Keto Weight Loss Plateau: What And How Long?

Weight loss plateaus are a common occurrence on the keto diet, and there are several reasons why this might happen. One of the main causes is consuming too many carbs, even if it's from low-carb foods, as carbs can easily accumulate throughout the day. Being in a calorie deficit is essential for weight loss, and while keto helps you feel more satiated, it's still possible to overconsume calories. A lack of exercise and physical activity can also limit weight loss, as can high levels of stress, which can increase a person's risk of gaining weight. Sleep loss can also affect weight loss by disrupting the body's regulation of appetite hormones. To break a weight loss plateau, try adjusting your calorie needs and macros, increasing physical activity, managing stress, incorporating intermittent fasting, and tracking ketone levels.

Monitor your calorie intake and adjust your macros

Monitoring your calorie intake and adjusting your macros is crucial to achieving your desired weight on a ketogenic diet. Here are some detailed instructions to help you with this process:

Calculate Your Calorie Needs

Firstly, determine your calorie needs based on your fitness goals. Are you aiming to lose weight, gain weight, or maintain your current weight? This will establish whether you need a calorie deficit or surplus in your diet. For weight loss, aim for a deficit, whereas for weight gain, aim for a surplus.

Determine Your Macronutrient Ratio

Now, let's break down the macros. The typical macro ratio for keto is as follows:

• 5% of calories from carbohydrates
• 25% of calories from protein
• 70% of calories from fat

However, you can further personalise this based on your specific goals and body composition. Use a keto calculator to input your details, such as age, gender, activity level, and body fat percentage, to get a more tailored macro ratio.

Track Your Calorie and Macro Intake

Once you know your calorie and macro needs, it's time to track your intake. Use a calorie-tracking app, such as MyFitnessPal or Cronometer, to monitor your daily food consumption. Be sure to account for hidden carbs in processed meats, condiments, seasonings, and starchy vegetables.

Adjust Your Macros Regularly

As you progress on your keto journey and your body composition changes, it's important to adjust your macros accordingly. Recalculate your macros every month or so based on your new body weight to ensure you're on the right track. This is especially important if you're aiming for a significant weight loss, as your calorie needs will decrease over time.

Ensure a Calorie Deficit

If you find yourself stuck and unable to lose weight, it may be because you're consuming too many calories. Monitor your portion sizes and choose snacks with a low calorie density. Focus on maintaining a calorie deficit, which means eating fewer calories than you burn throughout the day.

Adjust Your Protein Intake

Eating the right amount of protein is crucial for retaining lean muscle mass, managing hunger, and optimising your daily energy expenditure. If you're exercising, aim for 0.8g-1.0g of protein per pound of lean body mass per day. If you're lifting weights and aiming to build muscle, increase your protein intake to 1.0g-1.2g per pound of lean body mass. For sedentary individuals, a lower protein intake of 0.6g-0.8g per pound is sufficient.

Reduce stress and improve sleep

Reducing stress and improving sleep can help you break through a weight loss plateau on the keto diet.

Reduce stress

Chronic stress can make it difficult to lose weight. Evidence shows that stress increases a person's risk of gaining weight and visceral adiposity. Managing your stress can help you reach your goal weight.

• Reduce your screen time
• Take a mindful walk in nature
• Make time for your hobbies
• Practice deep breathing to activate your parasympathetic nervous system
• Eat a nutrient-dense diet and reduce your intake of processed foods

Improve sleep

Not getting enough sleep can cause weight gain. Research shows that a lack of sleep affects how your body regulates the hormones that control your appetite. Poor sleep also increases cravings for high-calorie and high-carbohydrate foods, as your body looks for additional sources of energy.

• Exercise during the day to help you fall asleep quicker at night, reduce stress and anxiety, and improve sleep quality.
• Practice relaxation techniques such as muscle relaxation exercises and deep breathing.
• Establish a consistent bedtime routine and a relaxing bedroom environment.
• Stay adequately hydrated. Dehydration can lead to sleep issues and is a common side effect of the keto diet.

Exercise more and vary your routine

Exercise is an important aspect of any weight loss program. It is recommended to get at least 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise per week. If you are already exercising, consider switching up your routine and incorporating new activities such as running, cycling, swimming, or strength training.

If you are new to exercise, start with low-intensity, steady-state activities such as jogging, biking, rowing, or yoga. These types of exercises are better suited to the ketogenic diet as they do not rely on carbohydrates as the main source of energy.

If you are looking to build muscle, incorporate strength exercises such as weightlifting, squats, and pushups into your routine. Make sure to also focus on other factors that influence muscle development, such as protein intake, training load, calorie intake, and recovery.

Exercising during an intermittent fast can also boost your fat-burning capacity and induce long-term adaptations that benefit your performance and health.

In addition to increasing the amount and intensity of exercise, consider increasing your daily non-exercise activity. This can include activities such as walking the dog, taking the stairs, and gardening. These activities will help you stay active and burn more calories throughout the day.

