Best Ketone Blog » keto diet
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How to Stay in Ketosis While Traveling
Sticking to your keto diet is challenging on its own. But when you are traveling, the pressure doubles. Unlike at home wherein you can have a full pantry to choose from, you might not have as many options available when you travel. It is very common for people to forget about their diet when they are on vacation, and in particular, indulging in a lot of sugary and processed foods. It is, therefore, important to carry a ketone blood monitor kit when you are traveling to ensure that you maintain your ketosis.
It is possible to maintain your ketosis with proper planning. Follow these strategies in order to keep your keto level in check when you are away from home.
- Pack your own keto snacks with you. If you want to maintain healthy snacking when you are on vacation, it is important to pack your own snacks. There are plenty of keto bars and snacks that you can purchase locally or online. Make sure that you buy them beforehand as these options might not be accessible to you during your travel. If you cannot buy keto snacks or bars, you can make your own. Some of the keto-friendly snacks include beef jerky, fat bombs, dark chocolate nibs, macadamia nuts, almond nuts, and hard-boiled eggs.
- Research keto-friendly restaurant options. Proper planning and research is vital in order to maintain your ketosis while traveling. If you must, try to call up the restaurants ahead of time to ask them about the keto-friendly meal options (if they do have one). This will give you an idea where to eat when you travel. It would be wrong to assume that just because a certain restaurant claims to be ‘keto’ that they would offer keto-friendly meals. You need to make sure beforehand.
- Ask your hotel/resort about keto-friendly meals. When you book a hotel or resort for your vacation, make sure to ask the hotel upon booking that you prefer to have keto-friendly meals. Most hotels or resorts would be more than happy to accommodate specific requests from guests.
- Shop when you are on vacation. If you are staying in a fully furnished apartment, you can also try to take advantage of that when you travel. Buy locally and find keto-friendly ingredients such as yogurt, cheese, bacon, egg, chicken, hummus, or more. Make your own meals at the apartment so that you can maintain your ketosis level. It is also an economical tip because making your own meals is actually cheaper. You can look for local health food stores as they have plenty of these ingredients available.
Bring your own ketone blood monitor kit. This kit is equipped with all the tools you need to ensure that your ketosis level is as it should be. The great thing about this kit is that you are able to do this on your own – no need to go to a doctor to check your blood ketone level.
What other tips can you add to maintain ketosis when traveling? Don’t forget to bring your ketone blood monitor kit with you on your vacation, just to be sure!
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Fruits in Your Keto Diet
Contrary to popular belief, choosing to undergo the ketogenic diet does not mean you are depriving your body of a variety of food options. It is all about choosing the right type of food categories to incorporate to your daily diet. Fruits, for example, are an important component to achieving a balanced diet. Make sure that you know the best types of fruits that will facilitate in maintaining your keto meter readings.
Type of Fruits to Eat to Maintain Ketosis
Be very careful when consuming fruits while on a keto diet. It is wrong to assume that all fruits are good for you. Some can be high in carbs that it can kick you out of ketosis. It is important, therefore, to have a ketone meter on hand to ensure that you maintain your weight loss efforts.
These are the best types of fruits to maintain your ketosis and achieve the results of this type of diet:
Avocado
Avocado is all the rave right now. But if you need one more reason to get on the bandwagon, it’s because this type of fruit is good for your keto diet. No need to worry about your keto meter readings going awry because this creamy fruit is low in calories and rich in other nutrients such as dietary fiber and potassium. It is a perfect topping for your keto-friendly lunch or to be added to your salad.
Tomatoes
Tomato is another healthy kind of fruit to incorporate into your keto diet. It is a low-fat, low-carb fruit that are a favorite among keto dieters. In addition to being ideal for a keto diet, tomatoes also offer a ton of health benefits such as preventing heart disease (as it is rich in lycopene).
Raspberries
Berries are generally healthy, and raspberries should be something you should eat more of as a keto dieter. Raspberries are rich in flavonoids, which is a type of powerful antioxidant that is known to boost your arteries and maintain your blood pressure. Research has shown that the risk of heart disease can also lower when you eat more of this fruit.
Blackberries
A blackberry is another must-add fruit to your daily diet. You can snack them as it is or add raw into your salad. Make it a part of your keto meal plan because it does not contain a lot of fat and is also low in carbs. Other healthy components found in blackberries are potassium, fiber, vitamin C, and vitamin K.
