A very low carb diet such as the ketogenic diet can be a bit more stressful to maintain than just a regular low carb diet, but deliver excellent, faster results. Ketogenic diets typically lower the carbohydrate intake down to under 20 carbs for all of the meals of the day combined.
This style of little to no carbs is effective because the body responds to the lack of glucose production by burning fat cells instead. Some days it might not be as easy to maintain this strict diet, so eating out at fast food might be more challenging for a meal.
But you can tailor your order to something like a burger without the bun – or have it wrapped in a giant lettuce leaf instead. Most fast food restaurants are familiar with low carb orders.
On a ketogenic diet, you’ll end up going through what’s often known as low carb flu. This is usually in the first week of the diet, as your body makes significant changes. To easily combat this, you can sip on chicken broth and nurture yourself through the process just as you would a common cold.
You’ll want to buy a package of keto strips from your local pharmacy. They’re over the counter strips that you hold under your stream of urine to tell you if you’re in ketosis or not.
As you progress on your low carb diet, you’ll want to monitor your carb intake to ensure that you stay in ketosis. And drink lots of water because it can be hard on your kidneys if you stay dehydrated.
One thing you’ll notice after the low carb flu passes (and not everyone experiences that, by the way), is the vast amount of energy that you have on a ketogenic diet. Your energy levels will soar and your brain fog will clear up if you’ve been suffering from that.
Many people report that the pain they’ve felt in their muscles or joints disappears when they’re on a ketogenic diet. This is a blessing for many, and they find that once they abandon the keto way of life, the pain returns, so it’s even more incentive to stay on the lowest carb diet possible.
Another benefit of being on a keto low carb diet is that your sugar cravings will dissipate quickly. You won’t have to worry about craving sugars. More than likely, if anything, you’ll crave certain fruits and vegetables – so make sure you educate yourself about what the common carb count is for those items.
