While most diets like the Mediterranean diet or paleo diet do not have much of a transition phase, the keto diet has one. It takes about 5 to 7 days for the human body to go into ketosis.
During this stage and process, there will be a few ‘repercussions’ and changes that you can expect to see. Let’s look at what they are.
* The keto flu
Perhaps the most dreaded consequence of the keto diet is the keto flu. While it doesn’t affect everyone, it does affect enough people to make it something to fear.
The good news is that the keto diet is harmless and any symptoms you may experience are temporary. The common symptoms you may notice are: irritability, brain fog, mood swings, lethargy, constipation, flu-like symptoms, headaches, nausea, etc.
The body is starting to detox and cleanse itself. All the toxins being released and cleared are having a negative effect on the body. This is par for the course. You will feel worse before you feel better.
* After the first week
By the end of the first week, if you’ve been following the diet correctly, you’d be in a state of ketosis. You can check this with a ketone meter. You should also have gotten over keto flu.
You’ll notice that you’ve lost some weight. This may be encouraging but it’s mostly water weight. Since every gram of carbohydrates retains 3 grams of water, after a week on the keto diet, you’ll have very little carbs left in your body. So, there’s much lower water retention. This explains the weight loss.
* Week 3
Week 3 is where the magic happens. You’ll feel better than you’ve ever felt before. You’ll experience more energy, increased mental clarity and a sense of ‘lightness”.
Ketosis is working for you round the clock and burning your fat stores. You’ll notice more weight loss, but this time, quite a bit of the weight lost will be fat and not just water.
You may also not believe the results and wonder if it’s even possible. After all, you’ve tried out the other diets and none worked as well. Have faith, it only gets better.
Week 4
By now you’re a HUGE fan of the keto diet. You’ve lost more weight than you have with any other diet before. The numbers on the scale have dropped considerably. Your friends and family notice that you’ve lost quite a bit of weight.
Besides that, you have a ton of energy. You rarely feel tired. In fact, you’re so energetic that you find it hard to sleep. This is one of the downsides of the keto diet. It can affect your sleep patterns… but after a while, things will return to normal.
* Week 5 and 6
You’ll notice that your performance during physical activities gets remarkably better. You have more energy to expend and feel less tired. Your stamina improves too.
If you’re not on a regular exercise regimen, it’s time to get on one and workout. You’ll find that you enjoy the physical exertion.
After week 6, it’s just a matter of maintaining the diet and staying in ketosis. By the end of month two, you’d have lost so much weight you’d be shouting from the rooftops about the benefits of the keto diet.
The keto diet delivers… and it will work for you, if you will work it. Give it a try and you’ll thank yourself 2 months from now.
