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<\/p>\nIf you are like most people, the first thing that comes to mind when you hear the words ‘ketosis’ or ‘keto-diet,’ is ZERO carbs. It might make you want to cry on the inside; life without carbs just sounds so intimidating.<\/p>\n
But the truth is, keto-happiness can be had at about 30-50 grams of carbs a day– enough for a wide variety of tasty and healthy foods without going cuckoo for carbs.<\/p>\n
Yes, you’ll have to give up the chocolate cake and vats of pasta to get your flat tummy, but you can do it!<\/p>\n
We’ll show you how to get into ketosis, the exact foods to eat (even when eating out), and how to trouble-shoot anything that gets in your way.<\/p>\n
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Ketosis is a healthy, normal metabolic pathway in which fats are burned for energy instead of sugars.<\/p>\n
Nutritional ketosis<\/strong> is not the same thing as diabetic ketoacidosis<\/strong>. Ketoacidosis is a life-threatening complication type one diabetics can experience because they don’t produce insulin.<\/p>\n On the other hand, nutritional ketosis<\/strong> is tightly controlled to ensure your body functions properly.<\/p>\n You’ve probably experienced it several times in your life without realizing it. If you’ve gone without carbohydrates or food for 48 hours, or consumed too much alcohol, you’ve likely been in ketosis.<\/p>\n When you talk about doing a ketogenic diet, you’ll run into people who will say scary things like: “you need carbs in your diet because your brain runs on glucose”<\/p>\n That’s only partially true, for two reasons.<\/p>\n First, glucose is not the only fuel your brain runs on. Ketones can also be used by the brain for energy.<\/p>\n Second, consumption of carbs is not required to make glucose. Your body can create glucose from non-carbohydrate sources such as fats, amino acids, glycerol, and lactic acid via a process called gluconeogenesis.<\/p>\n And furthermore, the keto diet was originally created to help people with epilepsy, and has been used to help other brain-related conditions such as brain tumors, autism, and even migraines.<\/p>\n Most people learn about ketosis when they try a low-carb diet for weight loss. Removing carbs from your diet shifts your body from burning glucose to burning body fat for energy.<\/p>\n Ketosis accomplishes fat loss in two ways:<\/p>\n One:<\/strong> by eliminating the primary food source that creates fat when eaten in excess (simple sugars and starches).<\/p>\n Two:<\/strong> by forcing the body to burn fat that has been stored on the body.<\/p>\n Once you drop excess carbs, it can take as little as 48 hours for your body to start using energy stored in your fat cells.<\/p>\n (Which is pretty exciting to anyone who wants to lose weight as quickly as possible.)<\/p>\n Carbohydrates, particularly simple starches and carbs are readily used by the body for energy.<\/p>\n That’s good but…<\/p>\n Along with a diet high in simple starches (such as breads, potatoes, and pasta), Americans eat an average of 20 tablespoons of sugar a day,<\/p>\n This is well in excess of your body’s needs for fuel<\/strong>.<\/p>\n All that extra glucose circulates in your bloodstream, spiking blood sugar levels. High blood glucose levels cause damage to your body.<\/strong><\/p>\n To prevent damage, your body acts quickly to store all excess glucose as fat on your body.<\/strong><\/p>\n Now here’s the problem…<\/p>\n Excess blood glucose floating around in your body likes to ‘stick’ to your cells. It’s called glycosolation.<\/p>\n This ‘candy-coating’ hardens your cells and creates inflammation, and every cell in your body is at risk.<\/p>\n Here are just a few things sticky, glycolsylated sugar does to your body:<\/p>\n …and the list goes on…<\/p>\n You might only care about ketosis in terms of what it can do to help you lose weight, but ketosis can improve your health, too.<\/p>\n Here are some examples:<\/p>\n See all those references above? Unlike a high-sugar diet, a diet that puts you in ketosis has a ton of proven health benefits.<\/p>\n It’s time to stop thinking that a ketogenic diet is scary and unhealthy.<\/p>\n Ssshhhh… the keto-diet industry doesn’t want you to know this.<\/p>\n They’d like you to buy all their processed and packaged (and super-expensive) foods instead.<\/p>\n Here’s the thing, it all boils down to eating natural foods like:<\/p>\n And the good news is that when you stick with these foods, you won’t have to count, weigh, or measure anything. You’ll be in the magic 30-50 gram range for headache-free weight loss.<\/p>\n If you do eat anything packaged, even if it’s advertised as high-protein, low-carb, organic, paleo, non-GMO, gluten-free, or whatever– ALWAYS read the label. Packaged foods can surprise you with more carbs than you think, bumping you well outside of ketosis.