Whether you have just gone through a span of multiple cheat days in a row, an indulgent holiday break, or are just looking to overhaul your metabolism, a 3-week keto metabolic makeover can set you straight.
A properly implemented progression into a ketogenic state, where your body is burning fat, can do amazing things for your health and body.
Especially if you are struggling with stubborn excess weight, revving your metabolism into high gear with a keto metabolic makeover will be one of the most effective strategies you can employ this year.
Most people primarily burn sugar all day long as their primary source of energy. But did you know that teaching your body to burn fat can help you lose weight, have more energy, halt inflammation, and put you back in control of intense cravings?
The ketogenic diet is one of the safest and most effective ways to:
- shed stubborn belly fat
- increase your energy
- reduce inflammation
- eliminate toxins
- boost your immunity
What is a Ketogenic Diet
A ketogenic diet is one consisting of primarily healthy fats, that is also very low in carbohydrates.
If you are new to the idea of a low-carb, high-fat diet, then you may be somewhat hesitant to dive in. With years of scare tactics convincing us that cholesterol and saturated fats are public enemy number one, it can be hard to flip these beliefs on their heads and fully embrace a high-fat diet.
You will be relieved to find out that there have actually been several studies showing that a high-fat, low-carb diet is significantly more effective for preventing diabetes, shedding body fat, and reducing inflammation, than a low-fat diet (1, 2).
Not only does a ketogenic diet eliminate some the deadliest chronic diseases of our society, but many people report that it also boosts energy levels, helps you lose weight, and improve mental clarity.
I personally follow and advocate a ketogenic diet to almost anyone and I receive awesome testimonials every day about how lives have been transformed due to this simple lifestyle strategy.
Read some of the keto success stories here…
Ketogenic Diet Benefits
Many people are yet to discover this but blood sugar balance is one of the most important factors for overall health.
Poor blood sugar regulation can become highly inflammatory, cause hormonal imbalances, and ultimately lead to metabolic disorders like diabetes, insulin resistance, and heart disease.
The ketogenic diet is one of the most powerful strategies for balancing blood sugar and reducing your risk of these diseases which just so happen to be some of the top causes of premature death in the world.
As I said, a ketogenic diet is one that emphasizes dietary fat as the primary source of calories while drastically limiting carbohydrate intake compared to what most Americans are used to.
Implementing A Ketogenic Diet
The ketogenic diet is safe and effective.
With that being said, some people may implement a ketogenic diet improperly, leading to a brief period of keto side effects referred to as keto flu.As you may have guessed, keto flu is characterized by a series of flu-like symptoms shortly after implementing a ketogenic diet.
For this reason, I always include a special guide to avoiding and dealing with keto flu in all of my keto focused programs.
The main reason that keto-flu occurs is that most people have been burning sugar their entire lives. This means that they will tend to also have a poor ability to burn fat at a cellular level.
During the initial phases of a ketogenic diet, your body makes metabolic changes in order to burn fat more effectively.
If carb intake is cut too quickly when beginning a ketogenic diet, you end up in a limbo where your blood sugar is low while also not being able to effectively burn fat as energy quite yet. This combination leads to a temporary experience of low energy, dizziness, and other undesirable symptoms.
Another primary reason for the keto-flu effect is simply poor hydration and lack of electrolytes.
30 Day Metabolic Makeover
To optimize your ability to burn fat, doing a 30-day metabolic makeover can be extremely powerful. Following a strict ketogenic diet for at least 30 days, and even up to 60 days, will give you this ability.
The basic difference is that those who have never attempted a ketogenic diet will need a period of time to gradually reduce carb intake and allow the body to fat-adapt. Read on below to determine which group you fall into and the best way to get on track for your fat burning future.
Getting Your Metabolism Ready For Ketosis
If you have never experimented with a ketogenic diet, you will want to follow a proven plan.
The strategy I would recommend is outlined below.
First Week: Days 1-7 of this program involve simply reducing carb intake and boosting fat intake, without cutting carbs entirely. This 1-week period gives your body a chance to get used to not having a constant supply of carbs.
This period will also allow you to slowly consume the higher-carb foods in your fridge and pantry so that you are not tempted during the next 30 days in the plan.
During the first 7 days, you’ll typically see weight loss ranging from 2-7 pounds depending on how inflamed you are and the amounts of excess weight you need to lose.
Second Week: Days 8-15 is when you’ll actually start to get into what is known as “ketosis.” You’ll start burning stored fat, since all of your stored glucose and glycogen (from carbs) has been burned off. You’ll really start to feel better, notice your energy levels increasing, and actual FAT is starting to leave your body.
The goal is go high-fat, medium-protein, and very low-carb. The only carbs you’ll be consuming will be greens, occasional berries, and other low-glycemic/starch vegetables.
After 14 days, you’re starting to lose stubborn fat and can expect 6-12 pounds of weight loss. You’ll also start noticing your bloat is gone and inches will start coming off.
Third Week: Days 16-22 will have you in full-fledged ketosis and you’ll start seeing amazing changes in your health, body, mind, and overall well-being.
The ketogenic diet and lifestyle should start getting easier to maintain after 21 days on the program.
Forth Week: Days 23 -30 you might start wanting to “cheat” and may start asking yourself”do I really want to eat this way for the rest of my life” or “I wonder what would happen if I ate some ice cream or a piece of cake?”
