Lent for those on the Keto * Low-Carb Way

Lent is a common Christian observance in preparation for the most sacred of Christian holy days, Easter. Though some people associate Lent only with Catholics, Protestants also may observe Lent. It is particularly a common observance among Lutherans and Episcopalians. But how to you observe Lent if you are Keto * Low-Carb?

Militant vegetarians demand that people try out the vegetarian diet for Lent, and then, if they ‘like’ it, adopt that diet for life. ‘Like’ it? Of course people like it! What’s not to like when you get to feed that carb-monkey on your back with plenty of ‘plant-based’ high carb deadly foods? Remember, famous vegetarian Adolf Hitler loved to eat rich pastries (and kill people.) And near the end of his life he was certainly not the picture of health, either physically or spiritually. 

When we give up meat and poultry for Lent to eat fish, eggs and cheese, we are not giving up bad things. Meats and poultry are lawful pleasures and healthy foods. We give them up for a time to show God that we are sorry for the wrong things we have done that displease Him. It’s like the ancient Hebrews putting on rough sackcloth garments as a sign of mourning for sin. There is no evidence that anyone thought smooth linen garments were somehow unhealthy or less spiritual. 

The rules for Lent, in the Catholic church, have gotten less strict over time. (Protestant mostly do as they like for Lenten observance.) It used to be they had to actually fast, or eat only one meal a day, or give up dairy products and fish as well as meat. The rules today is that people over 14 years are to abstain from meat on Ash Wednesday and all the Fridays during Lent, and people who are 18 or over but not yet 60 must eat only one full meal on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. 

But if you are doing Keto * Low-Carb and giving up a lot of the common foods people eat all the time, and if you are doing Intermittent Fasting or longer fasting on a regular basis, doing the common Lenten observances don’t seem like doing much. Many of us do only one meal a day every day, not just twice a year on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday!

Eating more fish during Lent— not just on Fridays— is a healthy Lenten observance that doesn’t conflict with Keto * Low-Carb. The hard part is affording it! I buy frozen salmon at my local market (Gary’s in Stephenson MI) and it’s not so expensive for a meal, and salmon is quite healthy. I buy low-cost canned tuna, but I read the labels because some cheap canned tuna now has carbs in it! I buy tuna in water when I can’t get to a store that carries tuna in olive oil. You can always put a bit of EVOO (extra-virgin olive oil) in your canned tuna once you drain the water.

To make Lent more of a sacrifice of something lawful, you may choose to pick a food allowed on Keto * Low-Carb that you often eat and give it up. I am planning to give up heavy whipping cream for Lent, substituting canned coconut milk in its place. I like real cream in my bulletproof morning coffee, but I can do without and I will see how canned coconut milk works as a substitute. You might choose to give up low-carb chocolates or Atkins drinks or some other food you use regularly, enjoy, but one that is not the mainstay of your Keto * Low-Carb life. 

Sundays during Lent are not considered part of the Lenten fast and you can certainly eat meat for Sunday dinners without breaking your Lenten observance. If you can’t go without chocolate for all of Lent, you can make a point of buying a bit for your Sunday. For practical reasons, I’m not planning to buy heavy whipping cream for my Lenten Sundays, since it won’t get used up in one day and it doesn’t stay good forever. (I suppose I could freeze some cream in ice cube trays and use it on Sundays, but I don’t really plan to.)

You must never forget that the purpose of Lenten dietary observances is spiritual, not for health improvement. You are doing for your health when you go Keto * Low-Carb, Lent is about doing for your soul. Almsgiving— giving to the poor— is an essential part of Lenten observance. One is supposed to be giving the food you give up during Lent to the poor. (But as a poor person, what about my Lent? I wouldn’t mind having the steaks someone else gave up for Lent, but if I’m doing Lent too, I won’t be eating them except perhaps on Sunday. I could always freeze them I guess. But of course food banks won’t accept your lovely grass-fed steaks— they only want non-perishable food. Perhaps you could give some canned tuna and EVOO to the food bank? Mine never has much canned tuna, and only nasty vegetable oil.)

It is also possible to observe Lent without doing dietary observances (unless you are Catholic and have to give up meat on Ash Wednesday and the Fridays of course.) You can pray more— perhaps do novenas for the intention that God will move people to help the poor. You can pray this way even if you personally are poor (though maybe it’s a bit self-serving? But God will understand.)

It is also possible for people of non-Christian religions to follow whatever fasting or dietary restrictions your own faith encourages without breaking your Keto * Low-Carb life. If it helps your spiritual life, it need not conflict with your healthy low-carb life. Sometimes you can get permission to modify traditions for health reasons. I understand that Muslims, if they get a note from their doctor, can be allowed to consume water during the Ramadan fast when this is normally forbidden. Since the dehydration this might cause when this is observed is not good for anyone’s health, most Muslims can get a doctor’s OK for doing this.