My husband and I recently made a BIG (but temporary) change to our diet.
You probably guessed it from the title, but let’s remove all doubt and just get it out there: We went Keto.
We made this change because Keto has been known to reduce inflammation, increase energy levels, reduce hunger, and turn our bodies into fat-burning machines. We’ve both been working really hard on our fitness, and wanted to do something to help us burn additional fat and hopefully finally be able to see the muscles we’ve been working so hard to build.
Related: 10 Different, Free Camping Meal Plans. Download now!
And since we’re going camping this Labor Day Weekend, we found it necessary to build a 4-Day Keto Camping Meal plan.
What is Keto?
The Ketogenic Diet, commonly known as Keto, is a VERY low carb diet. By low carb, I mean that Matt and I keep our Net Carbohydrates (Total Carbohydrates minus Fiber) to less than 40 grams per day. This sounds like a challenge, and I’d be lying if I said it was a walk in the park, but there are tons of delicious Ketogenic recipes on the internet by some fabulous Keto and Low Carb bloggers.
When you eat a low carb diet for long enough, your body burns all of the carbohydrates it has stored up, and switches over to burning fat for fuel instead of carbohydrates. This state is called Ketosis, and it takes about 3-7 days to reach it. Once you reach ketosis though, and the longer you stay there, the more fat your body will burn.
We by no means plan to stick to a Ketogenic diet forever, but it is a useful tool to have in our arsenal to burn fat with.
Matt and I are headed out for a camping trip over Labor Day weekend, and we will still be Keto, so I decided it was high time to create a new, specialized meal plan for Ketogenic Camping!
Related: Camping Essentials You Might Not Have Thought Of
I realize not everyone is Keto, so this will not appeal to every single one of you, but if you are, hopefully I’ve just made your life easier!
As always, this meal plan is FREE. If you’re new here and want to download it, enter your email address and I’ll email it to you. (if you’re already a part of my mailing list, check your inbox, because you’ve already got it! Or, you can subscribe again, and I’ll send it)
My meal plans are really comprehensive, but besides that, they are designed to:
- Maximize Efficiency: These meals are designed to require very little actual active cooking time, so you have more time to devote to your family.
- Use Regular Foods: They’re also decidedly wallet-friendly, with the exception of steak on one of the nights. Your budget will thank you.
- Incorporate Shelf-Stable Items: As much as possible, use canned or packaged items that don’t need refrigeration. This means less items you have to keep cold in coolers.
Download The Meal Plan
This time we are camping for 4 days and 3 nights, which requires a moderate amount of food (unlike last year’s 7-day adventure). We currently camp with a refrigerator (yay, glamping!) but if you are camping with coolers, take note of these tips:
- Cook Everything You Possibly Can Before Leaving: Raw meat spoils faster, so if you can cook it ahead of time, then freeze it before leaving, that meat will help keep everything cold and stay cooler longer.
- Start Early: Packing coolers with sturdier items on the bottom, more fragile items on top, and grouping items by meals will make your life so much easier!
- Invest in a Great Cooler: If you’re camping for more than a nigh or two, food safety becomes really important. I highly recommend RTIC coolers, since they keep food cold as long as YETI coolers, but at half the price. Find them here.
- Use a Prep Checklist: All of my free camping meal plans (including this one) have Preparation Checklists included to help you, so make sure you download and use them!
Related: 7 Can’t Miss Tips for Camping out of Coolers
In order to make things as easy as possible, I recommend gathering the following items for meal prep + the actual trip:
- Liners
- Plastic Cups with Lids
- Plastic Cutlerly + Paper Plates
- Gallon Ziploc Bags
- A slow cooker
- A waffle maker
- A complete camp kitchen
Normally, I don’t recommend specific food products, but because this Ketogenic Camping Meal Plan is highly specialized, there are a FEW products that this meal plan (almost) requires:
- Simple Girl Carolina BBQ Sauce
- Almond Flour
- Coconut Flour
- Stevia & Erythritol Sweetener (here’s my pick)
Related: 23 Camping Skills You Can Teach Kids
Recipes for the Ketogenic Camping Meal Plan
Finally, you’ll need the following recipes. Some of these are here on SMC (SavingMoneyCamping.com) and others are on my Food/Fitness Site, so don’t be scared when they open in a new site. Still my content 🙂
- Crockpot Raspberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake (THM:S, Ketogenic, Low Carb, Grain-free)
- Copycat Waffle McGriddles (THM:S, Ketogenic, Low Carb)
- Keto Copycat Jimmy John’s Unwiches (THM:S, Low Carb, Ketogenic, Grain-Free)
- Keto BBQ Chicken Pizza (THM:S, Ketogenic, Low Carb, Grain-free)
- Fathead Pretzel Dogs (THM:S, Ketogenic, Low Carb, Grain-free)
- Loaded Mashed Cauliflower (THM:S, Ketogenic, Low Carb, Grain-free)
- Keto Burrito Bowls (THM:S, Ketogenic, Low Carb, Grain-free)
- Slow Cooker Chicken Broccoli Soup (THM:S, Ketogenic, Low Carb, Grain-free)
Prep Checklist for the Ketogenic Camping Meal Plan
- Make Keto Maple Waffles
- Make Fathead Pizza Dough
- Cook and Shred Chicken for pizza
- Make Fathead Pretzel dogs & Freeze
- Make Mashed Cauliflower
- Marinate and cook chicken for Burrito Bowls
- Chop onions, tomatoes and cilantro for Burrito Bowls
Related: Camping with a Baby? Here’s How to Survive.
Desserts and Snacks
I’ve left room on the Meal Plan and Prep Checklist for you to write in any extra drinks, snacks for the kids, or desserts that you may want to add.
Here’s what’s already on the meal plan:
4 Breakfasts:
- Eggs & Bacon
- Leftover steak + eggs
- Crockpot Coffee Cake
- Waffle McGriddles
- Keto Waffles
4 Lunches:
- Ham, Cream Cheese and Pickle Rollups
- Unwiches!
- BBQ Chicken Pizza
- Fathead Pretzel dogs
3 Dinners:
- Steak
- Burrito Bowls
- Slow Cooker Chicken Broccoli Soup
Related: 7 Can’t-Miss Tent Camping Hacks
Are you ready for your Ketogenic Camping Meal Plan? Don’t wait – download it today:
Til Next Time,
Gretchen
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