Not all diabetics know that their condition can be managed by the keto diet. It’s a wonderful way to lose weight, improve your health, and keep your blood sugar stable. Amanda Cleared Acne & Lost Weight!
I have always suffered from acne since I was a teenager, and thankfully, I found something that changed my life. I was in a really bad place as a teenager and I thought that I would always have this problem. I ended up on a ketogenic diet and that was it. I went from having breakouts that would last weeks to having no acne. I continued to follow the keto diet after and have been on it for 8 years. I have never had a problem with acne since. I love the way my skin looks and feel! I have never had tight skin. If I had to change anything it would be to eat more healthy fats. I eat a lot of balance between protein and carbs.
We love to celebrate our keto community!
We get very excited when a reader sends us a success story about their experience with keto cooking. They are always inspiring and motivating for us on our keto journey.
Amanda is a reader who started the keto diet after she moved to Texas and realized she wasn’t doing well. By choosing a low-carb, high-fat lifestyle, she and her husband have become very successful and have made keto cooking an integral part of their lives.
Read his story below:
Have you ever had lunch only to be hungry again an hour later? And on top of the hunger pangs, you have an inexplicable headache and an irresistible urge to curl up and take a nap before dinner? That was my life for a long time, and I didn’t even realize how bad I felt. I just learned what it means to feel GOOD.
My daily breakfast consisted of a banana and a big bowl of healthy (but still full of sugar…) whole grain cereal. My lunch consisted of an apple, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich on whole wheat bread (whole wheat bread automatically means healthy for you, right?) and some kind of healthy snack like SkinnyPop popcorn, Veggie Tubes or Pirate’s Booty…. Like this. Very much so. The pirate’s booty.
If you want to count, that’s about 200 grams of carbs….. and that’s not even dinner.
Up the road from the church, where my husband and I served on Sundays and Wednesdays, was Culver’s Restaurant. Let’s just say that many bowls of Oreo mint ice cream were eaten. And let’s not forget the delicious ricotta cheese dipped in marinara sauce. I mean, I had to balance the sweet with the salty.
We often went out to dinner with our friends in Florida. I drank about 2 liters of sweet tea or cola every week in our regular restaurants. My clothes began to feel tighter and tighter against my body. I no longer felt safe in my nice sleeveless t-shirts. I felt the need to put more makeup on my eyes, as I felt it distracted from my chubby cheeks. I knew I had arrived. I knew I wasn’t feeling well, but I didn’t feel like coming up with a plan.
To add to my problems, my husband was also not well. He has been struggling with chronic migraines since he was a teenager. He had headaches five or six days a week. He often took 4 Excedrin Migraine tablets a day. I hated that he felt so bad, and neither of us knew what was causing his headaches. We just stated that it is his thorn in the flesh.
In November 2017, we made the big move from Florida to our home state of Texas. It was such an emotional moment! Florida is where we met and where about 97% of our memories were made together. We left behind our dear church family and close friends, as well as the conveniently located Culver’s Restaurant.
There was something about our big move that made me want to make a fresh start. I thought a low-carb diet was something to try. I started making sandwiches with sausage and cheese for lunch. I missed my whole wheat bread, but I also enjoyed the meats and cheeses!
In the first few weeks of our new life in Texas, my mother-in-law mentioned several times that she was getting into the ketogenic diet. I had never heard of him, so I went to see him one afternoon. Macros? Seasoning oil? Little or no fruit? I was confused by this way of life, but I wanted to know more.
Let’s move on to the holidays… because, rest assured, I’ve been stuffing myself with pies and cinnamon rolls for the past month and a half.
I had a long conversation with my husband about the whole keto thing. He told me he’d love to join me in the new year….. as long as I keep doing the planning and the cooking! I was so glad he wanted to join me. In early January, I weighed 170 pounds and he weighed 160.
I learned a lot in 2018. I’ve finally perfected my favorite ratio of low-carb sweeteners in my keto bakes. I found out I like brussels sprouts. My husband has discovered that he really likes fried kale (he says it looks like cotton candy)! I enjoyed all the things pork rinds are good for, like fried okra and tilapia. Oooh, and keto puppy food! My husband even stands in the kitchen and cooks for our chow puppy!
In the first few weeks of switching to a new way of eating, I’ve slowly but surely replaced pirate pies with pork rinds, apples with strawberries, carrots with olives, healthy granola with bacon and eggs, pasta with greens, bread with… Well, uh… Let’s just say we’re still working on perfecting homemade keto bread.
I lost 20 pounds in about 8 months. I noticed that I had mental clarity and energy after lunch, instead of a dull headache and the urge to take a nap. I had to exchange my size 16 jeans for a size 10. I can wear sleeveless tops again with confidence. My face was back to the way it used to be, so I didn’t feel the need to doll myself up with makeup so often. The acne I suffered from as a teenager has greatly improved! (On the other hand, if I eat sugar a few days in a row, it’s crazy how quickly my face starts to itch).
My husband has lost 10 kilos. He began to discover a link between sugar and migraines: The less sugar he ate, the less likely he was to get a migraine. Although his headaches sometimes come from other sources, it was great for him to have a solution to work with. Instead of having headaches 5-6 days a week, he now averages a headache every two weeks! I want him to get better.
I have also learned to better manage my feelings about certain foods. While delicious, sugary, highly processed foods make me tired and greedy, whole foods, including delicious healthy fats, give me energy and fill me up. Although I sometimes tend to give in to high-carb treats (especially around the holidays!), it helps me to be aware of what I’m thinking before I eat – is it worth feeling bad after eating that food?
So where are we today? My husband eats what I cook and put in his lunch all the time. He usually orders what he wants when we go to a restaurant, but it seems that because he is a man, he can lose the weight he has gained in two days. I’m so jealous! I continue to eat in a strict manner, except on special occasions….. I ate an obscene amount of chocolate over the holidays, but the good news is that I know what to do to get back on track. I know this power mode WORKS. I truly believe this is how people should eat.
If you think the ketogenic lifestyle is worth it, my best advice for getting started is to look at your kitchen. Which foods do you think are high in carbohydrates and highly processed? Eat them or give them up and start replacing them with healthy foods. Along the way you will discover what these products are. You don’t have to have all the answers right away, so don’t get overwhelmed! Slowly but surely, have a clean slate and no more temptations eating away at me!
Ultimately, remember that this is not a diet. It’s a lifestyle! From time to time you will deviate from the plan, and that’s okay! Enjoy the Cheesecake Factory’s Red Velvet Cheesecake (this is a personal weakness of mine…) and get in line when you can. It’s a process. Focus on your long-term goals and don’t be afraid of small missteps. Slow and steady, we’re winning the race!
We love Amanda’s story because it’s so believable! We all know the insatiable feeling of sweet food and the guilt that can result from overeating. Her method of following a healthy keto diet of fresh, whole foods works. The evidence can be found in the weight loss, improved mental clarity, clearer skin and reduced migraines she and her husband have experienced.
We are so proud of Amanda’s success in Keto and support her and her husband as they continue their Keto journey!
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