Ketogenic Diet: Beginner’s Guide to Keto and Weight Loss

Understanding the Keto Diet So You Can Succeed With Your Weight Loss Transformation

The ketogenic diet is a low carb, moderate protein, and high fat diet which puts the body into a metabolic state known as ketosis.
When your body is in a state of ketosis, the liver produces ketones which become the main energy source for the body.
The ketogenic diet is also referred to as keto (key-toe) diet, low carb diet, and low carb high fat (LCHF).

What Is a Ketogenic Diet?

As already mentioned the ketogenic diet is a low-carb, moderate protein, and high fat diet.
However, what does that mean? Do you sit around drink lard and chewing on jerky all day?
Not at all. In fact, there are so many awesome keto recipes that you'll find yourself wondering what's the difference between the ketogenic diet and just eating normally.
Essentially, with keto, you're cutting out the carbs. That means you're losing breads, pasta and rice in the traditional sense. There are subsitutions to all of these that absolutely rock.
For example, check out these keto breads. They look amazing!
When you're able to drastically reduce the amount of carbs you bring into your body and replace it with fat, it helps to put your body into a state of ketosis.
But why is it important to reduce the carbs?

Fat Burner vs Sugar Burner

Because it completely reverses how your body functions (in a good way) along with changing how you view nutrition.
It's based around the premise that your body was designed to run more efficiently as a fat burner than a sugar burner.
When you eat something that is high in carbs (that yummy donut), your body will produce glucose and insulin.

• Glucose is the easiest molecule for your body to convert and use as energy so that is why it's the preferred energy source for your body.
• Insulin is produced to process the glucose in your bloodstream by transporting it around your body.

This sounds pretty efficient, right? The problem with this is that when glucose is used as a primary energy source, fats are not needed for energy and therefore are stored.
With the average person's diet, glucose is the main energy source.
This initially doesn't seem like a problem until you realize that the body can't store that much glucose. This becomes an issue for you because the extra glucose gets converted into fat which is then stored.
Because your body uses glucose as it's main energy source the glucose that is converted into fat doesn't get used.
When your body runs out of glucose it tells your brain you need more so you end up reaching for a quick snack like a candy bar or some chips.
You can begin to see how this cycle leads to building up a body that you don't really want.
So what's the alternative?
Become a fat burner instead of a sugar burner.

When you lower your intake of carbs, the body begins to look for an alternative energy source and your body enters a metabolic state known as ketosis.
Ketosis is a natural process and makes perfect sense when you think about the human body.
You've probably heard of the fact that you can go weeks without food but only a couple of days without water.
The reason for this is ketosis. Most people, for better or for worse, have enough fat stored on them to fuel their body for a while.
When your body is in a state of ketosis, it produces ketones. Ketones occur from the breakdown of fat in the liver.
You might be thinking why isn't the body constantly breakdown fats in the liver? Well, when your body is producing insulin, the insulin prevents the fat cells from entering the bloodstream so they stay stored in the body.
When you lower your carb intake, glucose levels, along with blood sugar levels, drop which in turn lowers insulin levels.
This allows the fat cells to release the water they are storing (it's why you first see a drop in water weight) and then the fat cells are able to enter the bloodstream and head to the liver.
This is the end goal of the keto diet. You don't enter ketosis by starving your body. You enter ketosis by starving your body of carbohydrates.
When your body is producing optimal ketone levels you begin to notice many healh, weight loss, physical and mental performance benefits.
All of these benefits are why we help people with the ketogenic diet in our Keto Bootstrap program.

Contents

• Benefits of a Ketogenic Diet
• What Do I Eat on a Keto Diet?
• Keto Macros
• Getting Started With Keto
• How to Reach Ketosis
• Types of Ketogenic Diets
• Exercise on Keto
• Dangers of a Keto Diet
• What Happens to My Body?
• Keto Flu
• Common Side Effects on a Keto Diet
• Saving Money and Budgeting on Keto

Benefits of a Ketogenic Diet

When people say that the keto diet changed their life they are not exaggerating.
When you decide to switch over to the ketogenic diet, you quickly realize that it is more than just a diet.
It's a completely new lifestyle that offers numerous benefits.

