There are many diet options available to help lose weight, but the keto diet has been among the most popular lately.
We have received a lot of questions around the influence of keto for women over 50 and how to effectively follow this diet healthily.
Below, we have science-backed tips and advice that can provide you the answers you’re looking for if you want to lose weight on keto for women over 50.
At this age, many women experience a slow metabolism coupled with less activity, and a higher chance for increased cravings, making it extremely difficult to slim down.
Keep reading to discover our top 10 tips to help optimally transition into a ketogenic diet for women over 50, which also applies to anyone experiencing a weight loss plateau or not having sufficient success on low carb keto eating.
Is Keto For Women Different Than Keto For Men?
Is ketogenic for women different than ketogenic for men?
The answer is: YES and NO.
While women still score the same health benefits going on this diet, it may take longer for them to lose weight and get in shape.
So, let’s start by addressing why it’s harder for ladies to lose weight on keto, and find out how to easily work around these obstacles.
Women Are More Susceptible To Leptin Sensitivity
Leptin sensitivity, which is a hormone that helps to regulate energy balance by inhibiting hunger, is one of the main differences between men and women.
Women have leptin receptors on the thyroid in their ovaries, so they have a lot more leptin sensitivity than men.
And since the keto diet focuses more on carb restriction to produce ketones, this, in turn, reduces the leptin levels.
This might cause a problem because leptin levels that are too low can influence anxiety, insomnia, and hunger over time.
Mood Swings
When it comes to keto, the determination can sometimes do more harm than good.
With all of the leptin depletion and hormone dysfunction that can come with the ketogenic diet, women’s bodies might not feel safe and ready enough for the composition change.
So, women need to know when too much is simply too much so that their hormones remain balanced.
The same thing applies for men too, but especially ladies following a ketogenic diet plan.
Hormones Imbalance
Since men don’t have those fluctuations in hormones each month it is much easier for them to stay on long term Keto diet without having to cycle off.
Now, should you stay away from keto for women over 50 when trying to get in shape?
Of course not, all weight-loss diets have their positives and negatives.
The final step comes to you on how you would implement changes to your lifestyle for better results.
At the end of the day, what we recommend for both men and women is to become their experimentations so they know exactly what’s best for them.
And, by following the tips mentioned below to better assess your specific hormones and tweaking your eating plan to control your hunger levels, you can ensure a safe and effective keto diet.
Keto For Women Over 50 – Is This Diet The Right Choice For You?
If you’re looking for a fast, effective way to lose weight, find more mental and physical energy, reduce stress and get your sugar problem in check, there’s nothing better than a ketogenic diet.
But is keto safe for women? Or even recommended? What are the side effects of keto for women over 50?
Keep reading to find out if this diet is the right choice to achieve your body goals without negatively affects your health.
What is Keto?
In a nutshell, the keto diet is a low-carb, high-fat diet. It lowers blood sugar and insulin levels and shifts the body’s metabolism away from carbs and towards fat and ketones.
How Does Ketogenic Diet work?
The keto diet aims to put and keep, your body in a metabolic state called ketosis.
Our bodies normally burn carbohydrates for energy. When you restrict the number of carbs, the body will break down stored fat, creating molecules called ketones to use as fuel.
When this happens, your body becomes more efficient at burning fat for energy. It also turns fat into ketones in the liver, which can supply energy for the brain.
Ketogenic diets can cause massive reductions in blood sugar and insulin levels.
This, along with the increased ketones, has numerous health benefits (more on that later).
Keto For Women Over 50 Side Effects
Although the ketogenic diet is safe for healthy people, there may be some initial side effects while your body adapts.
This is often referred to as the keto flu and is usually over within a few days.
Keto flu includes poor energy and mental function, increased hunger, sleep issues, nausea, stress, and decreased exercise performance.
How long you’ll feel these effects depends solely on you and what your previous diet was like.
To minimize this, you can try a regular low-carb diet for the first few weeks. To adapt your body to burn more fat before you eliminate carbs.
Is a Keto Diet Good for Women Over 50?
The ketogenic diet combines the power of calorie restriction with the unique benefits of ketosis to provide you with an effective way to lose weight and improve your overall health.