Cut out hidden carbs

Hidden carbs are a common culprit for weight loss plateaus on the keto diet. Even if you're only eating a few extra grams of carbs here and there, they can add up quickly and prevent you from entering ketosis.

On a standard keto diet, you should consume no more than 20-50 grams of carbs per day. To get an accurate idea of your daily carb intake, consider using an app or food tracker, and be sure to account for hidden carbs in foods like processed meats, condiments, seasonings, and starchy vegetables.

• Coca-Cola, 12 oz (1 can) — 35g
• Starbucks latte, grande size with 2% milk — 19g
• Red Bull, 12 oz (1 can) — 40g
• Naked Green Machine Smoothie, 1 15 oz bottle — 63g
• Hershey bar, 1 bar — 25g
• M&Ms, regular-sized bag — 33g
• Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, 1 package — 22g
• Haribo Gummy Bears, 5 oz package — 33g
• Cheerios, 1 cup — 17g
• Shredded Wheat, 1 cup — 39g
• Special K Original, 1 cup — 22g
• GoLean Crunch, 1 cup — 20g
• Clif Bar, Chocolate Chip, 1 bar — 41g
• Lenny & Larry’s Chocolate Chip cookies, 1 cookie — 40g
• Kind Bar, Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate, 1 bar — 13g

Additionally, watch out for hidden carbs in cheeses, coffee creamers, cheese spreads, sour creams, ricotta, cream cheeses, and yogurts, especially the lower-fat versions. Go for healthier options like raw cream, grass-fed butter, full-fat yogurt (with no added sugar), kefir, or keto bars.

Dressings can also be full of hidden sugars and carbs. Even "low-fat" or "low-calorie" products may contain high amounts of sugar. It's best to opt for homemade dressings made with healthy oils and vinegars, spices, herbs, avocado, etc., or full-fat, healthy bottled dressings.

Most sauces and gravies use flours and sugars for flavour and thickness, so be cautious when eating out. Side dishes like coleslaw can also contain added sugar, so it's best to avoid these and make your own low-carb versions at home.

Nuts can be part of a ketogenic diet, but not all nuts are created equal. Stick to the fattier, lower-carb varieties and avoid candied or sweetened nuts, as well as trail mixes that combine nuts with dried fruits.

Most fruits are best avoided on the keto diet, as even a handful can exceed your daily carb limit. Berries are the best option for staying low-carb, but they should still be reserved for special occasions.

While vegetables are essential for a healthy diet, not all vegetables are created equal. Vegetables that grow below ground, especially starchy vegetables, tend to be higher in carbs. Focus on low-carb, keto-friendly veggies like spinach, cauliflower, broccoli, kale, cucumber, and zucchini.

Some processed meats, such as deli meats, ham, meatloaf, bacon, and sausage, often contain added sugar and starch, so always read the labels. Avoid those labelled as "low-fat" or "ultra-lean" as they typically contain more unwanted additives.

Finally, be mindful of hidden carbs in canned fish products, which may have starches or sugars added to their sauces.

Evaluate your protein intake

Protein is one of the three macronutrients, along with carbohydrates and fat, and is essential for muscle repair and growth, maintaining healthy skin, hair, nails, and bones, and creating hormones and enzymes.

When following a ketogenic diet, it's recommended that you consume between 1.2 to 2.0 grams of protein per kilogram of reference body weight. This range has been shown to preserve muscle mass, improve body composition, and provide other health benefits.

To calculate your protein needs, use your ideal body weight in kilograms as a starting point. If you're near your ideal weight or very muscular, use your actual weight. If you're overweight, calculate your protein needs based on your target weight.

For example, if your ideal weight is 60 kilograms, your protein intake should be between 72 grams (60 kg x 1.2) and 120 grams (60 kg x 2.0) per day.

If you're engaging in resistance training or other forms of exercise, you may need to increase your protein intake to support muscle growth and repair. In this case, aim for the higher end of the recommended range or slightly above it.

On the other hand, if you're following a keto diet for therapeutic purposes, such as managing certain cancers, it's recommended to aim for the lower end of the protein intake range, between 1.2 and 1.5 grams per kilogram of body weight per day, and only under strict medical supervision.

Older adults may also need a higher protein intake, as muscle protein synthesis declines with age. Aiming for at least 1.2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight can help counteract muscle loss and other age-related changes.

It's important to note that you shouldn't drastically exceed the recommended protein intake, as it may have negative effects. While protein is essential for muscle growth, excessive protein intake may lead to increased muscle protein breakdown and can put strain on the kidneys.

To ensure you're getting enough protein, include a variety of keto-friendly protein sources in your diet:

• Meats: beef, chicken, pork, fish/shellfish, etc.
• Eggs: chicken, quail, duck, etc.
• Dairy: cheese, plain Greek yogurt, cottage cheese
• Nuts and seeds: peanuts, hazelnuts, pecans, macadamia nuts, walnuts, chia seeds, flax seeds, etc.
• Protein supplements: protein powders, shakes

Remember to also pay attention to your body's signals. If you consistently feel hungry or experience muscle soreness or fatigue, it may be a sign that you need to adjust your protein intake.

Frequently asked questions