Strawberries
We’re not done with berries just yet, because strawberries are another must-add fruit to your keto diet. Your ketone meter readings would be happy and so would your taste buds. You can eat them raw or served as a smoothie. Strawberries only have 27 calories and it is low-carb too. As a bonus, strawberries are rich in antioxidants and anti-inflammatory benefits. If that’s not enough, it is a good source of vitamin C, folate, and potassium.
Watermelon
The staple summer fruit is another worthy addition to your daily meal plan. If you are on a keto diet, this fruit is what you need to satisfy your sweet tooth and keep you hydrated. It is a low-carb fruit with high water content. It is also low in calories and rich in vitamin A.
What fruits are you looking to add to your keto diet?
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Effective Tips to Enter the State of Ketosis
Ketosis is a normal bodily process where fat is converted into compounds called ketones to be used as the body’s main source of energy. This process comes with lots of health benefits, and studies show that diets that promotes ketosis aids weight loss by suppressing appetite and burning fat. This is the idea behind ketogenic diet.
Also, newer studies show ketosis’ benefits for managing type 2 diabetes, neurological conditions, and more. With that said, how can one get to a state of ketosis? Simply cutting out carbs will not get you there. You will also need to use ketone test strips to ensure you can measure your ketosis level. Let‘s breakdown all the steps.
Minimize Carb Consumption
Cutting out carbohydrates is the first step to ketosis. In a normal condition, the body uses sugar (glucose) from carbs to convert into a source of energy. Glucose (in the form of glycogen) is stored in the liver and muscles. However, the human body contains cells that can also use other sources of fuel, like fatty acids (ketone bodies). In nutritional ketosis, you are allowing your liver to convert fatty acids into ketone bodies to be used as fuel.
The carb restriction differs from one person to another. Some may need to limit their net carbs (total number of carbs minus fiber) to 20g per day. Others may get to ketosis state even by eating twice as much. To get the right measurement, it is best to use a ketone test strip so you can closely monitor it.
A form of ketogenic diet called Atkins Diet suggests carbs restriction of 20g or lower per day for a span of 2 weeks can guarantee ketosis. After which, small amounts of carbohydrates can be gradually reintroduced to the body while maintaining ketosis.
Add Coconut Oil
Adding coconut oil while doing a keto diet can boost ketosis. Coconut oil contains medium-chain triglycerides a form of fat that is rapidly absorbed by the body and taken straight to the liver to be converted as ketones (for energy).
Also, coconut oil contains lauric acid. Some research shows lauric acid produce sustained ketosis levels as the body metabolizes them more slowly than other types of MCT.
When using coconut oil as part of your ketogenic diet, it is best to include them gradually. This is to minimize digestive side effects like diarrhea and stomach cramps. 1 teaspoon per day is the ideal way to start. Work up your way to 2 to 3 teaspoons a day for a week.
You can easily find coconut oil in local grocery stores or online.
Increase physical activity
More and more research shows the benefits of ketosis for athletic performance, especially for endurance exercises. Also, being more active helps the body get into ketosis state faster. This is because the body uses up stored glycogen. Normally, you replenish it by eating carbs and the body breaks it down and converts it to glycogen. When minimizing carbs intake however, your glycogen storage low. This triggers the liver to produce ketones as an alternative fuel for the muscles.
Ramp up your fat intake and eat ample amount of protein
Since the body needs fat as alternative to carbs, you need to supply your body with fat. The idea is to eat 60 to 80% of the calories from fat.
To maximize ketosis, you need to supply your body with protein. The liver needs amino acid (building blocks of protein) for gluconeogenesis (the process of making new glucose). The keyword is ample, excessive protein can be counterproductive for ketosis.
When in doubt, make sure to use ketone test strips so that you can ensure that your body maintains the state of ketosis.
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Common Myths About Keto Diet Debunked
The ketogenic diet, or simply known as keto diet, is one of the best diet strategies for those looking to achieve permanent weight loss. Unfortunately, there are plenty of misconceptions about this type of diet. Even scientific studies about this type of diet are quite polarizing with some attesting to its health and weight loss benefits, and others criticizing its potential risks.
But if you want to achieve the true health benefits of a ketogenic diet, it must be done the right way! The use of a ketogenic tester is one of the best ways to keep track of results and to ensure that you are getting the benefits you should. Aside from keeping track of your ketone levels at home, it is also about educating yourself about this diet.
Here is a list of common myths about the ketogenic diet and facts to debunk them.
Myth 1: Ketogenic diet is a high-protein diet.
This is the most common myth that people have about the keto diet, although it is far from reality. While protein is a huge component of the keto diet, it is important to consume it in moderation. Calories should still be moderated so you have to watch the amount of protein intake, as well. Fiber is another factor to take into account. When you consume too much fiber in your diet, it could prevent you from achieving the state of ketosis.
