Keto | 00ff00.com

I switched my diet from a high carb vegetarian diet to an extremely low carb ketogenic diet back in July. I gave up 22 years of vegetarianism to do so. I’d been lurking on the /r/keto subreddit for a couple years, mainly out of curiosity, and finally decided to take the plunge after reading so many reports of how the Keto diet helped folks with PCOS and anxiety. I thought it might be a solution to a few health issues I’d recently been experiencing, and thought I’d give it a try. I’m so glad I did.

Why Did I Do It?

Insulin Resistance

From my reading, it’s pretty clear that for the last five years or so I’d become more and more resistant to insulin. I was just slightly over the line for pre-diabetes, I was low energy often and I found myself regulating my mood with sugar and carbs, and my cravings for both were through the roof. Insulin resistance (and type 2 diabetes) is often linked to Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS).

Weight Gain

I had gained about 30lbs over the past five years with no change to my diet. I realize that often happens in your mid-thirties, but this seemed more drastic than typical. I’d tried to lose the weight by going to the gym. After about a year of trying to outrun the weight gain, I realized that going to the gym wasn’t going to make me lose weight. It did have great mental health benefits, and made me feel strong and good, so I continued to go anyway.

Hormone Imbalance?

I typically got my period every 45-90+ days pre-keto. I was curious if the anxiety/depression was related to a potential hormone imbalance originating from PCOS. My periods were often very painful, and I’d read that keto can help with that as well.

Results

It’s been 5 months now and here are my results:

I’m no longer pre-diabetic. (A1C went from 5.7 to 5.5 at three months in)
My bad cholesterol is down, and good is up.
my blood pressure is still great, even with all the newly added saturated fat. (111/66)
My moods are regulated — no more ups and downs. It’s an even, solid good mood all day.
I’m sleeping better.
My depression and anxiety have lowered, perhaps even totally disappeared. I no longer have “blah” days, or days where I feel sad or anxious for no reason. I no longer have that nervous feeling in my stomach.
My periods are more regulated (around every 40 days now), and they aren’t painful anymore. I’m guessing that means my hormones are more regulated, but I haven’t done the blood work. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
I no longer have sugar cravings/carb cravings/get hangry/need to eat RIGHT NOW.
The food I eat doesn’t affect my mood anymore. Like I don’t get sleepy after a meal, or feel blah or lethargic after I eat.
I lost 25lbs and am continuing to slowly lose weight. I can wear all my old clothes again! I didn’t count calories at all, I just try to stay in ketosis.
My energy levels are through the roof. I feel like I never get tired.
My emotional stamina is higher too. I can do a hard hike and not have to “talk myself through it”. I just do it and feel good while doing it. I used to push myself to do 15 mins on the elliptical, now I do 30+ mins without thinking.
My attention span is longer than before, and I feel more present.
I’m more productive with work.

I had NO IDEA that changing what I ate could have such a profound difference in my mental and physical health. If you’re interested in giving keto a try, here are some links to read more:

http://www.reddit.com/r/keto (Read all the links under “about this community”)
https://www.reddit.com/r/ketoscience
https://www.reddit.com/r/ketorecipes
https://www.ruled.me/start-here/