Best Ketosticks?

(karen) #1

Ok. I know keto sticks aren’t accurate and can be thrown off by a lot of things, primarily dehydration. My deal is that I lost 10 pounds in 5 days on a water only fast, but I was SOOO tired. Then I ate a small amount of just about zero carb food (a little protein and a lot of fat), and perked right up. So although my body is obviously able to use fat as fuel, I’m wondering if I was actually in ketosis at all. The degree of tiredness and spacey-ness makes me think it was barely eking out any nutrition at all from the fat in my body.

I’m not ready to spend $150 on a breath device and I definitely don’t want to have to stab myself, for the moment I’m satisfied with just knowing if I have ketones in my urine while I’m fasting.

Given that, are there brands you’d recommend?

(Empress of the Unexpected) #2

I use TRUEPlus. Got them at either Rite Aid or CVS.

(Candy Lind) #3

How long have you been eating keto? If less than a month, this is “keto flu” - ingest some salt. And if you are not fat-adapted (takes anywhere from a month up to 3 or more), you shouldn’t be trying to do an extended fast unless you have been instructed to do so by someone smarter than myself. “In ketosis” is NOT fat-adapted. Search “fat adapted” in the forums and read up on the difference.

You don’t have to spend $150 on a breath device OR buy ketostix to know you are in ketosis. You just have to eat less than 20 g carb a day to FORCE your body to use fat for energy. The basics: Under 20 g carbs, moderate protein, fat to satiety. DON’T COUNT CALORIES. Eat when you’re hungry, don’t eat when you’re not. SALT for keto flu/tiredness/dizziness. Drink plenty of water. KCKO.

(Marta Loftfield) #4

Nurse Hatty available from Amozon. They are surprisingly accurate.

(karen) #5

Thank both of you. I jumped the gun a bit here, I found a thread from last year saying people had success with very cheap (alcohol) breathalyzers - you will blow positive whether it’s alcohol or acetone you’re expelling. I didn’t realize I could buy one for less than $10. This isn’t going to give me an accurate ketone reading but it will give me +/- and comparative readings, at least.

Thank you, CandyLind. I think I was probably deficient in both sodium and potassium, as well as somewhat sleep deprived and mentally stressed, which would definitely have been a factor. I had a little salt but perhaps not enough. I’ll definitely take your advice and make sure to do more salt supplementation next time. (Lack of salt may also be the reason I lost so much weight - less salt in the body also equals less water.)