I canāt remember exactly when I first began to diet. The earliest recollection I have was my freshman year in college, obviously I gained the obligatoryĀ āFreshman 15.ā A girlfriend of mine was a distributor for Herbal Life ā the program included shakes as well as about one million herbal pills.
At some point, I hopped on the Weight Watcher train. My Mother is a āliferā ā meaning she met her goal weight, and for the rest of eternity, will be known as a Life Long member...even if she doesnāt maintain the goal weight.Ā My entire childhood, even until today ā on the cusp of turning 40 years old ā she still toggles on and off diets regularly...gaining and losing the same 20-30 pounds. We are kindred spirits with a fondness for carbs, but she prefers salty and I prefer sweets.
Over the past five years, I tried WW again, another company with shakes and pills, Whole 30, and I even made up my own program which basically included not eating any processed foods.
Before I got pregnant, I was about 20 pounds overweight. Technically, I actually āshouldā have weighed 40 pounds less, according to BMI algorithms, but my body has always enjoyed extra padding. I donāt think my infastructure is meant to be stick thin.Ā Going into a process where your body willingly puts on weight in order to grow a human, and youāre already carrying extra poundage, certainly isnāt ideal.
I dropped some weight after giving birth, because said human left my midsection. Then, Iād like to think, that breastfeeding knocked off a few more pounds. Many months later, I eventually got down to the weight I started with when I was pregnant ā which was ā 20 pounds overweight. Sigh.
In June, eight and a half months after giving birth, I stopped breastfeeding, and hadnāt worked out...not even broken a sweat...since right before giving birth. My entire pregnancy, all 41 weeks, I worked out religiously at CrossFit, and then never looked back once becoming a Mommy. This isnāt because I didnāt want to do overhead squats and crazy WODs, but because my baby didnāt sleep. I was essentially a zombie for her first year of life, while juggling and navigating postpartum depression.
Over the summer, while visiting my parentsā home, a friend from childhood came over to see my daughter and catch up. To my surprise, she dropped dozens and dozens of pounds. Our figures are very similar, we could even pass for sisters from below the neck. I was impressed by her success, and curious how she did it. Meanwhile, my Mother sat in the background at the kitchen table, overhearing our entire conversation, and decided she wanted in on the āKetogenicāĀ program, known as Keto.
Just like my Mom, I have historically lost weight for an event. Weddings were my go-to weight loss event, particularly when I was a bridesmaid (12 times no less). This particular time around, my Mom wanted to lose weight for a cruise she was going on in September; she went on the ship 15 pounds lighter but then subsequently didnāt stick to Keto.
For the next few weeks, after my initial talk with the successful Keto friend, I cannonballed headfirst into Google research. I consumed videos, read articles, watched more videos, and then read some more articles. After my sisterās wedding in early August, during the 13 hour drive back from New York, I spent some more time reading, and reading, and reading. It probably didnāt hurt that I also became privy to photos of me from the wedding ā not only did I immediately realize I sadly no longer needed to wear nursing bras with zero support (Dear God, why didnāt anyone tell me?!?), but I did in fact need to get healthier. My body and face looked inflamed, and I was tired of not being able to wear my pre-pregnancy jeans.
I asked countless follow-up questions to my successful Keto friend, and also to another gal who lost a massive amount of weight following the Keto program (under a doctorās supervision). I decided I was in.
My personality, at a microscopic level, is all in or nothing at all; I do not know what half-assing means. Some people call this discipline, I call it not wasting my time.
So on August 13th, I officially weighed in and measured my Mommy curves to begin the journey on a ketogenic diet. Iāve had curves since I hit puberty. I embrace them, and love that my strong legs resemble tree trunks. An hour glass figure isnāt the worst card to be dealt. So when I say curves, I just mean the extra thickkkkk curves that came with pregnancy.Ā
I wasnāt strict as far as counting macros, I simply counted (in my head) the number of net carbs I was consuming. Thatās how my friend did it, so I figured Iād follow her lead. As it turned out, I personally needed to count my macros (ratio of protein / fat / carbs) in order to follow Keto correctly. I began using a free and easy app called Carb Manager for about two months until I got the hang of things and havenāt used it since because now I know whatās what.
