Starting out and maintaining a ketogenic diet can be an arduous task for those who haven’t tried it before, despite being comprised of tasty meals. In this article, we present you five supplements that will help you adapt much more efficiently and reap the benefits of living on a low-carb diet.
The first and most important thing you need to remember when deciding to embark on the ketogenic journey is that you need to greatly increase fat consumption. That’s because you need some kind of an alternative to carbs that were previously providing the majority of your daily calories. And eating too much protein isn’t the best substitute since anything above 0.6-0.8 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight will actually lead to the production of enough glucose that will take your body out of ketosis.Where you get you fat from is entirely your choice. The majority of people add avocados, bacon or cream in almost every meal of the day, and some even forget that there lots of other healthy alternatives like eggs, lean meats, and veggies.No matter the choice and no matter how delicious the new menu is, the period it takes to adjust to a keto diet is always difficult. Lots of people have been tempted to quit the diet before even entering the state of ketosis, which is the time when the real fat burn begins and you start seeing the benefits.The 5 staple supplements that we present here will help you endure this adaptation period which has been proven to be the most difficult for most people and help you reach your end goal of becoming leaner and stronger.
1. Electrolytes
Forcing your body to switch its preferred energy source from carbs to fat can be extremely difficult. And that’s not just because of the time it takes for that to occur, but also because chances are high that you might start experiencing nausea, migraines and in lots of cases an overall body fatigue lasting for a couple of days. This is something now largely known as the “induction flu”.
As your body switches from carbs to fat, the same happens to essential electrolytes like potassium and sodium. In order to prevent the fatigue and migraines, you should start taking an electrolyte supplement.If you also happen to be dehydrated while having low electrolyte levels, all of the aforementioned symptoms will only get worse. What makes matter even more difficult is that a lot of people start cutting them out like potassium and sodium at the same time their carb intake is decreasing. If you are training hard while adjusting to the diet, electrolyte supplements are a must.
2. MCT Oil or coconut oil
Although it may sound strange these two aren’t exactly the same thing. Seeds and nuts are considered to be the high-fat staple foods of keto dieting, however taking into account the amount of protein and carbs the majority of them have, they needn’t be the only source of calories. For example, 1 oz of almonds has 7 grams of protein and 7 grams of carbs. In many cases, a pure source of fat like MCT oil is a lot better way to ingest calories, either in the form of a direct supplement or dissolved in your coffee or protein shake.A tablespoon of MCTs, which stands for medium chain triglycerides, provide 15 grams of fat. In comparison to long chain triglycerides which is the type most commonly found in food products, MCTs are a specific fat source since they enter into the bloodstream fairly quickly and this makes them a very readily available source of fuel for both your muscles and your brain. Supplementing with MCTs during the course of the day will ease the transition period and will also enable steady energy levels throughout the day.You might have already heard that coconut oil is an excellent source of MCTs since they comprise around 60% of its total fat content. It is also excellent for cooking because it has a very high flash point and doesn’t have a strong flavor.Experiment with adding coconut oil to a pre-workout protein shake, a smoothie, putting it in a salad, chicken, fish or beef to reach the high-fat daily target. Coconut oil is also special because it transforms very easily from a solid to a liquid state and vice versa when you store it at or below 77 degrees. If you want to prepare a creamy pudding, add some coconut oil, a little bit of water and mix it with your favorite flavor of whey protein.