There’s a Reason the Keto Diet Has Staying Power, and It’s Not Ketosis

Julie Smith, the Utah-based mother of four behind the popular Instagram account @ketomadesimple, neatly organized her plate and crafted her caption:

“Camping, day 1. Lunch. Pork rinds, snap peas with ranch, lettuce wrapped turkey, bacon, mayo, mustard, and cheese. Yes, snap peas are carby, but I’m okay with it! K, off to be with my cute family. Love you, bye.”

She added 30 relevant hashtags, including #ketogenicliving, #ketocommunity, and #ketofam, and hit share, uploading the photo to more than 380,000 followers.

If you shudder at this plate full of processed meat and high-fat foods, you can head over to #cleaneating on Instagram. You are not Smith’s audience. She’s talking to believers in the low-carbohydrate ketogenic diet, some of whom she knows will hound her for those “carby” peas. She expects it, because that’s what they did when she ate some baby carrots (also too high in carbs for keto adherents). Smith knows her tribe. And even though they can be hard on her, she really does love them. “Those are my people,” she says.

The ketogenic diet is strict: no sugar, no alcohol, and practically no carbs (including very few fruits). The goal is to reach ketosis, a state in which the body stops burning sugar and starts burning fat instead. Keto is…