I wanted to share a few things that I rely on in my health journey, including the keto diet. I tried them at different times, for different reasons, but now they are a mainstay.

Bulletproof Brand MCT Oil

MCT oil was recommended to me by a trainer at Studio Alpha. Lisa is amazing and she explained the benefits of the MCT compound found in coconut oil for joint health, gut health, and appetite suppression when doing intermittent fasting. You must be careful and start with small doses and work up to a full serving of 1 Tbs. It can be very hard on the stomach if you take too much. I gave it a good 3 weeks of half a teaspoon and worked my way up.

CALM Magnesium Citrate Supplement

I started taking a magnesium supplement when I learned that magnesium deficiency can be a factor in anxiety and depression. We can get magnesium in our food, but since the soil on commercial farms is becoming nutrient-depleted from over-farming, there is less magnesium and other nutrients available in our food. I take this at night as I still work towards getting off my anti-depressants. I dissolve 2 tsp of the powder in a little bit of hot water, then I add more cold water and maybe a little bit of stevia sweetened lemonade. It not only helps me sleep, but it helps keep things moving, if you know what I mean. 😜 Sometimes people report constipation being an issue when they start keto, so this helps with that.

Bubly or LaCroix Sparkling Water

When I transitioned off artificial sweeteners last February, this was a lifesaver. For years I struggled to quit the Diet 7-Up at dinner time. Once I gave up all artificial sweeteners, it made it much easier to give up the diet sodas. I sneak cans or bottles of this in my purse and bring it to the movies, and I find it at convenience stores, or I stock up and travel with it. Perfect for the keto lifestyle, and for gut health because it has no aspartame that can contribute to leaky gut syndrome and inflammation.

Oscar Mayer Portable Protein Pack

Finding snacks at convenience stores when I’ve forgotten to pack my own and I’m starving is really challenging. These are my favorite. I like cheese, but I have to have something crunchy with them, so I rarely would eat cheese by itself without a cracker of some sort. The almonds are crunchy and salty enough that they are a great substitute for crackers.

Nurse Hatty Professional Grade Ketone Test Strips

This are the test strips I use to see if I’m in ketosis. Very easy to use and to read. 40 seconds and you know. Very interesting fact…if there is ANY color change at all, even if it is slight, you are in ketosis. After I leaned that I didn’t get hung up on how deep the color was or wasn’t.

I’m sure I will do more of my “favorites” as I go along. I have people asking me about these things specifically so I thought I’d do a blog entry around these tools. As you were….