The Top 5 Biggest Keto Mistakes

Avoid these mistakes if you want success on a ketogenic diet.

So by now I’m sure that we’ve all heard of the keto diet. Maybe you have even thought about giving the ketogenic diet a try. On the surface it seems like a simple idea. Don't eat carbs or sugar. Eat more meat and cheese. To be completely honest if this was your opinion you would not technically be wrong - more like incomplete.

While yes, you do in fact cut your carbs to around 20g or less per day. You will probably be eating significantly more meats and cheeses than you have previously been used too. A lot more actually goes into the keto diet than just that.

The fact is that most beginners, as well as the general public, view the diet as “the meat, cheese, and egg” diet. This makes it easy for people to make a lot of mistakes in the beginning - many of which I have personally made along the way.

I’ve put together a list of the five biggest mistakes that people make when starting out in keto.

The top 5 biggest keto mistakes

1. Not getting enough electrolytes
2. Eating hidden carbs
3. Not eating enough fat
4. Giving up too early on adaptation 
5. Eating too much in general

1. Not getting enough electrolytes

A lack of electrolytes can lead to failure on the keto diet.

It is obviously true of any diet you’re on that you need to drink plenty of water. However, it goes beyond that with keto. Because you are cutting out carbs and sugar from your diet, you are essentially suppressing your insulin levels.

Insulin is the hormone in your body that is responsible for telling your kidneys to collect sodium. So when you begin to enter a state of ketosis, your insulin levels will be at an all-time low and your kidneys will essentially be flushing the sodium out of your body.

This is especially true when you exercise or go through a strenuous activity. When your body does not have enough sodium, potassium, and magnesium, you will begin to feel symptoms of the “keto flu” such as fatigue, headache, constipation, muscle cramping, and lethargy.

Important electrolytes during keto

• Sodium 
• Potassium
• Magnesium

Keto flu symptoms from low electrolytes

1. Fatigue
2. Headaches
3. Constipation
4. Muscle cramps
5. Lethargy

Without proper supplementation and the addition of some salty snacks here and there, you will likely give up after so long dealing with the “keto flu”.

2. Eating hidden carbs

Don't let hidden carbs throw you out of ketosis.

When I first started out, I had no idea how many foods that I ate regularly were actually packed with carbohydrates. Obviously, things like breads and pastas were out, but carrots? Until you begin looking at each individual food under that keto lens, it is relatively easy to miss some of the hidden carbs. A few that initially slipped under my radar included the following:

Hidden carbohydrates that you don't realize during keto

1. Apples
2. Grapes
3. Carrots
4. Cashews

When you first start out on your keto journey, it is important you get comfortable with reading the packaging labels in the grocery store.  You will find that processed food companies like to sneak sugar in where you least expect it.

They want you to be addicted to carbs so you will buy more of their products. Do not be fooled by flashy marketing. Always read the nutritional facts labels so you know exactly what you are getting in for! A good idea is to check out blogs and forums online for great tips and recipe tricks to help make staying carbohydrate free a little easier.

3. Not eating enough fat

Fats are essential to a good keto diet.

This is a huge roadblock for a lot of people. When you remove carbs from your diet, your body burns through its saved glucose stores. Once all the glucose is burned off, your body begins to panic and tells your liver to begin producing ketones.

These ketones replace the glucose in your bloodstream and they begin being used as your body's primary fuel source. In order to produce ketones, your body needs fats to convert.

As a society we are trained to think fat is the devil, but not on keto. You may have thought that you were giving yourself an extra edge by sticking to “fat-free” labels, but you are actually shooting yourself in the foot.

Eating fat rich foods like Salmon and Avocado are essential to finding serious success on your keto journey.

4. Giving up too early on adaptation 

Stick it out and reap the rewards!

The thing to remember in the beginning is that getting into ketosis is a process. Be patient with your body. When you first start out, your body is switching from relying on carbohydrates for energy to a completely new energy source.

This is a big change, and it just takes time. You will begin to feel the effects of keto flu. There are things you can do to minimize this, but you cannot eliminate it completely. Just keep going.

If you stick with it, you will wake up one morning and feel great. Just like that, you are in ketosis. However, it is also important to note that even after keto flu is done, it can still take 3-4 weeks to fully adapt to peak fat burning efficiency.

5. Eating too much in general

You still need to be responsible.

Just like not eating enough fats can kill your progress, eating too much can take you completely off the rails. Many people start out with the mindset that they don’t have to think about portion control if they are on keto. The fact of the matter is that your mindset is completely wrong if you think like that.

Eating too much or too little is easily enough to completely stop you from seeing any positive results. The fact is that you cannot have the caloric intake of a professional bodybuilder if you do not live an active enough lifestyle that warrants many calories every day.

You want to use one of the many calorie calculators out there and figure your average caloric needs - and stay within a range of that.

Conclusion

The ketogenic diet has probably been one of the most influential diet trends in our generation. It has spun off several different versions and created an entire industry.

The reason why it has seen all of this success is simple… it works. With a little research going in, just about anyone can see huge health and physical benefits from the keto lifestyle.

J.P. Wells

J.P. Wells has spent the last 13 years of his life learning about, and pursuing, a healthy and active lifestyle. After sustaining a life-changing injury during his time serving in the United States Military, he dedicated his time to learning and researching ways to heal and re-build his body to get back to the active lifestyle he grew up loving.

Keto expert J.P. Wells from jpwellsfitness.com

On his blog J.P. Wells Fitness, J.P. Wells shares the knowledge and the passions that he has come to learn from the fitness industry and fitness culture. He understands that health and fitness is not just a one-time choice, but a lifestyle. Success in your goals is not made up of large single decisions, but rather a series of small choices that are made well throughout every day.

Check him out on Facebook or Twitter.

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