There are plenty of different types of diet that people can begin following if they want to make a change to their bodies. One of the most popular ones is the “keto diet”, which is short for the ketogenic diet.
Through its own ways, this diet aims to help people lose fat, and instead improve their health and add some muscle.
However, some people have felt tired when following it. Why are they exhausted on the keto diet?
Well, we’ve got the answers for you. There are a handful of different reasons that people might feel exhausted when on the keto diet, and we’re going to cover them all in our handy guide below.
On top of that, we’ve got tips to help avoid some of the side effects.
What Is The Keto Diet?
Short for the ketogenic diet, the keto diet focuses on the user reaching a metabolic state that is called ketosis.
This is achieved through the diet’s conditions, which are high in fat, moderate in protein, and low in carbohydrates.
Why might someone want to reach ketosis?
It’s believed that when the body is in that state it increases how efficient it is at burning fats to create energy, which helps fuel you through the day.
When following the keto diet, the typical allocation of calories is 70-80% from fat, 10-20% from protein, and 5-10% from carbohydrates.
Other diets will often increase the amount of protein that you’re consuming, but this goes the other way, reducing it to a moderate amount since it might stop you from reaching ketosis.
Additionally, you will have noticed how few calories come from carbohydrates in the diet.
Most will reduce their intake to under 50 grams per day, which is a big contrast to the 225+ grams a normal diet will see.
There are plenty of suggested benefits to the keto diet. It’s likely to cause loss in fat, as well as lessen the risk of heart disease and lower your blood sugar levels.
It’s also suggested that it reduces seizures in children, and could help with other brain-related disorders like Alzheimer’s.
The diet also helps you manage diabetes, with those who have type-2 diabetes benefitting from the low carbohydrate intake since it makes it easier to manage blood sugar and insulin levels.
Why Am I Exhausted On The Keto Diet?
Yet despite those positive benefits of the keto diet, there are also some negative side-effects that some people suffer.
One of these is the feeling of exhaustion, which can be caused by various factors.
You Aren’t Getting Enough Calories
When following the keto diet, you should be eating enough calories to keep your energy steady.
However, if you’re eating too little on the diet, then your body might start to enter a mode of starvation, making you feel extremely exhausted.
This is partly because undereating on the diet will lower the amount of energy hormones, including thyroxine, that your body is producing.
To try and fix the feeling, you should eat a few more calories. This should combat the feeling of low energy and help improve the energy levels, getting rid of the feeling of exhaustion.
You Aren’t Moving As Much As You Need To
Another cause for feeling exhausted on the keto diet is if you haven’t been exercising or moving enough over the day.
Some will find it hard to exercise or move well when they’re on a diet, but it’s important to get up to a regular routine of workout.
Follow a schedule to the point that you’re exercising between 3 and 5 times a week. For even better results, vary the length and intensity of each workout session.
The sessions should look to combine cardio exercise and weight training.
You’ve Got Keto Flu
It can take time for your body to first adjust to the low amount of carbohydrates that the keto diet follows, causing the “keto flu” in your first week.
With it, you’re likely to feel exhausted and nauseous.
However, these feelings should go away shortly, as your body will soon adjust.
You Aren’t Eating Enough Fat
Fats are going to be the key source of energy for the keto diet, with 70-80% of the calories coming from them.
Therefore it is essential that you’re eating the right amount of fats when you follow the diet. Some will think they should eat less fat when dieting, but this isn’t the case here.
If you’re feeling exhausted, make sure you’re getting the right amount of fats.
You Desire Carbohydrates Like Grains
Since the keto diet moderates the amount of carbohydrates that you have, it’s only normal that your body might initially start to crave carb-related foods, such as grains.
You might feel exhausted to start with, but the cravings should eventually subside as your body adjusts to the new carbohydrate levels.
You Aren’t Eating Regularly
On the keto diet, you should be having at least three meals a day, as well as a few snacks peppered throughout.
Spread your meals and eating out specifically in order to keep your energy consistently high.
How To Not Suffer Keto Flu
When on the keto diet, it’s important to pack your eating with fat sources and healthy proteins. Doing this should help you avoid the keto flu.
There are plenty of ways you can do this.
For example, you can eat greek yogurt that has nuts or seeds (high in fat) on top.
Additionally, you can regularly eat red meats (prime steak, beef), as well as lean meats (chicken, turkey, etc.) and fat-heavy fish (mackerel, salmon, etc.).
Avocados also do the job, as do devil eggs and low-carb protein powder blends.
Final Thoughts
If you’re feeling exhausted on the keto diet, try improving the areas we’ve covered.
One of the most common things I talk to my clients about is calories, but so few of them actually know anything about them.
Calories is not a dirty word. If you remove emotion from it, it is simply a unit of energy.
We need calories to live and thrive, and knowing how many to consume is important to ensure that you’re living a healthy lifestyle.
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