When it's done right, the ketogenic diet can have major benefits, according to its fans. Adherents speak of fat melting away from their physiques, skyrocketing energy levels, mental clarity, and a wide range of health benefits that scientists are only now starting to investigate more deeply.
But what's clear is that this diet, perhaps more than any other, can be done dead wrong. And surprisingly, the culprit isn't always just "eating too many carbs." Here are the five keto mistakes you need to avoid, courtesy of Bodybuilding.com and EAS Myoplex athlete Jason Wittrock, who also lives and trains keto.
If you want to learn more about the science of the ketogenic diet, be sure to check out the Ask the Expert Panel that Wittrock recently attended with dietician Steve Hertzler, PhD, and Bodybuilding.com science editor Krissy Kendall, PhD.
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1. Getting Impatient With Adaptation
Before you jump into keto, you have to understand something: You've been running on carbohydrates your entire life. Now you're asking your body to completely switch metabolisms and start using fat for energy instead of carbs.
You will have some withdrawal effects during this time, commonly known as the "keto flu." What you need to do is stay committed. There are ways to minimize the keto flu, even if you can't eliminate it completely. Stay the course, the flu will pass, and all of a sudden, you will be in ketosis, and you will feel better than when you first started.
As an athlete who follows a keto diet himself, Jason Wittrock understands the ins and outs of the lifestyle.
As Parker Hyde pointed out in "Ketogenic Diet: Your Complete Meal Plan and Supplement Guide," becoming fat-adapted is a process of weeks, not just days. Most people need 3-4 weeks to reach peak fat-burning adaptation. Stick with it and give this diet a fighting chance!
2. Not Getting Enough Fat
The best way to think of keto is that it's not simply a low-carb diet; it's a super-high-fat diet. Sure, you won't be eating a lot of carbs, but as I said in the Keto Roundtable, it's essential that you change your mindset from one of "avoid carbs" to simply "get enough fat."
At least 75 percent of your calories need to come from fat; that's things like eggs, bacon, sausage, avocado, oils, coconut oils, and butter. You need to seek these things out. Mentally, it's not what you're used to. You're used to avoiding fats. Now, all of a sudden, you look at the grocery cart, and you've got nothing but fat.
That is a good thing. Fat is your new energy source. You're not running on carbs anymore. You need fat. If you don't get enough fat, your energy levels will go down, and you will end up quitting this diet.
3. Eating Too Much Protein
Different people can handle different amounts of protein once they're truly fat-adapted. But in the early stages, it's better to be safe than sorry. What ends up happening if you consume too much protein on this diet is a process called gluconeogenesis. Essentially, your body is going to treat that protein like carbohydrates and convert it into glucose. That will kick you out of ketosis.
It's very important that you choose high-fat, low-protein foods. You're not going to be eating a lot of chicken. You're not going to be eating a lot of tuna. When you go to the store, buy the full-fat ground beef, not the ground turkey. Buy the regular bacon instead of the turkey bacon. You only want 20 percent of your calories to come from protein. If you’re in a pinch and need a convenient meal option, check out the Myoplex Ketogenic Meal Replacement packets, they’ve got the perfect ratio of fat, protein, and carbs to help any keto dieter stay on track.
Wondering how that looks in macros, or even a meal plan? Check out our complete meal plan and supplement guide.
4. Not Getting Enough Electrolytes
Electrolytes are important no matter how you eat, but they're absolutely critical on this diet. In fact, I would say they are the number one reason why most people end up failing. If you do not have enough sodium, magnesium, and potassium in your diet, you will experience headaches, fatigue, constipation, lethargy—in other words, all the symptoms of the so-called "keto flu"—and you will simply quit.
Why does this happen? For one, insulin happens to be the hormone that tells your kidneys to store sodium. So, when you suppress the insulin, your kidneys begin flushing out the sodium from your body, especially when you work out. It's essential that you replace that sodium by salting your food, eating salty snacks, and one of my favorite tricks, drinking chicken broth.
