A family’s keto journey

After many years as an overweight person, Carol had had enough. Just when she needed it, a friend told her about the keto diet, and she decided to give it a try. She told her family about it and it didn’t take long for them all to join in. This is their story:

I love Diet Doctor. In fact, I feel that Diet Doctor has been the key to my family’s success. The great thing about it is that it gives the visitor the chance to learn all they want to learn, and then make the decision to follow the keto diet in the best, and easiest way for them. It worked perfectly for us. I wanted to share our success story.

Meet my family. We currently live in Virginia, USA. This is Dean, 55; Carol, 57; Nick, 24; Cassandra, 23, Wesley, 17; Alec, 27; Blake, 30, Zac, 21 and Victoria, 26.

I included this graphic to show each person’s weight loss:

(Nick started out super thin. Victoria has been pregnant/nursing since we started keto. Grandson has gained 20 lbs).

I asked my husband to help me describe my life as an obese person. He used the word, “paralyzed.” I allowed my obesity to stop me from fully enjoying my life. I saw myself as “gross” and wondered how people could like me. As a family, we were active and fun, but I often did not fully participate. I missed out on many parties, outings, activities and even friendships.

I grew up, just slightly overweight. I considered myself “fat,” but I could easily lose the 5-10 pounds (2-4 kilos) by just starving myself for a few days. I figured out how to get by on very little food, and stayed relatively thin. Unfortunately, after I had my children, I started to gain weight. It wasn’t because of my pregnancies, but because I started to eat when I prepared food for my family. If I ate, I gained weight. I ate as little as possible, skipped many meals and rarely had any desserts, but I continued to gain weight. My heaviest weight was 234 pounds (106 kilos), and all the while I felt deprived.

I went on a spiritual journey to learn to love myself as an obese person. It took a few years, but it happened. I started to buy clothes and to participate in life. I hated being unhealthy, but I was grateful for the body I had. One day I prayed to know what to do and felt that I needed to call a friend who would tell me what to do. She told me about the keto diet. I was incredulous, but I felt it had been an answer to prayer, so I jumped into it. I announced to my husband and 16-year-old son that we were about to start the keto journey. The next day, on February 7, 2018, we started the keto diet, knowing very little about how to do it. It took exactly two (delicious) keto meals for them to be 100% behind me!

I needed more info so I searched and found Diet Doctor. I consumed as much information as I could over the next month (and continue to do so). We started – and loved – the two-week challenge, but we were already at the point that we couldn’t eat more than two meals a day.

By April first, at our Easter family gathering, the three of us were totally enamored with keto. We were feeling wonderful. My husband’s snoring was gone!! He was off his high blood pressure and cholesterol medicines. My son’s allergies were gone! My horrible acid reflux and stomach problems (20 years of stomach pain) were gone! We were shocked and amazed at all the positive results we hadn’t expected. We spent a lot of our time talking about keto and even shared some keto dishes.

My eldest son, who was approximately 75 pounds (34 kilos) overweight, gave it a try without even telling me. He did it for a week and then stopped because it was hard in his living situation. By the end of one weekend off keto, he had made the decision to get back on. He realized how terrible he had felt on a daily basis (he also had stomach problems) and how much better he felt on keto. He has lost 50 pounds (23 kilos) so far and loves it.

My other children joined in one by one. We’ve all really enjoyed working on this together. My daughter, who is unable to do it fully at this time, because she is nursing her baby, has been instrumental in helping others get started.

We moved after a month and a half on keto, so I lost my weight around people who really weren’t aware of me as an obese person. I am a whole new person. I have a very active job, and I seriously feel as good as I did in my 20s. I work with mostly younger people, and I easily keep up with them.

Several people have asked how I was able to get my youngest son to eat this way. Ironically, he’s been the most enthusiastic about keto. He discovered that when he eats carbs, his allergies come back, so he eats very carefully. He has gained a lot of confidence, and personal discipline and that has spilled out into the rest of his life. Just in time for him to move on to college.

The weight loss has been just a small portion of the benefits of the keto lifestyle for us. We are all feeling great and healthy. However, the biggest benefit, in my opinion, is our new understanding of how to control our lives and bodies. With the correct information, being healthy is easy. Some of us still have some weight to lose, but even when we get to our final goals, we will eat keto for the health benefits.

Thanks to all who teach so well at your website!

Comment

Carol,
Thank you for sharing your amazing story, and that of the rest of your family. While losing excess weight can often be a good thing, your story really demonstrates the common health benefits that can occur. Stomach issues like IBS getting better, blood pressure normalizing, and just regaining more control of feelings of hunger and satiety.

Your story will surely inspire many others.

/ Andreas Eenfeldt, MD

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