Discover the 19 foods that you need to ditch from your life if you want to get into – and stay in – ketosis.
The goal of the ketogenic diet is to rid your body of glucose so that it can turn to fat for energy. To do that you need to keep your carbs very low.
That means you’ve got to be on top of everything you eat. No more than 5 to 10% of calories per day should be carbs.
Knowing exactly what NOT to eat is critical to your keto success. In this article, we present the 19 foods that top the keto no-go list.
19 Foods to Avoid On Keto for Ketosis
1. Bread
For many people, bread is among the hardest foods to give up on keto. But with 15-20 grams of carbs per slice, there’s just no way around it – you’ve just gotta’ ditch the grains.
The big problem with bread is wheat.
Your body will convert it to glucose and this will spike your insulin levels, resulting in the storage of sugar as body fat.
2. Corn
Corn is way too high in carbs to have any place on a keto diet menu.
A single cup of the stuff will pack 123 grams of carbs into your body, with hardly any fats or proteins. That is more carbs than many keto dieters will consume in a week!
3. Quinoa
Despite the many health benefits of quinoa, it is simply too high in carbs to be part of a ketogenic diet plan.
A 100-gran serving will deliver 18.5 grams of carbs. Swap quinoa out for such keto-friendly alternatives as broccoli or cauliflower.
4. Cake
Cake is more a category than an individual food.
However, that doesn’t really matter here. All types of cake are going to be too high in carbs to be allowed on the keto diet. They are packed full of sugar, which will cause havoc to your insulin levels and keep you out of ketosis.
5. Milk
Any type of milk that comes from a mammal is going to be no good on the keto diet. That’s because they all contain relatively high levels of lactose or milk sugar. An average serving of milk will provide around 12 grams of sugar.
The most keto-friendly milk is the full-fat version. You can substitute with coconut or almond milk.
6. Apples
Many people are surprised to learn that some natural foods, like fruit, are not compatible with the keto diet.
The reason is quite simply that they contain too many carbohydrates.
When you eat an apple, you will be putting close to 20 grams of carbs into your system. That is a whole day’s worth of carbs for strict keto followers!
7. Bananas
Bananas are another healthy fruit that is out of bounds on keto. With 97% of its calories coming from carbs, it’s not hard to see why.
An average banana will provide you with around 24 grams of carbs. The riper the fruit, the more sugar it will contain. Swap out bananas for the keto-friendly avocado.
8. Grapes
Grapes are yet another otherwise healthy fruit that are no-go on keto.
Once more they contain far too many sugars in the way of fructose. A 100-gram serving will provide you with 22 grams of carbs.
Replace grapes with raspberries or blueberries.
9. Watermelon
Few things are as refreshing on a hot summer’s day as watermelon. The sad news for keto lovers is that it is one more fruit that is way too high in carbs.
A moderate 280-gram slice of watermelon delivers 22 grams of carbs to your body. Swap it out with berries or avocado.
10. French Fries
French fries are definitely not keto-friendly. That’s not surprising when we remember that they are simply fried potatoes.
A medium serving of fries from your favorite fast-food restaurant will add around 40 grams of carbs to your day!
Replace French fries with cauliflower fries.
11. Honey
Honey has a lot of health benefits. However, it is just too high in carbs to make it into the keto food list. In fact, honey is almost entirely sugar, delivering 17 grams of carbs per serving.
Satisfy your sweet tooth with keto-friendly stevia or erythritol.
12. Ice Cream
We all love ice cream. And we all know that it’s not good for our waistlines. While it’s easy to rationalize our way through an ice cream cone on a hot day, keto diet followers do not have that luxury.
There are just too many sugars in ice cream for it not to blow out your keto diet.
13. Candy
It may seem pretty obvious that candy is off-limits for keto. But there are a number of candy products on the market they label themselves as sugar-free.
The truth is that they are not. Most of them will provide you with around 20 grams of carbs per serving.
A lot of them will come from sugar alcohols, allowing the marketers to label them as having very low net carbs.
14. Pizza
Pizza is definitely on the keto no-go list. Most of the carbs are found in the crust. Thick crust pizzas can deliver as much as 30 grams of carbs, with about 25 slices for a thin crust pizza.
Sauces can add another 5 grams. Make your own low carb version of pizza using cauliflower for the crust. Just don’t buy a store-bought cauli pizza base.
It uses high carbohydrate starches.
15. Rice
Rice forms the basis of many cuisines. But, if you switch to keto, you will have to change your ways. A cup of rice contains about 45 grams of carbs.
Most people, though, tend to overeat rice. So, a typical meal could easily provide you with a hundred or more grams from carbs.
That is a disaster for anyone who is trying to get into or stay in ketosis.
Replace standard rice with cauliflower rice.
16. Cashew Nuts
Cashew nuts taste so good that they are very easy to overeat.
A 2-ounce serving, numbering about 36 cashews, will add 15 grams of carbs to your body. That makes cashews one of the worst nut choices on keto. You can still eat carbs on keto.
Just select a low carb version, such as pecans or macadamia nuts.
17. Beans
Beans provide a great source of vegetarian protein. Unfortunately, it also contains a lot of carbohydrates.
A half-cup serving of beans will provide you with between 11-15 grams, depending on what type you consume. The exception is black soybeans, which contain only 1 gram of carb per half-cup serving.
18. Corn Oil
Corn oil is considered to be a bad fat. You should avoid this processed polyunsaturated fat on keto. Replace it with such keto-friendly alternatives as coconut or palm oil.
19. Fruit-Flavored Yogurt
There is a huge assortment to pick from when it comes to selecting yogurt. Many of them are packed with sugar and artificial flavorings. These that have added fruits are even worse because the fruit syrup contains even more sugars.
Stick to natural Greek yogurt. If you want added fruit, mix the yogurt up with fresh raspberries or blueberries.
Final Word
Avoiding some of the foods on our Top 19 Keto No-Go list will be a real challenge. Many people have grown up on staples such as bread and rice. Others have problems wrapping their head around the idea of cutting out ‘healthy’ fruits such as grapes and apples.
Fortunately, this list of keto-approved foods in just as extensive and provides a whole host of delicious offerings that will make you forget about the carb-laden foods on this list!
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