My Top Tips for Starting the Ketogenic Diet

Hey everybody! So with the new year came tons of people starting Keto! So I thought I would make a list of my top tips for Keto. I’ve been adding tips to my notes for the past day, so I might add more if I think of them. 💗 Here they are- 

1. Educate yourself! Do not start Keto without first doing research. You are setting yourself up to fail. You need to know what to do and what to  expect before you start. You may be blindsided by #5 and give up. There are sooo many resources available for you to teach you about Keto. Google and Pinterest are your friend when you are first starting out! There is tons of research, personal stories, and recipes available. 

2. Realize Keto is not “one size fits all”. There are so many different ways to Keto. Some people may have to stay below 20 net carbs to remain in ketosis, and then there are some people who can handle 50 net carbs. You also have the people that follow net carbs (total carbs minus fiber minus sugar alcohols) vs people that count total carbs. There are also different macro (macronutrient = fat, protein, carbohydrate) ratios and calorie levels. You have people that track everything they eat and then there are people that don’t track anything. Everyone does Keto a little differently.  

3. Find what works for you! This can be a hard thing. People want an exact answer on what to do to reach their goals, but it’s such an individual thing. You’ll see that quickly when you ask for advice on a Keto FB group. Some people will say to up your fats, then another person will say you don’t need fats. Same with protein, increase it or decrease it. Then what grams of carbs people should stick to. There are going to be varying answers, as highlighted in # 3. Just because it works for someone else, does not mean it will work for you and vice versa. You will have to experiment to see what works best for you and your body. 

4. Calculate your macros and then track your food. I use this Keto calculator. You should be updating your macros as you lose weight. Personally I track what I eat. I find that when I don’t track I am able to maintain my weight, not lose. And since my goal right now is to lose weight, I have made the choice to track what I eat with the MyFitnessPal app. I use the free version and change the macro goals to fit what’s been calculated for me. 

5. Expect and recognize the Keto flu. You will learn about the Keto flu when doing your research for tip #1. This can happen at any point while eating Keto but it is especially prominent during the first week. Your body is detoxing from the carbs and sugars, and your electrolytes go wacky. Which leads me to tip # 6.....

6. Electrolytes! Electrolytes are sooo important when you are eating Keto. You have to be replenishing your sodium, potassium, and magnesium. The products I use are 1) Ultima electrolyte replenisher in raspberry, 2) Natural calm magnesium drink in raspberry lemon, and 3) Himalayan pink salt. 

7. Use a food scale. This goes with tip #4 with tracking your food and macros. I used to think only crazy health people had food scales, but once I got one I realized how important they are. Even when you follow the 2 Tbsp or 1/2 cup measurement that is provided on the nutrition label, it is usually much more than the amount by weight. So I use it to make sure I’m accurately following the serving size and macros. 

8. Use other measurements besides the scale! The scale is not the only (or even best) measurement of your progress. There are so many factors that influence your weight like muscle and water. You should be taking measurements of your body to track inches lost. I also love taking pictures to track my progress that way. Sometimes I’ll feel like I look the same way I did when I started, but that’s easy to prove wrong when I place pictures side by side. It’s especially helpful if you’re at a plateau/stall. 

9. Be patient! I see so many people on the Keto FB groups with these crazy expectations on how much weight they are going to lose. “I only lost 20 pounds my first month. What am I doing wrong?!” You did not put on all this weight in a month, so you are not going to lose it all in a month. I’m a very slow loser so I’ve had to be incredibly patient and trust the process. This also leads me to number 10->

10. Don’t compare! There is always going to be someone who is losing weight quicker than you, working out more than you, losing more inches than you, and making progress quicker. Please don’t compare yourself to others, it will just make you miserable. Compare yourself to the person you were yesterday, last month, last year. Work on yourself while focusing on yourself, not others. 

11. Give it at least 30 days, even better... 100 days. I’ve seen people try Keto for a week and then quit. How can you really tell how this way of eating is going to benefit you in a week?? Stick around for a while before you decide if it’s right for you. There are so many rewards that I did not experience right away. Clear skin is a big example of that. At the beginning my skin actually got worse, but I trusted the process and it paid off big time. There are a lot of 100 day Keto groups that you can join for accountability and support. 

Okay guys, that’s all I have for now! I hope this was helpful 💗