Keto diet is one of the most popular diets out there. However, you won’t be getting the most out of the diet if you do it all wrong. Unfortunately, with the dearth of proper information out there, it is easy to make mistakes when it comes to the keto diet. Here are 7 mistakes you want to avoid when you are on a keto diet.
Not consulting a doctor
You might think it is perfectly normal to start the keto diet. Well, it is not. This is especially true if you are taking any medication for a medical condition. You need to speak to your doctor about your desire to try out the keto diet. In this way, he will know whether he needs to lower the dosages of any of your current medications to ensure you don’t experience any other health problems.
Assume that the body won’t react
No matter how carefully you start the diet, your body might react to the new change in your diet. You might experience what is called a keto flu, whereby you experience symptoms that resemble flu. These include fatigue, cramps, and nausea. You might experience these for the first two weeks after you start the keto diet. You can consume sodium-rich, potassium-rich, and magnesium-rich foods, so you don’t suffer for long.
Quick transition
Your body would not take it well if you suddenly shift to the keto diet especially if your eating habits were the opposite of those recommended in the keto diet. Suddenly reducing carbohydrate intake is one of the most common yet dangerous mistakes you can make. Instead, slowly reducing and easing into the keto diet is recommended by experts. This way, your body will slowly get used to the change, and you won’t suffer from any big problems suddenly.
Not planning meals
You cannot expect excellent results if you don’t put in the effort and work required. When you opt for keto, planning is key because it is easy to cheat every once in a while. You should always plan your meals well in advance, so there are no slip-ups. This means sitting down on a Sunday morning or whenever you have free time and thinking of how you will prep your meals for the next week.
Ignoring vegetables
Carbohydrates are found in vegetables, and so you need to think twice before you consume them. However, banishing vegetables from your diet is a strict no-no. You should opt for vegetables, such as broccoli, leafy greens, asparagus, cauliflower, tomato, and bell peppers, that are good sources of fiber as these will prevent constipation, which is a keto diet side-effect.
Insufficient water intake
People on the keto diet often make the mistake of avoiding consuming too much water and thereby getting dehydrated in the process. Expert Alyssa Tucci recommends you consume half of your body weight in ounces of water every day.
Focusing on eating more meat
You might be thinking that keto is about having protein, which means stacking on the steaks. However, that is not the case. In the keto diet, you get 65% to 90% calories from fat, 5% to 10% calories are obtained from carbs, and the rest from protein. You should aim for 3 ounces of protein such as fish and cook it with oil or butter.
