Reasons for Hitting a Weight Loss Plateau on the Ketogenic Diet & How to Break Through It

It’s a well-known fact that many people start the keto diet in order to lose weight. And, in fact, many have found success in reaching their weight loss goals on this dietary plan. But that doesn’t mean they saw steady progress for the entire journey. 

If you’ve been losing weight on keto and you’ve suddenly hit a weight loss plateau, you know how frustrating it can be. But the truth is, weight loss plateaus are actually a natural part of most weight loss journeys. In this article, we’ll delve into common reasons why you may have stopped seeing results on the scale – and offer tips to help break through your temporary halt in progress.

But first, let’s look at your unique situation to figure out if you’ve really hit a plateau, or you’re just witnessing slower results.

Before We Begin: Do You Actually Need to Take Action?

First, you want to evaluate if your weight loss plateau is something you need to take action to fix – or if maybe you’re just seeing a natural slowing down of your success.

For example, when you first start the keto diet, you may lose more weight at a quicker rate because your body is releasing fluids that were held by all the carbs you were eating. But as you start to lose actual fat instead of just water weight, the weight loss naturally slows down. 

When you first start the keto diet, you may lose more weight at a quicker rate because your body is releasing fluids that were held by all the carbs you were eating. But as you start to lose actual fat instead of just water weight, the weight loss naturally slows down. 

As you move into month two of keto and beyond, healthy weight loss tends to look more like a 1-2 pound deficit per week. There may also be weeks where you don’t see any change on the scale at all, and that’s perfectly normal.

But if it’s been several weeks on keto that you haven’t seen any progress, it’s time to dig a little deeper into your lifestyle habits – which is where this article can help you! Read on to discover 5 incredibly common reasons for hitting a weight loss plateau – as well as recommended adjustments you can make to break through it.

5 Reasons For Hitting A Weight Loss Plateau on Keto (And How to Break Through it!)

1) You’re Not Tracking Your Macros

Failing to carefully track your macronutrients (i.e., lazy keto) is the most common reason keto dieters hit a weight loss plateau. The reason being, it’s hard to know if your body is actually in ketosis – the state where you experience the most fat-burning results. 

How to Break Through It

Buckle down and start tracking your macros! Remember that your daily goal should be 70-75% fat, 20-25% protein and only 5% carbs. Many people have found success by using a keto app on their phone or using an online keto calculator.

2) You’re Not Testing Ketone Levels

Another way that you can ensure you’re reaching ketosis is to test the ketone levels in your body. And if your weight loss is stalled, it’s highly recommended that you do this to make sure you’re actually in an enhanced fat-burning state. 

How to Break Through It

Test your ketone levels daily, until you get a better idea of what it will take for you to stay in ketosis. Most keto dieters use urine test strips or a breath tester.

3) You’re Eating Too Many Calories

Hand in hand with not tracking your macros on a keto diet is not tracking your calories. Since keto is a high-fat diet, this means you’ll be eating foods that are much higher in calories. It’s easy to feel like it’s a free-for-all when it comes to all the different sources of fat you can eat on keto, but that’s not the case.

How to Break Through It

If you really want to lose weight on keto, you have to know the number of calories you need each day for weight loss first, based on your individual metrics. Then you can go ahead and make that work with a keto diet. Try calculating your calorie needs with our calorie calculator here.

4) You’re Eating “Keto Junk”

The right way to do keto is to eat as many fresh, whole food sources as possible. There are plenty of pre-packaged, processed keto foods on the market that contain chemical ingredients and artificial sweeteners like Sucralose. These items may taste good, but they can lead to you consuming too many calories, while putting unhealthy additives into your body.

 In addition, you can find recipes for keto cookies, crackers, pizza crust and more. But instead, you should fight the urge to snack on these carb replacements, and instead focus on shifting your diet away from carb-like foods. 

How to Break Through It

Dump the junk, and opt for healthy keto snacks. Examples include celery sticks in hummus or almond butter, cottage cheese with a few berries, hard boiled eggs, and cucumber with homemade guacamole.

5) You’re Going “Nuts” On Nuts

Nuts are a delicious, nutritious and convenient way to reach your daily fat goal on a keto diet, but there is such thing as eating too much of them. You may not realize it, but nuts actually contain carbs! Which means, you have to be careful how many you eat while on keto. 

How to Break Through It

Try some great low-carb nut options, such as pecans, macadamia nuts, brazil nuts, walnuts, hazelnuts and pine nuts. Also, practice moderation!

Beyond Keto: More Tips To Break Through Your Plateau

1) Sleep More

Though this may seem very simplistic, if you don’t get enough sleep, your body suffers – and so do your goals. Your body will search for another form of energy and you’ll reach for more snacks. Plus, when you’re tired, your body craves more unhealthy foods and sugar, which can make it harder to resist.

To get better sleep at night, establish daily sleep and wake times, which will tell your body when it should get tired and when to arise and be energetic. Also, try to establish a relaxing bedtime routine such as taking a bath, reading or drink a cup of Jasmine tea.

2) Reduce Stress

When you have a lot of stress, your body makes the hormone, cortisol, which may increase fat storage and make it difficult to drop pounds. To combat stress, get enough sleep, exercise on a regular schedule, and take regular “you” time. This may include yoga, journaling, meditating, taking a walk in nature or anything you enjoy to help you reset and calm your nerves.

3) Try Intermittent Fasting

A type of fasting called intermittent fasting can actually be quite effective for breaking through a weight loss plateau on the keto diet. There are different types of intermittent fasting you can try, based on what works best with your schedule. But the underlying premise is the same… You give your body a break from digesting by not eating for a specified period of time each day (usually a 14-16 hour window), or for 1-2 days at a time.

What If I’m Still Not Losing Weight?

If after reviewing this article, you put some of the practices in place and find that you still are stuck at a weight loss plateau, it’s time to check in with your doctor. Some health problems, such as with your adrenal or thyroid, may cause your body to be holding onto weight. They can suggest treatment options for you if this meets your condition.

In addition, if you’re finding it hard to stick with a daily calorie goal for weight loss, certain keto-friendly meal replacement shakes are an easy fix. These shakes are low in calories, low in carbs and sugar – and they have good fiber.

Sometimes a boost of fiber is needed on a keto diet in order to jumpstart your digestive processes and get everything running smoothly again. This, in turn, can help you get your weight loss back on track. For a quick and easy way to incorporate keto protein shakes into your diet, try this Keto Kit today!

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