Episode #35

Chris Irvin

Keto Plateaus: Everything You Need to Know to Bust Through Them

035: Chris Irvin - Keto Plateaus: Everything You Need to Know to Bust Through Them
99% of people who do keto will experience a plateau at some time Click To Tweet

Does this sound like you?

“I’ve been doing keto for a few months now, hitting all of my macros and doing intermittent fasting, yet I’m not making any more progress. What gives?”

While the start of your keto journey may have helped you drop a few pounds fairly quickly and boosted your energy, you may be feeling just the opposite right now.

Instead of losing weight, you’re stuck at the same 1-2 pound difference and you’re energy seems to be waning.

So what gives?

Similar to the dreaded keto flu, many people often experience the inevitable keto plateau, a point in your journey where your body adapts to running on ketones and levels off.

This can happen once you’ve passed the newbie phase or at any other point in your keto lifestyle.

The problem is most people see this frustrating situation as a bad thing when in reality it’s not. This is why:

Your body is switching its primary fuel source from glucose to fat. Adapting to this new energy mechanism is great for you, but you need to continue making progress, otherwise, you’ll see slower results and stalled progress.

You’re going to hit plateaus multiple times in your keto journey. Click To Tweet

Just like with exercise, once your body adapts, it’s time to switch things up to bust through that plateau once and for all.

That’s exactly what you’ll learn to do in this episode with guest speaker Chris Irvin, also known as The Ketologist.

You may remember I had Chris on a few episodes ago to talk about all things keto-adaptation.

His episode is one of the most downloaded ones we’ve had, so I brought him back a second time — making him the first guest to be on the show twice.

And it’s for good reason.

Keto plateaus are no joke.

I get at least 7-10 questions per day on this topic, so if you feel worried about hitting a plateau in your keto journey, you’re not alone.

I sat down with Chris to help you figure out if you’re stuck in a ketosis plateau and exactly what you can do about it.

Chris holds a Master’s Degree in Exercise and Nutrition, has over 25k Instagram followers, and he’s an expert at helping people break through keto plateaus with ease.

But that’s not all we talk about.

You’ll also learn:

  • Everything you need to know about the keto plateau
  • Is it really a plateau? Or is patience the issue?
  • What you should do instead of weighing yourself every day to track your progress
  • The telltale signs you’re in a plateau
  • The first thing to assess if you’re really in a plateau
  • When to track net carbs vs total carbs (hint: it’s different depending on what phase of keto you’re in and your individual situation)
  • The main culprit of a plateau
  • Why cutting calories and working out more may not fix the problem
  • Why cutting this food group can help you get over your plateau
  • The perks of food sensitivity testing and how to use the results
  • Why eating “dirty keto” contributes to your plateau
  • Why the quality of your food matters
  • How to stimulate a higher calorie burn instead of using calorie restriction
  • My take on the calories in vs calories out weight loss model
  • Why your diet really needs an individualized approach
  • How to avoid creating a negative relationship with food
  • The importance of sleep quality and why it could be contributing to your keto plateau
  • Chris’ 5 sleep hacks to improve your sleep quality starting tonight
  • My tips for a better night’s sleep
  • Why I’m a huge fan of brain dumping before bed
  • My go-to supplement before bed
  • Why you shouldn’t choose supplements that knock you out –and what to use instead
  • Why Chris prefers a step approach instead of revamping everything all at once
  • What habit stacking is and how it can make it easier to tackle a few areas simultaneously
  • Why scaling back on these things can help you get out of the plateau
  • How fasting can also help
  • Chris’ reason for fasting
  • When to ramp up your exercise intensity
  • How to adjust your macros during a plateau
  • The macro mistake many new keto dieters make
  • How to evaluate your ketone results to make necessary adjustments
  • Two things Chris supplements with for low levels of ketones and low energy
  • When Chris recommends going further with testing (checking hormones or thyroid function)
  • Why keto doesn’t have to be so strict
  • How to avoid getting discouraged at a plateau

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