Potassium is also a major electrolyte that is used in all different kinds of muscle contractions and by your major organs. To get enough potassium, you can eat lots of green leafy vegetables and avocados. Honestly, I recommend eating 1-2 whole avocados a day. These little fat bombs can be your best friend!
Finally, there's magnesium, which is used in almost every chemical process in your body. You can get magnesium from nuts and seeds like walnuts, almonds, pistachios, pecans, and pumpkin seeds, all of which are on the menu with keto. But I also recommend most people take some additional magnesium in supplemental form.
5. Eating Hidden Carbs
Listen: Only 5 percent of your calories are coming from carbohydrates. There's no room for error here! You need to eat a lot of green leafy vegetables, nuts, and seeds, but you also have to watch out for the hidden sugars that are in processed foods.
Food companies have become professionals at hiding carbohydrates in foods. They want you to be addicted to carbs. It's what drives their profits! So, you need to be your own best advocate and become an expert at reading food labels.
When you buy something, see how many carbohydrates are listed in the nutrition facts, but just as importantly, look at the ingredient list to see if you can see any different names for sugars. A few include sucrose, fructose, corn syrup, lactose, barley malt, dextrose, rice syrup, maltose, agave, molasses, cane juice, fruit juice, honey, and malt syrup. These are the big ones, but they're definitely not the only ones. If you have any doubts, don't buy it!
When done correctly, the ketogenic diet can be a lifesaver, helping you both mentally and physically. I've seen this firsthand, as I discussed at length in the Ask the Expert Panel roundtable. So give it a shot, but only if you're willing to do it right. Fix these five mistakes, and you'll be on the right path.
Do You Have What It Takes To Complete The 28-Day Keto Challenge? bit.ly/2sPejiS
Pedialyte is a must, especially at the beginning.
As someone who has done the keto diet several times, here are my tips and feedback...
1) I would not do this diet more than maybe 3 months at a time. In my experience, the longer you do it, the tougher it is to come out of if you want to eat carbs again. 2) If you use this diet for awhile and want to stop, I highly recommend slowly introducing carbs back in. If you go back to a normal carb diet, your body won't know what to do with them and you will instantly gain back the weight. 3) Cycled Keto was the best for me. 6 days on the diet and fill back up on carbs for 24 hours on the 7th day (ideally high carb/low fat for that day). I felt this avoided any plateaus. It takes me about 2-3 days after the carb day to get back in keto. A carb day every other week is okay as well, but it's very helpful. 4) Don't just do this diet with unlimited calories and expect it to work. Still go on a bit of a deficit, but this will just aid in the process. 5) I have found that using this diet as opposed to a higher carb diet eating the same amount of calories will keep me fuller overall, which limits the urge to cheat.
So i saw some articles about a 6th day carb up day for ketosis, is that a valid thing or do i need to be low carb for the rest of my life?? 😱
Yes, you're referring to Cyclic Keto diet, wherein you eat high fat low carb for 5-6 days a week, and then carb up on 1 day, then again go back and keep repeating. It helps keep people on the diet as sometimes it gets cumbersome when you go out on weekends etc. But if you are really over weight and starting keto for the first time I think you should stick to normal keto and then maybe go into cyclic keto after 7-8 weeks. Watch videos of Dr. Jacob Wilson, he really helped me understand keto better and I am starting it now as well. Good luck to you!
Back on 3-3-17, after my weight shot up to a level never before seen (201 bs), I started a Ketogenic diet to drop some bodyfat. After 9 weeks, I measured some success. I decided to stop the Ketogenic diet on 5-26-17 to see if I could maintain the weight and new bodyfat level. However, so far, I seem to be on-trend to regain the weight (more quickly than it took to lose).
