This is an easy guide on how to start keto from someone who has tried it and achieved and surpassed their goals. When I decided to try the keto diet it was because everything else that was out there wasn’t working! I worked out regularly, I ate okay and generally tried to take care of myself. Sound familiar? I was extremely frustrated. Overtime the pounds kept piling on and I remember a family member saying to me, “you are huge”. That hit a nerve.
Fast forward as I was scrolling on Instagram and I saw a girl who wholeheartedly endorsed keto. I went through her photos and the difference was clear as day and night. Since starting keto the weight had come off. I was still on the fence about it until a coworker told me her daughter had lost 28 pounds in 3 months! I needed proof that keto isn’t just another diet fad so this endorsement by someone I knew was enough for me to try keto.
If you all this describes where you are with your weight then you are in the right place. This guide will explain simply how to start keto or a low carb diet. Check out these dinner recipes to see that you will love keto!
What is keto?
Keto simply put is eating a low carb, high fat diet to get your body into ketosis. This doesn’t mean you eliminate carbs. It means that you eat fewer and healthier carbs. To follow the keto diet you should stay under 20g net carbs per day and for some people it can be betweenr 25g or 30g .
Keto for me personally was a lifestyle change. I had to change the way I was eating. The composition of my plate had to change. The frequency of my eating had to change and lastly the hours I ate had to change. It meant that I was now more conscious than ever of the food I was consuming.
The minute you tell people you are doing keto you’ll get questions like, “Is it healthy?”, “All that fat?”, “You can eat bacon but you can’t eat an apple?” All the sceptics will be on you so do your due diligence. Consult a doctor and do your own research if you decide to do it.
Full disclosure: I am not a doctor, I cannot tell you what to eat, I can only share my experience
What’s the composition of a keto plate?
When you start keto you have to start thinking about macros and net carbs. Macros are macronutrients which is basically fats, proteins and carbs. They make up the food that we eat. Net carbs are total carbs minus fiber and non-digestible sugar alcohols, like erythritol.
When you start the keto diet you should eat:
- 70% Fats
- 25% Proteins
- 5% Carbs
Notice how low the carb percentage is. That’s because the keto diet is ensuring that you restrict your carb intake.
There are numerous apps that can help you track your macros to ensure you stay within the boundaries above. The keto diet app is a great one and I personally use it. At the beginning of my weightloss journey it was a critical tool for measuring my macros and net carbs.
It is important that you stay within your macros. I’m not a strict keto eater in the sense that I don’t measure my food I go by sight and satiety. When you limit your carb intake your body starts to use fat for energy which leads to fat loss.
Your goal is to lose weight but also to lose fat as well. This is when your body is in a state called ketosis. You will be obsessing over this when you start. I tested practically almost everyday at the beginning to see if I was in ketosis. I used these strips to test and they are affordable.
Signs that you are in ketosis:
Ketosis as mentioned above is when the body burns fat for fuel instead of carbohydrates. This lease to weight loss, energy and mental clarity. I remember the first few days when I changed my diet were difficult. I went through the keto flu because my body was getting into ketosis. After a couple of days I started to feel lighter, more excited and more productive at work.
Ketosis will always be the goal in the keto diet. Signs that you are in ketosis include:
- Urine has a sweat smell
- You have ketosis breath
- You experience the ketosis flu
- Decrease in appetite
- Dramatic weight-loss
- Insomnia
- Dry mouth
- Energy levels increase
- More mental focus
When you start out follow the macros above as suggested and then as you learn your body’s needs and what works best adjust them to where you could be at 50% fats, 40% Proteins and 10% carbs.
How can you guarantee success on keto?
I have outlined some of the things that I do that have helped me along the way. It will be difficult at first because people around you will be super skeptical about what you are doing. You will doubt yourself but if you stick it through you will see results.
- Plan your meals out. I don’t really like to meal prep but this strategy works because you will always know what to eat and cheating is less likely to happen.
- Buy high quality meat and products. If you are going to put your body through this process you may as well eat premium food. Personally I combine OMAD and Keto. That means I have one really good meal per day with breakfast sometimes.
- Moderate exercise is good to burn more calories if you are up to it. Always consult a professional before you decide what course of action to take.
- Intermittent fasting will be your best friend when you start to plateau or when you need to kick into high gear fat loss. I do 16:8 intermittent fasting where I don’t eat for 16 hours and I eat most of my food in 8 hours.
- Measure ketosis levels. When you begin keto I suggest measuring your level of ketosis so that you know what to change. I bought the strips linked here on Amazon for a great price.
- Enjoy your food. Keto allows you to eat bacon so eat it! You can still have chocolate. I buy Lily’s. It’s expensive but its does the trick. I also like Simply Lite because it’s good chocolate and it’s Keto friendly.
- You can have alcohol. I love my wine so being able to enjoy a Chardonnay or a shot of bourbon at the end of a long day is okay. Skip the cordials and the cocktails.
- Keep it simple don’t go for recipes that will keep you in the kitchen for hours which will lead to diet fatigue so keep your meals as simple as possible. Check out these 15 – 30 minute Keto friendly dinner recipes I put together.
- You are allowed to cheat just make sure it’s not a habit or you will be kicked out of ketosis.
Don’t be discouraged if people you know lose the weight faster. There is something called the whoosh effect where you’ll drop a dramatic amount of weight almost over night. So hang in there.
If you think this is a lifestyle you want to try out I wish you all the best. I hated diets for years because they weren’t sustainable and finally I found one I love! Send over any questions that you may have.
RELATED POSTS
INTERMITTENT FASTING AND KETO. DOES IT WORK?
Disclaimer: I am not a doctor. Please consult a medical professional before making any decisions. These are my personal opinions based on my experience practicing the ketogenic diet.
1 Comment
Some people, especially middle aged or older women, need to skip the dairies to have a satisfying weight loss. Cream and yoghurt can be exchanged for coconut milk/-cream. It is not perfect, but good enough, and well worth it. Also sheep’s or goat’s cheese is better than dairy cheese for weight loss, but then there will be a weight loss for the wallet as well 🙂