How to Keep High Cholesterol Under Control During Keto
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I recently wrote about the differences between clean and dirty keto. In addition to highlighting some benefits of each, I pointed out some side effects to be aware of. There are several short-term side effects that I’ll explain in detail in another post. Today, I’m here to outline some steps you can take specifically to combat long-term side effects of the keto diet, such as increased cholesterol and heightened risk of heart disease.
Here are some questions I’ll address:
- Why does cholesterol increase when you’re in ketosis?
- Should I do keto if I already have high cholesterol?
- Should I be worried if my cholesterol increases during keto?
- What steps can I take to lower my cholesterol?
- How fast can you lower your cholesterol?
My advice will be especially relevant to people who have done “dirty” keto and are worried about their cholesterol levels being too high. In my previous post, I shared how horrible my own cholesterol levels were while at the peak of my dirty keto run. Since then, I’ve taken steps (during the diet and for a while after) to make sure my lipid panel is under control. Let’s get into it!
Why does cholesterol increase when you’re in ketosis?
Having increased triglyceride and cholesterol levels is normal when you’re burning fat. Your body begins a process called lipolysis, at which point it’s essentially drawing energy from its reserves (fat). This releases fat into your bloodstream, which triggers an increase in triglycerides; meanwhile, as your fat stores are shrinking, cholesterol has nowhere to go but the bloodstream. However, there are certain things you can do to try and keep everything under control.
Should I do keto if I already have high cholesterol?
There’s no question that doing Keto and losing weight will increase your cholesterol and your triglycerides, as I mentioned this is only normal when you’re in fat burning mode. However, if those levels are high by default, you definitely want to talk to your physician to decide the best course of action.
Doctors will usually advise losing some extra weight in order to control cholesterol, but it really all depends on how much that extra is. If it’s 10–15 lb just to get ready for summer, it’s not a big deal. But if you’re looking to transform yourself and go through some serious weight loss, you definitely need to take steps to keep your cholesterol under control. So, seek medical advice and take precautions before starting the keto diet if you already have high cholesterol.
Should I be worried if my cholesterol increases during keto?
I wish the answer was simple, but I’d say yes and no at the same time.
It really depends on what you’re doing and for how long. If you’re looking to lose only 5–6 lb over a couple of months and you noticed your levels were high during that time, I probably wouldn’t worry about it too much. Your levels are likely to go back to normal after you reach your goals and go off keto.
However, if you have over 50–60 lb to lose and you’re losing it quickly due to the effectiveness of the keto diet, I’d say you need to weigh your options here. Multiple factors come into play, including the duration of your keto diet as well as the quality of fats you’re eating.
If your cholesterol levels are over the upper limit and you still have a ways to go before reaching your weight goal, you should take some precautionary steps to keep the risks of long-term side effects at bay.
What steps can I take to lower my cholesterol?
Any time one of my clients loses significant weight on keto, I want to make sure that their lipid levels (among other things) are within the medically defined normal range after completing the diet – provided they were within the normal range to begin with. Either way, you want to end up within the normal range regardless of your starting point, if possible. Here are a few things to help you get there:
This one goes without saying. Physical activity has countless benefits and it doesn’t require much effort. Even though I’m a big fan of weight lifting, truth is you don’t need a gym membership in order to be active – it’s free!
If you’re not into weight lifting, or the gym in general, the best advice I can give you is to walk at least 30–45 minutes in the morning before eating anything. Do this at least 5 times per week.
It’s so easy to do and it’s free, it’ll give you a chance to wake up properly and clear your head before diving into the work day. You can even listen to some music or, better yet, some audio books (my recommendation) or podcasts.
If you have a gym membership, I’d suggest lifting weights at least 3 times a week for 40–45 minutes, with around 15 minutes of warm-up beforehand. Start off with 10–15 minutes of cardio to get your heart rate up. Don’t go crazy, but it’s fine if you break a sweat.
Giving general advice on how to train can be a bit tricky because there are so many things that go into it. Overall, my advice is to keep your time at the gym short, sweet, and effective. Generally it’s a good idea to incorporate one or more compound movements and then hit some smaller muscle groups right after.
On your off days from the gym, you should definitely do some cardio. Between 30–60 minutes of steady-state cardio will do great things for your cardiovascular health.
If your Omega-3 intake is low, consider adding more salmon, mackerel, and chia seeds. Omega-3 fatty acids are beneficial for your blood pressure as well as your lipid levels. They effectively lower triglycerides and raise your “good” HDL cholesterol levels.
If you’re a smoker you should definitely consider dropping this habit and replacing it with a better one. Smoking increases your “bad” LDL cholesterol and triglycerides. If your approach to keto isn’t as clean as it should be, multiple contributors to high cholesterol will add up over time and this can leave you with some lasting side effects. So why not take this risk factor out of the equation?
Lastly, there’s a couple of really useful over-the-counter supplements out there that can help you keep your cholesterol under control:
By far the one that helped me out the most would be Berberine HCL, a compound traditionally used in Chinese medicine. Berberine is found and extracted from a wide variety of herbs and trees, and is usually concentrated in the stem, bark, or roots.
Taking Berberine HCL can:
And more…
Dosage: It’s usually recommended to take 1,500 mg daily (3x 500 mg) along with your meal.
Niacin is a B vitamin. It’s effective and doctors usually recommend it to patients with high cholesterol or heart disease concerns.
A few foods which are rich in Niacin are:
Eating only 85 g of liver will put you at 91% of the recommended daily amount! But, most people aren’t consuming liver on a daily basis, so it’s best to substitute it with a Niacin supplement.
Dosage: 14 mg for women and 16 mg for men daily.
This is a supplement you should be taking whether you’re on keto or not. It’s just one of those things that can only benefit you. Omega-3 fish oils can help manage a lot of health concerns, here’s just a few:
...There are probably more reasons for you to supplement with omega-3’s than not to!
Dosage: Typically 1,100 mg for women and 1,600 mg for men
How fast can you lower your cholesterol?
Everyone’s different, but in general it takes anywhere from several weeks to several months to lower your cholesterol naturally. By following the steps outlined above, I managed to get my cholesterol under control pretty quick. Down below you can see my cholesterol levels side by side after only 2 months. Now, it’s entirely possible that they were already in the normal range a month after I ended keto, but I can’t say that with certainty since I did my blood work 2 months after I finished the diet.
Take into consideration that there are a lot of variables that affect your cholesterol level and the time needed to bring it back to normal.
If you’re only taking supplements and disregarding all the other available steps, such as physical activity and better nutrition, chances are you’ll only lower your cholesterol to a certain extent and stay there indefinitely.
Understanding Supplementation
The dosages I included above are general recommendations to help you get going in the right direction. My advice is to always do your own research! Be sure to discuss your options with a physician before starting keto and taking supplements, especially if you have concerns about your cholesterol or heart health.
Supplementing with some of these things may help you reduce the symptoms and long-term side effects of keto. However, you shouldn’t rely on supplements to do all the work for you. Supplements are a great tool to support you in achieving your goals as long as all the pieces are in the right place – which is where the simple, but effective lifestyle changes I recommended come into the picture.
Here’s a comparison of my cholesterol levels while I was doing “dirty” keto vs. my results a month and a half after my keto run:
During keto
A month and a half after Keto
Conclusion
By now you probably realized that there are a lot of moving pieces when it comes to controlling cholesterol, especially on keto. Most people looking to lose weight aren’t too concerned about understanding the possible long-term side effects, so long as they’re losing weight. Hopefully, this article gave you a bit of insight on just how important it is to acknowledge those side effects, and guidance on how to keep them at bay.
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