Weight Loss

Most people look into a specific diet to lose weight and the keto diet is one of the most effective ways to lose weight in a healthy manner.
Because the ketogenic diet is using body fat as an energy source, your body will begin to burn the unwanted fat causing obvious weight loss benefits.
On keto, your insulin (the fat storing hormone) levels drop which allows your fat cells to travel to the liver and get converted into ketones.
Your body effectively becomes a fat burning machine.

Control Blood Sugar

Unfortunately, many people suffer from diabetes which is caused by your body's inability to handle insulin.
Keto naturally lowers blood sugar levels due to not eating as many carbs so your body can't produce glucose.
Keto has been shown to have huge benefits for people that are pre-diabetic or have Type II diabetes.
Because the ketogenic diet helps you to maintain more consistent blood sugar levels you find that you have more control of your everyday life while on keto.

Mental Focus

This is one of those benefits that has to be experienced.
You can't understand how cloudy carbs make your thinking until you can ween yourself off of them.
When on the ketogenic diet you experience increased mental performance.
In fact, many people partake in keto simply for this reason.
The reason why you experience an increase in mental performance is that ketones are a great fuel source for your brain.
The increase in fatty acids has a huge impact in brain function.

Increase in Energy

You've already learned that keto helps your body turn fat into an energy source.
But, did you know that this helps to increase your energy levels?
Because your body can only store so much glucose, when it runs out it means your body has run out of fuel (energy) and it needs more.
Carbs also cause spikes in blood sugar levels and when those levels drop you experience a crash.
Keto helps to provide your body with a more reliable energy source allowing you to feel more energized throughout the day.

Better Appetite Control

When eating a diet that is heavy in carbs you can often find yourself hungry a lot sooner than you expected after eating a meal.
Because fats are more naturally satisfying they end up leaving our bodies in a satiated state for much longer.
That means no more random cravings along with feeling like you're going to collapse if you don't get something in you immediately.

Epilepsy

Keto has been used to treat epilepsy since the early 1900s. It's still one of the most widely used treatments for children suffering from uncontrolled epilepsy today.
A big benefit of the ketogenic diet for people that suffer from epilepsy is that it allows them to take fewer medications which is always a good thing.

Cholesterol & Blood Pressure

The ketogenic diet has been shown to improve triglyceride levels and cholesterol levels.
The benefit?
Less toxic buildup in the arteries allowing blood to flow throughout your body as it should.
Low carb, high fat diets show a dramatic increase in HDL (good cholesterol) and a decrease in LDL (bad cholesterol).
Studies have shown that low-carb diets show better improvement in blood pressure over other diets.
Because some blood pressure issues are associated with excess weight, the keto diet is an obvious warrior against these issues due to its natural weight loss.

Insulin Resistance

Insulin resistance is the reason why people suffer from Type II diabetes. The ketogenic diet helps people lower their insulin levels to healthy ranges so that they are no longer in the group of people that are on the cusp of acquiring diabetes.

Acne

One of the more common improvements that people on the keto diet experience is better skin.

What Do I Eat on a Keto Diet?

Unfortunately, on the ketogenic diet you can't eat whatever you want. However, unlike many other diets, once you find yourself in ketosis your cravings for the things you can't eat usually disappear and if they don't?
Well, there are plenty of alternatives for the things you are used to eating.
Remember, that the goal of the ketogenic diet is to get your body into a state of ketosis and to do that you need to reduce your carb intake.
It's important to understand that carbohydrates are not only in the junk foods that you love, but also some of the healthier foods that you enoy.
For example, on keto you nee to avoid wheat (bread, pasta, cereals), starch (potatoes, beans, legumes) and fruit.
There are small exceptions like avocado, star fruit, and berries as long as they are consumed in moderation.

