I think I am ready to declare success
 

I started low carb eating in February 2007, as a show of support for my sister-in-law who had developed gestational diabetes and was given a low carb diet to follow the remainder of her pregnancy. Being Vietnamese, she just knew she would never be able to eat without rice, noodles and tapioca starch as a daily part of her diet. So, I told her I would do it with her. You know, misery loves company.

It wasn't Atkins induction or any particular plan. I just avoided the main carbs: wheat, grains, potato, carrots, sweet potato, corn, oats, sugars, juices, and any very sweet fruits. The weight initally just flew off.

When my nephew was born three months later, my friends all wanted to know when I would go back to eating "real" food, and that was when I realized I simply wasn't going back. I had lost a pretty decent amount of weight by then, I felt good, my neck and back pain was gone, my MS symptoms had drastically improved, I was sleeping, my horrible menstral cramps were going away and my hair and nails had never looked better.

I managed to get down to a low of 165 within the first eight months, but then I'd get sidetracked and pop back up to 175 or 180, before moving back down the scale again into the 160s. Now that I was going it alone, without my sister-in-law and without a real plan, things got tough. Plus, I had reached a weight where it was going to take some discipline to move any lower and I had no idea how to be disciplined.

Somewhere around that time I found this forum. I re-read my Atkins book, the one I picked up in 1999 and never bothered to really read. I read Jimmy Moore's site. I read kimkins. I ready the PP plans. I read GCBC. I started flirting with paelo principles. I found Mark's Daily Apple and then Panu, when it was first getting started. I tried IF. I tried carb cycling. I read a lot, but I never could get out of my 165-175 yoyoing. (Frankly, I think I tried far too many things without giving any of them a chance to work.)

In 2009, I got very sick and took massive doses of steroids for months on end. I was also hospitalized and at the mercy of hospital dieticians. I ended up re-gaining about 30 pounds, almost back up to 200. It was very demoralizing, but I did lose it all again, this time with the help of hcg. And I didn't stop losing at 165. Since I was far more educated, I was able to be far more disciplined. (Plus, being so demoralized over the regain made the plan much easier to follow.) I made it down to 158 in September 2010. By March 2011, I hit my low of 149.

I also finally started exercising. I was an athlete when in school, but for years I had used my MS as a rationale for not working out: I can't get too overheated or my body attacks me now. But my husband was battling high blood pressure, and he found that simply walking cured his hbp almost immediately. So, I started walking with him: 2 miles every evening after work, 3 miles on weekend mornings. When the weather got too hot for me to handle the outdoors heat, rather than simply give up walking, I joined the gym under my office. I've been religiously using it, and I actually love it now.

I still walk maybe 3 days a week. The other 2-3 days I work out, I lift weights. I spend only 15-20 minutes lifting, and I do the heaviest weights I can handle. It has made a huge difference in how I feel. I travel a lot for work, and I've started packing my workout clothes and actually using the hotel gyms wherever I go. And if there is no hotel gym, I have a power yoga dvd that I keep in my laptop, and I can always do yoga in my hotel room.

It took a while -- years really, for LC to become a part of my life. But now it just is. Everyone who nows me knows that I just don't eat carbs. It is who I am and no one cares. I still have a full and exciting life, professionally and socially. I just don't eat the cake, cookies, bread, chips, pasta, etc. Exercise is also becoming second nature to me.

Most days I am closer to 151 than 149. I weigh a few times a week now. Not daily, but I never go more than a week without getting on the scale, just to keep things in check. I now comfortably wear a size 6P-8P or a medium. And I am comfortable in my own skin.

Technically, I am still overweight, according to the height/weight charts. But I don't care about those. I think I look pretty good for a middle aged woman with three kids and a chronic illness. And I feel fantastic. If at some point I lose more, fine. If not, that is fine, too. (Really, I actually mean that.) I am healthy and happy and I have found something that really works for me, in my life.

Wonderful story and fantastic success! I think this is something a lot of us can relate to - starting with a friend/family member/co-worker and then finding ourselves alone on the journey. Kudos to you for sticking it out and going the distance!

Very inspiring!! Especially when you gained 30lbs back and it didn't stop you- i can relate - gives me the umph to get my butt back in gear and get going towards my goal!

Thanks RG and joy.

You know, if someone told me back five years ago that it would take five years of struggle to lose the weight, I probably would have said it wasn't worth it and never started. But, I'm so glad I did start. The five years were going to pass anyway -- unless I had died -- and frankly, life was already a struggle just being fat and dealing with my illness. So, I was going to spend five years struggling one way or the other.

Oh, and don't get me wrong, I had my fair share of "why mes" over the weight struggle, the regain, the steroids, the MS, etc. I married into a very slender, very petite Vietnamese family, none of whom have ever had a weight struggle. I got very caught up in, "Why can they eat rice and weigh 89 pounds and I smell rice and have an insulin response." But those thoughts didn't do anything to change my reality, so I had to let them go and accept me for who I am.

