The KetoDick Guide to Keto: Start Here
A ketogenic diet cuts carbohydrates low enough that your body makes ketones from fat, and this guide explains how to do it, step by step, with every claim sourced and nothing for sale.
On this page
- What this guide promises
- What keto is, in one paragraph
- Start here if...
- The 12 chapters, in reading order
- What the research says about keto, in brief
- When to involve your doctor
- How to use this guide
- Related
What this guide promises
Keto made simple, sourced, and free of sponsors. Each chapter answers one question in plain words, shows the research behind the answer, and links to the study so you can check it. Where KetoDick has a video on the topic, the chapter says what he said and links the video. When his view and the research differ, the chapter says both.
There are no affiliate links, no discount codes and no products to buy. Keto does not need special foods or supplements to work. The goal is that you can decide for yourself whether a low-carb approach fits your life, and if it does, build habits that last.
What keto is, in one paragraph
When you eat very few carbs, your body runs low on stored sugar (glycogen). Insulin falls. Your liver starts turning fat into ketones, which your brain and muscles can use as fuel. The liver makes three ketone bodies (acetoacetate, beta-hydroxybutyrate and acetone), and insulin and glucagon control how many it makes (NIH StatPearls, Ketogenesis). A diet that keeps you in that state most of the time is a ketogenic diet. Chapter 1, Keto basics, covers this in detail.
KetoDick on this: he defines keto by the result, not a food list: a ketogenic diet "is not food specific", and any way of eating that keeps you in ketosis counts (video s_sNd1v8Low; video 1JbK1_ClDmY). He also says the goal is low carb, not high fat; fat fills the gap because protein has a ceiling (video cTGYIFOTPl8).
Start here if...
Pick the line that fits you best and start with that chapter. You can read the rest in order later.
| If you are... | Start with | Then read |
|---|---|---|
| New to keto | Keto basics | Starting keto, then Electrolytes |
| Stalled, the scale has not moved in weeks | Plateaus | Fat loss, then Protein |
| Maintaining, you reached your goal or want to | Maintenance | Carbs, then Fat |
| Worried about safety, or on medication | Risks | Who should talk to a doctor, then Medications |
| Confused by headlines about keto | Nutrition science | Risks |
If you take medicine for diabetes or blood pressure, read Medications before you change how you eat. Doses can need to change quickly once carbs drop.
The 12 chapters, in reading order
Each chapter is an overview. Its drill-down pages go deeper on one question each and are linked from inside the chapter.
- Keto basics: what ketosis is, how it differs from ketoacidosis, what "fat adapted" means, what you can eat, and the main types of keto.
- Fat loss: how weight loss works on keto, including energy balance, insulin, hunger, and how keto compares with low-fat diets.
- Starting keto: your first month, whether to taper or go all in, why early weight loss is mostly water, what to track, and a realistic timeline.
- Carbs: how many carbs to eat, net vs total carbs, fiber, sugar alcohols, and where hidden carbs show up.
- Protein: how much protein you need, whether too much is a problem, how it keeps you full, and what changes after 50 or with kidney disease.
- Fat: how much fat to eat, when fat slows weight loss, whether butter coffee helps, and which cooking oils to use.
- Electrolytes: sodium, potassium and magnesium, the "keto flu," how much water to drink, and whether you need vitamins.
- Testing ketosis: urine strips, blood meters and breath meters, what each one measures, and whether you need to test at all.
- Plateaus: how to tell a real stall from normal day-to-day swings, where hidden calories come from, how to break a stall, and progress the scale misses.
- Maintenance: exercise, carbs around workouts, losing fat while keeping muscle, moving off strict keto, and the habits that hold weight steady.
- Risks: who should talk to a doctor first, medications that need watching, cholesterol, common side effects, and keto with an eating-disorder history.
- Nutrition science: how to read a study, why trials and observational studies differ, how to read a diet headline, and the red flags of bad advice.