My Stats:
• Gender = male • Age= 51 • Height: 5’-10” • Starting weight = 202 lbs • TDEE = 2476 cal (approx) for maint. • BMR = 1775 cal • Activity Level = Moderately active
KETO Phase: • Start date: 3-3-17 • Started with “Below 50 carb/day” but didn’t work • Reduced carbs to the 0 to 20 range, which did the trick • Total caloric intake = 1400 to 1800 • Took 9 weeks to go from 202 to 185 (17 lbs)
Exercise Regimen (during Keto):
• 3 days of HIIT (20-25 minutes); either skipping rope or jog/walk; morning/pre-breakfast; burn ~240-260 cal. • Alternating 2 days of bodyweight/dumbbell strength training (20 minutes); pushups, squats; kettle bell; planks; mt climbers, dumbbell rows; morning/pre-breakfast. In addition, elliptical machine (25 minutes); evening at 9pm; burn ~320-360 cal. Note: Used Garmin fitness tracker w/ chest strap for all calorie-burn measurements
Good Result / Success Metrics: • Dropped from 202 lbs to 185 lbs • Body fat scale dropped from 24.1% to 20.6% • Visceral fat dropped from 12% to 9% • Skin fold calipers dropped from 10mm to 8mm
Post-Keto: Weight creeping back up
Two weeks after stopping Keto (5-26-17): weight increased to 195 lbs / bodyfat = 21.9% / visceral = 10%
• Total caloric intake = 1400 – 1800 (roughly same) • Total carbs = 100 – 200 (increased) • Exercise regimen is same (caloric burn)
Questions:
I’m a little discouraged by this trend. I seem to be on a path to losing all the fruits of my Keto labor.
1. Could it be that my caloric intake (deficit) is such that my body is in some starvation mode – forcing it to store fat more readily? 2. Could it be that I’m getting too much exercise – in other words, the combined caloric intake plus my activity level creates too much of a deficit such that my body is in some starvation mode – forcing it to store fat more readily? 3. Could it be that my body’s carb sensitivity is such that even the 100 - 200 carb range is too much (leading to weight gain)?
Need a third-party, unbiased, outside-looking-in, more experienced perspective on this.
I've been doing low carb\keto with my wife for a couple years now. When you come off keto, you still want to stay low-carb. I'm 50 as well. Once you kick the bread habit, keep it kicked! Same with sugar. I suspect you're letting the carb content creep upward. I suggest getting back into keto, or at least keeping control of the carbs. The sneak in with things like protein bars, mixed nuts (peanuts have a lot of carbs), and...sorry for this one...beer. I rarely drink beer now and have learned a whole new appreciation for red wine (4 grams of carbs per glass...or 6 in the glasses I pour). You gotta be honest with yourself. At 50, our bodies have little use for carbs and they go straight to the spare tire. Track your food for a week and see what you come up with. I'm willing to bet you're taking in well of the 50 gram max for a low-carb diet.
I am so frustrated. I am consistently in Ketosis.... strong ketosis, and I am back to lifting a lot, but i'm not losing weight. If I were eating too much protein I'd kick myself out of ketosis. That's not the case. Same if I was eating to many carbs... that is not the case. My weight is staying the same - no trudging at all....... but and I'm hoping this could be it....I am building a lot of muscle ....... so.... maybe I am losing fat but it's not showing up on the scale???
What dietary fats do you eat?
Hi Judie I have the same problem did you work it out? Do you have any tips for me??
Thx!! :)
Great article!! I am a keto believer and these were great points! I have cycled carbs in the past 4off/1on and had great success shredding out for shows. I have been researching a lot about keto diets and I am ready to go full keto. I learned a few new things from this article. Thank you!!
I'm going to try this again. I used this diet before and my results were AMAZING.
Great article. For my first BB competitions I followed a ketogenic-ish diet (I say 'ish' b/c I did terrible at keeping carbs in check). When consuming nuts, so you take into account the fiber content, and only count the net carbs towards your carbohydrate totals? Thank
you would obviously know better than I haha so I was wondering how the 20% protein works with building and sustaining muscle, or is keto not ideal during building?