While I am a woman that enjoys many a four-letter word, not all of which are considered “appropriate,” DIET is not among the ones that I like or entertain in my life. Nor do I, in ANY way, believe that being a fat person equals that person being bad, lazy, stupid, unattractive, or unacceptable. (Damn right I rocked a bikini at 365 pounds! My body is my body, and I love it, regardless of what size it is! Our bodies are sacred!)
I was placed on my first diet at the age of 9. My highest weight was 365 pounds, and I have literally done ALL of the diets and drugs that have been out there throughout my 46 years. I even had gastric bypass surgery in 2002. When I say that I have lost and gained hundreds of pounds in my lifetime, that is not in any way an exaggeration. Just about the only thing that was not something I tried was having a personal chef and personal trainer, though if I had the money, I would have done that too.
In August 2018, I met someone that looked like she was positively glowing, and I asked her what she had been up to. She told me “keto.” Little did I know my life was about to forever be altered. I peppered her with questions (Wanna know any diet details? Ask a fat chick! We have “been there and done that” for everything from calorie counting, to points and exchanges, and everything in between… we know ALL the stuff there is to know, and all the questions to ask when considering yet another weight loss path.) and the research began in earnest. Within days, I felt like I was in an alternate universe, and the more I read, the more I was convinced that this might be something entirely different.
I knew it was something I wanted, and that it was not something that I was willing to do separately from my husband. The research that I had done also indicated that it is something that you are best committing to for the long haul (i.e. becoming fat fueled and then going back to the standard glucose fueled American diet is not something that is good for you… as a matter of fact, people that are on and off tend to end up gaining MORE weight and being in poorer health overall.) as a way of life, and not as something that is just to get the weight off and then go back to old patterns and habits in eating. He and I had a conversation about what we really wanted and could promise ourselves and one another about it. We were both completely on board with making the change and going keto, and decided to JUMP in 100%. Our start date (no endless weeks of “saying goodbye” to old favorite foods and places to gorge ourselves) was Sept. 8, 2018.
Those first few months were kind of crazy! I considered myself an educated and aware woman when it came to HOW to eat healthily, yet a transition to high fat low carb eating was astoundingly different compared to anything I had ever before encountered. (Including the Atkins diet.) There are so many great people in the keto-verse, and such an abundance of information once you get going and figure some things out… “clean” and “good” and “real” keto is how we do it. (There is, for us, no such thing as a “cheat day.” We view things like wheat, corn, soy, sugar, etc. as a poison that our bodies cannot handle, and that absolutely works for us.) What is heartbreaking is that we are all bombarded with information (and products) that are considered “healthy” (and these days, even labeled as being “keto”) and we believe it because we don’t know better. There are so many people (we were once among them!) thinking that they are doing it right and subscribing to the notions that we are “sold” by an industry that literally exists to keep us prisoner and continues to market poison and lies to make billions in revenue. (Did you know that doctors were actually prescribing ketogenic diets as far back as the 1800s!? The science of eating how we do has been around for AGES!) Now, I read EVERY label and pay attention to EVERYTHING that goes in our mouths.
Before I continue, let me make one thing very clear. We have ONLY adjusted our eating. We have NOT begun any exercise or workout regimes. These results are 100% dietary in nature. (As a matter of fact, my husband is a disabled veteran with severe physical limitations.)
In ALL my life, including every other weight loss journey prior to living as a ketonian, the smallest I ever got was a size 12/14. (plus size, not “regular”) The smallest the scale ever got to was around 175 pounds. (That includes post weight loss surgery and many other diets (and drugs, hello Phen-fen) in my life.) In September 2018, I wore a size 18W/20W (36HH bra) or standard (plus size store) 2X. Within 9 months of going keto, I was at 145 pounds. I now wear a standard size small or 4/6. (WHAT!?!?!) My husband went from his starting weight of 270 pounds and now fluctuates between 195-205. (For some reference on that, he wore a size 46 waisted pant (stretchy, with extra expansion on the waist) and a 2XL shirt. Now he is in a straight 38 (no extra stretchy bits) and a regular large.) My own scale has been consistently between 135-145. Beyond what the scale says, is the awesomeness of my body composition and the inches. I have NEVER had a flat belly, until now. When I had previously been what I considered to be “smaller,” there was so much excess skin that I was more miserable “thin” than I was “fat.” Now, there is some extra skin, yet it is astonishingly minimal. My measurement of inches has been even MORE impressive than what the scale has to say.
And more than ALL these measurements, which are quite impressive and feel pretty great, I admit, we are BOTH able to say that we FEEL better. We have more energy, more focus, more presence, more clarity, more connection to our bodies. We have monitored our bloodwork and had our doctors involved through the entire process, and every measurement of standard health (all cholesterol and glucose panels, medications for high blood pressure, statins, pain management medications, etc.) are now exemplary! As a matter of fact, all required medications for blood pressure and statins are no longer necessary. The pain that is a part of his every day has been greatly diminished, including now taking NO pain medication, and the medications for neuropathy and muscular and nerve issues are cut in half or less. My own migraines (which have been a regular part of my life since the first time I went to the hospital for them at age 9) are extremely rare.
We are not “special” and there is no secret to what we do. It’s simply been a commitment to the process of becoming fat adapted and fat fueled… letting go of what was toxic and no longer serving us and embracing a life that has the potential to be fully lived and experienced. Plus, I have found ways to have the foods and flavors that I love (double chocolate cookies, yes!! peanut butter cups, yes!!) and create a world that is about focusing on one another and the moments that we share and the opportunities available to us, rather than focusing on numbing ourselves with food and eating and eating and eating with no real satisfaction.
