re: Gaining muscle/loosing fat

I didn't speak in absolutes and as I said you won't build much if any. Certainly everyone is different and some can build some muscle, but it won't be much. Certainly you can achieve great body composition and look like a different person though. And certainly you can build strength especially through neural adaptations. Also once fat adapted most studies show no or very little performance decreases if volume is low.

I'm not gonna argue though, if keto is working to help you achieve your goals certainly use it. I personally use it.

But here are four studies that it is very hard to build muscle on keto. But again if it works for your goals, awesome.


Vargas, S., et al., Efficacy of ketogenic diet on body composition during resistance training in trained men: a randomized controlled trial. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 2018. 15(1): p. 31.

Kephart, W.C., et al., The Three-Month Effects of a Ketogenic Diet on Body Composition, Blood Parameters, and Performance Metrics in CrossFit Trainees: A Pilot Study. Sports, 2018. 6(1): p. 1.

Cholewa, J.M., Newmire, D.E., Zanchi, N.E., Carbohydrate Restriction: Friend or Foe of Resistance-Based Exercise Performance? Nutrition, 2018. [Epub ahead of print].

Green, D.A., et al., A Low-Carbohydrate Ketogenic Diet Reduces Body Weight Without Compromising Performance in Powerlifting and Olympic Weightlifting Athletes. J Strength Cond Res, 2018. [Epub ahead of print]