Ketosis: everything you ever wanted to know

Ketosis is quite possibly a term you've never heard of. While you can find a variety of lowcarb recipes or ketogenic diets on the internet, few will explainwhat ketosis is, what its benefits and pitfalls are, and whether it's a good idea to prevent or seek it out. But our article today will change that. We'll introduce you to everything you've ever wanted to know about ketosis and answer frequently asked questions.

What is ketosis?

To help you understand how ketosis works and what it actually means, it's necessary to give you at least a little context. If you don't have a strict diet, the body uses a storage polysaccharide called glycogen, among other things, during sport. The body's glycogen stores are quite individual, but most people have enough for about an hour and a half of relatively intense training. The moment its stores start to run low, the body has to reach for another energy source to complete the workout.

Instead of glycogen, stored fats slowly take over this role, and once this happens, the level of so-called ketone bodies, which are a product of fatty acid metabolism , increases. Typical examples are acetacetate and betahydroxybutyrate, which are formed in the liver and then serve as a direct source of energy for the tissues.

This could be a graphically differentiated definition:

Ketosis can be defined as a condition in which the blood levels of ketone bodies (such as acetacetate and betahydroxybutyrate) rise and the body begins to use them as an energy source instead of glycogen.

When does ketosis occur?

Some form of ketosis occurs during any prolonged sporting activity, but often it is so slight that you don't even notice it. More intense forms of ketosis are then associated with low carbohydrate diets, prolonged fasting and even intermittent fasting. It is a very individual condition and therefore no exact amount of macronutrients can be determined, but it is not possible to determine the exact amount ofat which ketosis occurs, but the general rule of thumb is less than 50 grams of carbohydrate per day. However, some people experience ketosis at 100 grams of carbohydrates and others do not even get into ketosis at 30 grams.

What are the benefits of ketosis?

Quite objectively, it must be said that ketosis has a huge number of benefits, which of course are confirmed by various scientific studies. But often, especially in lay articles, authors overestimate the effect of ketosisand promise things that are not real and have no basis in truth. So the scientific evidence does indeed point to:

Better and more effective weight loss

Meta-analyses involving multiple different studies actually show that ketogenic diet based on low carbohydrate intake can be very effective. It even seems that, according to most research, eating less than 50 g of carbohydrate per day, weight loss is better than on a diet that limits the amount of fat intake. A rather interesting finding, but one that is to some extent individualIt is a somewhat individual finding and does not apply to everyone, that there is less hunger when following a ketogenic diet.

Improved concentration and more energy

Ketone bodies, like the aforementioned glycogen, are not only fuel for the muscles, but they also provide important nutrition for the brain. It should be noted that ketones are a very promising substance in this regard and are often linked to improvements in cognitive function, energy levels and even mood. In any case, the available studies often investigate the effect more in specific diseasesand a sufficient amount of research on healthy individuals is unfortunately lacking.

Improving insulin resistance

If you eat too many carbohydrates, you may experience a reduced ability of tissueto respond to insulin and this may be one of the factors behind the development of diabetes. However, studies show that low-carbohydrate diets can modify insulin sensitivity and reduce the risk of developing this disease.

What are the disadvantages of ketosis?

On the other hand, the disadvantages of ketosis and, consequently, of ketogenic diets are also mentioned. And in this case, it is necessary to distinguish whether these are short-term or long-term negatives. The majority of these effects last only a short time and are related to a fundamental change in diet. After a few days (or weeks at the latest), most of these effects subside and it can be said that ketogenic diets are considered safe. Expert research considers the following to be the biggest negatives:

Bad breath

Elevated ketone levels have been shown to impair breath quality as the body secretes more of the smelly acetone. As well as breath, this can also affect the smell of urine - but in both cases this is quite individualWhile some people don't notice bad breath at all, it can even make them give up keto diets.

Impaired performance

While breath quality is a long-term problem, impaired performance is only a result of adapting to a change in diet. If you were used to eating 100 grams of carbohydrates per day and now cut your intake in half, you probably won't notice a change. But if you were eating a lot of carbs and you get rid of them from one day to the next, you may notice a drop in energy and performance, not just at work and the gym. In reality, though, most experts agree that after adaptation, fat is a good source of energy for recreational athletes.

Digestive problems

If you've never followed a ketogenic diet, it's a good idea to prepare yourself for the digestive problems that many athletes experience. These, too, are obviously related to the radical change in diet and will only last on the order of a few days. However, you must not forget about vegetables and fibre even with ketogenic diets, otherwise such a diet will do more harm than good.

How to recognize ketosis?

Ketosis is most often associated with some kind of low-carbohydrate diet, and thusit is assumed that most people want to get into it on purpose. There are a number of ways to do this, the most common being either The traditional ketogenic diet (TKD) based on the assumption that about 70% of the nutrients in theor the cyclical ketogenic diet, where it is possible to eat three or three times the amount of nutrients in the diet.eba week as in the TKD and then increase carbohydrate intake for a day or two.

And how do you know if you are in ketosis? For most people, the characteristic sign is the aforementioned bad breath, but even that doesn't occur in everyone. So perhaps the best thing to do is to rely on the fact that you really do have your diet set up well and monitor your progress. If you feel good, the diet has served its purpose. Accurate measurement is a very expensive business, but if you insist on it, it is possible to have your blood and urine tested by your doctor, who will determine your ketone levels in no time.

Don't overlook: Comparison of the best ketodiets from the current year

Does all this even make sense? Personal experience

In conclusion, that leaves a summary of the most important points of today's article. Ketosis is a condition where the body has elevated levels of ketones used as an energy source. The ketogenic diet then brings benefits not only to athletes, such as more effective weight loss, improved insulin resistance and potentially better concentration and more energy. On the other hand, the transition to this diet can be relatively challenging and may be accompanied by intestinal problems, impaired performance and poor breathing. So is it ultimately worth sticking to it? That depends on the specific situation.

If you have health issues requiring a reduction in sugars, it's a great option as well just as it is if you're simply fed up with baked goods and other carbohydrate foods. The ketogenic diet is challenging at first, in our personal experience, but after a few weeks you'll feel really good and won't want to go back to carbs. On the other hand, it's definitely not for everyone and if you want to lose weight despite the fact that this diet doesn't suit you, it's not worth starting. In fact, as soon as you get close to your target weight, you will adjust your diet back to normal and start gaining weight again. If this is the case, it's a good idea to look for another diet. Still, we think the keto diet is definitely worth a try.