To follow a 100% vegetarian ketogenic diet, you will need to stop eating all meat, fish, and fowl flesh and restrict carbohydrates. By eating in this way, you can experience all of the benefits of the ketogenic diet while simultaneously reducing your carbon footprint, decreasing animal abuse, and improving your health.
To implement the diet correctly, you must follow these rules:
- Limit your total carbohydrate consumption to 35 grams or less per day.
- Eliminate all animal flesh from your diet (e.g., meat, fish, and poultry).
- Eat plenty of low-carb vegetables.
- Get at least 70% of your calories from fat.
- Consume around 25% of your calories from plant-based proteins, eggs, and dairy.
- Supplement with nutrients that you may not be getting enough of like vitamins D3, DHA & EPA, iron, zinc, and creatine.
- Use the keto calculator to figure out your calorie and macronutrient needs.
The bulk of your diet will be made up of:
- Vegan “meats” — tempeh, tofu, seitan, and other high-protein, low-carb vegan “meats”
- Leafy greens – spinach, kale, etc.
- Above ground vegetables – broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini, etc.
- High Fat Dairy & Eggs – hard cheeses, high fat cream, butter, eggs, etc.
- Nuts and seeds – pistachios, almonds, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, etc.
- Avocado and berries – raspberries, blackberries, and other low glycemic impact berries
- Sweeteners – stevia, erythritol, monk fruit, and other low-carb sweeteners >
- Other fats – coconut oil, olive oil, MCT oil, red palm oil, etc.
For a more in-depth look at how to follow this diet (along with a free vegetarian keto meal plan), check out our comprehensive guide to the vegetarian ketogenic diet.