After hearing about the keto diet, I began to think about what my health would be like when I tried it for a while.
Here are some of my observations during my first period:
For the first few days, I didn't feel any problem at all. Many say the adjustment period will be very difficult but I've been restricting carbohydrates in my diet for a long time, so my body was ready for this change.
Your body loses a lot of weight in the beginning. Most of the weight lost is water, because carbohydrates make you retain more fluid and make you look more weight.
Eating the keto foods is simple and easy. I didn't care what foods taste good, foods rich in healthy fats are many and varied.
During the first week on the keto diet, you may feel very tired and have poor concentration. This is because your brain is going through a difficult period of obtaining energy due to a lack of carbohydrates, but it is a short period.
I did not lose my physical strength. And I was able to maintain my ability to exercise. But at the same time, I couldn't do more intense workouts because I hadn't adapted yet.
To alleviate the negative side effects of adapting to the ketogenic diet, I became consuming more calories, drank more fluids to increase moisture in my body, and made sure I got more sodium.
The best thing I noticed is that the quality of my sleep has improved dramatically. When I was in ketosis, I was able to sleep for long periods of time, for up to 6-8 hours, without waking up. In the morning, I was feeling fresh and strong.
My experience with the keto diet after 3 years
After years of following the ketogenic diet, I can tell it was the best nutrition and health decision I've made in my life.
Now I have enough energy throughout the day, I feel empowered to work anytime or anywhere. I don't think most of the time when you feel tired and lethargic it is a result of following a ketogenic diet, but it is a result of other factors. Because keto gives me more ideal energy.
My health has improved. I have never had any medical problem, nor do I remember the last time I had hypoglycemia or felt faint due to low blood sugar.
I am no longer hungry at all. Instead, I feel full quickly and continuously because my body has access to energy from the fats whenever it wants and I rarely eat an extra meal a day.
I noticed an increase in focus and productivity. That's why this extra energy became an opportunity to do other productive and creative things.
My performance is much better and I am no longer tired. Contrary to popular belief, I have managed to build muscle mass and improve every aspect of my life. My stamina is improving little by little and I feel stronger and more mobile.
Even now, despite 3 years of following the ketogenic diet, I haven't gotten all the benefits of this diet, because every day I discover new things, the feeling that I have energy all the time and the delicious foods I eat make it an ideal diet.
8years ago I was overweight by about 100 pounds. I was ashamed of myself. I didn’t like taking photos of myself and was overall really depressed about the state of things.
My health was also degrading with every single pound that I’ve gained, so I knew that I need to take an action. But how to motivate me into doing that and how to find the strength to do so? Let’s talk about it.
Disclaimer: Please note that I’m not a weight-loss advisor and can only speak from my own experience. I’m suggesting that you discuss all those steps with a doctor and don’t rush yourself into making a weight loss as quick as I did. Take your time, but stay on track.
My weight loss started with cutting down on almost everything that has Carbs. It has done a lot of stress to my body initially and I suggest you start this journey slower because it would be much more healthy that way.
Step 1. Realize that you need to take an Action
The photo of an Author. 4 years before losing weight.
You need to realize that there is a task that you need to achieve. Stop playing a victim, shaming yourself or others who might see your excessive weight in a negative light.
All our bodies function differently and metabolism also varies from person to person. At some point, you’ve probably paused on thinking about what do you eat and how it affects your body. Don’t blame yourself for that. It happened, but you have all the power in the world to fix it.
This is how it all started with me. I watched the stories of other overweight people in the world, understood what I had in common with them, and started tweaking my mindset towards the need of doing something actionable.
What else could be the reason for losing weight? Here is a universal one. If you need to get the attention of the opposite gender losing weight is typically one of the best strategies out there. That was my motivation as well.
Step 2. Think about what Groceries and food you buy
The second step would be making a list of what items you buy at your local grocery store. Does everything there make sense?
Sure, you want to have a variety of tastes, but do you actually need packaged food? Do you need salt, pepper, bread, and other things to be part of your diet?
Feel free to either finish or give away the food that you find high in calories. This is how it started with me. I’ve realized that 70% of the food in the fridge was junk food. There were only 30% of vegetables and everything else was high in calories, but worthless in any other way. Just Carbs and primarily bad Carbs.
