Lost 30 pounds on keto! I also stopped taking ADHD and depression medication after doing keto. My brain functioned much more efficiently and I had a lot of energy and wasn’t so lazy and tired all the time.
It’s the only diet I recommend, and I’ve tried a lot of them.
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 started by doing a lot of reading and research. I looked at YouTube videos, RuledMe, Pinterest recipes, Keto Instagram accounts, etc. I wanted to see other people’s stories and successes before I dove into the diet. Once I was more familiar with the general idea of Keto, I printed out the RuledMe Keto recipe book/meal plan and put it in a binder and followed it for a couple of weeks until I found some recipes I really like and got the hand of the low-carb lifestyle.
2. What is the most impactful change you’ve made to your diet and why do you feel it’s been the most important?
The biggest change I made was redesigning my mental idea of what being healthy was. We’ve been shown the “food pyramid” since childhood. It was hung up in my school cafeteria, we talked about it in health class, etc. No one ever told us that the pyramid could be altered. No one said “Hey you could actually flip the pyramid, eat mostly fats and proteins, and only a few carbohydrates, and still be healthy!
We were told to stay away from fatty foods and that grains and plants were our best food friends. When I first heard about keto, I thought, “Wow, what a f**ked up way to eat. That can’t possibly work.” Reading about the diet and its effects and people’s success changed my way of thinking and opened my mind to a new way of eating, that I liked better and benefited enormously from.
3. What is the best single piece of advice you can give to someone that is just starting out?
I would say to explore. Explore new foods and new friends! That sounds weird, but the grand majority of the keto foods I eat now, as opposed to the beginning of the diet, are from keto Instagram accounts and blogs. RuledMe is excellent and was the whole reason I got started, but people have all different perspectives and ideas and exploring them is the best way to find what you like!
For example, I found out that I could make taco shells by simply cooking cheddar cheese in a pan until its crispy. It was a simple keto idea that I stumbled onto when I was scrolling through Instagram and now I make tacos at least once a week!
4. How do you feel your life is now that you’re at your goal?
Life has changed for me completely. I’m confident in the way I look, which has helped me speak up in class and at work (which seems silly but it’s true). I’ve stopped taking depression and ADHD medications. I’m WAY more active than before because I have a lot more energy than I used to. Most importantly, it changed my overall relationship with food. Before keto, I would use food to comfort or de-stress myself.
But after I ate I would feel guilty, tired, bloated, and then hungry again. Now, after I eat I feel healthy, energized, and most importantly, I feel full. Not bloated, full. Before, I couldn’t tell the difference between the two. I thought being bloated came with being full, just a natural side effect of food. It’s really life-changing to realize you can be full without being bloated.
Also, I was able to wear a bikini for the first time in my LIFE. I bought a little yellow bikini from TJMaxx and wore it with all the confidence in the world. It was an indescribable feeling.
5. What do you consider the biggest change in your day-to-day life?
Being able to walk around and feel good about myself. It’s hard to think back to when I was so self-conscious I was practically disabling myself. I wouldn’t go out because I didn’t want to be seen. I didn’t participate in class and I sat in the back so no one would look at me. I wouldn’t let anyone take pictures of me or with me. I even called out of work on multiple occasions because I felt ugly. Which I realize is pathetic, but true nonetheless.
I was paranoid that I was being watched. Afraid that if I hated myself and the way I look this much, everyone else must too. Every time I ate I felt like a failure. I couldn’t go shopping without a full-blown meltdown in the dressing room. Life was miserable. I was miserable. I was sad and scared and self-loathing. The keto diet made me into a new person. A strong, confident woman. I feel in control of myself, and I feel good about myself. I know there are SO many people out there who feel or felt the same way I did and I hope they can find this way of living, where they can enjoy the food they love and begin to live the life they love.
6. What did you do to find support throughout your journey?
All of my support came for my mom and the keto Instagram world. The diet is becoming increasingly more popular, but when I started the diet, no one seemed to know what I was even talking about. When I was looking for support or ideas or even just some comfort when I would gain or plateau was so helpful. I felt less alone.
7. What do you currently do to manage your day-to-day diet?
I’ve been doing keto for so long that I eat the same variety of meals throughout the week, with a new recipe thrown in here and there to keep things interesting.
I do a big general meal prep here and there, and freeze a lot of stuff. I make things like stuffed peppers, stuffed chicken, casseroles, etc. Things that I can make and freeze and then heat up easily. It helps for times when I’m in a pinch or a lazy mood, and I’m more susceptible to poor food choices.
8. What is your favorite keto recipe from www.ruled.me that’s become a staple?
For sure the Not Your Caveman’s Keto Chili. It’s so delicious and easy to make! I make double batches then freeze little bags of it. I can toss a frozen bag of chili in my lunchbox and by lunchtime, I can just toss it in the microwave and add some cheese and sour cream. Even my non-keto family members love it!
9. If there is one thing that you could do differently during your journey, what would it be and why?
I’m sure everyone says this, but I wish I started sooner.