Myth 2: Ketogenic diet does not limit fat intake.
Being on a keto diet does not permit you to intake as much fat as you can. There are different types of fat, such as trans fat, which should be avoided (especially in high amounts). Instead, you need to go for fats that are part of the ketogenic group, such as omega-6 oils coming from soybean oil or vegetable oil. This, too, should be limited in the amount of intake. For best results, you need to aim for saturated fats from butter, MCT oil, and coconut oil.
Myth 3: Keto diet is only designed for those aiming to lose weight.
While weight loss is one of many benefits you can get from a keto diet, it has many other benefits to offer. Fat burning and weight loss are two of those. The benefits of this type of diet can also include normalizing blood sugar level, boosting digestive health, reducing risks for diabetes or heart disease, and regulating production of hormones.
Myth 4: You can reach ketosis in two weeks’ time.
Adapting this idea when you embark on a ketogenic diet is wishful thinking. Even a month is not enough time to achieve the ketosis level on your body! Your body has to go through the adaptation period wherein you are prompting the body to use fat as a fuel source. This can span anywhere from 4 to 6 weeks.
Since the body typically uses sugar as fuel source, it can take some time for it to switch to using fat instead. As your body transitions, you can expect low energy, headaches, fatigue, bloating, and general weakness. It is important to use a ketogenic tester to determine if you have met your target.
With all the myths floating around, it can be easy to believe the wrong information. Now that you know the facts behind the myths, you can be confident to pursue this diet and enjoy the benefits that you can get from it. It is also important to test yourself regularly to maintain the right ketone levels in your blood. For that, you can try the Ketonian Ship Saver Kit.
This ketogenic tester kit has everything you need to monitor your blood ketones and on your blood glucose. You can also get other kits such as the Ketonian Pro Kit or Ketonian Plus Pro Kit. Each of these testing kits contain the same tools – Keto Mojo Blood Ketone and Glucose Meter, blood ketone test strips, blood glucose test strips, lancets, lancing device, and accessory bag.
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Experience Longevity with Blood Keto Mojo Ketone Strips
Maintaining a keto diet and lifestyle is not easy. To enjoy longevity, it is important to regularly use blood keto mojo ketone strips to ensure that you are doing it right. A blood test is performed using a blood sample. There are plenty of test kits available so you can perform it at home.
Importance of Blood Testing
Blood testing has had a long history when it concerns the health of humans. Testing the blood is one of the best ways to diagnose and address various types of diseases.
For individuals on a keto diet, blood test strips can help identify any critical changes to your body. These critical changes can have a significant impact on your overall health, and specifically your individual health systems.
A proper blood testing can empower you to make changes to your diet. The sooner and more frequently you can perform blood testing, the better you can be on your quest towards longevity and healthy life.
Blood Testing for Keto Diet
Timely feedback is vital in assessing your overall health condition. The access to home blood keto mojo ketone strips will make you feel empowered about your quest to maintaining a keto lifestyle. Specifically, a blood ketone test can measure the glucose and ketone blood levels.
Depending on your goal for adapting a keto diet, multiple daily tests might be required. The fact that you can now purchase home blood ketone testing kits can make this possible. You will have the tools you need to perform the test and do the analysis. Based on the result of the tests, you can make adjustments to your diet, as well as your exercise and daily routine.
Blood Testing and Understanding Keto Metabolism
Ketosis is the metabolic state wherein the body draws energy supply from the ketones in your blood (rather than from your blood glucose). This forces the body to convert fatty acids into ketone, which helps to metabolize fat at a faster rate than usual.
If you want to maintain that state of ketosis, the ketone bodies must be over 0.5mmol/l. The insulin and blood glucose levels should maintain a stable rating, too. Otherwise, you will not be able to enjoy the benefits offered by this type of diet.
Long-term ketosis can be achieved by fasting or maintaining a low-carb diet. This is what most people would refer to as switching on the “fat burning” mode.
Aside from measuring ketosis level, the use of blood keto mojo test strips is also important to measure your glucose level. If you want to maintain longevity, monitoring your glucose level is important. The use of keto mojo test strips will let you know if your blood sugar is just right.
The overall benefits of testing your blood sample for ketone and glucose levels are not just for maintaining ketosis. It can also help in maintaining optimal health to prevent life-threatening diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, and cancer.
You can get yourself Keto Mojo Test Kit that includes everything you need to perform at-home blood testing: lancet device, ketone and glucose test strips, and ketone and glucose meter. This makes it easier to sustain your keto diet and lifestyle.
