I often have people email me wanting to know how they can tell if they’ve hit ketosis or not. Because one of the goals of medifast is to consume a low enough amount of carbohydrates and calories and a high enough amount of protein so that your body burns fat instead of carbohydrates. Most people want to get to this state as soon as possible because that’s when you start to see results. So how can you tell if you’ve reached these levels? Well, you can look at your physical symptoms, you can test yourself, or you can do both. I will discuss more about this matter in the next article.
Physical symptoms you may see with ketosis once you’ve been on Medifast for more than 3-4 days: First of all, if you follow up fairly well and watch your lean, green meals, you should be able to get into ketosis within the first week. Many people see this happen around days 3-5. But sometimes it takes a little longer if you exercise a lot.
The first thing you may notice is that you are finding it easier to stick to the diet. Cravings may subside, and you may find that you’re not as hungry. You may also find that you have a little more energy. I’ve also heard people say they noticed a change in their breath. They have said that their breath had an almost fruity, sweet smell and/or taste.
Using strips to test if you are in ketosis or not: If you doubt these symptoms or just want to be sure that you have finally reached this state, you can use small strips that test for ketones in urine. These are often sold under names like ketostix or ketone strips. Basically, you urinate on the end of the stick and then wait the time indicated in the instructions. (This is usually between 15 and 30 seconds. It doesn’t take long to get results.) Typically, you are looking for the strips to change color. The strips come with instructions that will show you what color you are looking for. But with many, you want the strip to turn purple to dark pink to indicate you’re in ketosis. You can get the strips at most drug and grocery stores. They are often in the diabetic section. You don’t need a prescription for them, but they are sometimes kept behind the counter, depending on the store.
What if you don’t see the color change? Well, there are some possibilities. The first would be that you still don’t show ketones in your urine. You can try to check again in a few days. Sometimes, if you exercise a lot, your muscles will need the ketones for fuel, and therefore they won’t be in your urine. It’s also possible that you’ve been drinking so much water that your urine is too dilute to change color.
I understand that ketosis is really where you want to be on medifast and I know we all want validation that we are there. But the strips are really a guide. If you’re seeing some of the symptoms and the weight is coming off as it should, there’s really no reason to put too much stock in your test results or let them stress you out. It’s really important to get your results on the scale, not the strips, though they can help give you some peace of mind if you need it.
