One of the most popular ways to lose weight is the keto diet, but did you know that there are specific types? One specific form is lazy keto — and you’re in the right place if you haven’t heard of it before. Check out our guide below to learn all about this specific keto diet and see if it’s the right one for you.
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What is Lazy Keto?
The basic premise of the lazy keto diet is that you do not pay any attention to your daily calorie intake — all that matters is your carb intake. In particular, the total amount of net carbs every day should not exceed 20 grams. Otherwise, you put yourself at risk of getting out of ketosis.
You do not have to pay attention to every single food item at all. You can eat any food as long as you maintain your daily carb intake and not overeat; there’s no need to have highly detailed meal plans all the time. As long as you know which foods are low in carbs and high in fat, you’ll do well.
Of course, we have to clarify what the lazy keto diet isn’t supposed to be. It does not mean you should practice the keto diet on an irregular basis — you still have to do it every single day. You can’t just skip a day and consume all the carbs you want. That’s not how the lazy keto diet works at all.
Remember: There is no cheat day if you want to maintain a state of ketosis for the long run. Forgoing a keto diet for a day will set you back to zero; you won’t lose weight anytime soon. Plus, you’ll have to wait for your body to adapt once again to a high-fat diet, which means you may experience the keto flu again.
Thus, the lazy keto diet is not about being lazy in the sense of skipping the prescribed carb intake. What it only implies is that you don’t have to be so meticulous over which foods you should eat.
Lazy Keto VS Strict Keto
One may consider the strict keto diet as the opposite of the lazy keto type. But what holds true is that diet isn’t necessarily better than the other; some may find better results with the lazy keto diet while others will find more value in adhering to the strict keto diet. You can even make use of both diet types.
As you may have already guessed, the strict keto diet is all about keeping track of what you eat. Each bite and each dish is important in achieving your weight loss goals. There’s no room for picking a dish at random. It’s essential to know the calories and the macronutrients — the proteins, fats, and carbs.
The reason behind the strict keto diet is the fact that you can better control your weight if you take every possible factor into account. Thus, you not only have to stick to less than 20 grams of carbs each day but you must also not forget about your calorie intake.
Despite the ‘strict’ aspect of this keto diet, it’s actually considered as the classic version. Plus, it’s undoubtedly the most popular type of the keto diet. There are so many guides online dedicated to the strict keto diet alone, but they don’t always share the same opinions about what the diet exactly is.
But there are still several common principles behind the strict keto diet. Aside from the carb intake limit of just under 20 grams, it’s necessary to have a sufficient amount of protein and fat. The strict keto diet also does not recommend highly processed food products and those that are high in sugar.
You also have to be picky with your vegetables. After all, there are otherwise nutritious veggies that are high in carbs. Refined vegetable oils, as well as trans fats, are considered bad for your ketosis. Interestingly enough, there is no consensus as to whether alcohol should be completely removed or not.
Overall, the strict keto diet requires more management than lazy keto. The rules may differ from one guide to another, but the goal remains the same: To help you lose weight as healthily and efficiently as possible.
Lazy Keto VS Dirty Keto
There are many similarities between lazy keto and dirty keto. In fact, you can practice both at the same time. The lazy keto is only about counting your daily carb intake — that’s it. If you eat any type of food but stick to that amount, you’re pretty much practicing dirty keto already.
If the strict keto prohibits highly processed foods, the dirty keto doesn’t care about the foods you eat. You can go to McDonald’s or KFC and eat all the chicken and burger patties you want as long as you don’t exceed 20 grams of carbs. The source and quality of the macronutrients don’t matter.
The dirty keto is easier to practice since processed foods are located everywhere. After all, not every supermarket will have natural or whole foods. And another thing with the dirty keto is that you don’t have to stick to keto-friendly foods — you can eat high-carb foods as long as you mind the portions.
You can get your 20 grams of carbs from a slice of cake or from cauliflower; even vegetable oils are welcome on a dirty keto diet. The quality may affect your health in negative ways in the long run, but you can guarantee to remain in ketosis. It’s a risky type of keto diet that you must not stick to forever.
On the other hand, you can actually do lazy keto and dirty keto without ruining your general health. This is possible if you live in an area where whole foods and those that aren’t highly processed are easy to find. Likewise, it helps if you’re used to eating healthy foods in the first place.
Pros and Cons of Lazy Keto
Pro #1: No Need to Plan Every Single Meal
One obvious benefit of lazy keto is that you don’t have to know all the macronutrients of the food you want to eat. Just identify the net carb count and you’re good to go. In other words, dirty keto is not demanding in terms of time and energy. There are no extensive lists and online Google searches needed.
