HOW TO MEASURE FAT BURNING WHEN FASTING. KETONE STICKS.

Before you click off thinking this is only relevant to people following the ketogenic diet, I promise you it isn’t. In fact, this post is for people who do not follow the diet but are interested in mastering the art of fasting.

Ketone strips are an excellent measuring and accountability tool for anyone who practices extended (24 hours +) fasting.

Find out why I like to use them, what to use them for, how and where to purchase them.

WHAT ARE KETONE STICKS?

Ketone sticks are also known as diabetes urine strips initially created for people with type 1 diabetes who can overproduce ketones due to lack of insulin.

The body produces ketones by breaking down fat ready to be used as an alternative source of energy to sugar. Ketones can be measured in your breath, blood and urine. 

Ketone sticks determine whether you’re in ketosis or not by simply peeing on them.

The strips turn progressively darker shades of pink depending on how deep into ketosis you are. The more ketones you produce, the darker the colour of your urine strip. 

This is a helpful, non-invasive and the least expensive method of measuring ketosis. 

Keep in mind that this is not the most accurate method but if you simply want to know whether you are in ketosis, ketone sticks will give you the answer. 

They come in a pack of fifty or a hundred and therefore you can keep measuring as often as you wish. 

Be aware that the ketone sticks become inaccurate two or more months after opening.

WHY I USE THEM WHEN FASTING

I first started using ketone sticks when I experimented with extended fasting. Extended fasting generally refers to a fast which is longer than 24 hours. 

FAT BURNING

I was curious to see whether I’m truly burning fat. Not only that but moreover how long was it going to take.

Then I became interested to see what takes me out of a fasted state and what doesn’t. 

FAST BREAKING 

There is so much conflicting information out there about diet drinks and artificial sweeteners, what if I could use the ketone strips to find out how my body reacts. 

That’s exactly what I did. 

I drank diet drinks and diet energy drinks, all in the name of science of course, and used ketone sticks to determine whether diet drinks stop me from entering ketosis. The same way I could measure how much I can get away with before I’m taken out of ketosis. 

WHAT CAN YOU MEASURE

Most people use ketone sticks to see whether they’re in ketosis. 

Secondly, you can monitor how long it is going to take you to reach the coveted fat-burning stage. 

KNOW WHAT BREAKS YOUR FAST

What I find invaluable is to be able to tell what breaks a fast and what doesn’t, once you’re already in ketosis. 

Breaking a fast merely signifies a rise in insulin. You can not burn fat in the presence of insulin, therefore the main principle of fasting centres around keeping insulin low.

Technically, if something has taken you out of the ketogenic state, that something raised your blood sugar which subsequently required insulin response. 

STOP GUESSING

Instead of guessing whether the tea your drink, or the lemon juice you like to add in your water, or a piece of your favourite chewing gum breaks a fast, use ketone sticks to know for sure.

Not only can you use ketone sticks to measure whether or not you’re burning fat, but you can also figure out what breaks or doesn’t break your fast. 

ARE YOU BURNING FAT?

How long does it take you to start running primarily on ketones?

If you’re doing an extended fast, your body would have switched to using fat for fuel within 24 – 36 hours.  You would have reached the state of ketosis regardless of the diet you follow. 

Yes, you will reach ketosis even if your last meal was high in carbohydrates as long as you fast long enough to deplete your glycogen (sugar) stores.  

QUICKER FOR SOME

This varies from person to person. If you’re new to fasting, eat a high carb diet and don’t exercise, it will take you longer to reach ketosis than for someone who is already fat adapted and who also exercises regularly.

From my experience, I generally reach measurable ketosis after 30 hours of fasting (even if my last meal before fasting was high in carbohydrates).

If you’re practising Alternate Day Fasting or a 36 hour fast, measuring your ketones would elevate your fasting experience. You will see the fat coming out which is highly encouraging if you’re fasting for fat loss.

Once you know how long it takes for you to start burning primarily fat for fuel, you can make appropriate adjustments. 

WHAT BREAKS YOUR FAST?

Experimenting on yourself is the best way to know what breaks and doesn’t break a fast for YOU.

You don’t want to compromise hours of fasting by unknowingly breaking it with your favourite drink which you believed was fasting-safe.   

DIRTY FASTING

If you’re doing a 30+ hour fast and you drink a zero energy drink, diet soda, flavoured water or you opt for flavoured electrolytes, make sure to measure your ketones.

If your strip doesn’t change colour even after 36 + hours you know that these drinks have most likely elevated your insulin and prevented fat burning. 

The only way to truly know what breaks a fast is to measure it for yourself. 

STRUGGLING TO GET INTO KETOSIS?

If you find out that despite extended fasting you’re not reaching ketosis, here are some adjustments you can make that will help you: 

LOWER YOUR SUGAR INTAKE

• the more sugar you eat the longer it is going to take you to get into the fat-burning stage
• your body will always use its sugar stores first, before accessing and burning body fat 
• lowering your sugar/carbohydrate intake before fasting will help you reach ketosis quicker
• prioritise protein, healthy fats and fibre
• one or two days before your fast, make some adjustments in your diet: for example, instead of potatoes try mashed cauliflower or roasted vegetables with a lot of protein and some healthy fats, try full-fat Greek yoghurt for a dessert instead of sugary cakes.

CLEAN FASTING ONLY

• practice clean fasting only; drink water, black coffee or tea without any sweeteners, milk or flavour drops
• avoid chewing gum, mints or anything that could compromise your fasting efforts
• use water-only fasting as your baseline

MOVE MORE

• any physical activity, walking, taking the stairs, dancing, cleaning, gardening, working out will help your body burn more energy
• burning more energy means your body will use up its glycogen stores at a much faster speed
• depleting glycogen stores leads to your body turning to fat stores for the extra energy it needs

DO IT FASTED

• if you exercise, plan to work out during your fasting window, ideally towards the end so that you can eat straight after your training

SUMMARY

Ketone urine strips are a great tool for everyone who lives an intermittent fasting lifestyle.  Even if you’re not committed to a low carb diet you will find many uses for them.

This little measuring tool is inexpensive, non-invasive (no need to draw blood from your finger) and widely available.

You can purchase a pack of fifty or several hundred online (available on Amazon and eBay) or from your local pharmacy.

Bear in mind the strips tend to expire after 2-6 months from opening.

JUST PEE ON IT

They are very easy to use, you can take a urine sample or even just pee directly on the stick. The strip should change colour depending on the concentration of ketones in your urine. The darker the colour the higher the concentration of ketones.

If you want a more accurate method consider a ketone blood meter.

Hope you found this helpful and you feel more confident about monitoring your own fat burning xox