Foods to Avoid

• Grains - wheat, corn, rice, cereal
• Sugar - honey, agave, maple syrup
• Fruit - apples, bananas, oranges
• Tubers - potato, yams
• Legumes

Foods to Eat

• Meats - fish, beef, lamb, poultry, egg
• Leafy Greens - spinach, kale
• Above ground vegetables - broccoli, cauliflower
• High fat dairy - hard cheeses, high fat cream, butter
• Nuts and seeds - macadamias, walnuts, sunflower seeds
• Avocado and berries - raspberries, blackberries, and other low glycemic impact berries
• Sweeteners - stevia, erythritol, monk fruit, and other low-carb sweeteners
• Other fats - coconut oil, high-fat salad dressing, saturated fats, etc.

To get the complete list of foods you can eat while on keto check out our keto shopping list.

Sample Recipes

Here are just some of the amazing keto recipes that you can cook yourself and enjoy.

Keto Macros

Understanding macros is a key component to being successful on the ketogenic diet.
What are macros?
They are the main sources of calories in your daily diet.
The macros that you need to keep an eye on are:

• Fats
• Protein
• Carbs

Because the ketogenic diet is a high fat diet, the majority of your daily calories will come from fats.
The general ratio of macros to follow is 70% fats, 25% protein, and 5% carbohydrates.
This means that 70% of your calories will come from fats, 25% from protein, and 5% from carbs.
When starting off on keto your daily, net carbs shouldn't exceed 20g. That means even if your recommended daily macro carb count is 27g, you still want to stay below 20g.

Totals Carbs vs Net Carbs

It's important to understand that not all carbs are treated equal when looking at a nutrtion label.
On nutrition labels you'll Total Carbohyrates along with a further breakdown of Fiber and Sugars.
On keto, you care about net carbs which are Total Carbohydrates - Fiber = Net Carbs.
Because fiber doesn't have an affect on your blood sugar levels it is considered a net zero carbohydrate.

Vegetables on a Ketogenic Diet

Vegetables are tricky on a ketogenic diet because we've been raised under the idea that vegetables are healthy and they are. However, almost all of the vegetables that you consume today contain carbs.
Some more than others so it's important to understand the ones that have a safer number of Net Carbs.

Vegetable	Amount	Net Carbs
Spinach (Raw)	1/2 Cup	0.1
Bok Choi	1/2 Cup	0.2
Lettuce (Romaine)	1/2 Cup	0.2
Cauliflower (Steamed)	1/2 Cup	0.9
Cabbage (Green Raw)	1/2 Cup	1.1
Cauliflower (Raw)	1/2 Cup	1.4
Broccoli (Florets)	1/2 Cup	2
Collard Greens	1/2 Cup	2
Kale (Steamed)	1/2 Cup	2.1
Green Beans (Steamed)	1/2 Cup	2.9

If you're looking for more details on Keto and vegetables then check out 11 Low Carb Vegetables That You Can Safely Eat on the Ketogenic Diet.

Getting Started With Keto

So how do you get started with keto?
That's a great question and it's something we detail in our Keto Bootstrap program.
However, if you want to run wild on your own then here is what you need to do:

• Understand meal planning and plan your meals so you don't have missteps
• Calculate your daily macro goals
• Drink enough water
• Get enough sleep

When getting started on the keto diet you don't want your daily macros to exceed 20g of carbs. You want to cut out all sugar and have most of your carbs come from vegetables.
The reality of it is, if you want to get started you can dive right in after you've caclulated your macros and planned some meals.
If you aren't in the mood to plan meals right now then you can just go off of what your body tells you and eat what when you feel hungry although this usually means you fall short of your macro goals.
It's important that you make food that you enjoy. Being on keto isn't about missing out on food you love. It's about finding the food you love that is great for your body.