What the research says about keto, in brief
Keto works for weight loss for many people, but it is not magic, and the advantage over other diets shrinks over time. Here is the short version. Chapter 2, Fat loss, has the detail.
| Question | What the research reports | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Do low-carb diets beat low-fat diets over a year? | 609 adults lost about the same: 6.0 kg on healthy low-carb vs 5.3 kg on healthy low-fat, not a significant difference. The low-carb arm was moderate, not ketogenic. | Gardner 2018, DIETFITS |
| What about over two years? | 322 adults: 4.7 kg lost on low-carb, 4.4 kg Mediterranean, 2.9 kg low-fat. | Shai 2008, DIRECT |
| Across many long trials? | 13 trials of a year or more: very-low-carb keto lost 0.91 kg more than low-fat on average, with lower triglycerides, higher HDL and higher LDL. | Bueno 2013 |
| What do lipid experts conclude? | Not better for long-term weight loss; may give more short-term loss; lowers triglycerides, raises HDL, variable effect on LDL. | National Lipid Association 2019 |
| What do diabetes experts say? | Cutting total carbs has the most evidence for improving blood sugar; low-carb is one of several options. | American Diabetes Association 2019 |
The pattern: keto is one good option, not the only one. The diet that works best is the one you can stick with. That is why this guide spends as much time on hunger, habits and plateaus as on macros.
KetoDick on this: he treats the first month as a learning period, not a painful diet: learn labels and recipes (video 7Aixw4uRksI), learn new foods and shopping, count only carbs, and eat until full (video DoSUgIr2rNo). On protein he says to err high, because too little can mean muscle loss (video UygKGoP_BtA). He also warns that the scale swings day to day and that a weight spike is usually not fat (video f9P8BPWHc4U; video uDw65ERtsA0).
Where his rules changed
His carb number moved over time. His 2017 videos give 20 g of carbs as a starting point, with some people tolerating up to 50 g (video s_sNd1v8Low). His 2018 beginners' video sets 50 g of total carbs as the simple rule and counts total, not net, carbs (video UygKGoP_BtA). Chapter 4, Carbs, lays out both numbers and when each makes sense.
When to involve your doctor
Keto is a change in how you eat, and most healthy adults can try it. Some people should talk to their doctor first, because the change can affect their medicine or a condition:
- You take diabetes medicine. Blood sugar can drop fast when carbs drop, and doses may need to change.
- You take blood pressure medicine. Keto changes how your body holds water and sodium.
- You have kidney disease. Protein and electrolyte changes matter more for you.
- You are pregnant or breastfeeding.
- You have a history of an eating disorder. Strict food rules and tracking can be risky.
Chapter 11, Risks, and its page Who should talk to a doctor cover each case. If you have an eating-disorder history, read Keto and eating disorders before anything else.
KetoDick on this: he says again and again that he is not a doctor or dietitian. He names specific cases: get baseline labs before you start, especially if you are older (video GojQvo_2GS0); check with your doctor if you have type 2 diabetes, pre-diabetes or a kidney issue, or before taking potassium or magnesium supplements (video lbRPlGZ3Rvw); talk to your doctor if you are on medication whose dose may change (video UygKGoP_BtA); and, because some people flirt with anorexia chasing other people's posted results, include your doctor in any calorie-restriction plan (video 7Aixw4uRksI).
How to use this guide
- Read your "start here" chapter first. Use the table above.
- Read the chapter overview before the drill-downs. Each chapter gives the short answer; drill-downs give the detail.
- Check the sources. Every study link goes to its DOI, PubMed or NIH Bookshelf page.
- Change one thing at a time. If you change carbs, protein and fasting in the same week, you will not know which one worked.
- Give it a month. Your first month is for learning and adapting. See Your first month.
Every page ends with a "Last verified" date. Research changes, and pages are rechecked against their sources.
Related
Guide chapters: Keto basics · Fat loss · Starting keto · Carbs · Protein · Fat · Electrolytes · Testing ketosis · Plateaus · Maintenance · Risks · Nutrition science
Guide pages: Your first month · Stall vs fluctuation · Moving off strict keto
Blog posts: Your first week on keto · Keto beginner mistakes · Why am I not losing weight on keto? · Keto plateau after months · Is keto a high-fat diet? · Is keto sustainable long term? · Is keto dangerous? · Blood tests before keto · Talk to your doctor about keto · The DIETFITS study explained
Videos: Keto Basics for Beginners · What is the ketogenic diet and how does it work? · Beginner keto questions and tips · Simple keto and setting up MyFitnessPal · The typical keto weight-loss schedule
Previous: none (this is the start) · Next: Keto basics
Last verified: 2026-10-31