<\/p>\n If you’re thinking “whattabout….” right now, relax. We’ll take a more in-depth look at foods you can (and can’t) eat to stay in ketosis later in this article.<\/em><\/p>\n It takes about three days to get into ketosis, but the full transition can take about a week and sometimes longer.<\/p>\n Your body has about one day’s worth of glycogen stored in the liver and muscles, so day one is a piece of cake.<\/p>\n By day two or three all available glycogen and there’s no sugar to replace it. That’s when you might feel like you’re running on empty.<\/p>\n Some things you might notice:<\/p>\n All those crummy feelings are related to one thing: dehydration. This happens because as sugar leaves your body, you also lose water and electrolytes.<\/p>\n Public Service Announcement:<\/strong> This is an excellent time to remind you to stay hydrated, keto or not– for the good of yourself and the people around you.<\/em><\/p>\n The good news: these are all signs that your body has started shifting your metabolism to burn fat, and they will pass very soon.<\/p>\n Along with feeling a little tired, weak, and headachey you may even feel nauseous and come down with what feels like a little cold.<\/p>\n The best way to handle your first week and “carb flu” is to be kind to yourself. Take things easy and allow yourself to rest if you need it.<\/p>\n In addition to staying well-hydrated, sugar-free electrolytes will help your body adjust faster. An over-the-counter pain reliever can be used for the headache.<\/p>\n By week two, you should be feeling better again. Much of your energy will return– and then some.<\/p>\n You may notice that your breath and\/or urine have a fruity- or acetone-smell. This is not a cause for alarm, and it should pass after awhile. Brushing your teeth and chewing sugar-free gum will help.<\/p>\n Weight loss will level off slightly during this week since you won’t be losing as much water weight– but you should still continue to lose steadily.<\/p>\n You should now be in full ketosis– as long as you have stayed below 50 grams of carbs a day.<\/p>\n Now that your body has fully switched to burning fat for fuel, your strength and energy levels should be back to normal– better than normal even.<\/p>\n You might even feel like a super-hero with inexhaustible energy. That’s because once you are burning fat stores for fuel, you’ll have thousands upon thousands of calories ready to go when you need it.<\/p>\n An extra bonus to your energy levels: you should be sleeping better as well.<\/p>\n As long as you are consuming fiber-rich, non-starchy vegetables, your digestion should be normalized and cravings long gone.<\/p>\n In the absence of sugar, your taste buds can taste again. You’ll find that you actually enjoy eating healthy foods. Each meal will make you feel full and satisfied.<\/p>\n Weight loss will continue at a slow but steady rate from these weeks forward.<\/p>\n Some lucky people can tell they are in ketosis by the way they feel, and if the scale is moving. For others, ketosis signs are more nuanced.<\/p>\n That’s when a trip to the diabetic care section of your local pharmacy can help.<\/p>\n Once there, you’ll find ketone test strips that measure the presence of ketones in the urine. A bottle of 50 test strips cost about $7-13. The tests are very easy, and can be done quickly and discreetly any time you need to visit the bathroom.<\/p>\n Ketone test strips can help you learn two important things about your body:<\/p>\n Being able to actually see the difference between these two states is a powerful motivator when you are trying to lose weight.<\/p>\n People often mistake the color depth of the test strips as a signal that they are burning “a lot” …or “a little” fat.<\/p>\n Here’s the BIG, FAT SECRET to reading the strips: the color depth has nothing<\/strong> to do with ‘how much’ fat you are burning.<\/p>\n The color depth is related to your hydration status. A darker color is because the ketones are more highly concentrated. A lighter color change means that ketones have been diluted.<\/p>\n This is very important to understand: if ketones are present in your urine at all, the strips will change in color (light or dark), indicating that your body is in a fat-burning state.<\/p>\n If the strips do not change color, you’re not in ketosis.<\/p>\n If you are comparing ketosticks with a friend, scrolling through online forums, or googling images, at a minimum you’ll be discouraged. Mostly, you’ll just end up driving yourself crazy.<\/p>\n Why? Images can be tricky to evaluate. Remember that internet dress? Was it white and gold or black and blue?<\/p>\n Comparing ketosticks in person with your buddies can be equally as frustrating. The color depth will always be a reflection of your unique metabolism.<\/p>\n Even if you and your diet buddies…<\/p>\n Have eaten the exact same things…<\/p>\n Guzzled the same amount of water…<\/p>\n Followed the same Richard Simmons exercise routine…<\/p>\n You can still fall on opposite ends of the ketostick spectrum.<\/p>\n If the strip changes color, no matter how light or dark… CONGRATULATIONS. You’re in ketosis!<\/strong><\/p>\n The number one reason ketosticks won’t change in color is because there are carbs lurking in your diet.<\/p>\n The first thing to do is this: track everything that you put in your mouth.<\/p>\n Read all the labels and keep a tally of all the carbs. If the food does not have a label, Google it.<\/p>\n Don’t forget to look for hidden carbs in things like: over-the-counter medications, sugar-free gum, sugar-free mints, hot and cold beverages, sauces, creamers, and flavored syrups.<\/p>\n While these items are labeled as sugar-free, it doesn’t mean they are carb-free. One serving of sugar-free gum can have 5g of carbs in it. Let’s say you chew gum after each meal. That’s 15g for the day; half of the low end for being in ketosis range.<\/p>\n Rounding errors can also be a source of carbs. You might have assumed a certain food was safe to eat in large amounts because it is less than 1g of carbs per serving. But in reality you are consuming enough of it to kick you out of ketosis.<\/p>\n An honest 1-3 day assessment is enough for most people to find what is pushing their carb count above the 30-50 gram range.<\/p>\n But what if you honestly don’t find anything?<\/p>\n Eat too little protein, and your body will break down your muscles to regulate your blood sugar levels. That will kick you out of ketosis and create body fat. This process explains why vegans and vegetarians who don\u2019t monitor their protein intake become \u2018skinny-fat’ and also why they may look haggard.<\/p>\n On the flip side, when you eat too much protein, the excess amino acids are turned into glucose, spiking your blood sugar<\/a> levels\u2014and then stored as fat.<\/p>\n To avoid this, you want to stay in the sweet spot of consuming enough protein to prevent muscle loss, but not so much that your liver can create glucose.<\/p>\n A rough guideline for your protein needs is ~0.36g per pound of body weight. A 3-5 ounce serving (about the size of a deck of cards or palm of your hand) of meat or eggs at each meal is just about right for most people.<\/p>\n Just keep in mind that your needs do vary day to day, so a little more or less protein from day to day is ok.<\/p>\n It\u2019s really tempting to want to limit your fat intake when eating low-carb.<\/p>\n You might try doing this because you:<\/p>\n Limiting fat means means you\u2019ll be consuming protein and non-starchy vegetables.<\/p>\n This is not a low-carb or keto diet. It\u2019s called a very low-calorie or \u201cVLC\u201d diet. It\u2019s otherwise known as starving yourself, and it will backfire.<\/p>\n Very low calorie dieting kicks you out of ketosis. Instead of breaking down fat for fuel, your body will start breaking down muscles for fuel via gluconeogenesis, leading to insulin spikes and weight gain.<\/p>\n You need to eat enough fat to get into ketosis. What is enough? For most people, 50-75% of total calories from fats will do it.<\/p>\n Zero calorie sweeteners can help keep your sanity on low-carb diets, and can be the difference between continuing your diet or breaking it for your sweet tooth.<\/p>\n But using them as a crutch to eat sweets all the time could spell trouble for ketosis. While the label on the sweetener might tell you there are zero carbs in it, many will still spike your blood sugar level.<\/p>\n Avoid the following if you are having problems getting into ketosis:<\/p>\n Luckily, there are some sweeteners that have not been shown to spike blood sugar levels\u2014and even better, they are natural too:<\/p>\n Just be sure to read the labels to ensure that these sugars have not been blended with things that will spike your blood sugar levels.<\/p>\n If you are still having problems getting into ketosis after eliminating artificial sweeteners you may have to go commando and eliminate all sweet-tasting foods.<\/p>\n Simply tasting sweet foods may trigger a response directly from your brain to increase insulin levels<\/a>\u2014even before they hit your stomach for digestion!<\/p>\n The following things can spike insulin levels without increasing blood glucose:<\/p>\n Here’s what to look at if you’ve done everything right, but your weight loss has stalled out and you are no longer in ketosis.<\/p>\n (First: don’t get frustrated. This can happen to anyone.)<\/p>\n One of the perks of low-carb eating<\/a> is that you can eat unlimited quantities of meats, fats, eggs, and non-starchy vegetables. Mentally, it works because you don\u2019t feel deprived, and physically it works because the fat sends a signal to your brain that makes you feel full… and usually you stop eating.