How to Reach Ketosis

In our book, The 3-Day Weight Loss Manual, we show you a strategy that will help you to achieve ketosis as quick as possible.
While you don't need to reach ketosis as quickly as possible, many people consider ketosis as their first successful milestone on the keto journey.
The following steps will help you great in achieving that:

1. Restrict your carbohydrates: Because you can't reach ketosis when your body still has a supply of glucose to burn you need to restrict your net carb intake to 20g or less than a day.
2. Restrict your protein: Protein is a sneaky one in this diet because if you eat too much it ends up being converted into glucose which will keep you out of ketosis.
3. Stop worrying about fat: To lose fat on keto you need to consume healthy fats so you have to get rid of the mental block you have regarding it. You don't lose weight on keto by feeling hungry all of the time.
4. Drink water: Water is a huge deal on keto. You need to consume a lot of it. You need to stay hydrated and be consistent with the amount of water you drink. To make it easier, consider drinking water with fresh lemon in it or grab some MiO with Electrolytes.
5. Careful with snacking: One thing you have to keep in mind is that even while eating keto you can suffer from small insulin spikes. Less snacking means less of those giving you a better chance of losing weight.
6. Consider fasting: Fasting in this case means intermittent fasting. Instead of eating throughout the day, you block off an 8-hour window and in that window you eat all of your meals.
7. Add exercise: A simple 20-30 minute walk everyday can help regulate weight loss and your blood sugar levels. An increased workout routine usually means an adjustment in macros so just because keto gives you more energy don't assume that things can stay the same when you run a marathon.
8. Look at supplements: Supplements can help you reach ketosis quicker but they aren't necessary.

Always check food labels to see the ingredients being added. If sugar is at the top of the list then runaway.

How to Know if You're in Ketosis

There are a couple of different ways to see if you're in ketosis.
One common way is by using ketone test strips but these aren't meant to determine if you're body is in ketosis. They just let you know the level of ketones that your body is getting rid of.
Another method is by using a blood glucose monitor. The issue with this is that the blood strips can be expensive over time and once you're in ketosis you start to understand your body a bit more so you won't keep running back to the monitor.
You can also check for ketosis by keeping an eye on these symptoms:

• Increased Urination: Keto is a natural diuretic, so you'll find yourself going to the bathroom more than usual. Especially with how much water you are consuming. Acetoacetate (say that 3x fast), a ketone body, is excreted through the urine so this is another cause for more frequent bathroom breaks.
• Dry Mouth: The more fluids your body is releasing, the more you may experience dry mouth. This is your body telling you that you need more electrolytes. This is why we add MiO with Electrolytes to our water. Also keeping salty things around helps like pickles.
• Bad Breath: Acetone is a ketone that is partially excreted through your breath. It doesn't have the most pleasant smell but thankfully it disappears in the long run.
• Reduced Hunger and Increased Energy: This is the most telltale sign of ketosis. You find that you don't get hungry as often and you can go much longer without food because you have more energy.

The last thing you want to do is drive yourself crazy measuring and testing your ketone levels. Once you get a handle on things, you'll learn to see the signs that your body is giving you.
To learn more about ketosis check out 7 Signs You Might Be in Ketosis When Doing the Ketogenic Diet
.

Types of Ketogenic Diets

A common question, especially from people that workout, is whether or not you can build muscle while on keto and the answer is yes.
Many workout programs have you consuming a large number of carbs to fuel your workouts. While on keto you don't need to bulk up on the carbs but you can fill up your glycogen stores so that you have glucose ready for a workout.
If you wish to add mass to your body while on keto it is suggested that you consume 1.0 - 1.2g of protein per lean pound of body mass.
This is also why there are different types of keto diets because some people have different needs.

• Standard Ketogenic Diet (SKD): This is the classic keto diet that everyone knows and most people stick with as they are aiming for weight loss.
• Targeted Ketogenic Diet (TKD): This is a small variation where you follow SKD but intake a small amount of fast-digesting carbs before your workout.
• Cyclical Ketogenic Diet (CKD): This is the more complication variation that is usually used by bodybuilders. In this variation you give yourself one day a week to carb up to resupply glycogen stores.

