Why I Chose Keto—and Why Sugar Addicts Hate That

I’m not an elite endurance athlete, but I walk 17–20 miles daily and train 45–75 minutes a day. Before eliminating processed carbs and sugars, I struggled with hypoglycemia, mood swings, and energy crashes. Transitioning to a ketogenic diet was transformative for me.

Plenty of serious endurance athletes thrive on low-carb and keto approaches. Ultra-endurance runner Zach Bitter broke the 100-mile world record on a ketogenic diet. Elite Ironman triathletes like Dr. Dan Plews use low-carb strategies to optimize fat metabolism and endurance. It’s not just about performance—it’s about longevity, hormone stability, and mental clarity.

Sugar Is Not Fuel. It’s a Metabolic Wrecking Ball.

Let’s be real: processed sugar isn’t fuel—it’s biochemical sabotage. According to Dr. Robert Lustig at UCSF, added sugar (especially in liquid form like soda and energy drinks) is “toxic,” contributing to insulin resistance, obesity, and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. [UCSF Source]

A 2023 BMJ meta-review found strong evidence linking sugar intake to increased risks of type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and depression. [BMJ Review, 2023]

Sugary Drinks: Liquid Fat Storage

Drinking calories is one of the fastest ways to ruin metabolic health. Sugary drinks like soda, “sports drinks,” and sweetened teas bypass satiety signals and spike insulin violently. Harvard researchers found that people who consume sugary beverages daily have a 26% higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes. [Harvard School of Public Health]

White Bread and Sugary Cereals: Modern Man’s Junk Fuel

White bread and cereals are marketed as staples but are actually ultra-processed, insulin-spiking garbage. Stripped of fiber, minerals, and protein, they act just like sugar in the bloodstream. A study in Diabetes Care showed that high glycemic foods like white bread increase insulin resistance and inflammation. [Diabetes Care, 2002]

Cereals marketed to children contain more sugar per serving than cookies. The Environmental Working Group found that some “healthy” cereals are over 50% sugar by weight. [EWG Report, 2014]

Weston A. Price Warned Us Nearly 100 Years Ago

In his foundational work Nutrition and Physical Degeneration, Dr. Weston A. Price documented how traditional, ancestral diets built strong bodies and minds—while refined sugar and white flour triggered rapid physical decay. He observed widespread dental deformities, bone narrowing, and behavioral issues appearing within a single generation when indigenous tribes switched to white bread, jam, canned goods, and sugar. [Weston A. Price Foundation]

The modern diet is not built for strength—it’s built for profit. It hijacks your dopamine, spikes your insulin, weakens your bones, and burns out your endocrine system. That’s the truth they don’t want you to hear.

The Keto Difference

If you burn 6,000 calories a day, sure—maybe you can get away with sugar and lard. But for the average guy trying to lose fat, build muscle, and protect his testosterone? High-carb diets are a hormonal trap. I lived it. I crashed hard on a grain-based diet. I leveled up on keto.

I’m not here to argue. I’m here to live. Want more? Read the work. Follow the mindset. Or don’t. I really don’t care either way.

Jon Stone
Founder, ironresilience.net
Discipline, Not Genetics

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