That’s totally normal and the good news is, you don’t have to eat a strict keto diet for the rest of your life to reap the benefits.
I show you exactly what to eat inside The 3-Week Keto Diet program. Discover how to get into fat-burning ketosis in half the time as other programs…
Tips for Success
Implementing a ketogenic diet for a period of time is powerful for the body. While it is very safe to implement, there are certain strategies that I like to emphasize in order to maximize your health while performing this ketabolic reset.
Food Quality
While eating organic isn’t necessary to see changes with a ketogenic diet, I still suggest organic to the best of your ability.
I understand following an all-organic ketogenic diet can get expensive, so here are the foods and food groups I would try to buy organic:
- all beef, chicken, pork, and fish/seafood products
- all dairy products
- all greens
You can also look for “all-natural”, “hormone free,” “antibiotic free,” etc…
Hydration
If you want your body to operate at its peak, you must stay hydrated. While many people advocate for drinking half of your body weight in ounces per day, I like to recommend shooting for your entire body weight in ounces per day.
That may seem like a lot and if you are not used to drinking this much water, then you will need to work up this amount.
I like to emphasize drinking a large portion of this in the morning to help flush out the detoxification organs and clear the bowels. This will help the body to detoxify effectively and ensure that your cells stay hydrated and can effectively carry out biochemical processes.
One of the top complaints from someone after starting a ketogenic diet is that their bowel movements become less frequent. Drinking plenty of water is one of the key strategies for improving this.
The Right (Metabolic) Exercise (Optional)
Exercise can make or break your thyroid and metabolism.
The benefits of metabolic workouts fat outweigh the benefits of cardio or even strength training, since you get the best of both worlds, here are a few benefits:
- Serious calorie burn – The calorie burn during a workout is easily around 500 calories for a 30 minute workout, but it also increases metabolic rate from anywhere between 10% to 25% for up to 48 hours, with some studies showing an increase in metabolic rate for up to even 72 hours. This equates to hundreds of extra calories, which over the course of a few workouts can become significant.
- Improved cardiovascular capacity – Metabolic workouts help improve cardiovascular strength similar to traditional cardio.
- Improved hormonal profile – Several studies have shown that hormones that promote “lipolysis” (the technical term for fat loss) increase as a results of high intensity strength training. I don’t want to bore you with all the studies, but strength training in general has been shown to help improve hormonal profile, and metabolic training is debatably the best type of strength training to elicit the most powerful hormonal response.
- Faster fat loss – Metabolic exercise boosts your main fat-burning hormone, growth hormone. This type of training also balances insulin and keeps low cortisol. Insulin and cortisol are two hormones that cause fast fat gain. When you fix those, you lose weight quickly and in a healthy way.
MCT Oil
To be in ketosis and burn fat for energy, your body must convert the fats you eat (or body fat) into something called ketones. This process occurs in the liver and the efficiency of this conversion will determine how deep into ketosis you can get. Deeper isn’t necessarily better, however not getting deep enough isn’t helpful either.
MCT oil is isolated from coconut oil and serves as an easy to process source of ketones to support ketosis. This means that by adding MCT oil to your meals, shakes, and beverages can help improve your ability to burn fat by making ketone formation much easier (4).
This is especially helpful in the beginning stages of a ketogenic diet when the body hasn’t fat adapted yet. Begin with 1 Tsp 3 times daily and work up to 1 TBSP 3 times daily. If you experience loose stools, reduce your intake for a few days and try the higher dose again.
MCT oil goes great in salad dressing, coffee or tea, smoothies, or drizzled directly over your food.
Follow A Health Focused Program
Instead of trying to lose weight, it’s time to start getting healthy.
Sure, in most of my programs I claim they can help you lose a lot of weight in a short period of time, BUT the difference between my programs and other “lose-weight quick” programs is mine are “health-focused.”
That means:
- They are based on real food, quality over quantity, and minimum supplements
- They help you balance your hormones
- They optimize your fat-burning metabolism, so it works for you instead of against you
If you’re ready to finally start a health-focused program that delivers real and FAST results. Results that you can actually keep off, then I invite you start with my 3-Week Keto Diet program.
After The 21-Day Reset
After the ketogenic reset, your body has regained metabolic health and can now switch between burning fats and sugars.
Because there are certain tissues in the body that can only burn sugar for energy, this is when I recommend implementing a periodic ketogenic diet.
This means that once or twice a week, you have a meal that has higher amounts of carbs to replenish carbohydrate stores in the body. It is this cycling in and out of ketosis that most people seem to respond best to.
The best carb sources are those that I mentioned earlier in this article: organic berries (blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, etc.), beets, carrots, sweet potatoes (especially purple), pumpkin, sprouted quinoa, and other fruits like apples.
Many people admit that this cycling is extremely sustainable and satisfying to do on a weekly basis.
Your Metabolism On A Ketogenic Diet
I recently put together a Ketogenic Masterclass, where I show you how keto affects your hormones, digestive system, and metabolism.
Everything you need to start burning today with a ketogenic diet, here are the 4 Ketogenic Masterclass articles and videos:
- 5 Tiny Tweaks To Shift Your Body From An Unhealthy Fat-Storer To A Ketogenic Fat-Burner
- 7 Hormonal Differences Between A Fat-Storer and A Ketogenic Fat-Burner
- 8 Ketogenic Killers Keeping You Overweight and Unhealthy