Which one is for you? If you work out pretty hard then you might want to do TKD or CKD.

Exercise on Keto

The concern of people that exercise is that keto will affect their physical performance and while this isn't true in the long run, in the short term you might experience a small drop.
Your body needs a small amount of time to adjust.
The good news is that studies (on trained cyclists) have shown that the ones on the ketogenic diet didn't find a compromise in their aerobic endurance or a loss of muscle mass.
If you want to learn more about exercising on a ketogenic diet then read Ketogenic Diet 101: Exercising on a Keto Diet.

Dangers of a Keto Diet

Are there dangers to the ketogenic diet?
If your body is producing too many ketones then it enters ketoacidosis.
This is highly unlikely to occur in normal circumstances because for most people it's a challenge to get into optimal ranges for ketosis so getting into the range where you need medical intervention isn't likely.

What Happens to My Body?

Because you're completely rewiring how your body works, your body isn't going to be ready right away to handle the breakdown of fats for energy.
While switching over to keto you'll have a transition period where your body uses up all of its glycogen stores and doesn't have enough enzymes to breakdown fat to produce ketones.
This means your body doesn't have an immediate fuel source which causes a lack of energy and general lethargy.
In the first week of keto, many people will report headaches, mental fogginess, dizziness, and aggravation. Sounds terrible, right?
This is caused by the loss of electrolytes so it's important that you continue to replace them throughout the day. Keeping your sodium (don't hesitate to salt things up) intake up throughout the day can prevent all of these side effects.
Sodium helps with water retention in the body along with replenishing the much needed electrolytes.
The groggy feeling and fatigue actually has a term and it's keto flu.

Keto Flu

Keto flu is a very common experience that some people go through when transitioning over to keto. It usually goes away in just a few days but if you don't take active measures to find against it, it can stay around for much longer.
When transitioning to keto, you may feel some slight discomfort along with fatigue, headaches, nausea and cramps. It doesn't sound fun but it's important to understand why it is happening.

• Keto is a diuretic. Everytime you urinate you're losing electrolytes and water. To combat this you can make a nice drink from a bouillion cube (makes a great broth) or by using MiO with Electrolytes and increasing your water intake. The goal is to replace the electrolytes that you're using.
• You're transitioning. All of the years of carb intake has trained your body to convert carbs into glycogen so when you transition over to keto, your body needs time to make the proper adjustments. You can't simply make your car go electric by adding another battery.

For most people, eating less than 20g of net carbs a day will get them on track for ketosis within a matter of days. To ensure the process is sped up some you should aim for less than 15g of net carbs daily.
Continue to monitor your electrolyte intake along with how much water you are drinking.
To learn how to beat the Keto Flu go on and read Keto Flu: What It Is and How to Beat It the Healthy Way.

Common Side Effects on a Keto Diet

As with any drastic change you make to your body's chemistry there are going to be side effects. Of course, if you think about it, your current way of eating has side effects as well.
On keto there are known ways to combat each of these side effects so you're in good hands.

Cramps

Do to keto being a diuretic, when your body is losing out on fluids it can cause cramps.
To prevent these you do the same thing that you're already doing to prevent keto flu and that is upping your water and sodium intake. If you find that cramps still persist then you might look into taking a magnesium supplement.

Constipation

Because the most common cause of constipation is dehydration, you can help prevent it by increasing the amount of water you drink everyday.
You also want to ensure that the vegetables you eat contain quality fiber.
If you find that these aren't enough then you can add psyllium husk powder to your drinks and meals.

Heart Palpitations

This sounds scarier than it really is. Your heart may begin to beat faster and harder when transitioning over to keto, it's pretty standard.
If you the problem persists over a long period of time then you need to make sure you're drinking enough water and eating enough salt.
If the problem continues to persist then you may need to add a potassium supplement to the mix.

Reduced Physical Performance

Since your body hasn't fully transitioned to burning fat yet, it loses out on its energy source pretty quickly if you are exercising hard.
As your body shifts to using fat for energy, you'll find that all of your strength and endurance will return to normal.

