How exogenous ketones work
When you consume exogenous ketones, your blood ketone levels will increase regardless of whether you are in a state of nutritional ketosis. The great thing is that this increase actually provides many of the benefits of true ketosis, including appetite regulation, increased energy, brain function, athletic performance, stress reduction, and even weight loss.
It doesn't give us permission to eat whatever we want full-time or switch to a permanent high-carb diet, but what it does do is provide an incredible bridge and act as a supportive tool for a healthy lifestyle without having to be rigid all the time.
Top 4 Reasons Why Exogenous Ketones Can Benefit You:
1. They replicate nutritional ketosis
The primary goal of exogenous ketones is to replicate a state of nutritional ketosis. A common misconception is that exogenous ketones can put you in a permanent state of ketosis on their own.
The reality is that they temporarily raise the levels of ketones in your bloodstream, which also, in turn, gives you many of the benefits of nutritional ketosis.
By increasing the ketones in your system, these supplements can:
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Supercharge your energy
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Boost mental clarity and focus
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Support weight loss in several ways.
2. They help you transition to ketosis
Exogenous ketones absolutely help support keto flu symptoms, even if they don't directly affect nutritional ketosis.
As we've discussed here, when your body adapts from using primarily carbohydrates and glycogen as its primary fuel source to storing body fat and dietary fat, there can be many unwanted initial side effects. This is known as the keto flu and typically includes symptoms such as:
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Lethargy
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Poor physical performance
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headaches
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swelling
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Irritability and mood swings
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Brain fog
The main reason is that your body hasn't yet become efficient at using sadness as an efficient fuel reserve. The other reason is dehydration and the corresponding loss of electrolytes.
The good news is that these symptoms are temporary, and the even better news is that you can use exogenous ketones to help navigate this initial, murky phase of access. As your body learns to tap into its own fat stores and dietary fat for fuel, you can do so with exogenous ketones to ease the transition into ketosis.
Wow, a lot of questions about whether this actually hinders the transition to nutritional ketosis, the reality is that exogenous ketones are not permanently in your system and therefore do not hinder the transition.
3. They can help you get back to normal
Most people won't be able to stick to a strict high-fat, low-carb diet all the time. If you've done this for a reasonable amount of time and experienced what it's like to stray from your program, you know it can kick you in the butt and potentially take a while to get back into ketosis.
Exogenous ketones absolutely have a role to play here. Because they help boost your energy, promote cognitive function, and reduce cravings, supplementing with exogenous ketones during re-entry can help mitigate many of these symptoms.
The caveat is that if you've been following a diet like this for a longer period of time, you'll likely be able to re-enter ketosis a little faster and with a little less headache in onset mode.
Still, exogenous ketones can help mitigate the problems that can arise here.
4. They support weight loss
One of the reasons exogenous ketones are somewhat controversial is that many falsely promote them as an instant fat-loss miracle. The truth is, they absolutely help, but it's not an overnight solution, although many of the feel-good benefits kick in immediately.
There is a wealth of research indirectly supporting their role in supporting fat loss, and exciting new research shows that they may actually directly help with fat loss.
Exogenous ketones help with weight loss in the following ways:
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Support appetite regulation and reduce cravings
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They provide energy at the cellular level, which in turn helps several processes in our body related to weight loss, such as metabolism, hormones, etc.
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Supports your fat loss metabolic processes
How to successfully integrate exogenous ketones
Exogenous ketones and ketogenic diets can help you live a healthier life, burn fat, and build muscle. However, there are more factors than just being in a ketogenic state.
You still need to maintain an ideally healthy activity level, maintain sleep hygiene, eat quality foods, manage stress, optimize your calorie intake, and maintain proper macronutrient ratios of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats.
All that being said, exogenous ketones can be a phenomenal tool to support your journey.
This is how we recommend using them:
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If you're in the early stages of transitioning to ketosis, definitely consider a second serving for more energy, focus, and reduced mid-afternoon cravings . This also applies to people who want to avoid the 2 p.m. crash and have plenty of energy throughout the day.
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If you're training or participating in any type of physical activity, you can time your second serving of exogenous ketones to coincide with this activity as a pre-workout booster . Consider drinking it about 30 minutes before your activity.
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We also recommend using exogenous ketones as a lifesaver in case of emergency glass breakage. This will be for those times when you get kicked out of ketosis because life happens. So take one to serve as a situational tool when needed .
The steps to start a successful trip:
