Tips For Getting Into Ketosis When Following the Keto Diet

Thinking of going keto? Then you’ll want to enter into a state of ketosis, which is the best way to lose weight quickly. All those Instagram accounts showing rapid weight loss results with ketogenic diet followers shedding 20, 30, or even 50 pounds of body weight wouldn’t be possible without ketosis.

There are plenty of guidelines out there showing you how to shop and what to eat while following a keto diet. But one resource that’s lacking is a firm plan showing exactly how you can get your body into a state of ketosis. In order to achieve it, you’ll need to take a few simple steps.

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What is the keto diet?

The keto diet is exploding in popularity, and rightfully so. People from average citizens to celebrities are quickly jumping on the bandwagon. Weight loss is quick and dramatic for so many people and some may experience reduced symptoms of chronic conditions like diabetes.

When you follow a keto diet, you avoid processed foods, grains, sugar, fruit, and tuber vegetables (potatoes, yams, etc). So what can you eat? Meat, especially fatty red meat and fish, leafy greens, low-carb vegetables, nuts and seeds, high-fat dairy, avocados, and berries.

The ideal keto diet is heavily focused on fat and low on carbohydrates. When following the keto diet, you should be consuming 70% fat, 25% protein, and 5% carbohydrates.

What is ketosis?

Unlike other popular low-carb diets, like the Atkins diet, the ketogenic diet is all about entering a state of ketosis. What is this magical state that helps you shed excess pounds rapidly? It’s a lot less complicated than you think.

According to the dictionary, ketosis is, “a metabolic state characterized by raised levels of ketone bodies in the body tissues.” When your body is in ketosis, it uses fat for energy rather than carbs, which can help you lose weight faster. Ketosis can have other health benefits too, like reducing episodes of seizures in children. In fact, the keto diet was originally designed for epileptic children.

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How to get into ketosis

Getting into a state of ketosis is as easy as following the rules of the diet without cheating. Here are some simple tips to help you get into ketosis quickly:

• Restrict carbohydrates

The most important thing you can do to enter ketosis is to stop eating carbs. Your body naturally uses carbohydrates as an energy source, but when you restrict them, your body has to find alternative options. That’s why cutting carbs down as much as possible automatically helps you reach ketosis.

• Restrict protein

One of the most common keto diet mistakes is eating too much protein and too little fat. After all, it’s easier to find protein sources than it is to subsist on healthy fats. Followers of the Atkins diet typically eat too much protein when they’re trying to stay keto.

• Avoiding fat

Your whole life you’ve been taught that fat makes you fat. Eating keto means pivoting from this line of thinking and eating more fat than most people are comfortable with. In order to follow the keto diet, you need to stop thinking of fat as the enemy and start embracing healthy fats like avocados, red meat, fish, and coconut oil.

• Skip your snacks

Snacking on anything – even keto compliant foods – leads to constant insulin spikes that can prevent you from entering ketosis. Stick to eating three (or fewer) meals per day and stop eating in between. Thankfully, you won’t be as hungry as often if you follow the rule of eating mostly high-fat foods.

• Try fasting

Intermittent fasting and the keto diet go hand in hand. There are many ways to experiment with fasting that don’t involve excessive hunger. Choose the method that’s best for you, start slow, and find out how fasting can help you reach your goals of ketosis.

• Drink water

It doesn’t matter what the question is: drink more water is almost always the answer. So many keto diet followers neglect drinking water and it’s a huge mistake. Staying hydrated helps you stay fuller, eat less, and helps your organs function better, too. While following the keto diet, you should aim to drink a gallon of water per day, minimum.

The keto diet has plenty of critics, but the people who follow it are experiencing undeniable weight loss and health results. It may not be for everyone, but once you try keto, you may love it. Getting into ketosis just makes it all worthwhile.

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