Keto Diet
One of the keto diet goals is to put your body into a metabolic state known as ketosis.
In a state of ketosis, the body produces ketones, which serve as a source of energy for your body.
Why is it useful? Because it means that your body has shifted from sugar to fat as its primary fuel.
If the body uses fat for energy, then something extraordinary happens. The fat on your body starts to melt.
But how do you know when you’ve successfully entered ketosis? In addition to using various testers, you can pay attention to some of the changes taking place in the body.
Ketosis Symptoms: 7 Signs That You Are Going Into Ketosis
There is no 100% guarantee that you are in ketosis if you have these symptoms, but they can give you some guidance. Here are the signs we’ll look at:
- Weight loss
- Decreased appetite
- Increased concentration
- Short-term fatigue
- Stool problems
- Bad breath
- Elevated ketone levels
- Weight loss
One of the apparent signs of ketosis is weight loss, although this effect may not appear immediately for some people.
However, in most cases, when a person enters a state of ketosis, then at the initial stage, he quickly loses several kilograms.
This is not real fat burning yet. It is just that your body finally has the opportunity to get rid of the water that was stored in fat cells.
If you do not “drain” fat cells in this way, they will not move and be used for energy, which means the loss of “water weight” is a good and necessary stage.
After this initial shedding of a few pounds, you should continue to lose weight evenly and at a healthy pace if you can continue to keep the low-carb diet and create a calorie deficit.
Therefore, you should try to avoid common mistakes and plan in advance what you will eat.
- Decreased appetite
Something strange happens when you leave the world of carbohydrates behind.
You don’t feel so hungry anymore.
Yes, you are still hungry, but your stomach will not rumble as if an earthquake had started outside the window.
You will no longer want to stuff everything in the fridge into yourself. On the contrary, you will eat as much as necessary and move on.
The reason is that the body now better controls the hormones responsible for feeling hungry.
When you overeat carbohydrates, over time, your brain starts to ignore hormones. Therefore, sometimes people overeat to such an extent that they seem to be about to burst.
You will be shocked at how filling, healthy fats are when you start using them in your cooking. And don’t be surprised that after one meal you may not feel hungry for the rest of the day.
And also, if you feel like starting to carry a can of coconut oil with you.
- Increased concentration
This is perhaps my favorite ketosis effect.
If you are used to the fact that your body refuses to work in the afternoon, then the keto diet may seem like a miracle to you.
When people talk about how they no longer feel tired in the afternoon, it’s a small change that brings significant results.
In a ketosis state, your body produces ketones consistently, which means you have an almost endless supply of brain fuel that you always have with you.
When the brain is supplied with fuel, it allows you to concentrate rather than wandering mentally somewhere in the kitchen area.
I probably don’t know anyone who wouldn’t like to get more energy during the day.
- Short-term fatigue
Stop what?
We just talked about increased energy and concentration, and now we are talking about fatigue.
The problem with the keto diet is that your body has to rebuild itself completely.
During these changes, the body automatically continues to look for glucose for energy. It is not quite ready to produce enough ketones to support itself fully when it does not find it.
And also, many minerals are excreted in the urine that you are not used to replenishing.
Hint: If you’re still not in ketosis, you may not be drinking enough water.
To deal with this little hurdle at the start of your journey, make sure you replenish any minerals your body is losing.
You can do this by taking special supplements or by trying to get everything you need from food.
If you choose supplements, make sure you consume 2000-4000 mg sodium, 1000 mg potassium, and 300 mg magnesium.
Before the keto diet, you never had to worry about these things because foods high in carbohydrates contain these minerals and because the body retained water.
- Stool problems
Nothing terrible will happen, but you may notice that your usual routine has changed.
Your body can go one of three ways:
Constipation. Some people spend several days without going to the toilet. In this case, try adding more fiber or magnesium to your diet.
Diarrhea. When you start eating more fat than your body is used to, it’s a significant change for it. It will all return to normal over time, but the first few days can be a little frustrating.
No change. Some people do not experience any changes, and everything remains the same in their routine. Lucky ones.
- Bad breath
This is one of those effects that are very unpleasant on the keto diet.
It’s not fun waking up and wondering what died in your mouth while you slept.
It may not be as bad as I just described, but you may encounter the problem of bad breath.
The reason is that the body produces more acetone, which is excreted in urine and respiration.
However, this does not mean that you will breathe acetone all day long. The problem is mostly present only in the morning, so be sure to brush your teeth.
If you are terrified that stale breath will return during the day, you will not notice it, periodically chew gum (without sugar).
For most people, this problem disappears by itself after a while.
- Elevated ketone levels
Naturally, if you are in ketosis, your body produces more ketones.
Several methods include a glucometer (measuring blood sugar and ketones) or a breath ketone detector if you want to measure your ketone levels.
All people are different.
One of the hardest things that many people cannot accept is that we are all different, and therefore each organism will respond to diet in its way.
You can read how someone lost 5 kg in a week and dealt with the “keto flu” in three days, while you have been suffering for the third week.
There is no such formula that would suit everyone without exception.
Some people need to eat fewer carbs than others, while others need to start exercising as soon as possible.
The bottom line is that if you stop eating sugar and significantly reduce your carbs, you are doing your body a huge favor anyway. So if you can focus on positive change and give your body time to rebuild itself naturally, you will have much more pleasure in what you do.
There are many benefits to being in ketosis, such as controlling blood sugar levels or lowering cholesterol, so even if you’re trying to get into this state, you can already see significant changes.