Saving Money and Budgeting on Keto

Some people believe that eating keto is more expensive but this isn't true. Initially, you might find yourself needing to restock the pantry with keto-friendly items but beyond that, eating keto isn't more expensive than eating normally.
You'll find that you can buy meat in bulk and you can store the unused portion in the freezer.
Because you're on keto, you'll find that you are cooking more for yourself instead of going out. This shows significant savings along with helping you build your budget.
Cooking on Keto also doesn't have to be time-consuming. Love your instant pot? Then here are instant pot keto recipes just for you.

Ready to Lose 10-21 lbs in the Next 28 Days?

If you're really serious about losing weight and want to create a new lifestyle for yourself then the 28-Day Weight Loss Challenge is for you.
The Ketogenic Diet has changed our lives. It has turned our bodies from sugar-burners to fat-burners.
We wake up with more energy, less cravings, and a better mood throughout the day.
Our 28-Day Weight Loss Challenge walks you through how to incorporate the Ketogenic Diet into your lifestyle so you no longer have to worry about giving up on diets and gaining back the weight you keep on trying to lose.
Sounds too good to be true, right? Well it isn't and we are happy to teach you all about it with the 28-Day Weight Loss Challenge.

10 Common Keto Mistakes People Make on the Ketogenic Diet

For obvious reasons we love the ketogenic diet because it helps us not stress about our health or bodies and allows us to focus on life. However, when we first got started with it we made some big-time keto mistakes.
In our Keto Bootstrap program, we help 100s of people get acclimated with the ketogenic diet and because of this we’ve realized that we aren’t the only ones that make mistakes when trying to get started with keto.
Almost everyone makes mistakes!
While mistakes usually aren’t a big deal, in the keto world they can be a very bad thing mentally for you. When you get started on keto you expect to see results because you see all of the amazing results that others are achieving and you want the same thing.
When those things don’t happen because of mistakes it can be very frustrating and lead you to believe that keto just isn’t for you.
We think keto is for you and don’t want these mistakes to hold you back.
That’s why in this post we are going to share 7 of the common keto mistakes that beginners (and veterans) make when trying to introduce the keto diet into their life.

10 Common Keto Mistakes

It’s important that you understand the basics of keto and how it works within your body. The greater your understanding of things, the less likely you are to make mistakes.
However, experience is sometimes the best teacher so you might just want to dive right into things and get started.
Even if that is the case these are the mistakes that you want to avoid.

1. Obsessing Over the Scale

I’ve lost 4 lbs. in the first week of keto.

This is a result that you’ll often see with people that start keto and that’s a great result. The problem with reading about all of these success stories though is that it makes you think that all of the progress happens on the scale.
It doesn’t.
Unfortunately, everybody’s body is different so their body is going to react differently to keto. Some people drop weight quickly while others take a bit more time.
Amazingly, one thing that seems to always change for people are the measurements.
It doesn’t surprise us when people tell us they haven’t lost much weight but they’ve lost an inch or two in key areas of their body.
While you do want to track your weight when doing keto, you don’t want to make it the only measure of success.
Taking your measurements once a week will help you see results that the scale just can’t show.

2. The Wrong Fats

All fats are not created equal. Because fats are the whole foundation behind keto you want to ensure that you are consuming the right ones.
What are the wrong ones?
Processed fats.
Examples of fats you should absolutely avoid are vegetables and seed oils. Most of the time, these are processed and going to cause you a lot more health problems like increased risk of heart disease, increased risk of cancer, and a spike in your LDL cholesterol levels.
There are enough good fats in the world that you will have no problem reaching your daily fat macros.

3. Not Enough Fats

One of the hardest adjustments for people to make when starting keto is making sure they consume enough fats.
You probably aren’t used to consuming the amount of fat daily and it can be a struggle to find foods that have the fats you need.
However, on keto, if you want to lose fat, you need to consume fat so that means hitting your daily fat macros.
This is why it is vital that you meal plan which is the next big mistake that people make.

