What’s the first thing we learn as children? Our ABC’s. So, we thought it would be a fun idea to do the ABC’s of keto! This blog series looks at some of the main ideas and the not-so-main ideas of keto as we work our way through the alphabet. The next one in our series is: D is for dirty keto.
What is Dirty Keto?
Some of us always try to cheat the system. People on Weight Watchers will save up all their points for the day and then eat a slice of cake. People counting their calories will not eat all day so they can have a chocolate bar for dinner. Likewise, dirty keto doesn’t exclude any particular food group – as long as the macros fit within what you eat each day.
What does this mean? It means that you can have your cake and eat keto too. You don’t have to say no to sugar or high-carb foods all the time. If you stick below 20 grams of carbs, you’re golden on this plan.
Pros and Cons of Dirty Keto
There are pros and cons to the fact that dirty keto allows processed foods, fast food, and prepackaged foods. The pros are pretty obvious. It’s a more flexible meal plan. After a hard day at work, you can grab some McDonalds (that’s keto friendly of course) and not worry about falling off the wagon. There’s a lot less guilt involved in dirty keto.
The other pro is that it tends to be cheaper than strict keto. You aren’t as worried about the quality of the food, so it won’t be as expensive to eat. Buy the canned beans, rather than fresh. You can grab some vegetable oil, rather than olive oil or avocado oil. It will save you money.
But is saving money worth it? The big con of dirty keto is that you may not get the nutrients your body needs. It’s skimpy on vitamins and fiber. Fiber helps move food through your body, and without it, you may have some stomach issues. If you eat prepackaged foods, you’ll also likely get more sodium than you need.
Examples of Food on Dirty Keto
You can eat processed cheese and processed meats on dirty keto. This would include bacon, pepperoni, and American cheese. You can also use vegetable oils, which are less healthy fat alternatives. Soft drinks without sugar, such as Coke Zero are okay too. And, of course, it allows sugar-free, prepackaged snacks. This would include Russell Stover candies and sweets that are “no sugar added.”
These don’t have carbs, but they do contain artificial sweeteners that are chemically made, so many keto people turn up their noses at them. When you look for “keto” snacks, you’ll usually find they have natural ingredients and are therefore more expensive. This would include things like Lily’s chocolate bars.
Final Thoughts
It’s funny, doing this article made me rethink a few things we are doing. We try to eat as much whole food as possible and be as healthy as possible. I had a few gut reactions to some of the foods listed on the dirty keto list. Vegetable oils? Absolutely not! We would never use them! But we eat bacon and pepperoni without a second thought. Processed cheese? Yuck. But we treat ourselves occasionally to no sugar added soft drinks and snacks.
Like any way of eating, you need to balance the whole foods that we all know is better for us with the reality of life. Occasionally, you’re going to be simply exhausted and get the A&W burger with no bun and a diet root beer. That’s life. We all know it’s not the greatest for our health, but we do the best we can as much as we can.
To me, dirty keto makes the whole way of eating doable in the long term. I can give up a bun, but I can’t give up the occasional convenience of grabbing fast food. It’s a balance between your physical health and your mental health. So, do what you need to do – just be aware you still need your low-carb veggies!
Wendy
