An egg fast or “keto egg fast” is a short-term diet in which you consume eggs, butter, and other healthy fats. It is also called the boiled egg diet, although you can eat your eggs in whatever form you like.
Since it is high-fat, moderate protein, and low-carbohydrate, a keto egg fast is one way to get into ketosis or maintain your ketogenic diet, but it is not an everyday way to eat. Rather, it is a super-restrictive, short-term ketogenic diet.
What Is Keto Egg Fast?
Just like the keto diet, the keto egg fast is also a type of high fat, low carb diet. However, this diet is only short term and will usually last for only five days. Followers of the diet must only consume eggs, grass-fed butter, cheeses, and some other healthy fat sources within five days.
Keto dieters who got stuck on a weight loss plateau and are no longer seeing any weight loss results often turn to this diet to break through it. Since it’s a fasting diet, it is quite restrictive and is only meant to help people who wanted to break through their weight loss plateau.
Some people use the diet to get into ketosis fast. They follow the keto egg fast at the start of their ketogenic diet.
The basic rule of the diet plan is to eat organic or pastured whole eggs, both whites and yolks for fat and protein. Along with this, dieters must also consume 1 tbsp, (15 grams) of butter or other healthy fat such as coconut oil or olive oil.
The eggs must be eaten within 30 minutes of waking up in the morning and an egg-based meal must be eaten afterward every 3 to 5 hours even if you are not hungry. For every whole egg you consume, you can eat up to an ounce of full-fat cheese. You should be able to consume at least six whole eggs in a day.
Potential Benefits of a Keto Egg Fast
There is not any science on the keto egg fast. Nonetheless, people have reported a variety of health benefits. These benefits are most likely due to getting into ketosis — something you can do with a standard keto diet without doing this fast.
Weight Loss
Many people opt for such a restrictive diet because they have hit a weight loss plateau. Because the egg fast is so restrictive, you will likely not only maintain a state of ketosis, but you will also go into a caloric deficit.
Reduced Cravings
Eating carbs can put your body on a blood sugar-insulin roller coaster that’s hard to get off. Carbs also increase the hunger hormone ghrelin, which activates more quickly after an insulin spike.
Ketosis, on the other hand, helps reduce cravings and leads to weight loss. Keto reduces circulating ghrelin, so you know to stop eating when you are full. Also, it lowers neuropeptide Y, a hunger-stimulating brain factor.
Lower Blood Sugar and Insulin
Chronic high blood sugar and high insulin have been linked to every chronic disease in the book: diabetes, cancer, heart disease, neurodegenerative disease, you name it.
In many cases, high blood sugar is the direct result of a high-carb diet. When a high-carb diet persists long enough, insulin resistance can develop.
That’s when your cells stop listening to the hormone insulin. As a result, your cells stop moving glucose out of your blood and safely into your cells for fuel or storage. Unfortunately, type 2 diabetes and other chronic diseases are just a short hop away from insulin resistance.
Eating keto helps keep blood sugar low. The keto diet has even shown promise for treating and reversing type 2 diabetes.
Risks of a Keto Egg Fast
Most people are only on an egg fast for three to five days. It is unlikely you will experience vitamin or mineral deficiencies within such a short period.
Still, there are some risks to consider, especially if you are planning on doing it for more than five days:
- Digestive issues:An egg fast lacks foods rich in fiber, and dietary fiber is a necessary component of gut health and the diverse gut microbiome. Restricting fiber may lead to diarrhea, constipation, or other digestive issues.
- Vitamin deficiency:Eggs are rich in choline, vitamin A, and other essential nutrients, but they lack many others, including vitamin B12, which is vital for energy and mood. For instance, on an egg fast, you will have difficulty getting enough folate, because the best sources of folate are dark, leafy greens. And since folate is required for energy (ATP) production, you might feel weak or perform poorly at the gym on this diet.
- Mineral deficiency:The minerals magnesium, molybdenum, copper, and potassium are scarce on an egg fast. Consider taking supplements, and be sure to salt your eggs to ensure adequate sodium intake
- Medical conditions:Those with certain medical conditions — familial hypercholesterolemia or those with no gallbladder — may want to skip this fast. Consult your doctor.
Keto Egg Fast Sample Menu
Not sure what to eat on a keto egg fast diet? Here are ideas for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and in-between snacks.
Breakfast Ideas:
- 3-egg omelet with cheese cooked in butter
- Cream cheese pancake (made with eggs, cream cheese, and butter)
- Scrambled eggs with cheddar cheese
Lunch Ideas:
- Egg and cheese quiche
- 3 hard-boiled eggs slathered with butter with a side of cheese
- Easy keto egg salad
Dinner Ideas:
- 3 deviled eggs
- Cheese quiche
- Egg crepe cooked in healthy fat
Snack Ideas:
- Hard-boiled egg
- String cheese
- High-fat cheese of your choosing
You Don’t Need An Egg Fast
A keto egg fast is an extreme version of a keto diet plan. Nuts, meat, and non-starchy veggies are eliminated, leaving only eggs, butter, cheese, and oil. This is not considered a healthy diet.
By restricting your food choices, you will miss out on foods like green vegetables that contain crucial nutrients like folate, magnesium, potassium, iron, and dietary fiber. Eliminating these foods, even for a short time, could be less than optimal for your health.
There is also the social drawback to consider during your keto egg fast. Unless you are hitting a breakfast spot, few if any restaurants are going to accommodate such restrictive eating habits.
If you have hit a weight loss plateau on the keto diet, and you are looking to drop some more weight, tryintermittent fasting, restricting calories, temporarily eliminating dairy, or cutting out the keto treats to see if you can reach the next phase of weight loss.
Your plateau could also be due to hormonal imbalance, stress, or lack of quality sleep. It is unlikely that you will hurt yourself on an egg fast, but it also is not necessary if you are following a healthy ketogenic diet.
Speak to your doctor before making any dramatic changes to your diet. Remember: Weight loss is about the long game, not fast and unsustainable weight loss.
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