Challenge accepted

Last year, just after the second isolation was announced, I stepped on the scales. Oops! Right then I determined that either I would be coming out of this pandemic being rolled out the door like Violet Beauregarde from Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, or I'd be coming out healthier than I went in.

In 2008, I had the bariatric sleeve and although it was a surgical success, it didn't address the psychological and emotional issues associated with overeating. I lost 100 lbs, then regained 40. Still, 60 pounds gone is nothing to sneeze at and although it was less than half my goal I settled for it.

With the help of a wonderful therapist, I figured out some of the reasoning behind the hows and whys of weight gain and decided I'd try dieting again; maybe, just maybe with my newfound insights dieting would really work. Wrong. Dieting didn't work. Counting calories didn't work, exercise didn't work. Weight Watchers, shakes, protein supplements - nothing worked. I was so disheartened.

Discouraged but not dissuaded, I searched online for other options. I'd heard about keto but thought, "this can't be right." Eating fat? Eating red meat? Eating egg yolks? Wow. Then I found out I could eat pork rinds! But, it just seemed so wrong - it was against everything I had ever learned about weight and health maintenance. I dug deeper into research and came across several sites that espoused the benefits of the ketogenic diet, and finally came across Dr. Berg's site.

Finally, it was explained in a way that made sense to me: not too simplistic, not too technical, yet informative with cited resources. I thought, "I'll give it six weeks, if I haven't lost anything by then, I'll know it doesn't work for me." Six weeks later, I'd lost 20 lbs. Three months later, 45 lbs. Now, 11 months into this new lifestyle, I'm almost to my first major goal of 70 lbs in a year. I've gone from a size 28 to 18, I'm happier, healthier, and have more energy than I've had in well over a decade. The inflammation which caused my arthritis to flare up is gone as well, eliminating the need for narcotics to ease the pain.

Thanks to Dr. Berg's website and a few others like Dr. Ekberg, Dr. Bosworth, I have a new life and a healthy lifestyle that works. I am forever grateful.