Cut down on bread, tacos, and anything with too much fat. Yes, it means eating less meat and replacing it with something more light like a chicken breast.
My personal ratio, while I was on diet, looked like this:
Vegetables
Fruits (except banana and avocado)
Eggs
Water (and coffee without sugar, oh well)
Chicken breast
Fish
As you can see, it boils down to cutting on unnecessary items and sticking with a bare minimum. It shouldn’t be too problematic to achieve, because all this food is tasty and healthy.
Practically, just sticking to those items will already give your body the ability to cut down on excessive fat, but it might be not enough as the only mean of losing weight
Step 3. Less Driving, More Walking
I know that it’s easier said than done, but just start parking your car a little bit further away from the grocery stores. Start walking more in the parks. Enjoy nature. Eat a salad that you brought from home.
You need to walk for an hour or two every day. 10 000 steps is a good start, but doubling this amount would make you feel even better. Try this and see how it changes your life in a positive weight.
Many people think that you need to run marathons and go to the gym every day to lose weight fast. But honestly increasing the number of steps I did every day made the trick for me. Honestly, I don’t even like running. Only once in a while. But see what works better for yourself.
The reason why we gain weight is mostly that we consider food to be entertainment for us.
Oh, this juicy meat burger and french fries? It tastes good, it smells good. Guess the only bad thing it has? It does nothing good to your body and makes you gain weight.
But it’s not exactly food. It’s entertainment for your brain. It just tricks your mind and makes you crave more. Guess what? It’s designed to be addictive.
Step 5. Start executing your Weight Loss Plan
Ok, we discussed the basics and how I personally got to the idea that I need to lose weight. But what exactly should you do?
Start your first week by slowly eliminating the items that are not essential. This means that you need to adjust a diet this way:
Less ketchup
Less salt
Less sugar
Less bread
Less oil
Less meat
Less cream
Fewer potatoes
Less chocolate
Does it mean that you should stop eating beef, pork, fries, ketchup, and anything in between? Possibly, at least initially you should cut it down to a minimum.
I eliminated almost everything and this helped me lose weight, but I understand that not everyone is going to take that action right away. And it’s better to start it slow to avoid excess stress on your body.
Mood swings, food cravings, and sometimes a slightly confused state of mind are possible. Take the signals from your body seriously and don’t hesitate to consult with your doctor if you are doing things properly.
Remember, the point is not starving. The point is replacing products that are bad for your body with a product that actually makes sense and provides you a fuel.
If you feel like you need to violate your diet — do it once in a while. We are not robots, we are humans. Sometimes we do mistakes. Just realize that it happened and move on. Next time be more discipline.
Step 7. Treat yourself and take Carbs in small amounts
You know what? A healthy diet means that if you are on your way to losing excessive weight — you need to treat yourself as well.
Take that small chocolate with a coffee. Enjoy that croissant. Take a small piece of that cake. As you might guess — the key here is to treat yourself for making progress.
Take this treat in the morning, preferably. This is the best time for additional unhealthy calories and there is nothing wrong with it. Believe me, small portions are typically more than enough to get that food craving away.
Step 8. Get ready for getting compliments from people around you!
You’ve done everything right, you started eating healthy and exercising moderately. Again, take it slow and don’t attempt the starving. This is not healthy in most cases and will lead you to eat even more in the evenings.
Instead, enjoying feeling more light. You might need to buy a new pair of jeans every two or three weeks because your body is adapting to a new healthy diet.
People might get really confused with your new look. They might ask you how you achieved that and what you have done. This is the ground for interesting conversations and more people in your life.
This is where it gets even more interesting. Listen, I’ve gained 10 pounds back within 3 years. But I never got back to that excess weight that I had before.
The reason? I know my body. I know that I need to adjust the diet to maintain my weight. I know that sometimes I need to treat myself.
That’s why gaining some weight back is quite possible. But it’s just life. If you really want to maintain a weight you can always find a way to get fit.
Step 10. Share Your story with the World
The World should know your story. I hope that I’ve inspired you by writing this story and you can do it too.
