Staying the Course: How to help yourself stay on Keto

 If you have ever tried to stay on a diet long term, you know how difficult it is to maintain your focus and motivation.  Most of us just quit dieting slowly over time and then suddenly realize that we are no longer following our diet!

Staying motivated requires some effort on your part and that may be the problem. We live in a fast-paced, busy world and we are forced to move at the speed of light with it.  We have to multi-task just to keep up.  We suffer from stress and anxiety because we fear falling behind all the time.  This situation makes it difficult to stay the course with any diet, let alone one that requires a complete change in food preparation.

On that note, let's explore ways to help us stay on our keto adventure for the long-haul. Here are some tips that can help you stay on track with your Keto diet goals:

Motivational Tips for your goals:

Set realistic goals: 

Be sure to set achievable goals for yourself and break them down into smaller, more manageable steps. This will help you stay motivated and focused on your progress. I have talked about the importance of goal setting and how to do it on my other blog.  You can read about it here.

Find support: 

Building a support system of family, friends, or other Keto dieters can help you stay motivated and accountable. Online communities or local groups can provide encouragement and tips for sticking to the diet. There are several groups on Facebook that are for Keto dieters and you can get support, new recipes to try, motivation from other dieters, and learn about staying on keto for the long term. You should check some of them out; try several until you find the one that fits for you. 

Keep a food diary: 

Tracking what you eat can help you stay aware of your food choices and portion sizes, and can also help you identify triggers or patterns in your eating habits. Keeping a food diary is always the first thing you should do when starting a new diet.  It keeps you focused on your diet and helps you see the areas where you struggle.  Maintaining your diet is a hard challenge and by keeping a food diary you can ensure that you stay the course for your goals.

Celebrate successes: 

You need to celebrate your accomplishments, no matter how small. Celebrating milestones, such as losing a few pounds or sticking to the diet for a month, can help you stay motivated and focused on your progress. Sometimes it feels silly to celebrate the small stuff, but success in life comes in the small, almost overlooked successes you have.  They add up over time, so celebrate each one as it occurs to help you see that small progress is still progress.

Focus on non-scale victories: 

Remind yourself that there are many benefits to the Keto diet beyond weight loss, such as improved energy levels, clearer skin, and better digestion. Your focus on these non-scale victories can help you stay motivated even when the scale isn't moving. We all know the frustrations of hitting a plateau in our weight loss.  That scale just isn't moving and we think our diet isn't working.  The actual fact is that when you hit a plateau, your body is making adjustments because of weight loss and your diet.  This diet changes so many things in your body and some time is needed to allow your body to reach homeostasis again. Once that happens, the weight starts to fall off again. So be patient with your body.  

Plan ahead: 

You should plan for situations where you may be tempted to cheat on the diet, such as parties or eating out. Maybe you will need to bring your own Keto-friendly snacks or research restaurants in advance to find low-carb options. Eating out is one of the biggest challenges for those who follow Keto.  Fortunately, many restaurants are now understanding that eating keto is not a fad and is not going away; so they are including some keto-friendly options on their menus.  Be sure to ask before you go to a restaurant if they provide keto items on their menus.

Get creative with recipes: 

You should also plan to experiment with new recipes and ingredients to keep your meals interesting and prevent boredom. This can help you stay motivated and committed to the Keto diet over the long term. When you start keto, you will have the best results by eating just basic meat, vegetable, and maybe salad.  You will find that your weight loss will be faster and your body will adjust better.  After you have been on the diet for a while, you need to start adding keto recipes to your meal planning to prevent boredom which causes you to fall off the diet.  There are so many great keto recipes around.  I find them on YouTube and on Pinterest all the time.  I will warn you that not all of these recipes will make you happy or turn out like you want them to.  I talked a bit about this here when I tried a spinach wrap recipe.

Practice self-compassion: 

Slip-ups and mistakes are normal, and you should to be kind to yourself when they happen. Encouraging self-compassion can help you stay motivated and committed to the Keto diet, even when you face setbacks. Be sure to be gentle with yourself.  You are learning a totally new way to eat and it is much like learning a new language only with foods.  If you have a setback or you slip up and go off the diet, just acknowledge that this has happened, make a note in your food diary about when and why it happened for future reference, and forgive yourself.  Just get back on the diet again and forget about the lapse.

Practice self-love:

My last tip would have to be to be sure you are taking good care of yourself in every way.  So many things are happening inside your body on this diet, and you may even be experiencing the "keto flu" if this is new to you.  Learn to listen to your body and give it what it needs.  In the flu example, be sure to drink plenty of water to flush toxins from your system.  Make sure to drink an electrolyte drink at least once daily. Don't forget to take care of your mental health, too.  This diet is also working inside your brain and nervous system and you may feel the difference without understanding what is going on.  Slow down, relax, take care of yourself.

By incorporating these tips into their daily routines, you can stay motivated and committed to your Keto diet goals over the long term. I wish you good luck and good fortune!