The ketogenic diet had a large impact on my life and my climbing. Here is a detailed discussion of 6 years of my own experiences with the keto diet for sport performance as a pro rock climber, with references to 150 scientific papers on the performance, health and other effects of the diet. Chapter markers below to help you navigate to specific parts of the video. All the scientific references are on my blog here:

https://www.davemacleod.com/blog/keto

I’ve also made an audio only version for my Patreon supporters in case you want to listen on the hill, rather than watch:

https://www.patreon.com/posts/58487460

Chapters:
0:00:00 - General comments on nutrition/goals of this video
0:03:07 - TL;DR summary of the whole video
0:08:00 - Finding references from this video
0:09:34 - How I came to try keto
0:19:12 - Conclusions about why I came to try keto
0:24:45 - Half-assed keto was a complete failure
0:26:28 - I try to avoid weight cutting
0:31:07 - Doing keto properly was a huge success for me
0:32:52 - Body composition effects from my keto diet
0:33:38 - Summary of other body comp experiments I’ve done since
0:46:17 - Summary of my views on keto & body comp management
0:46:42 - Secondary benefits I experienced on keto - Appetite regulation
0:49:29 - Other Benefits of keto: steady energy supply
0:52:11 - Other benefits of keto: mood improvements
0:53:15 - Other benefits of keto: joint pain
0:56:22 - Other benefits of keto: respiratory Illness
0:58:13 - Downsides of the keto diet
1:07:29 - Summary of keto benefits/downsides for me
1:08:14 - Is the keto diet unhealthy?
1:11:00 - Health concern 1. saturated fat
1:35:23 - Red meat, vegetables, fibre and health
1:37:55 - Keto diets and early death
1:45:07 - Why does the keto diet work for weight loss/management?
2:12:48 - Keto & weight control summary
2:16:25 - Scientific evidence on keto diets & sport performance
2:45:41 - Evidence from longer ketoadaptation studies
3:08:59 - Interpretation of the longer keto studies in athletes
3:11:28 - An important point about dealing with uncertainties in evidence
3:14:09 - Fat vs carbs in running
3:16:34 - Diet & metabolic flexibility
3:24:18 - Summary of metabolic flexibility
3:25:33 - Fuel for the work required concept
3:33:33 - Summary of keto in classic endurance sports evidence
3:37:55 - How might the keto diet impact climbing?
4:01:31 - Closing summary

I mention some books in this video (links to them are affiliate links):

Nutrition & Physical Degeneration by Weston A Price https://amzn.to/3kmSXBz
The Glasgow Effect by Ellie Harrison https://amzn.to/3C1nbQG
High Intensity Interval Training by Paul Laursen & co. https://amzn.to/3qp2c80
Exercise Physiology by George Brooks & co https://amzn.to/3F2c6k9
Why Diets make us fat by Sandra Aamodt https://amzn.to/30g8o7J


My Books on training for climbing :

9 out of 10 climbers https://www.davemacleod.com/shop/9outof10climbers
Make or Break https://www.davemacleod.com/shop/makeorbreak
My Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/davemacleod
My Teespring Merch https://teespring.com/stores/dave-macleod-climbing

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