Acceptance, of my realities and that this WOE as the only way for me to be healthy, is what it finally took for me to stop bouncing around and finally get down to a manageable, healthy weight.

Can I ask what brand of HGC you used? I am thinking of trying it as a jump start while following atkins after but I am confused with all the different brands?

Thanks!

Thanks, Joy. I also did hcg with Atkins following it. I tried it after my steroids, chemo, etc., because for some reason, low carb just seemed to stop working for me at that point. Low carbing alone is working as great maintenance, though, and it even started to work again for losses after first trying the hcg.

I think it is a violation of TOS to post details about the specific product, so I will send you a PM.

Gosh, thank you for sharing this wonderful story. It's truly inspiring.

CONGRATS on sticking with it and getting to goal!!!!! And for sharing your story with us!

I also started lc because my mom and sil were doing it....back in 2003....they quit shortly after. I've stuck with it for the most part all these years. Will always be thankful to them....

Inspiration. That's the way I want to be, not trying to do it just living it in a natural way.

:thup: Congrats to you for hitting your goal and sticking with the plan, even with all the bumps in the road.

I started the lc woe after my supervisor actually gave me the atkins '72 book (and I wanted to lose some weight before my sons wedding, which was 2 months after I started this woe, which I dropped 20 pounds). I read and re-read that darn thing, I can't tell you how many times. Kept it in my car so at lunchtime I could go out and re-read it. Plus, this forum has the best recipes...I would cut and paste and print them out. Got me a 3-ring binder with tabs and made up my own cookbook. I think dh thought I had lost it! :lol:

Like you, the weight just melted off at first but then I got down to the 171-172 point where I couldn't lose any more. Reading about the hcg got my interest so in March, 2011, I started using the drops. I lost about 25 pounds the first round, which was just fantastic! I couldn't believe it actually worked!

Right now I'm holding pretty steady around 156, but like you, I'm middle aged with 2 grown children and 4 grandchildren and I think I look pretty darn good (except for all the extra skin hanging around :lol: :lol: )for an ole lady :)

The weight charts has my ideal weight around 149 so I'm going to try to lose a few more pounds. As of yesterday, dh and I joined our local gym which is within walking distance from our house. I'm so excited to get over there today and start firming all this flab up!!

Thank you for sharing your story with us :agree:

What a great inspiration. Congrats to you!! Hope to someday be hitting my goals as well. Who cares about what the stupid charts say. We are not going to be boxed into some stupid chart. If you are happy that is all that matters.

This is a beautiful story, despite the bumps you never gave up! That's what true determination is all about...doing it for yourself and no one else.

I was so glad to see this thread bumped up again. It's such a great story! I could relate to it so strongly that I figured it would be better to post my experiences right here as another similar success to yours. Hope that's OK.

I also have a neurological condition, transverse myelitis, that in many ways is like MS. For fifteen plus years it has caused severe neuropathic chronic pain. Tried every single pain med that my docs could think of, with no luck. Also, limited mobility was not helping with the 40's weight gain thing! In September 2010 I started a low fat, low cal diet. I lost around 18 pounds, but I felt worse than ever.

Around April, at some point I came across GCBC, and decided to try low carb. Not only did I lose another 18-20 pounds, but amazingly my pain issue improved drastically. Neuropathic pain is notoriously resistant to medical treatment. I had tried dozens of different types of meds. But about a month into LC, I started to notice a drastic difference in this aweful chronic pain. It became way less horrible. It seems kind of random. But the other major condition that can cause neuropathic pain is diabities. And the first thing that is recommended for these patients is controlling blood sugar! Even though my basic blood tests were always in the normal range, I am astounded that something I stumbled upon randomly was never even on the radar of any of my docs! (Especially since it's also considered a neuropathy). To be about 85% better in this regard has greatly improved my life.

The other part of your story that I can totally relate to is getting to a healthy weight and focusing on maintaining. Sure, I would love to lose another ten or fifteen pounds. But like you, I am sick of the weight loss mentality, and into enjoying my new, smaller size. It's simply fun to focus on things like clothes and hair and makeup. I love looking good at 51. 35 pounds ago I dreaded any kind of social event. Now I find that I am, shockingly, often one of the better looking ones at an event, even with a disability. I can feel confident in my appearance and enjoy things. It's nice.

Again, this is not a hijack or a bragging opp. For anyone out there with something like MS or TM or SCI or so many autoimmune type conditions, it might be worth considering or passing on to someone who has one. It was a pretty easy adjustment for me, and the unexpected payoff has been huge.

Obviously there is not much scientific research into this. But maybe if our stories get out there, others might be helped too.

This was exactly what I was hoping to read. Congratulations and all the best for the maintenance.

What a great story of working towards a goal for the long haul, instead of going for a quick fix! People like you are very inspiring to those of us who want a real change. Thanks for sharing.