Whether you love them or loathe them, celebrities have incredibly swaying power when it comes to, well, just about everything, and particularly, it seems when it comes to health and fitness.
Take for example the ketogenic or ‘keto’ diet, which has actually been around for quite a while (it was originally devised to help treat patients who suffered from epilepsy) but has just recently grown in popularity over the past two years for its claim to promote rapid weight loss.
It also probably helps that it’s been backed by several big-name celebs who say they follow the high-fat, low-carb diet and have in turn sky-rocketed the diet to fame, to become one of the most popular (and most controversial) diets over the last few years.
So what exactly is the ketogenic diet? The keto diet is a very low-carbohydrate, medium protein and high-fat diet that aims to bring your body into a state of ketosis, which means your body shifts from running off glucose (sugar and carbs) as its main source of energy, instead using ketones (fat), which is how you can potentially lose weight fast.
As aforementioned, the keto diet has garnered a ton of criticism as it’s seen as a highly restrictive and very hard to sustain over a long period of time, however despite this, these six celebs have found a way to make keto work, and they swear by it.
Halle Berry
53-year-old actress Halle Berry consistently wows us with her incredible physique and her ever-youthful complexion, regularly posting #FitnessFriday posts on Instagram of her favourite workouts, motivational quotes and recording videos with her personal trainer Peter Lee Thomas.
She also regularly talks about the keto diet, saying she follows it for weight management as well as to manage her diabetes, which she was diagnosed with when she was 22.
In a post to Instagram last year the Catwoman actress opened up about all the benefits she’s found on the diet, or as she stresses ‘lifestyle’.
“Being diabetic most of my life, I have always had to take food very seriously. So for years, I have been following the keto or ketogenic diet,” she wrote on Instagram.
“I hate the word “diet” so while you’ll see the word diet, just know I encourage you to think of it as a lifestyle change NOT A DIET! Keto is a very low-carb food plan which actually forces your body to burn fat like crazy. I also believe it’s been largely responsible for slowing down my ageing process.
“The keto lifestyle offers so many benefits such as weight loss, (moms that’s how we get rid of our baby bellies), appetite control, more energy and better mental performance.
“If you’re like me, you can possibly reverse type 2 diabetes, you’ll experience better physical endurance, better skin and also less acne if that’s an issue.”
Halle says despite many people thinking the diet is restrictive, she says she feels that’s far from the truth.
“You can eat all the food you want,” she said during an interview with PeopleTV.
“You can eat a big-ass porterhouse steak if you want. You just can’t have the baked potato.”
Kourtney Kardashian
While Halle has certainly made the keto diet a stable part of her life, for the eldest Kardashian sister Kourtney, she follows the keto diet for shorter periods to kick-start weight loss.
While the 40-year-old gave the keto diet a break for two years, earlier this year Kourtney announced she was going back on the diet on her lifestyle website Poosh, saying she wanted to look and feel her best for summer.
“My body never looked better than when I did the keto two and [a] half years ago, when I did it for two months,” she wrote.
“In my experience, I’ve found the best method to train my body to curb sugar cravings, burn fat, and kick-start weight loss is by sticking to the keto diet.”
Unlike Halle, Kourtney admits keto is “definitely a more restrictive eating plan,” but says, “I found that once I knew the ground rules I was very strict and stuck to it.”
Kim Kardashian
Kourtney’s not the only Kardashian who’s a keto fan. Her younger sister Kim also follows a version of the keto diet and credits it for helping her lose an incredible 27kg after she gave birth to her second child Saint.
According to Kim’s personal trainer and bodybuilder Melissa Alcantara who spoke to People, Kim eats only real food that is cooked fresh every day.
That means processed foods like biscuits, breads and even salad dressing are a no-go. Paired with a gruelling fitness regime, that’s how the 39-year-old maintains her famous figure.
Vanessa Hudgens
Actress Vanessa Hudgens is a huge fan of the keto diet, but she also switches it up by switching it for intermittent fasting from time to time.
While she had been following the ketogenic diet for a while, after she saw a friend benefitting from intermittent fasting – another incredibly popular diet at the moment, she wanted to give it a go herself.
“Homeboy is ageing backward,” the 30-year-old told Women’s Health earlier this year.
She says her love for pizza and pasta works well on an intermittent fasting regime as she can eat what she wants, just within a certain time frame (she fasts for 18 hours and eats between 12pm and 6pm).
When she wants to change things up, she’ll switch back to a keto diet.
“If you have the right ingredients to keep you on track, I think it’s amazing,” she says of the keto diet.
“I’m always making sure I’m getting those healthy fats in, so I eat a LOT of almond butter. You feel really energetic and supported on the keto diet.
She does, however, acknowledge that juggling the two diets, or even following either of them at all is something that works for everyone.
“I feel like it’s a recipe that works for me,” she says.
“Everyone’s different of course, but for me, that’s what’s been the most beneficial so far.”
Adriana Lima
Victoria’s Secret models are known for their intense fitness regimes and just as intensive diets and Adriana Lima is no different following the keto diet, but perhaps even more intensive than most.
Speaking to The Cut, 38-year-old Adriana says she tries to eliminate all carbs from her diet.
She claimed the diet made her feel much healthier but added she also had a nutritionist who made sure she was still getting all the nutrients her body needed.
Gwyneth Paltrow
Gwyneth Paltrow is known for endorsing a host of new-age, bizarre and controversial practices when it comes to health and wellbeing, but when it comes to her endorsement of the keto diet, as it’s clear from examples above, she’s not alone on this one.
The head of the Goop empire previously told PORTER that she sticks to a low-carb diet so that her “energy levels don’t peak and valley through the day.”
So there you have it, six celebrities who rely on the keto diet to look and feel their best. While the diet has been credited for helping people achieve rapid weight loss as well as additional health benefits, it should be stressed that this diet isn’t for everyone and you may be better off focusing on having a healthy and balanced diet and getting regular exercise.
As nutritionist Rachel Scoular previously told Now To Love: “Regardless of the diet you choose, it’s always going to be a good idea to cut down on processed foods, particularly those high in refined sugars, fat and salt.
“In most cases, you’ll find that by simply cutting down on these foods and prioritising your fruit and vegetable intake, you’re already placing yourself at a good chance of weight loss if you are carrying extra weight, but weight loss aside, you’re sure to improve your health considerably.”
The Ministry of Health recommends talking to your GP before undertaking any major changes to your diet.