People always crave a story that will inspire them. And not just the story of the random guy on the Internet, but someone who is nearby them. Make a positive impact on their lives as well, explain how your life has improved since losing weight.
My name is Dmitry and I’ve lost 100 pounds of weight in 90 days. And it was not that hard, to be honest.
Take care of yourself. I hope that you liked my story.
Weight loss can be an arduous and difficult task. Striving to lose just 20 pounds can be a frustrating feat, so going for 100 pounds can definitely seem to be impossible. We turn to weight loss supplements because they tout rapid and effortless reduction in weight.
It is impossible for cows to jump over the moon because it goes against the laws of nature. (Smile). But, for us to reach a healthy weight and get back to being ourselves: that is not impossible. Carrying around excessive weight causes us to be other than ourselves. It goes against our very nature which is why obesity often leads to various comorbidities.
It was not until my mom had a stroke that I started evaluating my own health. My evaluation showed that I was not in good shape. I had high blood pressure, high cholesterol, irritable bowel syndrome, and my BMI was at the borderline of the obese range. I knew I needed to make a change, so I went to work.
I tried many different weight loss methods; most of them were toxic. I subjected myself to fad diets, smoothie cleanses, and detoxes all in an effort to lose weight. After I was introduced to health documentaries such as Fed Up and What the Healthand studied Minister Farrakhan's Self Empowerment ThroughHealthful Living, I was given guidance that aided me in nearly doubling my weight loss goal of 50 pounds.
Here are 5 lifestyle habits that helped me lose 100 pounds and keep it off:
1. Intermittent Fasting as a way of life
Many people have attempted intermittent fasting (IF) as a weight-loss method, and it works. That is, it works as long as they continue to fast. I knew a guy who lost 120 pounds (no exaggeration) with time-restricted eating. He ate within a 4-hour window and fasted for 20 hours. When asked what he ate every day, he gleefully replied “a large pizza.”
I was also practicing (IF), and although I had not become a vegetarian yet, I still ate a sensible diet. I primarily ate white meat, very little fried foods, and lots of spring salad mix and fresh fruit.
Months had gone by before I saw the guy again, and I noticed that he gained much of his weight back. He explained that he had gotten away from fasting, but he was back on it. The next time I saw him (many months later) he was bigger than he was even before he lost weight.
My point: IF has to be a way of life for sustainable weight loss. Fasting has been a lifestyle for me since 2016, and I have not had any issues with regaining the weight that I lost.
2. Becoming a vegetarian
I never intended to become a vegetarian. The more I gain knowledge of health, the better my diet became. One aspect of improving my diet was that I was eating meat less often. When I did have some, I would only eat white meat. Over time my portions of meats were being replaced with beans and mushrooms.
I officially became a vegetarian in January 2017. Since that time, my health (blood pressure and cholesterol) improved and I have not had to resort to any extreme dieting practices to keep the weight off.
3. Taking 10,000 steps per day
I am a moderately active person. I move a lot during the day, and I’m always conscious of hitting my 10,000 step goal every day. Perhaps, this is where my love for jogging developed. Nonetheless, by staying active I burn enough calories to maintain a healthy weight range.
I do not limit myself to standard exercises. I help my wife garden, play basketball with my children, and do house chores. All of these activities require movement, and movement burns extra calories.
Strength training is a great way to build muscle and burn fat. Losing excess fat is what you really want out of your weight loss journey. Keeping muscle mass and reducing body fat is the optimal result of losing weight.
Cardio is important, but strength training is necessary as part of a balanced lifestyle. Working muscle groups together is an effective way to strengthen your body and tone your muscles.
Strength training a few times a week has helped me stay in shape and kept the weight off. At the start of this pandemic, many people were putting on the now infamous ‘quarantine 15.’ However, I did not have to change a thing with my diet and lifestyle. I stayed active as I normally would, continued IF, and strength training with my home gym equipment. As a result, I did not gain weight.
5. Spending time doing what I enjoy
Writing has always been a favorite hobby of mine. Prior to focusing on health and weight loss, I used to write short stories about whatever I would imagine. Writing is something that I enjoy, and doing the things that we enjoy reduces stress.
