The Keto Flu is a term used to describe the symptoms that you may feel during the Keto-Adaptation period. These symptoms can include:
Fatigue
Brain Fog
Muscle Cramps
Stomach Pain
Impaired Sleep
Muscle Weakness
While some of these symptoms may be a result of your body transitioning to utilizing fat and ketones for fuel instead of carbs, many of these symptoms are a result of electrolyte deficiency and can be improved through electrolyte supplementation or consuming foods high in electrolytes.
Insulin sensitivity refers to how much insulin your body needs to release in order to move glucose out of the bloodstream and into the cells. You are considered insulin sensitive if your body only need to secrete a small amount of insulin to move glucose into the cells. The more insulin sensitive you are, the better your body utilizes carbohydrates for energy. Having good insulin sensitivity is typically a marker of good health and is often improved when you follow a Ketogenic Diet. Research has linked insulin sensitivity to a lower body fat percentage. While some factors determining insulin sensitivity are predetermined by your genetics, age, and ethnicity. Other factors can be altered to positively affect your insulin sensitivity such...
Keto-Adaptation is a term used to determine when the body is adapted to not only producing ketones but also utilizing them for energy. The body can respond very quickly to calorie and carbohydrate restriction by producing ketones and entering a state of ketosis. However, it takes the body longer to adapt to actually using these ketones for energy. Just like glucose, ketones have their own transporter that is needed to help bring them from the blood into the cell to be used for energy. Since typically we consume carbohydrates, the body is not used to having ketones available, which means it takes time for these transporters to become active and do their job. The time it takes to Keto-Adapt is...
The Cyclic Keto diet consists of consuming carbohydrates 1 or 2 days a week and following a Ketogenic Diet for the other days. Currently, the research does not support the effectiveness or usefulness of this approach for the majority of people, especially those who are new to Keto since this strategy would likely prevent you from adapting to the Keto. Someone who has been following Keto for a longer period of time may be able to get away with this approach but the common sought after benefits from this approach typically are not needed. The body does not need to have a carb refeed to replenish carbohydrate stores and most athletes can perform just fine without carbohydrates IF they have...
Currently, research has not supported a reason for the general population to chase higher ketone levels. However, there could be a case for having higher ketone levels for certain therapeutic cases or for improving brain function and energy levels. If the goal is to increase ketone levels, fasting, MCTs, and Exogenous Ketones are great strategies to do so: Fasting Fasting, the restriction of food, is a great way to further stimulate the body to produce ketones. This is because when no food is provided to the body, there is an even greater reliance on ketones for energy. Starting with an extended fast (2-3 days) or Intermittent Fasting (fasting daily for 16-20 hours) both are effective strategies but note that these...