4. Not Meal Planning

This is probably the biggest mistake we see from Keto Bootstrap members. The ones that don’t meal plan end up falling way short of their daily macros or end up slipping and eating stuff that knocks them out of ketosis because they’re hungry.
Yes, meal planning takes a bit of time and preparation but nobody said this was going to be a walk in the park.
Meal planning will not only save you a bunch of headaches and frustration, it’s a great way to save money as well.
When you meal plan, you know exactly what you’re going to put into your body on any given day. That means you can make the right adjustments and understand what tweaks you might need to make to your diet.

5. Too Much Protein

Growing up all you hear is that protein is good for you and it is when it’s not consumed in excess.
The issue with protein on the ketogenic diet is that because your body is using fats as a fuel source, it only needs proteins to help main muscle mass.
Surprisingly enough, you need much less protein than you’d expect to make this happen. When you consume more protein than your body needs it ends up converting that protein into glucose which in turn can raise your blood sugar levels and knock you out of ketosis.
Most people have no problem reaching their protein macros because protein seems to be in everything. This is why it’s important to meal plan so you understand how much protein you are putting into your body.

6. Looking For a Quick Fix

It’s a shame it’s called the ketogenic diet because the reality of the situation is that it’s really a lifestyle.
You don’t do keto for a short period to lose weight and then go back to your old eating habits because then you’ll just discover you’re back at the very beginning again.
The health benefits of keto show that it’s more than worth its time becoming something that you stick with for the rest of your life.
If you’re looking for a quick fix then just cut out sugars from your diet. For most people, that will cause a healthy drop in weight without having to meal plan, track your macros, and other things required of you with the keto diet.

7. Comparing Yourself to Others

We wish that we could guarantee the exact same results for everybody on the keto diet but that isn’t the case.
Your body is going to react differently than someone else. While most people share common outcomes (weight loss, more energy, etc), they can reach these outcomes at different times.
Weight loss is a huge benefit of the ketogenic diet but just because someone loses 10 lbs. in 7 days that doesn’t mean you should expect the same results.
There are simply too many different factors that come into play that will affect your results.
Focus on you and what you need to do to succeed. The rest will take care of itself.

8. Not Drinking Enough Water

The simple fact of the matter is that your body can’t do what it’s supposed to do without water. Switching to a keto lifestyle usually means drinking more water than your used to so this can be a huge adjustment for some people.
It’s important to keep a water bottle handy where you know the exact size of the container. We like to use these CamelBak Water Bottles because having a 1L (or 33oz) of water around when we need it is extremely helpful.
Besides freshly squeezed lemon in our water, when we want to add a bit of different flavor we go with our favorite flavor of Mio. We usually go with the Berry Blast Electrolytes version because drinking all of this water means you have to make sure you’re replenishing your electrolytes.
So how much water should you be drinking? The general rule of thumb is 0.5 oz to 1 oz of every pound of bodyweight.

9. Not Getting Enough Sleep

Just like water, if you aren’t getting the sleep you need your body can’t do what it needs to do. It’s important that you give your body time to reset so it can tackle another day.
Lack of sleep can also contribute to you slipping up and eating those dozen donuts as you look for quick energy sources.

10. Going About It By Yourself

Changing your lifestyle is hard enough.
Changing it alone without a support system is almost impossible.
When you decide to give keto a try it’s important that your loved ones support you. They don’t necessarily have to do it with you (if they do, that’s great) but they should understand why you’re doing it and support you along the way.
The last thing you need is to go out with friends and family and they present you with temptations that can knock you off the path.
This is one of the great things about Keto Bootstrap. We’ve built a community of people that are on their keto journeys that are always around to help you. You are never going to be alone on your journey with us and that’s probably the most important feature of Keto Bootstrap.

