How long to stay on ketogenic diet

You should aim to give it at least six weeks. After that, if you feel exhausted or hate eating the food, then the diet is probably not for you. However, if you feel energetic after keto flu symptoms subside within a couple of weeks, which some people report, you may see success with the plan. Stick to the keto diet for three to six months max, says Mancinelli, noting that some people opt to cycle in and out of the diet throughout the year.

But even when you go off it, you can expect that your taste preferences will have changed. For certain people like those with kidney disease , it can be dangerous. Let that be your guide to help you determine if the keto diet is right for you.

By subscribing you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Health Topics. Health Tools. Ketogenic Diet. That was successful enough for me. The key to hitting my number was to plan, plan, plan. I worked out all three meals, down to the condiments, plus snacks on the weekends. If I knew what I was having and what I was "allowed" to have while staying under my carb goal, I found managing the infrequent cravings and hunger pangs easier.

I can't stress enough the importance of planning for a keto diet. I ate a lot of bacon, cheese, eggs and meat steak and chicken mostly.

For a person whose eating philosophy is typically more plant-based and whole-food-focused , eating processed pork products every morning took a lot of personal persuasion. It also took a complete mental shift, because eating multiple pieces of bacon every day for weeks on end goes against everything I've been taught for personal health.

Learn more about a vegetarian keto diet. Keeping your carb count near 20 reduces your calorie consumption too. Carb-heavy foods are some of the most calorie-dense foods we eat, mainly because we eat a lot of them. If you cut carbs, you dramatically reduce your possible calorie intake.

See the 30 best low-carb foods. Some days, I struggled to get over 1, calories. For my goal of 1, calories, I fell short almost every day. That's enough of a calorie deficit to produce weight loss, even without the low-carb count. The "keto flu" is a term you'll see on keto blogs and forums. For me, it was a very real event, but not everyone will experience it. As your body breaks through the carb cycle and enters ketosis where you rely on ketones, instead of carbs, for energy , you may experience fatigue, mental fogginess, even irritability.

My "keto flu" only lasted a day, and once I passed it, I never experienced the symptoms again. I even ate a cookie one day during the diet to celebrate my birthday. I certainly came out of ketosis when I ate that treat, but I didn't experience any repercussions for it. Learn more about sneaky side effects of the keto diet including some of those flu-like symptoms.

Featured Recipe: Soy Sauce Eggs. While I set out to drop a quick 10 pounds, I quickly surpassed it. I was down 10 pounds within three weeks and hit 15 pounds two days before the wedding. It's important to keep in mind that when you are on a low-carb diet of any type, you will lose several pounds in the first few days. That's because your body is dropping water weight. When I returned to typical eating over the wedding weekend, I gained 4 pounds.

I didn't overeat that weekend. I had just returned to eating carbs, so the water weight returned. That said, achieving a state of ketosis can take some work and planning.

Eating a very low carb diet is by far the most important factor in achieving ketosis. Your cells normally use glucose , or sugar, as their main source of fuel. However, most of your cells can also use other fuel sources, including fatty acids and ketones. When your carb intake is very low, glycogen stores are reduced and levels of the hormone insulin decline. This allows fatty acids to be released from fat stores in your body.

Your liver converts some of these fatty acids into the ketones acetone, acetoacetate, and beta-hydroxybutyrate. These ketones can be used as fuel by portions of your brain 5 , 6. The degree of carb restriction needed to induce ketosis varies by individual and can be affected by various factors, such as the types of exercise you do.

Some people need to limit their net carb intake to 20 grams per day, while others can achieve ketosis while eating twice this amount or more. For this reason, the induction phase of the Atkins diet requires that carbs be restricted to 20 or fewer grams per day for 2 weeks to guarantee that ketosis is achieved. After this point, small amounts of carbs can be added back to your diet very gradually, as long as ketosis is maintained.

Each individual will potentially have a different carb intake limit to achieve and maintain ketosis, depending on the total number of calories they eat and their daily activity levels. In one study, adults with type 2 diabetes were allowed 20—50 grams of digestible carbs per day, depending on the number of grams that allowed them to maintain blood ketone levels within a certain target range 7.

These carb and ketone ranges are advised for people who want to get into ketosis to promote weight loss, control their blood sugar levels, or reduce their heart disease risk factors. However, anyone using the diet for therapeutic purposes should only do so under the supervision of a medical professional.

Limiting your carb intake to 20—50 net grams per day lowers your blood sugar and insulin levels, leading to the release of stored fatty acids that your liver converts into ketones. Eating coconut oil can help you achieve ketosis. It contains fats called medium-chain triglycerides MCTs. Unlike most fats, MCTs are rapidly absorbed and taken directly to the liver, where they can be used immediately for energy or converted into ketones.

Some research suggests that fat sources with a higher percentage of lauric acid may produce a more sustained level of ketosis. MCTs have been used to induce ketosis in children who have epilepsy. In a high MCT diet, ketosis occurs without restricting carbs as drastically as the classic ketogenic diet.

Shop for coconut oil online. Consuming coconut oil provides your body with medium-chain triglycerides MCTs , which are quickly absorbed and converted into ketones by your liver. A growing number of studies have found that being in ketosis may be beneficial for some types of athletic performance 16 , These are normally replenished when you eat carbs, which are broken down into glucose.

However, if carb intake is minimized, glycogen stores remain low. In response, your liver increases its production of ketones, which can be used as an alternative fuel source for your muscles Working out in a fasted state has been shown to drive up ketone levels 19 , In a small study, 9 postmenopausal women exercised either before or after a meal. Keep in mind that although exercise increases ketone production, it may take 1—4 weeks for your body to adapt to using ketones and fatty acids as primary fuels.

During this time, physical performance may be reduced temporarily Engaging in physical activity can increase ketone levels during carb restriction. This effect may be enhanced by working out in a fasted state. Consuming plenty of healthy fats can boost your ketone levels and help you reach ketosis. Indeed, a very low carb ketogenic diet not only minimizes carbs but also calls for a high fat intake.

The classic ketogenic diet used for epilepsy is even higher in fat. A 3-week study including 11 healthy people compared the effects of fasting on breath ketone levels.