Some people call Keto a diet, Iād like to think itās my new lifestyle. I have absolutely no idea how long Iāll follow this lifestyle. Iām not naive enough to say for my lifetime, but it definitely isnāt going to be a shortlived stint.Ā
This process has been incredibly humbling at a visceral level. For starters, I am embarrassed to admit how incredibly ignorant I used to be when it came to judging things I knew nothing about. One of my best friends, who is fighting a chronic heart condition, first brought up the word āKetoā over the phone last year. I immediately snubbed the idea, exacerbated, I said, āitās just like Atkinsā (which was meant to be a negative connotation), and shut down the thought of her doing this diet. For the record, itās not like Atkins (that program touts high protein, whereas Keto is moderate protein ā this is signficant because too much protein can be turned into glucose/sugar).Ā
āThe biggest form of ignorance is rejecting something you know nothing about.ā - Wayne Dyer
The Ketogenic gurus are also hyper focused on not eating fake sugar, particularly lots of phony faux sweetners that are labeledĀ āKetoā on the package, but are absolutely not Keto-approved because they will still spike your blood sugar levels as if youāre actually eating sugar.Ā
{Source: Epilepsy Foundation}
The name ketogenic means that it produces ketones in the body. (keto = ketone; genic = producing) Ketones are formed when the body uses fat for its source of energy.
Usually the body uses carbohydrates (such as sugar, bread, pasta) for its fuel. Because the ketogenic diet is very low in carbohydrates, fats become the primary fuel instead. The body can work very well on ketones (and fats).
Ketones are not dangerous. They can be detected in the urine, blood, and breath. Ketones are one of the more likely mechanisms of action of the diet, with higher ketone levels often leading to improved seizure control. However, there are many other theories for why the diet will work.
Secondly, for as long as my temporal lobes can recall, I have been adamantly against fastingā¦and, Iām not exactly sure why. Again, just another position I claimed with literally zero education or facts. My husband, for years and years, suggested I workout while fasting. I swore to him that I would fall flat on my face if I ever tried such an absurd strategy.Ā
Since I have been a devout low calorie follower, Iāve been chronically hungry. I was brainwashed to believe, with most of America, to have Fatphobia. I drank skim milk, which has a lot of sugar. I ate low fat packaged snacks, which were packed full of sugar. I ate mini meals all day long, 6 times a day. In other words, I was spiking my insulin all day long. My purse was always, without fail, full of munchies. Protein bars, crackers, apples, and a myriad of other nibbles. I would not, could not, leave my house without emergency food within armās reach. God forbid I got hungry and immediately turned hangry. Come to think of it, I was basically a 5ā²4ā³ child who was, at any given time, on the verge of a meltdown from beingĀ ravenousness. I didnāt quite realize it, but I was starving myself, and yet ironically, still overweight.
When I started Keto, my motivation was weight loss. But, whatāsĀ fascinating, is learning that weight loss is actually a side effect. The Ketogenic diet was originally designed for people who suffered from epilepsy and helped control their seizures. Ketogenic eating has been known to decrease inflammation in the body, eliminate diseases such as diabetes or heart conditions, sleep issues, GI troubles, and the resolution list goes on and on.Ā
What Iāve learned is that our bodies have 2 primary sources of fuel ā glucose Ā (sugar / carbs), and fat. When you eliminate or greatly reduce glucose / sugar / carbs, your body will eventually start to burn fat for fuel. Luckily, I have a tremendous amount of excess fat thatās been waiting for an intevention.Ā
There is an enormous amount of misinformation āout thereāĀ about eating Keto, and I am the first to admit I was super skeptical before I did my homework.Ā
Keto can get a bad rap for eating unlimited bacon, cheese, and bacon cheeseburgers. The other night, while out to eat with a group of ladies, for an appetizer I had a wedge salad (which includes veggiesc and crumbled blue cheese), and for dinner I had broccoli, asparagus, and a delicious steak. I put a little bit of real butter on my veggies. Also, the table enjoyed an array of desserts and not only did I not partake in the sugar fix, I didnāt even want any / I didnāt feel like I was missing out. In my past carb-laden life, I plunged my spoon into the dish first, and shoveled the brownie and ice cream into my pie hole as fast as I possibly could. There are varying versions of keto, that range from ādirtyā to āclean.ā When you eat dirty Keto, thatās what has given the program an unhealthy shadiness reputation on the streets. I fall in line closer to the cleaner side of keto, but have my dirty moments, and always eat organic, nitrate-free, etc. whenever possible. Oh and for the record, I usually drink one glass of red wine with my dinners. I may have lost weight, but I havenāt lost my damn mind.Ā I draw the line at giving up my vino, thatās non-negotiable, and more importantly ā Iāve been able to stay in ketosis. And yes I eat a small serving of fruit from time to time, berries are the best option and happen to be my favorite.Ā
Because every one is different, literally and metaphorically, results vary. My personal journey was that I shrunk in size, but the scale didnāt have impressive numbers to show for my effort.Ā
Come October, on the same day that my daughter turned one year old, I joined a gym. By that time, I had two months of Keto under my belt. Since I was a CrossFit junkie for 3 years pre-baby, I had to check my ego at the fitness facilityās door and slowly take it one day at a time. Besides picking up a baby thousands of times, I really hadnāt moved a muscle in 365 days. My body went through an enormous metamorphosis after making a little person, and I knew in my bones that I truly had to ease my way back into a safe grove. I sat down with a registered nurse at the gym and she did a body mass analysis using a machine that can calculate your composition make-up.Ā
This is where my self-fulfilling prophecy manifested, in the form of a personal case study. During college, I sucked at all things math, but ironically I was a wanna-be wizard at statistics. I got a B+ and until this day, I live for stats. With this documented analysis, I was stoked to have a baseline for my Keto journey that was more than just a generic number on a scale. Sure, I have baggage with the God foresaken scale, but now I truly know beyond a shadow of a doubt that the scale does not tell the whole story.Ā
Next up, I went to my Primary Care Physicianās office and had blood work drawn, along with a physical exam. I would also use these clinical insights as a foundation for improving my health, as well as proving that this way of eating is in fact healthy and not destroying my heart or other organs, or jacking up my cholesterol.Ā
Come January, I started to dabble in āI.T.ā ā intermittent fasting.
