How to Gage Weight Loss on the Ketogenic Diet
The ketogenic diet is about more than just weight loss. People try it to reduce inflammation or heartburn, recover from eating disorders, treat diabetes, or even improve their mental capacity. Most people, however, do it to lose weight. What if you could predict exactly how much weight you will lose on this diet before you even start?
Factors that Influence Weight Loss
The truth is that every decision we make involves risk and unpredictability. However, there are definitely ways to gage whether the ketogenic diet will help you achieve your goal weight and how much time it will take to get there. Here are some important factors to consider:
Your health: If you have thyroid problems, insulin resistance, or any hormonal or metabolic issues, the process of losing weight might be slower than normal. This doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t try keto; in fact, it can be really good for your overall health. It just might take a little longer for you to reach your goal weight.
Your current weight: If you are highly overweight, you’ll probably experience a lot of weight loss in the beginning of your keto diet. The more pounds you have to shed, the faster your ketones burn them.
Your habits: How strictly do you plan to follow the keto diet? Do you plan to eat less than 20 grams of carbohydrates a day, are you simply going to eat lots of fatty junk foods, or will you doing something in between? What about exercise? This will all affect how much your body spends in ketosis.
Your adaption period: Are you familiar with the keto flu? This is a physical phenomenon in which your body exhibits flu-like symptoms while adapting to the ketogenic diet. If your flu lasts longer than a week or two, this may mean that your body is taking longer to adjust running on ketones and it may be a little longer before you start losing weight. If you can push through that period, however, you’ll probably soon see the pounds coming off pretty quickly.
How to Measure and Accelerate Your Weight Loss
Weight loss on the ketogenic diet is all about sending your body into a state of ketosis where your cells are running on fat. Here are some tools and tips to make sure you get there:
Calculate your macros: A keto calculator can help you know exactly how many macros to eat in order to achieve and remain in ketosis.
Give it time: After you start, you’ll need anywhere from two days to two weeks to send your body into ketosis. Before then, you won’t lose any weight on keto.
Test your ketones: Did you know you can use a ketone testing kit to track whether you are in ketosis? A blood ketone meter is the most accurate tool. If your blood is above .5 mol/L, then you are in ketosis.
Eat a clean ketogenic diet: The nutritional composition of your food matters. Eat natural food with lots of protein, healthy fats, minerals and vitamins, such as fresh leafy greens and grass-fed beef. Don’t do keto on processed cheese and ham slices. If you are having a hard time, try a keto meal delivery service.
Be more active: You don’t necessarily have to go to the gym every day, but see if you can find a way to incorporate activity in your daily routine. Maybe you can walk to the store or bike to work or take the stairs instead of the elevator. These moments add up
