Many of us want to lose weight or have a healthier lifestyle. But how? Well, while there are a lot of diets out there, Keto has proven to ignite weight loss, increase energy, improve mental clarity, prevent diabetes and reduce chronic inflammation…just to name a few of the benefits.
Starting Keto can be a bit daunting when you consider removing nearly all carbs and sugars from your diet. I mean, we’ve been trained to eat bread, cereal, pasta and rice our whole lives! WHAT ARE WE GOING TO EAT?! … Do not fear! … if you take these ten steps before you start Keto, you will ensure that you are successful on the diet, and you will reach your goals in no time!
Steps to Start Keto
Identify the foods you eat
The first step is to identify the foods you are currently eating. Why is this important? Because it will give you an idea of your habits, and it creates a starting place for where you need to go on Keto. You can do this by creating a list or keeping a log of your meals for a week. As you jot down your foods, it will help if you are able to categorize them as such:
- Sugar (anything with sugar in it…candy, desserts, sugary drinks, fruit, etc.)
- Carbs (bread, pasta, rice, grains, potatoes, etc.)
- Vegetables
- Meat
- Other (nuts, dips, shakes, anything else you are consuming)
You may want to also categorize your foods by breakfast, lunch, dinner, desserts and snacks so that you have even more vision into your eating habits. This will help you figure out how to meal-prep later on.
Cross out carbs and sugar
Now, take your list and cross out carbs and sugar. Those are the main things you cannot eat. Let this act of crossing out carbs and sugar represent your decision to restrict these foods heavily from your diet. You may want to write down the day you make this decision, post on social media you are starting keto, or tell other keto-dieters you have started. This will help solidify that decision and gain you some accountability, because it can be very easy to fall back into old habits.
Circle Meat and Veggies
Meat and veggies are the foods you want to keep! Beef, poultry, pork and seafood will provide you a substantial amount of fat and protein that you will want on this diet. They are extremely low in carbs, so they will have minimal impact on your blood sugar and insulin response (this is the main goal of keto). Additionally, vegetables will provide very needed nutrients, vitamins and minerals to supplement your diet. Here’s a shortlist of foods you want to make sure you buy and have ready before you start keto:
Meat: Ground beef, chicken thighs, Italian sausage, wild-caught Atlantic salmon, ham, turkey
Veggies: Cauliflower, broccoli, spinach, kale, mushrooms
Add Keto Essentials
You may or may not have these foods in your list, but now that you have decided to start Keto, these are some essentials that will benefit you tremendously:
- MCT Oil (provides energy and healthy fats)
- electrolytes (on keto, you lose a lot of water, so you need to replenish your electrolytes)
- macadamia nuts (low carb, high fat nut that tastes creamy and flavorful)
- avocado (high in fat and potassium)
- salmon (high in fat and omega-3 fatty acids)
- organic, pasture-raised eggs (great source of fat and protein)
- pork rinds (great chip-like snack, or grind them up and use as breading for cooking)
Learn to Count Carbs
When grocery shopping, you may come across a food that you’re not sure whether it’s good for Keto or not. Well, all you need to do is check the nutrition label, and you’ll be able to gain a pretty good idea whether it’s keto-friendly or not. Generally, ketonians try to keep their daily carb count to 20-25 grams per day, so we want to find foods very low in carb. Here’s a few things you need to know:
- Sugar is a type of carb, so you don’t have to count carbs AND sugar…just count the total number of carbs.
- Fiber is a type of carb, but it DOES NOT raise your blood sugar level, so you can SUBTRACT fiber from the total amount of carbs.
- Sugar Alternatives (you may see it labeled as Sugar alcohol, Erythritol, Stevia, Xylitol, Monk Fruit) do not raise your blood sugar, so you can SUBTRACT them as well.
- Once you make these subtractions, you’re left with NET CARBS, which are the only carbs you really need to count, because they are the only ones that will raise your blood sugar. Here’s your NET CARB equation: (Total Carbs) – (Fiber) – (Sugar Alts.) = NET CARBS
Let’s take a look at Rebel Ice Cream’s Chocolate nutrition label, which is the most delicious and keto-friendly ice cream on the market by the way!
How to Calculate Net Carbs
First, check the serving size so that you know the amount you’re working with. Ask yourself, “is this how much I will probably have?” If realistically you’d consume double that amount, you’ll need to double your final calculation.
Next, check the total carbs, which in this case is 11 grams. Then, we can subtract Fiber (3 g) and Sugar Alcohols (7 g) to get our NET CARB count of 1 gram.
So there’s 1 NET CARB in each 1/2 cup of this ice cream…that’s really good! Even if you inhale 2 full cups, that’s only 4 NET CARBS! You would still have about 15-20 NET CARBS to have the rest of the day!
Spring Cleaning: Throw Out Anti-Keto Foods
This may be the hardest part! The first time I tried Keto, I failed miserably because I had delicious ice cream, bread, and mac ‘n cheese calling my name from the cupboard. About two months later, I became overwhelmed with the desire to get healthy and lose weight, and nothing was going to get in my way. Once I made that decision, I ran to my kitchen, flung open the pantry and threw away anything anti-keto! There was no looking back. When those cravings for sugar or bread hit you, the best defense is to not have any of those foods laying around the house.
Find substitute recipes for your favorites
When someone is thinking about starting keto, normally they say, “I can’t give up this or that!” Well, I’m here to tell you that you can recreate almost any recipe, and we’ve done half of the work for you here at Yummee Keto.
Here’s one tip: if there’s a recipe you love and the only anti-keto ingredient is sugar, then simply use a sugar alternative like monk fruit or erythritol and you’re good! Or you can follow one of the very simple recipes we’ve created here for you. Make sure you explore our recipe section, or check out these popular ones below:
- Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Macadamia Nut Butter
- Cauliflower Mash
- Pancakes
- Strawberry Jam
Monitor Your Progress
It is important to track your progress so that you know the diet is working for you. By doing certain measurements, you will be able to confirm that the foods you’re eating are keeping you in ketosis and getting you the results you want. You should check these measurements every 3-4 weeks. You do not want to do it too soon, because they will fluctuate a bit here and there, but checking over a long time period will give you an accurate depiction of your progress. Here are a few ways:
- measure waist circumference
- measure belly circumference
- measure your weight
Make a Schedule
Set a start date, plan for it, and determine how long you will do it without cheating. This is important because you will face personal cravings, temptations to cheat, and mostly you will face peer pressure. Think about all those different occasions where you’re at work and someone brings pizza or cake for the team, or you go out to dinner with friends and they’re all indulging in the sweeter foods of life and questioning your new keto ways. Those are tough moments, but they become a little easier when you’ve prepared yourself mentally to be ready to say no to those sugary and carby foods.
Be Ready to Defend Keto
When your friends and family start questioning your new “crazy” keto ways, you must be ready with an answer. This is not to be rude or rub your beliefs in someone’s face, but it is inevitable that you will be questioned, and if you are able to back up your ways with a clear and confident response, then the backlash will be reduced to a minimum. It’s quite possible that the other person might actually start to believe in keto as well.
Start your Keto Journey Today
Here at Yummee Keto, we not only want to provide you with plenty of delicious keto recipes, but we want to educate you on why you should do keto and show you how to make the keto diet as easy and enjoyable as possible. If you’d like us to guide you through your Keto journey, check out our Health Coaching page and schedule a free consultation.