Ahhhh . . . So This Is How It Works

To use one of the oldest cliches, no one snowflake is like another.  The same goes for people drinking ketones. Some will do well with little-to-no side effects. These usually are the super committed who voluntarily restrict carb intake and drink tons of water.  Age and hormone level could also be huge factors.

The beauty of KETO//OS and KETO//OS Max is that it is a powder which, when mixed with water, provides the necessary ingredients to jump start the ketosis process.  Let's face it, unless you are in the medical field, in a professional sport, or are a personal trainer, you probably don't know much about ketones.  I didn't. To me it sounded like just another fad. But here's what I discovered . . .  it's really not a weight-loss diet - it's a fat reducing, lifestyle diet.

KETO//OS basically means "keytone operating system." The product is an exogenous ketone supplement which provides many benefits: enhanced athletic performance, better weight loss, cancer prevention, cognitive improvement. It also contains anti-inflammatory properties. 

A serving of ketones rapidly puts the body into a state of ketosis which burns fat. Achieving ketosis through restricting certain foods and increasing intensity and frequency of workouts is extremely hard for the average person. Drinking ketones basically hacks the body's biochemistry into a state that continually burns fat, hence the fat loss.

Here . . . watch this . . . it explains the basics much better than I can:



I wish I had learned more about ketones before I began taking the supplement. Had I done so, perhaps my experience with the side effects of putting my body into a state of ketosis would have been less. However, I have to admit that although at times unpleasant, none of the side effects were unbearable.

While I didn't experience any headaches, at times I felt light-headed and foggy.  In the first few weeks, at times I felt extremely fatigued. The worst side effects happened in the bathroom. I went from being super constipated one week to having extremely loose bowels the next which led to a queasy stomach. 

Here's what I should have done that I simply didn't.  I should have visited the Pruvit website and viewed the short videos which explain what ketones are, how they work, and gives tips for avoiding negative side effects. Basically, if you experience side effects, take half a serving for a week or so to give the body time to ease into the state of ketosis.

But here's the good news, as my body adjusted to being in a state of ketosis, my diet did as well.  For instance, I used to be a huge coffee and tea drinker. That's gone now. I have no desire to drink anything but water and tons of it.  And man did I love my carbs: bread, pasta, and rice mainly.  Not anymore.  My carb cravings are completely gone. 

May's results - 9 pounds lost and tons of energy. I can tell the adjustment period is almost over as the side effects have significantly decreased. Bonus!

30 Days Later

Actually, it's been a little longer than 30 days because, well, life happens and brings with it complications.  I was convinced I needed to drink Keto//OS as a smoothie.  My recipe was one packet of ketones, ice, water, and a splash or two of orange juice.  The product I was using tasted exactly like a Dream Sickle minus the vodka. 

Then Spring Break arrived and a road trip from Texas to South Carolina interfered. Then I came home and started and stopped drinking ketones for a month.  Some days I felt crappy, a side effect known as the Keto flu. 

And while I was wondering "what fresh hell is this," my son was entering the final month of first grade. Needless to say, life was busy but I found the time to discuss my progress with the friend who had issued me the 5-day sample.  

Here's what I found out - I wasn't drinking enough water and really all I needed to do was commit to drinking the ketones daily in a glass of water - first thing - the minute I rolled out of bed.  

What I didn't understand was that the science behind KETO//OS is that I was consuming high-grade salts. Not table salt but high-grade sodium - BHB mineral salts which is naturally produced when a person is on a strict low-carb, high-fat diet.  Even though I wasn't technically on a diet changing what I was consuming, by drinking ketones, I was hacking my body into thinking I was on such a diet. #Winning! However, if you are ingesting BHB mineral salts, you must (emphasis here - MUST) drink water.

So, I'll try it this way and increase the water I drink daily.  Stay tuned . . . 

Kim's Keto Challenge

I have a secret to share. Shhhh - don't tell anyone,but this year I turned 50.  The big Five Ohhhhhh. Along with reaching this life milestone, other goodies came my way - weight gain, sleep issues, fatigue, crabby mood swings, and a disturbing lack of focus.  In other words, I was well on my way to what is referred to as The Change.  

And here's another secret to share - I gave birth to my son when I was 43.  This means I am the oldest mom at school and have been asked at least once if he were my grandson. Grrrrrrrr! 

I don't look 50. Still today if I reveal my true age, observers don't believe it. However a good dye job and facials will only take one so far and they only mask what's happening on the outside - not on the inside which, for me, was crumbling rapidly.

The clock is ticking and I know it's time to make significant changes to my lifestyle to counteract the phase my body is intent on experiencing. So here's where my story shifts to a book club. (I know this is weird but bear with me; I promise to bring this tugboat back to shore).

Last December I went to a book club meeting at a friend's house.  We always blend discussion of a book with dinner, so that night we were discussing Fannie Flagg's A Red Bird Christmas while enjoying Southern comfort food. Well most of us were.  One was drinking a jumbo Yeti of water.  To make this part of the story shorter, she revealed she was on a ketone diet and couldn't eat what we were having.

Then another book club member, convinced by witnessing our friend's rapid weight loss, decided to take the ketone challenge and experienced amazing results in an insanely short period of time - give or take six weeks she lost over 20 pounds.  She was sold on a ketone lifestyle - not just the diet - and became a promoter for Pruvit, a Dallas-based company. 

So now with two examples of success with a ketone diet, I am thinking I have nothing to lose. I'll bite and take the 5-day challenge which seems simple. Drink one package of Keto//OS each morning. Having already sampled the orange-flavored ketones, I ordered a 30-day supply, although I've been warned it may take as long as 60 days for my body to adapt to ketosis.

Here it goes . . . wish me luck.