3 Considerations For Anyone Hoping To Try A Keto Diet

Ketogenic diets have become very popular in recent years, thanks to their ability to switch up your body’s fuel source and provide reduced hunger pangs and increased mental alertness. Additionally, ketogenic diets are often considered to be worthwhile thanks to how, while they are restrictive, they are also quite indulgent in terms of what foods you are permitted to eat. 

To put it simply – ketogenic diets are focused on high-fat, very low-carb intake. This means that over time, your body switches from running on glucose (present in the form of carbohydrates), to running on ketones. These ketones use fat as a fuel source, which can potentially help you lose weight more quickly (if you do this right, you can lose fat without losing much muscle tone). Keto diets are also interesting in that they are often linked to the reduced symptoms of children suffering with epilepsy. 

But no matter why you want to do the keto diet – what principles should you keep in mind? In this post, we’ll discuss three essential pointers to help you in that direction:

You May Need More Healthy Fats Than You Think

Healthy fats are essential to kick your body into ketosis, but many think that just eating limited carbs is the key. Both are crucial. You can achieve this by adding oil to your recipes, by using MCT oil in coffee, and also by finding the best-balanced dishes, such as this paleo pollo asado recipe that provides a worthwhile keto meal worth putting in as a staple of your diet. When you focus on healthy fats and good wholesome ingredients, the diet becomes that much easier to deal with.

Prepare For The Keto Flu, Even If It Is Temporary

The keto flu is known as a harmless but couple-day-long feeling of lethargy, tiredness, and irritability that can come as your body transitions to ketones. This is natural because your body is so carb-adapted, it can take a little time to get there. But this is perfectly natural, as our bodies have evolved over thousands of years to adapt to whatever fuel source is available. Getting your fair share of electrolytes can help you through this, and remember, the process is temporary and a good sign that you’ve made progress and are beginning your diet properly.

Check Your Keto Levels Semi-Regularly

Thankfully, you can easily check the ketones you have and if you’re in ketosis or not by purchasing easy urine strips that are color-coded based on how many ketones are present that particular day. This can also help you identify if you’ve been knocked out of ketosis or not. It may, in some cases, help you understand which meal knocked you out  – such as incorrectly labeled ‘keto options’ at a restaurant, or ‘keto bread’ which didn’t have enough of a limit on the carbs it provided. This helps you become even more aware of your personal interaction with the diet you’re on.

With this advice, we hope you can take part in your keto diet with even more confidence.