When the body runs out of glucose, it starts burning fat for fuel. This state is known as ketosis, and it’s a completely normal metabolic process.
Those who follow the ketogenic lifestyle do everything in their power to stay in ketosis in order to enjoy the benefits of a fat-adapted body.
But it’s not as easy as you might think to keep your body in this state.
Here are four little things that can kick you out of ketosis.
1. Stress
Stress is a silent killer – and it can kill ketosis, too. When the body is under stress, cortisol levels rise and glucose is released into the bloodstream. When this happens, insulin levels also rise.
When blood glucose rises, ketones fall. Keto adaption stops for a few hours, or a few days.
It’s important to keep an eye on your stress levels if you want to follow the keto lifestyle. Physiologically, the body treats all stressors the same way. Even thinking about stress can cause even more stress.
How can you reduce your stress levels?
- Meditation
- Walks in nature
- Light yoga or stretching
- Spending quality time with loved ones
- Massages
- Hot baths
2. Too Much Caffeine
Some of us can’t start our days without a cup of coffee or tea. One cup is fine, but if you’re drinking caffeinated beverages all day, you may be unknowingly knocking your body out of ketosis.
Excessive caffeine activates adrenaline and raises cortisol levels, essentially putting your body into a heightened state of stress. As you know, stress causes insulin levels to rise and ketones to fall.
While you don’t necessarily have to give up caffeine completely, it’s best to limit yourself to just one or two cups of coffee or tea per day. Or, you could switch to decaf coffee and herbal tea.
3. Accidentally Eating Too Much Carbs
Are you really tracking your carbs? If not, you may be eating more than you think. It’s impossible to eliminate carbs entirely because they’re in virtually everything that you eat.
To make things even more complicated, some people can eat more carbs than others before they’re kicked out of ketosis. A single avocado may be enough to kick some people out of ketosis.
There are several factors that will come into play when determining how many carbs you can tolerate before you’re kicked out of ketosis, such as:
- Lifestyle
- Medical history
- Types of carbs you’re eating
On top of all of this, you have to worry about the hidden carbs found in condiments, dressings and other foods.
How can you make sure that you’re not going overboard with carbs? Track your food intake. Either create your own food diary – complete with your calories, protein and fat intake – or use a food tracker app.
4. Not Eating Enough Fat
The keto diet requires you to lower your protein and carb intake. This means that you have to drastically increase your intake of another fuel source: fat.
If your body isn’t getting enough fat, you run the risk of undereating and depriving your body of fuel. If it doesn’t have enough fat to run optimally, it will use other sources out of desperation. This can kick you out of ketosis and make it more difficult to get back on track if you don’t reach your fat goals.
The best way to make sure that you’re eating enough fat is to keep a food diary. Aim for 70-80% calories from fat each day.