Mistakes With Quick Fixes

None of these mistakes are ones that you can’t overcome. Even if you find yourself making some of these that doesn’t mean you’ve failed.
We all have disrupted our journeys at one point or another and the most important thing is that we get back on the horse and continue down them

My Experience with the Keto Diet

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Why I tried the Keto diet

I’m sure by now you’ve heard of the ketogenic diet, based on the Atkins diet, as it’s been blowing up all over the internet with many people claiming their dramatic weight loss and improved health is down to this strict way of eating.
I originally decided to try the ketogenic diet to improve my health. I’ve been chronically sick with an undiagnosed illness for the past three years which has left my bed bound for months on end with a variety of symptoms. Last year I was also diagnosed with PCOS (polycystic ovary syndrome) and I discovered that a lot of women had a reduction in their symptoms from this particular way of eating.

Although weight loss wasn’t my main aim, if I did manage to lose some fat it would be a happy side effect.

What is the Keto diet?

The name keto is short for ‘ketogenic’ and the aim is to reach ketosis which means your body releases ketones which forces your body to get its energy from fat, instead of your body fueling itself with glucose from carbohydrates. In order to achieve this, you have to severely limit your carb intake (to roughly 20g of carbohydrates a day) and increase your fat intake (to higher than your protein intake) and eating a moderate amount of protein.

How I got on

I discussed the possibility with my nutritionist first since completely changing your diet and eating in such a restrictive way can be dangerous for some people and definitely isn’t appropriate for everyone. Once she gave me the green light to try it for a few months I did a vast amount of research from various sources to make sure I understood the basic rules of what you can and can’t eat and what to expect once your body starts to adapt to this way of eating.
My biggest concern was that like the majority of people, I was a total sugar addict and have a very real sweet tooth. You can’t eat any sugar on the diet, including any natural sugars like maple syrup, honey, dates or agave syrup. There are, however, some artificial sweeteners you can use, but even these are a very strict list as many, many sweeteners are very high on the glycemic index which would cause your insulin to spike and prevent you from reaching ketosis.
I’ve been a pescatarian for almost 10 years and the majority of people who try keto can eat meat, so I was a little concerned of getting enough protein as you can’t eat beans due to their carbohydrate content. A few advocates for keto say you shouldn’t eat soy as it’s inflammatory but since it wouldn’t hinder me from reaching ketosis I kept tofu and tempeh in my diet with fish in order to hit my protein intake.
Another big part of the keto diet is figuring out what calories you should be consuming (for weight gain, weight loss or maintenance) as well as your macros (carbohydrate intake, fat intake and protein intake). Once I had the basic research down I cleared my cupboards of any food I wasn’t allowed and did my first keto food shop. I joined Facebook groups to help me get recipe ideas and to see other peoples results which I hoped would keep me motivated.
Although it’s not easy, I didn’t eat anything I wasn’t ‘allowed’ for months. The sweeteners helped my sweet tooth, things like Konjac noodles satisfied any pasta or noodle cravings, and I experimented with loads of different recipes so I didn’t get bored. I was amazed that I could actually stick to something so strict. I think if I can do it, anyone could with the right resources.

The most important things I learnt

Not everything works for everyone. I did everything by the book and was stricter than a lot of my friends or people I was seeing on Facebook and not only did I not lose any weight whatsoever, I wasn’t actually feeling that much better either. At the time this was truly disheartening but it was only the third type of diet I’ve tried and it sparked my new found passion for nutrition which I will always be grateful for.
Sugar is in everything. Almost everything processed has sugar in it, which forced me to cook everything from scratch. At the time I was annoyed but I’ve now gotten into the habit of cooking 90% of my own meals which I actually love. I currently don’t work or study due to my health so I have the time but I was absolutely amazed by friends and the people in the facebook groups who have families and worked full time and still managed to cook every meal.
Health is is trial and error. There isn’t going to be a quick fix for me, I simply have to figure out what helps my body and what hinders it. Although at times this is the most frustrating thing, I’m learning so much and I’m now far more in tune with my body than most people are.