However, if we dive deeper into this diet, we will notice that there is a huge discrepancy between what people think they need to do versus, what the science says is best to follow. Especially, if you are new to this way of eating.
This is why we decided to put together this article with the 10 most important tips to successfully switch and follow a long term keto for women over 50.
With each tip, we hope to clear up common misconceptions and give you practical strategies so you can finally get the desired results.
10 Tips To Make Ketogenic Diet Work For Women Over 50
A keto diet for women doesn’t have to be a fail for your body. In fact, it can be the biggest step up for your weight loss goals and overall health.
Let’s explore these 10 best tips on how women can safely and successfully put in place the keto diet.
Start Gradually
One of the most stressful parts of the keto diet is the ability to adapt to change.
Going from a standard diet straight into an extremely low carb, high fat diet can affect your body.
What do we mean by this?
A sudden change can send your body into starvation mode. This gives you those undesirable symptoms (headache, weakness…).
For women specifically, that starvation piece is a hormonal disaster. So again, slow and steady wins the race.
Depending on your starting point, this could mean that it will take you a month or two to transition.
Try not to focus on the scale during the transition. Instead, be mindful of how you feel and the choices you’re taking every day.
Keep The Stress Away
Stress increases cortisol release, which may cause hunger and encourage your body to store abdominal fat making it harder for you to stay on a keto diet.
The body has a system of hormonal checks and balances that may actually promote weight gain when you’re stressed out.
Therefore, a poorly managed stress, may lead to elevated cortisol levels that stimulate your appetite, making the weight loss process harder.
You might find meditation, deep breathing, or walking the best options for you to de-stress. So find what works great for you and do it regularly!
Maintain Enough Protein Intake
Achieving ketosis requires a protein intake that is adequate but not excessive.
Also, with inadequate protein, you may experience muscle loss, which is not what we’re aiming for on the keto diet.
This means paying attention. Notice if you’re feeling weak or hungry. If so, you might want to increase your protein.
A high protein intake boosts metabolism, reduces appetite and feeling fuller after eating.
Avoid Excess Fat
Once you’re fat-adapted, it’s important to avoid consuming excess fat.
One of the great ‘joys’ of keto for women over 50 is including fat at every meal after years of avoiding it. But, too much of anything is bad.
Struggling to lose weight on keto? You may want to think of stopping the bulletproof coffee and fat bombs.
Keep a Keto Journal
You’ll need to track your food intake on keto to make sure you’re hitting all your macros.
Also, you may want to consider a keto journal. Since the female body is so sensitive to changes, you can use this space to record how you’re feeling in a keto lifestyle.
Some stats and changes to monitor including but not limited to:
- Weight loss goal
- Body measurements
- Moods and emotions
- Energy levels
- Workout recovery
This way you may be able to specify patterns or even foods you don’t tolerate well.
Speaking about keto foods?
This diet focuses on eating mostly fat, limited amounts of carbs. The “do” list includes meat, seafood, eggs, vegetables, fats, and oils. While the “don’t” list includes: Beans, Grains and sweeteners.
Get more specific on what you can and can’t eat on a keto diet for women over 50 below:
Foods To Eat On a Ketogenic Diet
Not sure what to eat on a ketogenic diet? Here’s a quick food list for you to reference. Below you’ll find a brief overview of what you can eat.
Fats and Oils
- Avocados
- Egg Yolks
- Olive Oil
- Fatty fish
- Coconut Oil
Protein
- Fish
- Poultry
- Whole Eggs
- Beef
- Nut Butter
Vegetables and Fruits
- Cabbage
- Cauliflower
- Broccoli
- Blackberries
- Raspberries
Dairy Products
- Greek Yogurt
- Mayonnaise
- Cottage cheese
- Mozzarella
- Cream Cheese
Nuts and Seeds
- Walnuts
- Almonds
- Hazelnuts
- Pecans
- Brazil nuts
Beverages
- Water
- Broth
- Coffee
- Tea
- Coconut milk
Foods To Avoid On a Ketogenic Diet
By now, you should have a clear idea of what to eat on a ketogenic diet.
