Do protein shakes push you out of ketosis?
I'm on a ketogenic diet and have stopped taking protein shakes (excepting post-workout protein powder with water) because I've heard that it may cause an insulin spike. Is it true that protein powder with water will knock you out of ketosis? The one I'm using in particular is Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard 100% Whey.
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Yes, whey protein can knock you out of ketosis. It has had that effect on me several times. To those who say, no carbs, thus no effect, you're only looking at half the story. Carbs effect ketosis by affecting insulin.
Ketosis is governed by the insulin/glucagon ratio (I/G ratio) (1). Whey has no carbs, has but it IS insulinogenic (e.g., ref (2)) Increased insulin throws off the insulin/glucagon ratio (I/G ratio) (1), which can effect the depth of ketosis.
(1) The Ketogenic Diet: A Complete Guide for the Dieter and Practitioner, Lyle McDonald, 1998, pp. 24, 30-31.
(2) The insulinogenic effect of whey protein is partially mediated by a direct effect of amino acids and GIP on ?-cells, Albert Salehi, et al., Nutrition & Metabolism 2012, 9:48:
Whey protein increases postprandial serum insulin levels. This has
been associated with increased serum levels of leucine, isoleucine...
If you consume excess protein on a ketogenic diet, several of the amino acids will be converted to glucose via the gluconeogenic pathway thus knocking you out of ketosis.
From my personal experience: yes, whey isolate can kick you off the ketosis. It happens with me this week; I feel fatique although I eat enough, and ketostix became negative. I drunk 60g of whey isolate three days in the morning (Monday, Tuesday, and today is Wednesday)
It boosts insulin (or something else; and it doesn't matter what); in fact, I don't feel as energized as I was during weekend.
It is third time when I am on ketogenic diet in my life (during past 15 years); first time I was drinking-eating raw egg whites (20-30 a day) and eating meat etc; second time meat; and now I was drinking protein shakes too in the morning, instead of breakfast.
I read in few different sources: main idea behind ketogenic diet is not "low carbo"... indeed, it is "do not eat unnatural food", do not eat grains, sugar, _protein_powder_, anything whichever is unnatural to millions-years history of humans.
I am on ketosis 18 days; I lost about 8-9 pounds, and about 1 - 1.5 inches. However, most weight loss (4-5 pounds) happened in first two days; and now everything stopped (although I do not eat any sugar! I even replaced my BCAA powder which had some maltodextrin) - now I know where the problem is...
Yes, insulin is spiked to process sugar, and not protein. And, body can generate glucose from protein. Someone posted here:
"Glucose is the bodies preferred fuel - the body can convert 100% of carbs, 58% of protein & 10% of dietary fat into glucose."
Yes it can.
Protein is made up of seven different aminos, some of which (just as j.rightly correctly pointed out) can knock you out of ketosis because they are broken down into glucose in your blood.
j.rightly is corrct. Do some research and it will confirm that protein can knock you out of keto. Anyone who says it can't doesn't understand the science behind it.
That is why you are meant to eat about 65% of your diet from fats, 30% protein and no more than about 5% carbs (which will be incidental from your fat & protein based meals) to be sure you stay in ketosis.
No.
Ketosis is the deprivation of carbs. High end protein shakes, such as your ON Gold, don't contain many carbs. Thus, drinking your protein shake won't remove you from your ketogenic state. On the other hand, cheap proteins (Muscle Milk) and any protein labeled as "mass builder" will contain carbs to prevent ketosis.
Your comment about protein shakes spiking insulin is wrong. Insulin is secreted to process sugar. Your ON Gold with water has hardly any sugar. Thus, drinking your protein shake will not spike your insulin. Insulin spikes usually only occur when you eat simple carbs from fruit, candy, etc...
Yes they can, even the one's that have zero carbs.
With no carbs a protein powder will not raise your blood sugar, but it can and will cause an insulin spike. This is your body's way of coping with no carbs and it allows your cells/muscles to absorb nutrients from food, and also helps the liver create glucagon from the protein. When you body takes in virtually NO carbs, it still needs to control and regulate your blood sugar and also create enough energy that your body can still survive and allow you to be active. The process is described better in this article... www.marksdailyapple.com/insulin-index/#axzz23kFePfEA and more info here... 4hourpeople.com/question/1110/TIP-Avoid-whey-protein-when-burning-fat-
While this question already has an accepted answer, I think I can shed some more light on this matter (with actual science, not just my opinion)...
Here's one of the rare few studies (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1355601/) that provides a good insight into the influence of (simple) carbs, aminoacids (AA), complete proteins and starvation on ketosis - even though this wasn't the exact original purpose of the study.
Free Fatty Acids (a higher level indicates a "deeper" ketosis)- the highest during starvation, lower with AA and complete proteins (no significant difference between those two), and the lowest with carbs.
Ketone bodies (a higher level indicates a "deeper" ketosis) - the highest during starvation, lower with complete proteins, even lower with AA and the lowest with carbs.
Now here's where things get REALLY INTERESTING:
Insulin (a higher level indicates a "shallower" ketosis) - the highest with carbs and AA (about the same), but the lowest with complete proteins and during starvation (about the same).
Glucose (a higher level indicates a "shallower" ketosis) - the highest with carbs, a bit lower with AA (but not much), and the lowest with complete proteins and during starvation (again, about the same).
The conclusion?
Starving yourself or eating nothing but pure carbs represent the opposite ends of the ketosis spectrum (we know that already), there seems to be a significant difference between consuming proteins in a form of complete proteins or aminoacids. Proteins in their simplest form (aminoacids) seem to break up ketosis much more severely than the more complex forms of proteins.
So if you're worried that the carbs and aminoacids in your shake will throw you too far out of ketosis - then just do what the "complete protein" group of people in the study did, and eat a steak instead. :)
It' all a matter of the ratio of fats protein and carbs there is a simple calculator on this site where you just enter the grams of each macro and you get the ratio. Any ratio 2 or above, will put you in ketosis. You can do it for each meal or by the day. www.flexibleketogenic.com/
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