Every few years, a new diet catches on in the mainstream that some people claim to be the best. While something like the liquid diet might help you lose weight, your body needs more than water, fruit juice, gelatin, and soup broth. Many of these diets can be shortcuts that aren’t only risky for your health but highly impractical to follow.
Unlike these fad diets, the keto diet has been proven countless times to work. It’s arguably not even a diet so much as a lifestyle change.
Millions of Americans stick firmly to the keto diet and swear it’s the best decision they’ve made for their health. It’s not always an easy diet to follow, but the rewards may be well worth the effort.
What Is the Keto Diet?
The keto (short for ketogenic) diet can easily be summed up as a very low-carb, moderate protein, high-fat diet. The Atkins diet was a popular variation of this diet around the turn of the millennium. In recent years, the keto diet has become one of the most popular methods of losing weight in a sustainable way.
The keto diet's main purpose is to dramatically reduce the daily intake of net carbs.
Carbohydrates are the main source of energy in the human diet. When carbs are digested and metabolized, they ultimately turn into glucose (blood sugar). The glucose is then used throughout your body (especially the brain) as a primary energy source.
By reducing the carbs in your diet, the body will no longer be able to produce a sufficient enough supply of glucose to power everything. As a result, it will enter into a metabolic state known as ketosis (hence the diet’s name).
During ketosis, the body focuses on using fat stores for energy instead of carbs. The liver uses fat to create ketones that function as an alternative fuel source for organs and tissues.
The most obvious benefit of a keto diet is that you may burn fat at an exceptional rate. Weight loss can become much easier when your body uses stored fat as energy instead of the food you eat.
Keto diets may also be beneficial for lowering blood sugar and insulin levels. Glucose is, after all, a type of sugar. The reduction in blood sugar makes the keto diet particularly beneficial for diabetics.
How Do You Follow a Keto Diet?
The keto diet tends to work the same whether you have diabetes or are simply looking to shed a few pounds. It’s not a particularly difficult diet to follow compared to others (some of them are super intense), but it will require making many changes. You would be surprised just how many foods have carbs in them.
The most commonly accepted version of the keto diet is to follow a diet consisting of 70 percent fat, 20 percent protein, and 10 percent carbs. The recommended daily calorie intake for adults ranges between 2,000 for women and 2,500 for men.
In other words, a keto diet for women should be around 1,400 calories (165 grams) from fat, 400 calories (75 grams) from protein, and 40 calories (40 grams) from carbs. For men, it would be 1,750 calories (200 grams) from fat, 500 calories (90 grams) from protein, and 50 calories (50 grams) from carbs. You don’t have to hit these numbers exactly, but that’s the general idea of the keto diet.
Surely, the staggering amount of fat each day must have caught your eye. After all, how can a diet promote positive health and weight loss when you’re eating so much fat?
The answer is that you’ll have to be highly selective of your fat intake.
You’ll want to focus on eating healthy, unsaturated fats: think nut butter, almond butter, olive oil, and coconut oil instead of the type of fats found in doughnuts, pizza, burgers, and fried foods.
The 8 Best Snacks for a Keto Diet
You can probably imagine how challenging it can be to get enough healthy fat daily. Fortunately, we’ve already prepared a list of foods that can help you! All that you’ll have to do is pick out a few foods that you want to include in your new diet. Keto foods and great keto snack ideas don’t have to be at odds with your cravings.
There are many low-carb snacks, fat bombs, and easy keto snack recipes that can help make your low-carb diet a low-stress experience.
Be sure to keep track of the content of each macronutrient so that you don’t go over your daily recommended value.
Avocado Smoothie
In two avocados —
Carbs: 6 grams
Fat: 44 grams (Unsaturated: 38 grams, Saturated: 6 grams)
Protein: 8 grams
Avocados are a superstar in the keto diet, so they’re naturally first on this list. The high-fat content (mostly unsaturated) and low carb count make it a perfect addition to pretty much any snack.
You can spread avocados on gluten-free, keto-friendly toast, mash them into guacamole and enjoy with low-carbveggies, or dice them and add them to your eggs. The possibilities are endless!
Making an avocado smoothie might be the best option of them all. It’s fairly simple and gives you something a little more exciting to drink than plain water. All that you’ll have to do is peel two avocados, add some ice, and a little bit of milk to give it some flavor.
