My journey to health and a ketogenic lifestyle.
I want to share with you how keto and intermittent fasting changed my life for the better. And explain how I went from having PCOS, chronic fatigue and several lung and sinus infections per year to a healthier, more energetic and better looking version of myself. I am hoping that my story might resonate with some of you and save you all the pain and trouble I went through in order to achieve a healthy life.
My love story with sugar.
For as long as I can remember, I loved sugar. From a young age I craved sugar. I would eat peanut butter or jam by the spoonful. In my early 20’s I can remember eating at least one candy bar a day. To be honest, I recall a few times where I had two candy bars as a lunch meal at work. When I was about 20 years old I would have a McFlurry a day during the summer. The oreo cookie one was my drug of choice. This love affair with sugar turned into a drama fast.
The consequences.
Since I started my periods they were never regular. Little did I know at the time that I had already developed PCOS, or Polycystic Ovary Syndrome. Also I spent most of my teens and young adulthood with cystic acne. Some of my acne cysts were as big as ping pong balls and would remain for months or until I had a dermatologist inject me with cortisone. I tried all the topical creams and medications out there including Accutane. Nothing cured my acne. I also experienced the highs and lows of hypoglycemia.
So far I could contend with the irregular periods, mood swings, and acne but what came next caught me off guard.
I spent my 20’s living like an 80-year-old woman. I suffered from chronic fatigue even though I slept 10 hours per night. I always woke up exhausted and had to nap for another two hours in the afternoon. It was debilitating. My family doctor sent me to a sleep clinic and the specialist suggested a CPAP machine. This helped, bringing me back to an eight hour sleep cycle with no naps necessary. But I still felt exhausted.
I also had a hard time maintaining my weight. I was not overweight but I was definitely skinny fat. I had three different sizes of pants in my closet and every year I would go through the cycle of gaining 15 lbs., fitting my biggest pair of pants. Then I would panic, restrict my calories to lose the weight until I fit in the smaller size and eventually evened out at the middle size. This yearly cycle went on for over a decade. I also believed in the low-fat diet that marketing was and is still pushing on us. Like many, I was yo-yo dieting.
On top of all this, I suffered 2-3 sinus and lung infections per year requiring antibiotics. This high use of antibiotics contributed to massive digestive issues such as bloating, constipation, and food intolerances.
On the right track.
Wanting to improve my situation I finally decided to brave going to a gym. At 35 years of age I started exercising regularly. This seemed to improve my sleep, my immune system, and my energy ever so slightly.
However, many of my symptoms persisted and so I never stopped searching for solutions. I researched, sought medical advice from both classic and holistic approaches. Nothing worked until my digestive issues were so bad that I could no longer ignore my food intolerances. At that time I went to see a new naturopathic doctor that also had a PhD in nutritional biochemistry and he suggested an elimination diet. This was my first real a-ha moment and first step on the road to better health. After one month of elimination diet followed by two months of the slow reintroduction of foods, I realized that my food intolerances had disappeared. My digestive issues had greatly improved and eating was much more enjoyable. This confirmed to myself that my nutrition was the culprit of most of my health issues.
It’s around that time that my husband suggested I read the book The Thinsulin Program by Charles Nguyen. This book explains that to maintain a healthy weight you should aim at leveling insulin and not spiking it. This was my second a-ha moment. From my research I came to believe that insulin was the main reason behind my weight fluctuation and my PCOS. I decided to do more research on insulin and weight loss and it led me to discover Dr. Berg and his Healthy Keto diet method.
A game-changer.
The Healthy Keto method was my game-changer. I enjoyed what I was learning; it was logical, healthy and sustainable and I decided to give it a try. In just two weeks I felt like a new person. I had new energy I had not experienced in a decade. I enjoyed better sleep. For the first 10 weeks of keto I lost an average of 1 lb. per week without even trying. Excess fat was melting away. After seeing results from those first 2 weeks. my husband decided to join in. He had already lost at least 40 lbs. from doing a healthy juice diet. His experience with keto helped him lose another 60 lbs. Amazing!
For the first time in my life I have been able to maintain my weight and not suffer from the fluctuation that I used to get from yo-yo dieting. I happily donated the larger size clothing we no longer needed to hold on to.
From the moment I started keto, I no longer suffered lung or sinus infections. I no longer needed the medications I was taking for my acne and PCOS. At the same time I also stopped using birth control pills. I wanted to see if for the first time in my life my body would, on its own, have a regular cycle. Between keto and another nutritional method called seed cycling I was finally regular. And I have been ever since.
What is seed-cycling? Leave me a comment if you would like to know more about this.
I continued going to the gym, doing weight lifting and a few sessions of Pilates a week. This helped shape and tone my body the way I now enjoy it. Exercise has proved excellent for my emotional and mental health.
Where I am at today.
For me a healthy lifestyle is composed of exercising, eating keto, reducing stress and doing intermittent fasting. A few times a year I also do a prolonged fast.
Now in my 40s I can say that I feel and look better than I did in my 20s, To me the results of my efforts are better than any sugary treat in the world.
I hope that my story will be useful and might shed light on some of the struggles you may have experienced with your own health or weight. I am passionate about helping others enjoy better health and seeing them transform to their fullest potential. This motivated me to become a keto and intermittent fasting coach. If you are ready to have your own transformation, I am here to guide and support you. Book a free discovery call with me today!