If you’re still unsure about any products or food items that might not be keto-friendly, don’t worry.
Below, you’ll find a list of foods that you should avoid on the keto diet.
Grains
The key to a successful keto diet is to limit your carb intake and get the majority of your calories from fat.
The problem with grains is that they are filled with carbohydrates, which can hurt your keto progress. Hence, you may want to avoid some type of grains such as:
- Oats
- Wheat
- Quinoa
- Barley
- Rice
Protein
Typically on a keto diet, you want to opt for fattier cuts of meat like we mentioned earlier. Our recommendation would be to avoid or limit processed meats that may contain hidden carbs.
Dairy
Dairy is typically a low carb food group when eaten in moderation.
However, it is important to remember that dairy does contain carbs, so try to limit your intake to no more than 3-4 ounces per day.
Also, you should stay away from low-fat dairy products.
Fruits
While it may seem a bit surprising to see fruits appear on a “foods to avoid on keto” list, several fruits are high in sugar and carbs. Hence, should be avoided:
- Pineapples
- Bananas
- Apples
- Pears
- Grapes
Vegetables
When it comes to vegetables, the keto rule of thumb is to avoid any veggies that grow beneath the ground.
Avoid vegetables with a high starch content, as they contain the most carbs such as:
- Potatoes
- Peas
- Artichoke
- Corn
- Parsnips
Beverages
- Colas
- Hot Chocolate
- Energy Drinks
- Fruit juices
- Sweetened iced tea
Best Food To Eat While on Keto Kiet
In general, the more “real” the food, the better it is for you. While some processed foods are acceptable, many are not.
Make sure that you read through the ingredients and nutrition information to make sure that it can fit within your diet.
Ok, that’s enough for the food part, let’s continue our keto for women over 50 tips and strategies.
Change Your Food Environment
It is easier than ever before to gain weight, and our brains and bodies are not designed to handle our abundant food environment.
We are incessantly bombarded with endless processed food options and smells that trigger our desires.
Can you relate to this?
To prevent these desires from being triggered and make it easier for you to stick to your ketogenic diet and lose weight, there are a couple of things you can do:
1. Only Keep Keto-Friendly Food in Your Kitchen
When we are hungry, it suddenly becomes so much easier to convince us to cheat on our diets and our goals.
Hunger is a strong motivator, but sadly it doesn’t care about your “rules”.
If you are still struggling with overeating, then make sure you only have foods that require some preparation and effort before eating.
This will minimize food cravings and you’ll end up eating fewer calories.
2. Plan Your Meals Ahead of Time
Following a plan is a great way to stay on track and prevent yourself from creeping to other food temptations.
If you are at home, make sure to follow a diet plan that gives you the macronutrients you need and nothing more.
If you are traveling, make sure you have pre-made meals, and/or keto-friendly options at restaurants you can rely on.
3. Avoid Foods That You Can Easily Binge On
If food is convenient and tasty, you will be much more inclined to eat more of it.
The same goes for keto baked goods as well. If you find you can eat a lot of something without stopping, you must make it much harder for yourself to consume too much of it.
Also, don’t miss your macronutrient goals by adding extra ingredients that you don’t measure.
For example, adding a little extra oil, cheese, etc. to each meal will add up to the point where you end up gaining the weight back.
Add Resistance Training
First, building muscles won’t make you look bulky.
Having more muscles will boost your metabolism, burn more calories at rest and make your body look better despite not losing any weight.
So, try adding more weight at the gym. This type of strength training that not only can help you slim down, but also can gain you a ton of other health benefits.
The best part: You don’t have to spend all your time in the gym. You can even do it at home, without fancy equipment.
And, as we mentioned earlier, keeping track of all your workouts in your keto journal helps you better understand which type of exercise or routine you are more likely to stick with.
Up Your Sleep
A good night’s sleep is incredibly important for your health. It’s just as important as eating healthy and exercising.
Short sleep duration is associated with a drastically increased risk of weight gain and obesity, in both children and adults.
In short, proper sleep can help you better achieve your weight loss goal.
Collaborate With Other Keto Dieters
This is one of the most overlooked keto for women over 50 tips. Social support helps push you towards your goals.