Feel free to add other keto-friendly ingredients (spinach, almonds, flaxseeds) to give it an even stronger keto kick.
Cottage Cheese With Strawberries
For one cup of cottage cheese and one cup of strawberries:
Carbs: 15 grams
Fat: 10 grams (Unsaturated: 6 grams, Saturated: 4 grams)
Protein: 28 grams
A simple combination of fruit and dairy is sometimes the sweet snack you need to hit the spot (with no artificial sweeteners). Cottage cheese is a great high-proteinsnack option and pairs exceptionally well with fruit (especially the superfood of blueberries).
Unfortunately, like almost every other fruit, blueberries are absolutely loaded with carbohydrates. The key is to find fruits that offset these carbs by having a high fiber content. Thus, strawberries are the go-to for this snack.
You may still want to be careful with how many strawberries you add to your cottage cheese. The higher fiber content of strawberries means you can eat more than blueberries, but be careful not to overdo it.
A one-to-one ratio of cottage cheese will have you close to your daily allotment of carbs, as listed above. It might be a good idea to take it down to one cup of cottage cheese and half a cup of strawberries.
Roasted Almonds
For one ounce of roasted, salted almonds:
Carbs: 5.5 grams
Fat: 15 grams (Unsaturated: 13.5 grams, Saturated: 1.5 grams)
Protein: 6 grams
When looking for a snack or an appetizer, there’s nothing easier than a handful of nuts. Almonds are one of the most nutrient-dense nuts, but you really can’t go wrong with most types. Almost all nuts are loaded with vitamins, minerals, and healthy fats.
Unfortunately, almonds aren’t the most savory snack, but roasting them and adding salt can quickly turn them into a treat. Alternatively, you could get some almond flour, a commonly used keto flour substitute.
That said, be careful about eating too many nuts. While they’re an excellent source of healthy fats, they’re also packed with carbs. Stick to a one-ounce serving when possible, roughly 24 almonds or so.
MOSH Protein Bar
For one peanut butter chocolate crunch bar:
Carbs: 3 grams
Fat: 7 grams (Unsaturated: 5.5 grams, Saturated: 1.5 grams)
Protein: 12 grams
The MOSH protein bar is one of the easiest snacks to have on the go. It’s as simple as tearing open that package and enjoying it in all its goodness. On top of a nice serving of protein in each bar, we also include brain-fueling ingredients like vitamins D and B12 as well as adaptogens like ashwagandha and lion’s mane that help keep you fit, fueled, and feeling good.
You might be wondering how a protein bar can find its way on a keto list. After all, aren’t protein bars usually loaded with carbs? MOSH bars also offer 7 grams of fiber and no added sugar — we want to set the standard for what a protein bar should be.
Read: The perfect keto snack hack!
Bacon-Wrapped Mushrooms
For five bacon-wrapped mushrooms:
Carbs: 4 grams
Fat: 13 grams (Unsaturated: 7 grams, Saturated: 6 grams)
Protein: 5 grams
Few things top the smell of bacon when you’re first waking up. Any morning that starts with a few pieces of delicious bacon can be considered a good morning. While eating bacon can be good enough for many people, it can also get boring and simplistic. Try adding some cream cheese, mushrooms, and garlic powder to liven up this classically American breakfast option.
The key to this snack is to cook the mushrooms (be sure to remove the stems first) and bacon in the same pan. Mushrooms are like sponges, and soaking up that bacon grease is a delight that you won’t want to miss.
Cream cheese with chives and garlic powder is the best pairing for these two foods, but feel free to substitute if you’d prefer something different. Once the mushrooms and bacon are done cooking, put the stuffing of your choice in the mushrooms, wrap each one in a piece of bacon, and enjoy.
Tiny Frittatas
For six tiny frittatas:
Carbs: 3 grams
Fat: 30 grams (Unsaturated: 21 grams, Saturated: 9 grams)
Protein: 36 grams
A frittata is a muffin made out of eggs instead of carb-heavy grains. You’ll likely become very familiar with frittatas since traditional muffins are a no-go, and eggs are heavily encouraged on a keto diet. A life hack for making frittatas is to use a muffin pan — it will save you time and clean up!
