In short: Being fat adapted means your body can easily burn fat for energy and switch between fuel sources. To get there, eat enough fat, cut back on carbohydrates, try intermittent fasting and exercise regularly. It takes some people two to three weeks and others a few months, depending on how you ate before.
If you want to be a fat-burning machine, then becoming fat adapted should be at the top of your list of goals.
What Does It Mean To Be Fat Adapted?
Being fat adapted basically means being a fat burner. It means that your body can burn fat for energy easily and switch between burning fat and burning carbohydrates.
Anyone who has tried to lose fat knows that it does not usually disappear without putting up a fight. You have to train your body to burn fat for energy.
In our modern society, most people eat a lot of carbohydrates. Our bodies like to use glucose as a source of energy, which it gets from sugar and carbohydrates. Carbohydrates can be burned easily and provide energy quickly.
But when your available glucose runs out, your blood sugar levels will crash. To then get energy again, instead of switching to burning your stored fat, your body starts searching for more glucose.
If you’re not fat adapted and run out of glucose, your body will start to break down muscle to turn it into glucose through a process called gluconeogenesis.
On the other hand, if you are fat adapted, your body can take your stored fat and turn it into ketones to use for energy.
What Are The Benefits of Being Fat Adapted?
There are many benefits to becoming fat adapted. They include:
- Burning fat. When you are fat adapted, your body will burn your fat when it doesn’t have access to energy from the food you have eaten recently.
- You can switch between using fat and carbohydrates as an energy source, which is extra beneficial if you are an athlete or just pushing yourself athletically. If you have carbohydrates before an event or strenuous exercise and you run out of available glucose for energy, your body can switch to burning fat. This will help you to maintain good energy levels for longer.
- It will become much easier for you to go for extended periods without food. This is because your body can easily burn your fat. If you eat a lot of carbs, you will become hungry a lot sooner. Being fat adapted makes it easier to do things like intermittent fasting and extended fasting.
- Having fewer cravings. Because you have fewer blood sugar fluctuations when you are fat adapted, you will also have fewer cravings. You might have cravings when you first cut out carbs and sugar and start a ketogenic or carnivore diet while your body adapts. But once you’ve adapted, the cravings should reduce significantly.
How Do You Become Fat Adapted?
So you’ve realised that becoming fat adapted is a worthy goal, but how do you do it? Here are a few things you can do that will help you become fat adapted:
Eat Fat to Become Fat Adapted
If your goal is to train your body to burn fat for energy, then you will need to eat enough fat. This is good news for anybody who wants to lose fat and has always loved butter. Increase your intake of healthy fats like butter, beef tallow, bone marrow, fatty cuts of meat, cocoa butter, egg yolks, and fatty fish like salmon.
A ketogenic diet will help you become fat-adapted because of the high fat and low carb content. On a keto diet, you are getting 70% to 90% of your calories from fat. Over time, your body will become used to burning fat for energy.
You can condition your body to become a fat-burning machine by saying no to a low-fat diet and welcoming more fat in your life.
Reduce Your Intake of Carbohydrates
You won’t become fat-adapted if you are eating too many carbohydrates. A low-carb, high-fat diet like the ketogenic diet is recommended if being a fat burner is your goal.
This doesn’t mean you can never have carbs again. Not at all. But while you are training your body to prefer fat as a source of energy, lowering your carbohydrate intake is crucial.
Once you are fully fat-adapted, you can start carbohydrate cycling, where you can cycle between following a ketogenic diet and eating carbohydrates and do each for a few weeks or months at a time. You can also restrict your carbohydrates to one meal per day, or only have it on the weekends.
It is up to you, but until you are fat-adapted, have some fun experimenting with the wonders of a ketogenic diet or even a carnivore diet.
The carnivore diet is also a great diet to teach your body how to burn fat for energy. If you avoid dairy products and honey, and also make sure you eat enough fat, then the carnivore diet is a very low-carb diet and even zero-carb diet that will help you become fat-adapted in no time.
Try Intermittent Fasting
The truth is that your body will not burn your fat for fuel if it always has access to energy from the food that you have eaten. Taking longer breaks between meals, not snacking, and fasting for 12 to 23 hours a day (once again, your choice) will allow your body to burn your stored fat for energy.
Intermittent fasting will be a lot easier after a few weeks of following a ketogenic diet. Doing so will allow your body time to become used to burning fat instead of glucose.
You can become fat adapted without following a ketogenic diet if you are intermittent fasting. But the two together make a great combination. If you are a woman, however, it is best to limit fasting to the follicular phase of your cycle. During the luteal phase (which starts just after ovulation), your cortisol levels are generally higher, and you don’t want to add more stress by fasting during this time.
Rather wait until the week just after your period to experiment with fasting.
Exercise Regularly
Exercise will help you burn more energy throughout the day, and therefore, it will help you tap into your stored fat faster.
Exercise can deplete your glycogen stores, which forces your body to seek alternative sources of energy.
Workouts that target multiple muscle groups at once will be the most effective.
How Long Does It Take To Get Fat Adapted?
For some people, it only takes two or three weeks before they are fat-adapted. For others, it might take a few months.
How quickly you become fat adapted also depends on what your diet was like previously and how you are eating while trying to become fat adapted.
It will take you much longer to become fat adapted if you are coming from a junk food diet than a paleo diet.
And the more disciplined you are during your fat adaptation journey, the faster you are likely to reach your goal.
How Do You Know If You Are Fat Adapted?
- You can go for long periods without food and get less hungry during the day
- You don’t experience blood sugar fluctuations
- You don’t crave carbohydrates or sugar
- You feel satiated with smaller amounts of food
- You have more energy
Now that you know how to become fat adapted and why it should be one of your goals, you can start taking the steps necessary to turn your body into a fat-burning machine.
Whether your goal is to lose weight, improve athletic performance, or just be able to survive in the wilderness if you struggle to find food, becoming fat adapted is something that will help you greatly in terms of your health.
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Frequently asked questions
What does it mean to be fat adapted?
Your body can burn fat for energy easily and switch between burning fat and carbohydrates.
How long does it take to become fat adapted?
Anywhere from two or three weeks to a few months. It usually takes longer if you’re coming from a diet high in processed food.
How do you know if you’re fat adapted?
Common signs include going longer between meals without getting very hungry, fewer cravings for carbs or sugar, feeling full on smaller portions and steadier energy.