When you have people to share your questions, struggles, concerns, and accomplishments with, it will be much easier for you to stay on the diet and get the results you want.
Making lifestyle changes can be challenging, so find a team to support you!
Treat Keto as a Lifestyle, Not a Diet
We know we’ve been calling it the “keto diet” this whole time, but the best way to approach keto as a woman is to treat it as a lifestyle.
You can’t do anything too restrictive as a lifestyle forever, right?
It’s the main reason fad diets fail. You take too much away to get a quick result, then you bring it all back, and you’re right back where you started or worse.
Keto doesn’t mean that.
Ideally, you’re slowly transitioning into something that you can healthfully sustain for the long term.
This means accepting that you won’t be in ketosis every single day forever.
It means allowing yourself to enjoy a few desserts when you’re on vacation or for a special occasion.
It means that setbacks aren’t the end of the diet.
You can just wake up the next morning and go back to the style of keto that works for you and your body consistently.
Should You Supplement Your Keto Diet?
You may be wondering how to optimize this high-fat, low-carb eating plan for better results.
Because the keto diet cuts out several food options, it’s a good idea to supplement with specific nutrients.
Magnesium
On a ketogenic diet, it may be difficult to meet your magnesium needs, as many magnesium-rich foods like beans and fruits are avoided due to their high carb content.
So, taking magnesium will boosts energy, regulates blood sugar levels and supports your immune system.
Exogenous Ketones
Exogenous ketone supplements are commonly used by those following a ketogenic diet which is our case, to increase blood ketone levels.
This will help you reach ketosis quicker, decrease appetite and increase athletic performance.
What about Raspberry Ketones?
Since we have listed raspberries on the keto-friendly foods, you may find yourself asking should I take raspberry ketones on a ketogenic diet?
Raspberry ketone supplements have gained popularity on the health food scene as a weight loss aid, despite the lack of scientific evidence available to support this use.
Health food and supplement manufacturers claim that raspberry ketones can improve health, but the research behind these health claims remains limited.
A popular health claim is that raspberry ketones can cause weight loss.
However, the scientific evidence supporting this claim is weak. The most effective way to lose weight is to consume fewer calories than the body uses and to do more exercise.
Do Raspberry Ketones Trigger Ketosis?
No, these ketones are completely different from those produced in your body and they have no function within a ketogenic diet.
Ketosis is a process that happens in the body. Hence, taking raspberry ketones will not trigger ketosis or support a keto diet.
Omega-3 Fatty Acids
Omega-3 fatty acid supplements can reduce inflammation, lower heart disease risk factors and help ensure a healthy balance of omega-3s to omega-6s.
To boost your intake of omega-3 fatty acids furthermore through keto-friendly foods, eat more salmon and sardines.
Some supplements can make the transition to keto diet easier and help reduce its symptoms.
What’s more, they can improve the nutritional value of this diet plan and even enhance athletic performance.
Taking these supplements can help optimize nutrition and allow you to stick to ketogenic. But, you should always consult with your doctor before taking any supplements.
Keto? You Got This, Girl!
One of the most important things about the keto for women over 50 is to understand what to focus on for the best results.
In general, if you are trying to lose weight, you should focus on creating a healthy lifestyle that allows you to maintain a calorie deficit.
One of the best ways to do this is by following a keto diet because:
- Eating low carb over time, causes you to eat much fewer calories because you are less hungry.
- Cutting out high carb foods help you stay away from cravings making it much easier to lose weight.
Altogether, this explains why low carb and ketogenic diets are so powerful at helping you maintain a calorie deficit and lose weight without having to struggle at all.
Though keto for women over 50 takes a bit more hard work and paying attention to get right, it can be the best decision you’ll ever make for your health, body and well being.
Follow today’s keto tips for women and try not to beat yourself up if you don’t lose as much weight in the beginning as other keto success stories.
Your scale victory will be worth the wait if you put in the effort and educate yourself with the right resources.
Hopefully, we’ve helped you understand the nuances when it comes to the keto diet lifestyle for women.
Click here if you want a full custom keto diet plan.
