I’ve seen struggle with a ketogenic diet because they’re not aware of how to tweak the diet to their specific goal or objective. With such a slew of potential benefits for high-caliber athletes as well as those suffering from chronic diseases, it can be hard to tease out out how to adapt the diet to what you need.

This is why I was excited to interview Dr. Cathy Saenz, PhD, RD. Cathy is one of the very few people in the keto space with experience as a researcher and clinician, for athletes, those with chronic disease, and anyone in between. She worked with Dr. Jeff Volek on the FASTER study, the Cleveland Indians, and speaks regularly at conferences.

In this conversation, Cathy answers:

• What are the biggest differences between high carb vs. fat-adapted endurance athletes?
• What’s your definition of a well-formulated ketogenic diet?
• How much protein should we have on a keto diet?
• What are the benefits of keto diet? How much is known with studies vs. anecdotal in your clinical experience?
• Were we evolved to sustainably be in ketosis?
• Are there genetic differences for who does better on a keto diet?
• How flexible on carbs should athletes be to maintain a ketogenic diet?
• What are the differences in formulating a keto diet for power vs. endurance athletes?
• What level of ketones should people shoot for?
• What’s the difference between ketoacidosis and nutritional ketosis?
• Are there any risks for thyroid or adrenal fatigue with keto? How can they mitigate those risks?

Hope you enjoy the conversation.