What is keto minimalism? A manifesto.
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Keto minimalism is using your own inner wisdom and personal preferences to choose the keto guidelines, foods, and practices you wish to include in your life. Just like keeping a minimalist house, being a keto minimalist means decluttering all the foods, supplements, beliefs, attitudes, and rules that don’t serve you or don’t spark joy. The cool thing is that there is no right or wrong way to be a keto minimalist. As in all things, YOU get to decide.
Life is complicated. Keto doesn’t have to be.
Keto is awesome. Mostly.
I’m guessing you decided to go keto to lose weight, or lower your blood sugar, or to improve your health. Maybe you started a keto diet to stop cravings and quit obsessing about food.
I’m also guessing you are sometimes overwhelmed with all the keto “stuff” out there.
There are 34,000 keto blogs and social media accounts to follow. (But make sure you follow this one, k??) Tons of keto books, supplements and philosophies . Don’t even get me started on Pinterest and recipes for days.
I’m guessing you have lots of questions, like “do I need to intermittent fast?” or “do I have to track my macros?” or “do I have to drink bulletproof coffee when I’m a tea kinda gal?”
I’m a twitter girl so sometimes I speak in gif. :)
Keto drama is optional.
Keto minimalism is all about picking and choosing the parts of keto that fit your life, your personality, and your personal goals.
And decluttering the rest of that sh*t.
Dumping guilt and unrealistic expectations.
Trashing the 37 keto Instagram accounts you follow because it makes you feel bad that you haven’t gone from obese and pre-diabetic to bikini babe in just 12 weeks. (Not to mention you’re firmly in the midst of middle age and all the IG ladies are young enough to be your daughters.)
Kicking to the curb the rules and foods and crap that you just don’t like.
But also embracing the parts of keto you love. And that make your body or spirit happy.
It may be just me, dear reader, but I feel like you don’t need:
11 keto diet books
27 Pinterest boards of recipes when you freaking hate cooking
a belief you need to spend six solid hours on a Sunday night meal prepping while the rest of the world is watching Game of Thrones
to buy MCT oil, like ever
guilt over eating a potato or, gasp, an entire banana
bad feelings, zillions of rules, and stress over food - it’s supposed to make us feel good, y’all!
to compare your gorgeous self to anyone else doing keto - ever
There’s a better way…become a keto minimalist.
Learn the basics of keto (because a solid foundation is important) and make it work for you. (This program is how I learned keto and it’s one I highly recommend.) Once you’ve mastered the basics…
Then declutter the rules and foods and thoughts that don't serve you. Like Marie Kondo, just say "thank you, goodbye.)
Being a keto minimalist isn’t at all about rebelling against authority (though I’m a master at this, just ask my mom). It’s about intentionally picking and choosing what works best for YOU.
Embracing keto minimalism has many benefits…
Keto minimalism saves time.
Meal planning is a snap when you choose from a streamlined list of recipes you love and that make your body feel good.
Cooking is quick and efficient when you choose recipes with minimal ingredients and prep methods.
Paying attention to how your body feels so you know when you are in ketosis saves time testing for ketones every day.
I could go on, but I think you get the point.
Being a keto minimalist is being intentional about how you spend your time and on what.
Don’t want to make keto cookies? It’s totally fine. Use that hour to watch HGTV instead.
It’s not all about the Benjamins either…
Keto minimalism saves money.
You know that MCT powder everyone is talking about but you have a history of stomach issues and are afraid to try it?? Guess what? You can save $30 and cross it off your dang list.
You don’t need to spend money on:
supplements you don’t want
fancy ingredients
everyone’s favorite keto sweetener of the month
cookbooks, how-to books, or bookends ffs
a spiralizer or the newest and greatest kitchen gadget (to be fair, I have a special place in my heart for my air fryer - crispy chicken thighs ftw!)
expensive ass keto bars that just taste gross
a “powered by coffee and ketones” t-shirt (unless you really want to)
I could go on, but my sarcasm is limited and I think you get the idea.
Keto minimalism saves emotional energy aka mental drama.
One of the mottos I try to live by is to “make decisions ahead of time.” I learned this from life coach Brooke Castillo who has an amazing podcast, by the way.
When you make keto decisions ahead of time it frees up space in that beautiful brain of yours and allows you to concentrate on other important things in life. Like will the Mother’s Day gift you ordered today arrive by Sunday?? (This is probably just me.)
What keto decisions can you make ahead of time?
Will I or won’t I intermittent fast (this week, this month, or ever)?
How many keto cookbooks do I realistically need?
Do I have to make fat bombs?
What kind of artificial sweetener (if any) will I use?
Do I need to post selfies on Instagram for “accountability” or am I happier doing this keto thang on my own?
Is it anyone’s business wtf I eat? (Answer, no.)
Do I have to get an Instapot because twelve YouTube influencers tell me I need one?
Will I track macros every day?
How often will I weigh myself?
Will I check my ketones each morning?
Will I allow anyone to make me feel guilty about the way I do keto?
