossFit-style resistance training exercises such as tyre flips, sled pushes and more conventional dumbbell exercises, she's now focused on building lean muscle as well as maintaining her weight loss.
How OMAD and Keto Work Together
The OMAD diet is a form of intermittent fasting that requires you to limit your eating window to 1 hour. OMAD can be used as a tool to improve your metabolic health. When combined with the keto diet, OMAD can enhance weight loss and improve metabolic health through several mechanisms:
- Ketosis: Going without food for 23 hours a day lowers your blood glucose and depletes your glycogen stores. This causes your body to get energy from fat, a process called ketosis. In ketosis, the body switches from using glucose (from carbohydrates) to using ketones (from fat) as its primary fuel source. This can lead to significant fat loss.
- Calorie Restriction: OMAD naturally restricts calorie intake by limiting the eating window to one hour. This can create a calorie deficit, which is essential for weight loss.
- Metabolic Flexibility: Reducing your eating time to just one meal a day has been shown to lower body mass and it allows you to become more metabolically flexible during exercise without affecting your performance.
- Autophagy: Autophagy is a cellular process where the body cleans out damaged cells to regenerate newer, healthier cells. Without autophagy, our cells would not survive or would grow abnormally, which would lead to various diseases.
Benefits of Combining Keto and OMAD
- Weight Loss: Both keto and OMAD have been shown to promote weight loss. Combining them may lead to more significant and rapid weight loss.
- Improved Metabolic Health: Keto and OMAD can improve insulin sensitivity, lower blood sugar levels, and improve cholesterol levels.
- Time Savings: OMAD can save time in the kitchen since you only need to prepare one meal per day.
- Breaking Weight Loss Stalls: Eating one meal a day to lose weight is sometimes recommended by healthcare providers or coaches to individuals who need help breaking through a stall.
Potential Risks and Considerations
While keto and OMAD can be effective, they also come with potential risks and considerations:
- Nutrient Deficiencies: Eating only one meal a day can make it challenging to meet all nutrient needs. It's essential to focus on nutrient-dense foods and consider supplementation.
- Keto Flu: Unless you are fat-adapted, you can experience keto flu symptoms, such as headaches, brain fog, and irritability.
- Hypoglycemia: For people who are diagnosed with diabetes (type 1 or type 2), fasting can lead to significant improvements in their Hemoglobin A1C. However, since not eating puts a patient at risk of hypoglycemia, they need to work with their healthcare provider.
- Binge Eating: Fasting all day and focusing on just one large meal may lead to binge eating and feeling a loss of control around food.
- Social Challenges: OMAD can be socially isolating, as it may be difficult to eat with others or participate in social events that revolve around food.
- Not Suitable for Everyone: People who are pregnant, breastfeeding, and have an eating disorder should steer clear of OMAD.
Practical Tips for Combining Keto and OMAD
- Ease Into It: It’s a good idea to begin with a shorter fast, for example a 12-hour fast, so that your body can adjust. Remember that you do not have to go all in right away.
- Pick the Right Time: This depends on your schedule. For example, you can forgo breakfast and lunch, and break your OMAD fast at 6:00 pm if you work a typical 8-hour shift (from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm).
- Eat a Healthy Pre-Fast Meal: Consume foods high in vitamins and minerals that do not contain too many carbs. Limiting your carb intake before a fast will prevent filling your glycogen stores. Include proteins, healthy fats, and fiber.
- Stay Hydrated: The good news is that zero-calorie drinks are not off-limits. Hydration is vital for your energy levels and mental performance all day.
- Keep Your Stress Levels Low: Being stressed out makes you hungry and crave foods that are high in sugar.
- Listen to Your Body: Pay attention to how you’re feeling. If OMAD is making you constantly tired, stressed, and deprived, you can always stop.
- Consult with a Healthcare Provider: Talk to your doctor or a registered dietitian before starting keto or OMAD, especially if you have any underlying health conditions.
Sample OMAD Keto Meals
Here are some meal ideas to break your OMAD fast that pack nutrients. Feel free to change them (for example, if you would like to add fruit as a dessert) as long as they’re easy to digest and contain substantial amounts of fat and protein.
Read also: Beginner's Guide to OMAD
- Steak with Avocado and Broccoli: A large steak provides protein and fat, while avocado adds healthy fats and broccoli provides fiber and nutrients.
- Salmon with Asparagus and Coconut Oil: Salmon is rich in omega-3 fatty acids and protein, asparagus is a good source of vitamins, and coconut oil adds healthy fats.
- Chicken Thighs with Cauliflower Rice and Spinach: Chicken thighs are a good source of protein and fat, cauliflower rice is a low-carb alternative to rice, and spinach is packed with vitamins and minerals.
- Eggs with Bacon and Cheese: This classic keto meal is a great way to break a fast, providing protein, fat, and essential nutrients.