Now, when I say Iāve done my research, I mean an absurd amount of research. For almost a decade, my profession has been based in the medical field, so Iāve become a wee bit snobby when it comes to peer reviewed, scientific-based information. Blogs and anecdotal banter do not hold a candle in my book; I want facts, documentation, and proof. I want real stories from real people. I want lab work and the truth.
From mid-October through today, Iāve worked out on average about 4 times a week for one hour at a time. I joined a gym that has a daycare and now the sun shines a little brighter. My mini me gets to socialize with little people, and I get to lift weights (which doesnāt entail lifting a little person). I no longer listen to music while working out and Iāve become unapologetically obsessed with Podcasts. I realize Iām way, way behind the digital audio fad, but nonetheless I canāt get enough of them. Despite my husbandās dismay at potentially drowning my iPhone, I even listen to Youtube videos and Podcasts in the shower for goodness sake. Oprah, Tony Robbins and their leadership development peers make regular appearances, but for the most part, Iām quite literally up to my ears in Keto-related content.Ā
Maybe this is because Iām a real life sponge and adore the process of learning. Maybe itās because Iāve been trained through my professional line of work that it takes listening/reading/hearing the SAME information at least 5x before you even retain a fraction of it. Who knows.
With that said, Iāve been convinced through dozens and dozens and dozens of 'classroomāĀ hours that intermittent fasting is a phenomenal practice for our bodies. And, if my own mad scientist research wasnāt enough, then when my friend who is currently battling breast cancer was told by her global team of physicians to do I.T. because it helps shrink those asshole cancer cells, certainly proved the point that removing sugar from our systems is a miracle worker.
I.T. comes in different forms because there are a variety of disciplines, but the most popular one is 16:8 / you donāt eat for a 16 hour window and you do eat for an 8 hour window. Within that 16 hour window, youāre sleeping for hopefully 7-8 hours of them, which basically means you donāt eat breakfast and you start your first meal with lunch. And, hereās the fun part ā when you get the majority of your fuel from healthy fats, you arenāt even hungry, so fasting is actually not a big deal. Just like the rest of my journey, I worked up to this goal. I started with 12 hours, then 13, and so on.
I tried a longer fast, about 60 hours, in January. This was supposed to be some type of reset for my body. I felt like my weight loss was stalling, despite no cheats and working out. The first day was extremely difficult for me, I wanted to quit throughout the afternoon. The second day was a complete 180 degree turn ā I wasnāt hungry and felt totally fine. But, I wanted to eat anyway. This experience really helped me stare my relationship with food face-to-face. I quieted my mind and asked why did I want to eat, I wasnāt even hungry. I realized that itās the habit of eating I was used to, even if I wasnāt hungry.
Several people I know have loved ones who had gastric bypass surgery. It broke my heart to hear that there is no counseling after the fact ā sure itās available, but they werenāt utilizing it, nor was it required. And, they were back to their original style of eating and unhealthy types of food that qualified them for this surgery to begin with.Ā
Food can be used as a drug, just like other stereotypical vices including gambling and shopping. I know that no matter whatĀ ādietā or lifestyle change I become a VIP member to, itās just a Band-Aid until I fix the root of the issue ā using food to fill me up. I also realize that history has a way of repeating itself and Iāve walked in my Motherās shoes, witnessing her on some type of diet my entire life.