Seriously, being deliberate about the keto practices you follow and attitudes you adopt is incredibly freeing. It also save so much emotional drama. (Remember that gif from a few paragraphs ago? Imagine it right here.)
“If your keto practices don’t spark joy, toss them the eff out.”
Keto minimalism forces you to be intentional.
To decide what matters in your keto journey you have to do a little self-reflection. Which is always a good thing. Are you doing this because you read it somewhere? On whose authority and why?
By really looking at your keto beliefs you learn to focus on the basics and decide what else to keep or toss. Focusing on what really matters frees you to be the keto badass you know is inside you.
Keto minimalism empowers you.
It is understanding YOU have authority and permission to make decisions about your personal health and well-being.
YOU decide what keto minimalism means to you.
Traditional minimalism comes in many flavors, no?
You have that dude living in a sterile 12x12 white room with a pair of jeans, 3 t-shirts, and one each spoon, knife, and fork. The minimalist extremist, if you will.
You also have someone like me who calls herself a minimalist, though I live in a 3000 square foot home, with flatware for 12, an entire drawer full of colored pencils and stickers, and a literal crap ton of Bon Jovi memorabilia.
I surround myself with what I need and what I love. Who’s to say that’s not being a minimalist?
The same thing is true with our keto diets.
You get to decide what keto minimalism means to you and there is not one damn soul who can tell you you’re wrong.
It’s kind of an attitude. No one can take it away.
If you’re into lots of kitchen gadgets, have at it.
If you want to eat the same 3 meals over and over again, that’s cool too.
Kind of like Burger King… you can have it your way. Just be sure to skip the bun.
So what do you actually do as a keto minimalist? Do you need to write a rule book??
To me, keto minimalism is an attitude.
A lens to look at the keto world and filter out what I don’t want.
I don’t have a written list of my core beliefs and personal guidelines. (Though I should probably write them down and share, if that would be helpful.)
You could write your list. Or keep it in your beautiful, fat-fueled brain.
Instead, I recommend asking yourself some simple questions about your keto beliefs:
Why am I doing this (or eating this or believing this)?
Does it make me happy?
Is it helpful?
Would I prefer believing something different?
How does this food feel in my body?
Do I want to intermittent fast, and why?
Am I being influenced by a certain person, brand, or company?
What does my gut tell me?
Am I less authentically keto if I don’t make homemade bone broth? (Hint: no.)
Why I became a keto minimalist. (If you care.)
I loved how keto made me feel. I loved that I wasn’t hungry 24/7 and that my insatiable cravings for Cheetos and Oreos disappeared.
I loved how I could maintain my weight almost effortlessly.
I didn’t love all the keto clutter.
You know, all the rules and expectations out there in the keto space.
You have to intermittent fast.
MCT oil in yo’ coffee or bust.
You have to eat 80% fat every day. Or is it 70??
The so-called keto experts (and they’re everywhere!) made me feel like I was doing it wrong.
I wasn’t keto-enough if I ate tortilla chips every Saturday for date night.
I sometimes snacked during the day. (The horror!)
To this day I have still not tried MCT oil.
I’ve never been much of a rule follower.
One day I had a revelation…
I was smack-dab in the middle of a home renovation which forced me to take a look at all the crap in my home. Do I really love this yellow plastic Cedar Point souvenir mug from 1994? Do I want it taking up space in my soon-to-be beautifully painted and redecorated home?
Hell to the no.
I channeled my inner Marie Kondo and started tossing crap like I was possessed. I purposefully asked myself “does this Bon Jovi concert t-shirt from 1986 spark joy?”
Not if I can’t fit into it, it doesn’t.
I found that trashing sh*t that didn’t serve me was incredibly freeing.
I have less.
I love what I have.
Everything in my home either serves a purpose or I love the way it makes me feel.
What if I applied that same thinking to keto??
I decided to become a keto minimalist.
I keep the keto guidelines that make sense to me and tossed rules that are just dumb, lol.
I eat the keto foods that make me happy. (Do you feel me, MCT oil??)
I intermittent fast when my keto ass feels like it, not when some self-proclaimed guru tells me I should.
I eat carbs every damn Saturday night with zero regrets.
I eat dairy.
I don’t eat bacon every day and I eat a helluva lot of low carb veggies.
I rarely track my macros. Instead I listen to my body.
I eat keto my way, and I am happy.
And, f*ck it, I made up my own definition of keto minimalism.
While my closet is lean and mean and minimalist, I don’t have an entire wardrobe of black and white like you see on YouTube and Instagram.
I like bright pink.
I like loud patterns.
I have 12 pairs of boots and I’m not getting rid of a damn one of them.
As with my home, I am the one who defines what keto minimalism means to me.
And you get to decide for YOU.
Do you want to be a keto minimalist?
Do you want to ditch constricting rules that don’t make sense to you?
Do you want to only eat the keto foods you love?
Do you want to stop spending 3 hours a week pinning recipes you know you damn well will never make?
You can totally do keto any way you want, if it makes you feel happy and healthy.
And you never have to buy a bottle of MCT oil.
