For Beginners

What is the Keto Flu And How To Avoid It

The keto diet has seen a huge surge in popularity over the last decade. The idea behind the ketogenic diet is to consume minimal carbohydrates and get most of your calories from fats and protein so that your body spends most of the time in a state known as ketosis.

When you’re in ketosis, your body is preferentially burning fat for energy instead of burning glycogen from your muscles. This means you will lose fat instead of muscle, become more clear headed and eliminate sugar level spikes and crashes that you have on a more standard diet.

Some people swear by keto as a weight loss aid, and some people even use it to control certain medical conditions but when first starting this diet, they sometimes experience what is known as the ‘keto flu’.

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What is The Keto Flu?

Even if you’re sold on the benefits of keto, it’s natural to have a few worries about adapting to the diet. You may be wondering, “what is the keto flu”. This is a general term that is used to describe the lethargy, fogginess and run-down feeling that some people suffer when they are just getting starting out on the keto diet.

The symptoms of the keto flu can vary from person to person. For some people, it’s just a general malaise, for others, it may even include aches and pains and constipation.

Coping With the Keto Flu

The good news is that the symptoms of the keto flu are temporary and once your body gets used to being in ketosis, you should find that they go away of their own accord.

One of the symptoms is craving carbs or sugar. Giving in to that craving is not a good idea because while it will make you feel better in the short term, taking in lots of carbs will take you out of ketosis. This means that when you go back to following the keto diet, you will end up experiencing similar symptoms again.

If you stick with the keto diet, you will find that your body adapts to using fat as an energy source quite quickly. While you’re waiting for that to happen, there are a few things that you can do to reduce the symptoms:

Drink lots of water – This will help to keep you clear headed, and to keep your energy up
Eat green, leafy vegetables – These are rich in fiber and will help to reduce constipation and gastric distress
Eat more slowly – Protein and fat-rich foods are filling, but calorie dense. Eat more slowly so that you don’t over-indulge and begin getting used to your body’s fullness cues.

The keto diet is commonly used as a weight-loss diet, and it can be effective if you follow it sensibly. Try to resist the urge to add butter to everything and snack on nuts all day, because it is still possible to overeat on this diet. If you cut back on carbs, eat more vegetables, get the right amounts of protein and fat, you should notice that the weight comes off fast and you feel much better, overall.