<\/p>\n But if you frequently eat past the point of feeling full, the law of thermodynamics will catch up to you.<\/p>\n Eventually, your body will start using (and storing) those excess calories rather than burning body fat. That will kick you out of ketosis.<\/p>\n Try sticking to a schedule, putting 2-3 hours in between each meal and snack.<\/p>\n When you are in ketosis, your blood sugars should be very stable since you always have calories available from the fat on your body. So you really shouldn\u2019t need to eat more frequently than this\u2014it will lead to eating too many total calories (like we talked about above).<\/p>\n If you do find that you are getting hungry between meals, it\u2019s time to hunt for hidden carbs in your menu.<\/p>\n If you\u2019ve been doing everything perfectly for a long time and you\u2019ve stalled out, you might need a break.<\/p>\n This isn\u2019t license to cheat throughout your diet program, because that won\u2019t work.<\/p>\n Think of it as a 1-7 day dietary retreat\u2014not a trip to Las Vegas. Then get back to it. That will work.<\/p>\n Hormonal fluctuations, illness, and stress are invisible factors that can disrupt ketosis. It can be hard to recognize them immediately, especially since most of the time, these things are \u2018normal\u2019 for your body. (If they aren\u2019t normal, it\u2019s time to see your doctor.)<\/p>\n Some things, like getting more sleep or over a cold will correct themselves. Other things like hormones may be more vexing\u2014and something that you will have to learn to work with rather than around.<\/p>\n A journal, and the process of elimination by following all the tips above can help you narrow things down so you can start working on solutions to get you back into ketosis.<\/p>\n When our Weight Loss Coaches do weight loss competitions, they’ve found that these 9 steps will break most plateaus:<\/p>\n Cravings are going to happen, it\u2019s a fact of life.<\/p>\n But if you are in ketosis, and eating enough food every few hours, they can be easily managed. Usually drinking some water or having a cup of coffee is enough to put them off until your next meal.<\/p>\n But what does it mean if you just can\u2019t get to your next meal without obsessing over donuts?<\/p>\n You…<\/p>\n If all else fails, you need to leave the break room and not come back until your co-workers have eaten all the donuts for you.<\/p>\n In the meantime, it\u2019s always better to eat (even over-eat) food that will keep you in ketosis (meats, eggs, cheeses, and non-starchy veggies) than fall into the box of donuts. The donut will cost you at least 3 days of progress.<\/p>\n As we mentioned, if you stick to a diet of real meats, eggs, cheese, nuts, and non-starchy vegetables, you can into ketosis without much work.<\/p>\n Any source of animal protein can be eaten– lean, fatty, domestic, or exotic; they will help you lose weight.<\/p>\n Here’s a reminder there’s more than just beef or chicken to eat on a ketogenic or low carb diet:<\/p>\nKetosis and your brain<\/h2>\n
Why do you want to be in ketosis?<\/h2>\n
How excess carbs and starches make you fat<\/h2>\n
Sugar toxicity: a sticky situation<\/h2>\n
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Health benefits of ketosis<\/h2>\n
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What do you eat to achieve ketosis?<\/h2>\n
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What to expect when going into ketosis<\/h2>\n
Week One<\/h3>\n
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Ketosis and “carb flu”<\/h3>\n
Week two<\/h3>\n
Weeks three to four<\/h3>\n
How can you tell if you’re really in ketosis?<\/h2>\n
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The trouble with ketone test strips<\/h3>\n
Ketone strip envy: the thief of weight loss happiness<\/h3>\n
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<\/a><\/h2>\nHow to find hidden carbs<\/h2>\n
Zero-carb things that kill ketosis<\/h2>\n
Protein<\/h3>\n
Fat-phobia<\/h3>\n
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Non-caloric sweeteners<\/h3>\n
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Other things that could take you out of ketosis<\/h3>\n
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How to get back in ketosis and break plateaus<\/h2>\n
You\u2019re eating too many calories<\/h3>\n
You\u2019re eating too frequently<\/h3>\n
You need a break<\/h3>\n
Your biochemistry is out of whack<\/h3>\n
9 Concrete steps to break plateaus<\/h3>\n
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What it means when you have cravings<\/h2>\n
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A more in-depth look at what you can (and can’t) eat<\/h2>\n
Protein sources<\/h2>\n
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