Entering ketosis typically takes about 2 to 4 days if you reduce your carbohydrate intake to between 20 and 50 grams per day. However, this timeframe can vary depending on factors such as your prior diet, metabolism, exercise habits, and overall health, with some people taking a week or longer to reach ketosis
. Key points on the timeline to ketosis:
- Days 1-2: Your body uses up stored glucose (glycogen) for energy.
- Days 3-7: You enter a light state of ketosis as your body begins to burn fat for fuel. This period may include symptoms known as the "keto flu," such as fatigue or achiness
- After 1 week: Your body stabilizes in ketosis if you maintain low carb intake, resulting in fat burning, weight loss, and increased energy
Additional factors that influence how quickly you enter ketosis include:
- How high your carb intake was before starting keto (higher carb diets require longer to deplete glycogen stores).
- Intermittent fasting can speed up the process by further depleting glycogen
- Age, body weight, metabolic rate, and exercise level also affect the timeline
To confirm ketosis, measuring ketone levels in blood, urine, or breath is the most reliable method
. In summary, expect about 2 to 4 days to get into ketosis under typical conditions, but allow up to a week or more depending on individual circumstances
