How to Successfully Transition to a Keto Diet
In this video, I explain how to transition from the standard American diet to a ketogenic diet. It can be a little bit tricky, but after the information shared in this video, you will be equipped to start making the changes.
First, I will give you the main guidelines and then I will give you six tips to implement.
My name is Evelyn. For those who don’t know me, I am a certified keto and intermittent fasting coach. I post content on all things keto weight loss and how to optimize your health. If those topics interest you make sure to subscribe on my YouTube channel, and make sure to click notifications so that you don’t miss any of my future videos.
Avoid the Keto Flu
How can you successfully transition from a standard American diet to a keto diet smoothly? Among my clients, friends and family, many have tried the Keto diet on their own and failed. One of the leading causes of that is that they jumped in with both feet and their experience ended within a week or two of doing the keto diet.
While I can respect that kind of bravery and it does work for some, it often does not lead to success. Why? Beginning a keto diet by going cold turkey on absolutely no carbohydrates and sugars can truly be a shock to your body’s metabolic systems, including the fuel required for your brain? Think of sugar as a highly addictive drug and you get the idea.
Most people experience symptoms of withdrawals, which is a combination of mental and physical effects that creates discomfort, to say the least. Many call this the keto flu. The solution is similar to quitting any other addictive substances. Do it gradually. This can be done in a relatively short period of time, just a couple of weeks, and it leads to long term success.
The first step is to cut all processed carbohydrates from your diet and go low carb. For example, if you are eating regular bread, opt for a low carb bread option or low carb tortillas instead of pasta. Try alternatives such as konjac noodle and heart of palms noodle or spaghetti squash. The next step is a very important one, and it is a mindset change from what we have been taught for many decades.
Eat More Fat & Salt
Eat more fat! We will discuss the importance of high quality fat in other videos, but for now, you slowly want to increase the quantity of high quality fat that you take, like olive oil, coconut oil and avocados. The reason is that we want fat to become your body’s favorite go-to fuel source. This introduction will also play a big role in curbing hunger, keeping you satiated, and keeping your brain functioning optimally.
The next one is also somewhat counterintuitive. However, it is very necessary for your success. We discuss this in more detail in other videos, but in short, as you reduce the amount of carbohydrate in your diet, your body excretes more salt. Salt is essential for life, so we need to learn to replace this salt by adding it to most things we eat.
Most often the causes of feeling weak, inability to concentrate and leg cramping can all be sourced or linked to a lack of salt. You may find it very helpful to drink water with salt added to it. You can also take some electrolytes to help out with this important transition. Beware though, read labels carefully on any new products you introduce into your diet, including electrolytes. All sugar must gradually go from your diet.
What About Desserts and Drinks?
Replace sugary soft drinks with products like Zevia, but still keep those occasional. If you drink a lot of fruit juice, which contains high levels of fructose, switch to sparkling water with some lemon in it for flavor. If you really need, dilute your fruit juice with water, with the goal of slowly eliminating the fruit juice after a few days.
Some of the hardest things to cut might be sweets and desserts. Who doesn’t want dessert? Having fat bombs on hand can really help at the beginning of a keto diet. There are plenty of recipes online for fat bombs that you can make yourself, or you may be able to purchase them at a keto store near you. Having keto chocolate that is at least low in sugar content is a good plan to have on hand at home so that when you do experience sugar cravings, you have an easy and accessible option to go to.
6 Tips to Make Your Plans to Succeed
Here are six tips for successfully making the transition from a standard American diet to a ketogenic lifestyle. Keep your kitchen stocked up with healthy food such as nuts, seed almond flour, coconut flour and low glycemic sweeteners such as erythritol and xylitol or monk fruit and have in your fridge some eggs, berries and vegetables.
Plan ahead so that you don’t have to worry about finding healthy options when you are hungry. For me, that means always having some greens to be able to make a quick salad with hard boiled eggs or canned tuna, some cheese and keto chocolate. Do not feel overly guilty about giving in to cravings for unhealthy food. No one is perfect if you want to make the ketogenic diet a lifestyle.
There will be bumps and adjustments to make along the road in order for you to be successful. Just get back on track and keep moving forward. Keep a food journal and track your progress along the way. This will help you analyze what foods are your temptations and search for how to substitute them. It will also help you to figure out what food works well with your digestive system and what foods don’t.
And the changes you make in this regard will impact your weight loss and overall health if you live alone. Get rid of any junk food that you have in the house. If you live with roommates or family members, try and enlist their help so that they can support you in your new healthy lifestyle. See what junk food they might also be willing to get rid of. Those they want to keep, could these be stored out of your regular daily eyesight?
Add apple cider vinegar, electrolytes and vitamin B in the form of nutritional yeast and other supplements according to your own personal needs. All these can play a huge part in improving your health and on your weight loss journey.
What’s the hype about apple cider vinegar? ACV plays a role in promoting good digestion and also in lowering blood glycemia. Both of these results will help you to transition you into a keto diet and give you better weight loss results. I recommend you get apple cider vinegar “with the mother”, which is a good probiotic. If possible, source a variety that is undiluted and organic.
In Conclusion
If you have a tip that I haven’t mentioned here, please share it with us in the comments below. The ketogenic lifestyle can be overwhelming and hard at first to follow. Luckily though there are many resources available that can make the transition much easier, such as free blog posts and videos like this one. This video is part of my YouTube playlist, Keto Basics for Beginners, where I explain everything in relation to starting a ketogenic diet.
Feel free to share this post or my video with someone you know that is thinking of starting a keto diet. I’ll put the playlist in the cards and in the description bar below. If you have a question, or you have or other topics that you would like to see covered, please do comment below.
I would also like to mention that a coach can help you implement a comprehensive plan according to your own specific needs. This plan can have many different components, such as helping you make changes in your diet, helping with stress management and resulting in better sleep. A good coach will assess your personal needs and will tailor recommendations that will help you make the best choice for yourself.
If you are looking for a faster and healthier way to get results, someone to guide you along the way and keep you accountable, then you would benefit from a coaching program. Request a free discovery call today. Let’s see how we can work together to help you achieve your weight loss and health goals.