I am approaching the 8 month mark as a Ketogenic crony, and here is where things currently stand:
Iāve lostĀ 14 inches between my hips, waist, thighs and chest.
Iāve lost 2-3 pant sizes ā even fitting in to myĀ āgoal pantsā (which I have never been able to zip up, including when I bought them years ago).
I weigh less than I did at my wedding four years ago.
I mentally and physically feel amazing and am rarely hungry. I repeat, I am not hungry. Eating fat is satiating...what a freaking concept (girl hits empty carb head against brick wall).
In all of my days walking this earth, no one has ever once told me that I was tiny. Last week, two people on the same evening said, āYouāre tiny.ā Granted, I am not tiny. In fact, Iām technically still overweight on the BMI algorithm, and according to...what I like to refer to as my Momma Kangaroo belly pouch... but that leads me to my next point.
One week ago I had my follow-up appointment with both the gymās registered nurse as well as my PCP. I had both original tests re-run in order to determine, without a shadow of a doubt, that I was 100% healthy. Obviously being able to stowaway my maternity jeans, and have my leggings become baggy speaks for itself, but I wanted to know what was really going on behind the zippers and elastic bands.
At the PCP appointment, my provider couldnāt stop gloating about how much weight I had dropped since our last visit.Ā The next day, an email came through with results from the blood work as a 3-page report. At the very end it says, and I quote, āYour lipid panel results are acceptable. Continue your Keto diet, it is not detrimental to your cholesterol.āĀ
My body composition test results were also impressive.Ā
BMI āfrom 30.2 (obese) to 27.9 (overweight)
Blood pressure ā from 130/80 to 110/78
And what really made me jump for joy, was finding out the breakdown of my ādry lean massā and ābody fast mass.ā The nutritionist, who was a skinny mini, said to me, āYour skeletal muscle mass is nearly above average. Iāve spent my whole life doing massive amounts of cardio, which is why Iām so skinny, but I should have been doing much more weightlifting and less cardio. Keep doing what youāre doing.ā In other words, the stupid scale not moving exponentially and āonlyā losing about 20 pounds is a bunch of bologne. I legitimately have put on muscle, praise the Lord almighty.Ā
So there you have it folks. This is one way of getting healthy. Iām sure itās not for everyone, but itās definitely for me. I do not feel deprived, whatsoever. The food I eat is absolutely delicious, Iām satisifed after eating, and there are thousands of Keto-friendly recipes to make the process a breeze ā including yummy alternative carb staples such as breads.Ā
Iāll sign off with a few insider tips and resources.
Drink a lot of water. People ā listen to me ā do this anyway. But especially if youāre doing Keto. I drink 3 liters of water a day. My goal is to drink 1 by noon, 1 by 5pm, and the rest before bed.
Youāll lose water weight and with that, electrolytes will flush out, which is why you want to replace them. Otherwise, youāll get whatās called the āKeto Flu.ā Donāt do that.Ā Up your electrolytes (potassium, magnesium and sodium), ideally through whole foods but also in supplements (vitamins and/or electrolyte drinks). By eating Ketogenic-friendly foods, your body wonāt get as much of this as it normally would and balanced electrolytes make you feel awesome.Ā
Donāt be scared of veggies just because they have carbs. Veggies are good for you, really really good for you and have tons of fiber. Theyāre not all created equal of course, but enjoy your greens every single day.
I donāt recommend starting out with Keto-style desserts / sweets or Keto breads. You can work those into your meals later on, once youāve gotten fat adapted (Google what that means), but they should be considered a treat and not a staple in your everyday regimen.Ā
Check out these links forĀ Dr. FungĀ āall things Intermittent Fasting ā and Dr. BergĀ for all things Keto and nutrition.Ā
You donāt have to do this in order to follow Keto, but I have enjoyed drinking exogenous ketones for the last few months. I drink it as myĀ āpre workoutā drink or while Iām working out. It gives me lots of energy and all the benefits of ketones. I have a customer referral code if anyone would like it.
This may be the first time, in all of my diet dabbling years, that Iāve ever truly faced why I treated food like medication. Itās also the first time Iāve ever tried to lose weight and it wasnāt for an event.Ā
Iām turning 40 years old this summer and we may consider giving my daughter a sibling, if thatās what the good Lord wills. My āeventā milestones with a dress size to fit into has been replaced with the lifelong milestone of being a Mother. I want to be a confident woman who my daughter looks up to and admires my health from the inside ā out. I want her to know that food is for nutrition, not for stuffing feelings down. I want her to know that the scale doesnāt define her worth. I want her to know that muscles and strength is sexy.Ā I want her to know that sheās perfect exactly the way she is.Ā
