Keto Forever......

​     I've decided that even after I hit my goal weight, I plan to continue the keto, although I might modify it according to some recommendations following recent studies.  Again, the ketogenic diet involves eating high-fat, low-carbohydrate foods to reach a state of ketosis. In ketosis, the body burns fat for fuel instead of sugar. However, Following the ketogenic diet long-term may cause cellular aging in organs, which may increase the risk of heart disease, kidney disease, and cancer.  In this process called cellular senescence, old cells stop dividing but don't die off.  Instead, they accumulate over time and release harmful substances that can damage nearby healthy cells.  Senescent cells can also lead to inflammation and organ damage. The accumulation of aged cells can increase the risk of conditions like heart disease, cancer, and type 2 diabetes. However, some studies suggest that these effects can be mitigated by taking breaks from the diet. A ketogenic diet that includes planned breaks may reduce the pro-inflammatory effects, as some studies show that intermittent keto dieting can decrease senescent cells. Steve and I are looking forward to tomorrow evening because we have plans to meet in downtown Vancouver and have dinner with our Canadian friends. We always look forward to hanging out with these guys, and I'm sure it will be very nice to spend time with them again. Then, on Thursday morning, we head to Los Angeles to pick up Jake's car, which we had shipped from Hawaii. We initially intended that he pick it up, but it's much easier for us to do it because we don't have to take off work. We had it shipped to Los Angeles instead of Seattle because it saved us almost $1,300.  We'll enjoy the coastal ride down to Richland.  It'll be good to see Jake and provide another traveling adventure. Although I am still five pounds away from my goal weight, the top end of my recommended weight range, I will discontinue my blog at the end of September. I promised myself that I would continue the blog until I reached my goal, or after three years. Since it will be three years at the end of September, I'll stop.  However, I might add an epilogue to the end of the blog when I hit the magic number!