Science in action… together!
1. What tactics did you employ to help you get to your goal? What did you find helped you get to your goals best?
I first have to say that I don’t think we have a single goal, or that we have reached our goals. Living, as defined or determined by the scale or some other means of measurement, means that there is a point where you “get there” or the journey ends. Life, and being a happy ketonian as well, is filled with moving goal posts and methods of evolution. It is the JOURNEY and the process that has become the joy and the celebration. This is an entire life shift, not a diet, not a weight loss effort, not something short term. This. Is. Forever.
What helped us get to where every day is a celebrated step on the journey to wellness and wholeness and health? In the keto-verse, there is an abundance of tools and resources. Learning to trust yourself as you learn and apply what you gather along the way makes it easier to discern those that are on a path like your own, and easier to know who else you can trust on that journey too. Learning to be present in my body, recognizing it for the amazing thing that it is and loving it rather than hating it (your body is not the enemy!), being able to notice (not judge) patterns and habits around everything from food to relationships to reactions, and determine ways to enact change and transition that would lead where I determined I wanted to actually be if that differed from where I was… being patient and understanding, and yet also calling “bullshit” when I was trying to excuse or justify something that was absolutely not aligned with my truest path to my best self. (That is ongoing, by the way… again, this stuff is Forever!)
2. What is the most impactful change you’ve made to your diet and why do you feel it’s been the most important?
Hands down, entirely removing what my body uses/considers as poison. ZERO wheat, soy, corn, sugar, rice, potatoes…
3. What is the best single piece of advice you can give to someone that is just starting out?
Put on your long term/long haul goggles. This is NOT a diet… not temporary, not until you lose <xxx> pounds. If you are in this for the lifestyle change and the long haul, this WILL work for you!
4. How do you feel your life is now that you’re at your goal?
My life is the adventure it was always supposed to be. Ups and downs, peaks and valleys, ebb and flow… it is a journey that I am (we are) experiencing and not escaping. There is no number on the scale or size of clothes that feels like this. It is not a number or a measurement or a size. It is a process and a journey, and I have PEACE. I am not at war with my body or food.
5. What do you consider the biggest change in your day-to-day life?
Enjoying the RIGHT food, and intermittent fasting. A world that does not revolve around what I can stuff in my mouth next, being insanely full and yet never feeling satisfied or having enough. I taste things more, appreciate them more, and truly like the way that I feel in my mind and my body. No sluggishness or food coma stuff to deal with. Food really is fuel, and is not the primary focus of my world, not a drug that I am using to escape or numb out.
6. What did you do to find support throughout your journey?
The keto-verse is large and ever expanding. There are some fabulously supportive and knowledgeable people out there, and a TON of resources and data. Matt Damon’s line in the movie The Martian referred to “science the shit out of it,” and that’s been me and keto. I research, and try all sorts of recipes, paying attention and tracking what I was doing so that I could see correlations and reach appropriate conclusions about what was working for me, and what to adjust, how, and when.
7. What do you currently do to manage your day-to-day diet?
I stay present and pay attention. I ask myself what is happening internally and externally… I try to notice and adjust what I need to as I go along. If I am stressed and feeling overwhelmed, food is no longer my drug, so I get to address what is actually happening and deal with it. If there are physical things that are happening, I am able to look at what I have consumed (What have I eaten? Am I hydrating enough? How’s my magnesium? Potassium? Bowel movements? How is my body feeling?) and respond accordingly.
8. What is your favorite keto recipe from www.ruled.me that’s become a staple?
OMG, we have looked to ruled.me for so many things since our start. I probably continue to be impacted by things that I learned from Ruled.me without even realizing it! You will get foundational understanding here that you can absolutely use forever and build on.
Literally every casserole you can find! (I grew up with bread and butter on the table with every meal, and in a meat and potatoes or heavy casserole kind of household… delicious and healthy keto casseroles make me smile, especially in the winter months!)
Just like casseroles make me happy in the Winter, salads make me happy all Spring and Summer, and there are soooooo many on ruled.me that are ah-mazing! (Do a recipe search with just “salad.” I dare you not to drool. Good luck choosing just one!)
Blackberry Chipotle Jam (ALL of the jams and the entire condiments section is amazing and absolutely a standard go-to)…
Keto Fruit Roll Ups!! (Nuff said!)
Eggs Benedict keto-fied SEVERAL WAYS!
Ruled.me is such a foundational tool and resource for us. It is among the top that we reference and list and search in when we are doing anything new or different for ourselves, or in sending others that are interested in the keto life to see what it can really be like and how to go about things.
9. If there is one thing that you could do differently during your journey, what would it be and why?
I would have avoided the products/items that I didn’t realize were actually not good for me or not REALLY keto friendly. (I didn’t know better.)
I learned about intermittent fasting in conjunction with keto, early on in our journey, at the absolute perfect time, and that made a world of difference for us. (Whether you employ that method, or carb cycling, you MUST take care of your whole body and nourish properly! This is not a fad diet, this is science that has been around (prescribed by doctors, as a matter of fact) since the late 1800s and early 1900s. While it is not aligned with the industrial use and application of the (completely Bogus) food pyramid and what we are taught about grain consumption and eating a lean and low fat diet, it IS sound and medically based/founded.)