You’ll need to beat the number of eggs you want in a separate bowl and season them with salt, pepper, garlic, or other spices. Use one muffin cup for every egg you’ve beaten, and distribute the liquid eggs evenly.
Next, you can add additional ingredients if you like. You’ll need to be careful and keep an eye on the carb content, but bacon bits, cheese, mushrooms, spinach, tomatoes, and onions are all excellent options. Bake your frittatas in the oven at 350 degrees for 18 to 20 minutes or until they set.
Cajun Style Kebabs
For four ounces of steak, one bell pepper, and eight mushrooms:
Carbs: 7 grams
Fat: 23 grams (Unsaturated: 14 grams, Saturated: 9 grams)
Protein: 34 grams
No list of keto snacks would be complete without steak. Each cut of steak is practically devoid of carbohydrates, so it’s a cornerstone of a keto diet. The difficult part is trying to add flavor without loading up on carbs.
Even something as seemingly innocent as steak sauce is packed with carbs. That’s why it’s best to stick to the basics and go cajun style.
Adding some Cajun-style dry rub to your steak can keep the carbs low and give your steak a nice kick. You can also throw in some fresh bell pepper and mushrooms for additional flavor and savory texture. Skewer each ingredient and grill them until fully cooked. Feel free to add some shrimp to create a Cajun-style surf-and-turf that’s out of this world.
Cinnamon Pork Rinds
For four ounces of pork rinds:
Carbs: 0 grams
Fat: 36 grams (Unsaturated: 23, Saturated: 13 grams)
Protein: 68 grams
Pork rinds might be the perfect example of what you’re looking for in a crispyketo snack. A food with zero carbs and 36 grams of mostly unsaturated fat is an unbeatable starting point. It’s fine to grab a bag and snack on them alone. Then again, where’s the fun in that? Adding some exotic flavoring to your rinds can be much more exciting.
Cinnamon is an excellent pairing with pork rinds and quickly turns them into a treat for your sweet tooth. Even better, the recipe is about as easy as they come, and it comes with 0 grams of net carbs.
Mix about one tablespoon of cinnamon with a ¼ cup of butter. Pour the mixture into a large bowl and add in your pork rinds. Shake them around to make sure that every piece is coated.
You could stop here and enjoy your cinnamon pork rinds. However, to take this recipe to the next level, you can cook them for about 20 minutes in a 200-degree oven. The extra time might seem like a hassle, but it’s worth the wait. Once blended together in the heat, the flavor combination is truly something spectacular.
Go Keto and Enjoy the Benefits
The keto diet can be difficult to navigate when you start — don’t worry, it’s like that for almost everyone. Eliminating almost all fruit, grains, starchy vegetables, and baked goods from your diet is no effortless feat.
The list above should provide a solid starting point for keto snacks. Of course, we could hardly cover every delicious keto snack in such a small space.
Here’s a brief list of some other healthy snacks that fit into a keto diet:
- Meat and cheese roll-ups (deli meats such as salami with various cheeses, including parmesan, cheddar cheese, or mozzarella)
- Sugar-free cheesecake
- Keto crackers (keto tortilla chips, cheese crisps, and zucchini chips)
- Combine keto crackers and cheese for delicious keto nachos
- Hard-boiled eggs or deviled eggs
- Beef jerky
- Dark chocolate chips
- Macadamia nuts, pecans
- Trail mix (including granola substitutes)
- Keto peanut butter
- Jalapeños to amp up the flavor of any savory keto recipe
- Sugar-free ice cream substitutes
Let MOSH make your transition into the keto diet a little more delicious — it’s low-carb, nutrient-dense, and super convenient. Before you hit the grocery store to buy your new snacks, place an order with MOSH. You can build your own MOSH bundle here, or get started with our 6-count MOSH trial pack.
Sources:
Diet Review: Ketogenic Diet for Weight Loss | The Nutrition Source | Harvard School of Public Health
What Should My Daily Intake of Calories Be? | NHS
6 Diets With Harsh Rules | US News
Ketosis: Definition, Benefits & Side Effects | Cleveland Clinic
Carbohydrates as a Source of Energy | NCBI Bookshelf
Ketogenic Diet | NCBI Bookshelf