Starting the ketogenic diet can drastically change your normal lifestyle and eating habits. The keto diet is typically made of high-fat, average protein, and low carb meals. On the other hand, other normal diets usually consist of high carb meals. Carbohydrates are deemed to be energy giving foods, and that is why they are traditionally served in bulk in typical diets.
People who follow normal diet plans may wonder how to get into ketosis and how a keto dieter will get the required physical energy to exercise. This is because a standard keto diet typically has low carb content.
In fact, some people may find it impossible to learn how to get into ketosis and to exercise while on the keto diet. However, with the right tips; you can improve your exercise regime while on the keto diet.
There are some steps which you can take to make sure that your keto diet does not hamper your exercise regime. As a general rule, you should always strictly adhere to the keto diet when exercising so that you can reap all the benefits of ketosis. Here are seven exercise tips when on the ketogenic diet;
Know Why you are Exercising
When you are starting to adhere to the ketogenic diet, you should have clear goals in mind. Many people decide to learn how to get into ketosis due to several reasons. Some may be motivated to lose weight, while others may want to protect themselves from contracting certain lifestyle diseases.
Likewise, you should exercise with clear targets in mind which you would like to achieve. For example, if your goal is to lose weight; you should set a clear and reasonable threshold of the number of kilos you would like to lose each month.
When you have clear goals, and you combine ketosis with exercising, you won’t be disillusioned easily. In fact, you will be able to appreciate the little results that you get each passing day. This way, you will reap all the benefits of ketosis with exercising in the long run.
Practice Carb Cycling Correctly
Many keto dieters tend to practice carb cycling incorrectly. For instance, some keto dieters will eat carbs after an intense work-out session just because they had craved for a specific meal with high-carb content such as French fries.
When you indulge in carb cycling the wrong way, you will weaken your ability to do strong physical exercises. Moreover, you will snap out of ketosis since your body will start relying on glucose instead of ketones as a source of energy. Take a look at this post from Proper Good for more information about eating carbs on a keto diet.
Avoid Exercising During Your First Few Days on the Keto Diet
As asserted by Women’s Health, you should stop exercising during your first few days on the keto diet. When you start the ketogenic diet, your body will first have to learn how to get into ketosis.
When your body is in the process of being fat adaptive, you may experience the keto flu. The keto flu is a series of unpleasant feelings such as stomach upsets and general tiredness.
When you are experiencing the keto flu, you may not be able to exercise well. This is the main reason why you should refrain from exercising during your first few days on the keto diet plan. Instead of working out during these initial days, you should concentrate more on strictly adhering to the keto diet.
Focus on the Results, Not on Your Ketone Levels
Many keto dieters usually fuss about their ketone levels. Well, you ought to know whether your body has enough ketone supply; but you shouldn’t put all your efforts towards increasing your ketone levels.
There is a specific reason to why you decided to know how to get into ketosis. For example, if weight loss was your main goal; you should focus more on losing weight while you are in ketosis. When you concentrate all your efforts towards achieving your long term goals, you will definitely exercise more and successfully combine ketosis with exercising.
Sprint Carefully
If sprinting is your favorite physical exercise, then you may be wondering whether it is still possible to sprint while on the keto diet. The good news is that you can sprint even if you are in ketosis.
However, you should take extra caution while sprinting. For instance, you should only make three to five sprints in a day and each of them should take less than one minute. Furthermore, you should take enough rest in between the sprints to avoid burning out.
If you fail to sprint carefully, you will cause a deficit of phosphocreatine in your muscles. This deficit will make your body to start relying on glucose as a source of energy instead of ketones.
Learn to Listen to Your Body
When you are combining ketosis with exercising, you should never attempt to force your body to stretch beyond its limits. For instance, if you want to sprint and you become tired within the first few seconds of running; then you should stop sprinting all together.
As illustrated by Thrive, you shouldn’t strain yourself when exercising while on the keto diet. If you want to engage in high-intensity work out sessions, then you should take targeted ketogenic diets. This way, you will get the right amount of carbs to sustain your muscles when doing vigorous physical exercises.
Avoid Overeating
Of course, when you are exercising, you will lose a lot of energy. Many people typically feel hungry after an intense workout session, and such people may be tempted to overeat just to satisfy their hunger pangs.
If you are on the keto diet, you should desist from this temptation after an intense physical exercise. When you overeat, you will tend to take more carbs which will automatically be converted into glucose by your body system.
This way, your body will stop relying on ketones as the primary source of energy. Therefore, you should make sure that you eat only the right amounts of food when combining ketosis with exercising.
Conclusion
If you follow these seven tips, then you will undoubtedly reap all the rewards that come with combining ketosis with exercising. Moreover, you will be able to draw a clear line between your exercise regime and the ketogenic diet.