You will eventually get used to counting macros as weeks and months pass and you shift to the strict keto diet — but lazy keto is a good starting point. It does not pressure you to use all the fitness and food apps; just stay under 20 net carbs and you’re good to go.
Pro #2: Great for People New to the Keto Diet
If you’re just starting out in your keto diet, you should consider lazy keto — especially if you’re busy. The requirements aren’t that numerous yet you still get to change your diet. You can quickly try out fatty foods such as bacon and cheese and enter ketosis.
This way, you get to experience the keto diet earlier; there’s no need to spend days making a fool-proof plan. Just start changing your meals and see whether you’re okay with your new diet or not. Moreover, you learn all about the symptoms of ketosis through experience.
Pro #3: Less Stressful Than Strict Keto
And finally, it makes the keto diet more enjoyable. Instead of worrying about what food you should eat next, you can choose whatever you want. If you want to eat 200 grams of bacon for breakfast, go ahead. Lazy keto does not care that you get more than 1,000 calories — and it only has 2.8 grams of net carbs.
We all know that losing weight makes people stressed. They think of physically intensive workouts and bland-tasting food. But with lazy keto, they can eat to their heart’s content as long as the net carb count isn’t forgotten.
Con #1: No Changes in Weight
One issue with the lazy keto diet is that you may reach a point when you no longer lose or even gain weight. In other words, you are at a standstill. You could lose a lot of water weight during your initial ketosis period. Likewise, the first few weeks could lead to significant weight loss results.
But as months go by, you may notice that nothing’s happening. The issue here is that the lazy keto does not count your calories. But if you change your weight, you would have to adjust your daily calorie intake to experience further weight loss. So if this happens, consider the switch to strict keto.
Con #2: Gaining More Weight
On a related note, you can also experience weight gain. This is worse than having no changes in your weight if your goal is weight loss. But the culprit remains the same: your calorie intake. If you lose weight yet you still increase your calorie intake, you will eventually add a couple more pounds to your weight.
Con #3: It May Backfire
If you’re only used to counting your net carb intake each day, you may not develop the discipline to continue it for the long run. The lack of pressure could make you think that lazy keto is enough — when it should serve as a stepping stone to strict keto.
Should I Try Lazy Keto?
You should try the lazy keto diet if you are new to the keto diet. Likewise, it’s a good option if you fare well when you immediately went to strict keto; lazy keto will help you take things slowly but surely. But if you’re used to keeping everything in check, then, by all means, go straight to strict keto.
Lazy Keto Food List
The point of lazy keto is to limit your daily carb intake. But if you don’t know which foods to eat, we’ve got you covered. Fruits such as avocados, blackberries, green olives, strawberries, grapefruit, and coconut are all good choices since they pack less than seven grams for every 100-gram serving.
As for keto-friendly vegetables, you should go for those that have a maximum of just five net carbs for every 100-gram serving. These include Brussels sprouts, broccoli, cabbage, spinach, asparagus, kale, green beans, and cauliflower.
Furthermore, other low-carb sources of fats worth considering are egg yolks, coconut butter, almond milk, macadamia oil, and fatty fish such as salmon and mackerel. And to help you keep your protein levels up, try some shellfish, chicken, bacon, stew meat, steak, tenderloin, ham, and pork chops.
Examples of Lazy Meals
Breakfast: Bacon and Eggs
Wondering what to have on a typical day when you’re on a lazy keto diet? For breakfast, you can fry two eggs and 1.25 ounces of bacon. That should take you less than 10 minutes — and you can even add in some cherry tomatoes and parsley if you want. You get 22g fat, 15g protein, and just 2g net carbs.
Check out the recipe here: Diet Doctor
Lunch: Chicken Sausage
If you really like your lazy keto meals simple, just buy some precooked chicken sausage. Add in some almonds, radishes, and guacamole. You can eat these on their own, but you can also prepare an onion dip. Overall, you should only get more or less 8g net carbs.
Check out the recipe here: The Kitchn
Dinner: Beef Stir Fry
You can end your day with an amazing-looking dish that’s ready in 20 minutes. It will look like you’re eating regular high-carb noodles, but you’re actually using long pieces of zucchini. Combine it with eight ounces of steak — and you’ve got the perfect lazy keto dinner.
Check out the recipe here: Bulletproof Blog
Conclusion
Lazy keto is not an excuse to skip your keto diet. Rather than encouraging a half-hearted practice of the diet, lazy keto allows people to start it without the pressure associated with the strict keto. So if you’re a beginner to the keto diet, consider lazy keto. It’s a simple yet effective starting point in the world of keto.
Overall, we hope that you learned a lot about our lazy keto guide. As always, take good care of your health and don’t rush into things. Know the pros and cons of whatever type of keto diet you want to try. If you have any questions or suggestions, feel free to send us a comment.
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