Although it is not often specifically mentioned in the weight loss community, stress does have a negative impact on weight loss. Stress causes the body to produce cortisol. Cortisol, also known as the stress hormone, leads to weight gain. Stress can lead us to engage in unhealthy habits: eating high-calorie ‘comfort foods,’ drinking too much alcohol, and losing vital sleep.
To engross ourselves in healthy, productive hobbies can reduce stress and promote other healthy habits. When I am writing or filming and editing a YouTube video, snacking is not on my mind. By staying productive, I eat less. By avoiding unhealthy snacking, my calorie intake stays in a range that helps to manage my weight.
These are just some examples of how I eat and live that helps with weight control. The only time managing my weight is on my mind is when I’m writing about it. Because of my lifestyle habits, I do not have a reason to focus on weight loss or weight control.
I’d like to share my short weight loss story that I know will resonate with you…
I was never one of the “cool” skinny girls in school.
Regrettably for most of my life I yo-yo’ed between a size 12 and 14 no matter what I tried. I have tried them all. Atkins, South beach, Nutrisystem, Weight watchers, Jenny Craig.
And I even listened to that silly baseball guy who talked about the shakes on TV for all those years. And yet, since I had my second daughter at 28, I haven’t been able to lose any weight…
Well, maybe a few pounds for a little while but then it all comes roaring back when I stop whatever gimmick I’m on that month.
You should’ve seen me in my college days. I was tall, slim and had been blessed by the good lord with an hourglass figure that always turned heads.
Hey, it’s how I attracted my husband!
But after Andrea was born… I couldn’t get back down to my normal 130. I’m 5 foot 7, and that was always a great weight on me.
Yet I’ve spent the better part of 20 years pushing 220 pounds. Then one sleepless night, I stumbled on a health segment, featuring Jack Barret, who helped his wife to lose her belly fat using a newly discovered bizarre 5-second tropical fat-dissolving loophole.
Jack shared so much information in the short time he was on.
He started by exposing the biggest nutrition lies the big fitness and weight loss players preach.
Just to push sales of their fad diets to make millions of dollars. “To lose weight successfully, you shouldn’t eat less. Nor should you cut out carbs. Nor should you exercise until you drop,” he sternly quipped.
He then shared a multi-year study that demonstrated consistent and aggressive cardio routines have little effect on weight loss. And that doing lots of endless cardio is actually bad for your health.
Can you believe that?
All that time and effort, not to mention thousands of dollars down the drain because I was fed lies.
Jack continued to explain how our bodies work. With only some minor changes, no matter your age, shape or size, you can kick your body into fat burning mode for much longer than normal.
Jack then shared an incredible fat-dissolving tropical loophole, which will immediately trigger your hormones to melt away fat and make you feel more energetic.
Jack also provided a list of “healthy” foods to avoid. These so called “healthy” foods actually damage your health and make you pack on more unsightly fat.
Lastly, Jack spoke about a couple of simple steps to take each day that will shift your eating cycles and push your metabolism into high gear, getting your body to burn fat faster. I listened intently and jotted down everything I heard as quickly as I could.
I remembered being skeptical — how a few simple steps could help me lose weight when nothing had worked before. But I owe it to myself to give it a shot. I had nothing to lose.
I immediately began eating the way Jack had recommended and followed the other few simple steps he mentioned.
You won’t believe what happened next!
In a single week, I lost 9 pounds and could really see the difference right away. My hips seemed slimmer and my jeans started to loosen up.
So I kept following Jack’s advice and I actually lost 61 pounds total in the next 5 months!
I’m not down to 131, but at my age and for my height, I think 143 is pretty darn good. I look amazing in a sun dress and I feel 22 years younger… and to tell a bit of a secret… My husband can’t keep his hands off me!
Since then, I have found out that Jack has formed a weight loss program on the basis of his research, which is backed by science.
Jack has now made it his mission in life to share this healthy weight loss program with women all across the world.
If you’re a woman who has struggled to lose weight, you owe it to yourself to watch Jack’s free presentation which you can find right here. Turn up your speakers and click the link below to watch it right now!
