The keto diet: “At age 55 I am in better shape than when I was 30”

Paulette is celebrating two years on the keto diet. She has lost 40 lbs (18 kg) and is feeling fantastic. Read her truly inspiring story:

Hello Dr. Eenfeldt –

As I approach the anniversary of my moment of reckoning two years ago I really felt that I wanted to write and share my story with others. In December 2015 I was the fattest I had ever been. I had struggled with my weight – not to a great extent, but I had been heavier than I liked over the years. I lost weight with Weight Watchers (WW) a couple of times and other times had a bit of success by cutting out all alcohol and restricting calories. I have always been very active. I am a swimmer, going to the pool 4 – 5 times a week and swimming at least 1,000 metres each swim. I have also done long-distance swimming trips where I swam up to 5 km/day. I choose not to drive and ride my bike on all but the most icy, cold and snowy months. I enjoy cooking for my family and was eating what I considered healthy snacks and meals – fruit smoothies made with frozen mangos and bananas but no extra sweetener, brown-rice pasta with homemade sauce, wild rice, roasted or mashed potatoes with chicken, home-made hummus etc. Virtually no junk food – chips, candies, pop have never been part of our household.

However, despite all this, in my mid-50s I was putting on more weight. On December 28, 2017 I stepped on the scale at the pool and was shocked that, at under 5’ 5” (168 cm) I weighed over 170 pounds (77 kg). My clothes were uncomfortable and I was embarrassed to get changed in front of my husband. I had lost my waist, had back fat and felt like I had become unattractive, frumpy and round. Fortunately I didn’t have any other real health issues like pre-diabetes – I was just getting fatter and didn’t understand why. I didn’t want to think that this was the inevitable menopausal spread and I would just get bigger and rounder to no end. I was desperate and thought I’d have to go back to WW. I didn’t want to do it – paying, going to meetings, all that measuring and counting points, being hungry etc.

I had the excellent fortune to read a newspaper article about Dr. Jason Fung and low-carb in January 2016. The low-carb, high fat approach seemed so counter-intuitive but also seemed to make some sense. I had nothing to lose but the weight so I decided to give it a try. I read his blog and watched his Youtube videos with fascination. I found the Diet Doctor site and downloaded the free introductory meal plan. The results were nothing short of miraculous. I love cream in my coffee so switched to the heavy, good stuff. I have never liked eating breakfast so stopped trying to choke something down before my morning swim. I completely eliminated fruit smoothies and switched to high-fat yogurt, a small serving of berries and walnuts after my swim – delicious! I eliminated potatoes, rice and pasta. I was enjoying eggs, butter, high-fat cheese, sausages, steak, good quality, high fat salad dressings, nuts etc. I wasn’t hungry. I was never that keen on bread or pastry so it was no trouble to give it up. I had thought that I had a sweet tooth but apparently NOT! As soon as I started LCHF I had no desire for sweets. I learned new recipes from the Diet Doctor site and started experimenting with cauliflower, celery root etc. Everything that I ate was good and filling – I just had to be careful to plan meals and carry food when I was out of the house if necessary. I found that I could also go for long stretches (12–14 hours) without eating quite easily, so I naturally implemented a shorter “eating window” each day.

The weight slid off. Within months I had shed 30 lbs (14 kg). The journal I kept is full of notes like “Amazing”, “Wow – I am so happy”, “Bought new jeans”, “I love my shape”, “I can’t believe it – so good and easy”. Now I weigh 40 lbs. (18 kg) less than that fateful day in the locker room two years ago and it has been no trouble to maintain it. I just spent three months in Europe and was easily able to avoid the bread and pastries of France, the octopus rice and custard tarts of Portugal and the sweet Port and Madeira wines…and I ate extremely well. I did not gain any weight and only weighed myself twice while I was away. No obsessing – just listening to my body. At age 55 I am in better shape than when I was 30 – physically but also mentally because I am not afraid of gaining weight again. For the first time in decades I am in control of this. This is a lifestyle and a lifetime commitment that takes no effort to maintain.

Thank you to all of the brave practitioners (Dr. Fung, Dr. Eenfeldt and others) fighting the medical and dietician establishment to get the word out about LCHF. We have all been given bad dietary advice for too long. I feel sad that the conventional advice is so detrimental to their health and makes people feel like weak failures. I am eager to spread the word and help others now.

Paulette B.

Comments

Congratulations, Paulette! Thank you for sharing your success, it’s inspiring to read.

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Do you have a success story you want to share on this blog? Send it (photos appreciated) to frida@dietdoctor.com, and please let me know if it’s OK to publish your photo and name or if you’d rather remain anonymous. It would also be greatly appreciated if you shared what you eat in a typical day, whether you fast etc. More information:

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