Ready to Join Team Keto? Keto Tips for Beginners

Gimme a “K”: Knowledge About Fat

To enter a state of ketosis, you need to increase your daily fat intake. This is something people tend to get hung up on.

“The ultimate goal of a keto diet is to train your body to burn predominantly fat for fuel,” Taylor says. Eating more healthy fats makes up for the calories you’re not getting from carbs. “That can be a big mental shift,” she says. “People feel like they’re eating a lot of fat, but really, they’re eating a lot of fat relative to the ‘low-fat’ mentality we’re used to.” This is a common beginner misstep. If you don’t take in enough calories, the likelihood of experiencing the “keto flu” increases.

Gimme an “E”: Electrolyte Management

Speaking of the keto flu—the muddled-thinking, hazy-brained, low-energy stage that often occurs when you first drop into ketosis—Taylor says that another reason many people feel terrible at the onset of ketosis is electrolyte deficiency. “Once in ketosis, a biological chain of events occurs,” she explains. “You produce less insulin, which signals the kidneys to start dumping water and, with the water, goes sodium and potassium. You need more electrolytes pretty much immediately.”

Taylor suggests supplementing with both sodium and potassium, as well as magnesium. Big bonus: Magnesium helps you sleep. Hooray, for bonuses!

The Keto Diet’s 5 Healthy-Fat Sources

- Whole avocados

- Eggs cooked in butter or ghee

- Olives

- Canned sardines or anchovies
(or tuna for folks who aren't quite ready to jump into the small fish)

- Avocado oil or olive oil
(as salad dressing and for roasting or sautéing veggies)

Gimme a “T”: Transition Slowly

When you train for a marathon, do you start out by running a marathon? Not the best idea. It's the same with going keto.

While giving up carbs cold turkey may be tempting, Taylor suggests a different approach. This is probably the most important keto tip for beginners: Decrease your carb intake in stages. “Slowly reduce carbs to train your body to be a better fat burner,” she says. “This also allows you to focus on the basics: giving your body calories, giving your body enough nutrients; you’re not depriving yourself; you’re nourishing yourself.” Taylor explains that switching too rapidly from the standard high-carbohydrate diet to a low-carb keto diet is another reason some people get hit with the keto flu.

In fact, The Keto Reset Diet (Harmony, 2017) by Mark Sisson, founder of Primal Kitchen, begins with a three-week period where you’re not even doing a keto diet. The Keto Reset Diet begins with a 21-day metabolic reboot that includes real-food eating and a transition to lower carb, then starts six weeks of nutritional ketosis.

Gimme an “O”: Observe What You Eat

Another important keto diet tip from Taylor is to track what you eat … at the beginning. “Unless you write it down, it’s difficult to know how much you’re truly eating. We’re not good at ball-parking it,” she says. She adds that it’s not uncommon to get so focused on eating less carbs that there’s a tendency to forget to nourish the body and provide it with the calories it needs for fuel. “This causes people to feel like they have no energy; they can’t even think about working out,” she says. This can lead a person to believe keto eating isn’t effective, causing them to stop before they reach the finish line of becoming keto adapted.