Adapted Low Carb, in it for life

TattooTwinset

I am a 33 year old mother of two (12 yo girl, 9 yo boy.) I was a skeleton with flesh until I was about 13. When I started high school I was in a size 7 jeans when I graduated I was a size 18. I have always had issues with believing in myself and trusting in myself. I am also a people pleaser and take my failures out on myself in the form of mentally beating myself up.
I married the perfect man when I was 19 (1999.) Both my children were planned. I was so heavy when I got pregnant (both times) that I actually lost weight while pregnant (thank you super awesome morning sickness.) That didn't change things though. I "tried" everything to lose weight and every failure was just another nick in my very dented self image. Every night I would lie in bed and think that tomorrow I would start working on being skinny and every morning I would wake up and start to fail. It was a fairly vicious cycle.
I have never been bad at anything. In general I am such a hard worker that even if there is no natural talent, I do well. Weight loss was that one thing I couldn't succeed at. SO, sick to death of failure, on a cpap machine to sleep and with the beginning signs of osteo-arthritis in my knees and hips, at the ripe old age of 25, I had Roux n Y gastric bypass surgery (June 22, 2005.) I was a model patient, the one everyone wants to be. I was released from the hospital after two days. I went from SICU to home. I never even went into a recovery room. I lost 26lbs in two weeks, was off the cpap and the GERD medication in less than that. I started at 298-ish and got down to 240-ish and stopped completely. That was in the first half of 2006.
In August I left my husband (still the perfect man, but I am gay; I just couldn't be the perfect wife anymore.) With the divorce, I lost the free gym and the stay at home mom gig. (He is military.) I also lost the financial security to afford whole healtny foods. I stayed around 240lbs for the next 5 years while I found work, got laid off in 2008 when the recession hit, moved to another state, worked, went back to school(2010), met my current GF (2011), and finished my degree (12/2012).
Meeting my GF is what started me off again. She had been told she was on a fast road to being dead. Her PCM was actually surprised she was still alive. Her BP was running a consistent 185/125. The pressure was actually changing the shape of her retinas. Her blood glucose levels weere also perilously close to diabetic. By the time I met her (June 2011) she had been eating low carb for 6-7 months and she had turned her health around. When she described to me how her body felt, it was like she was describing me so I joined the band wagon. I dropped weight faster than I could believe. I wasn't even exercising, just eating low carb and sticking to it religiously. I liked it. Last May I was at my lowest weight since before I graduated high school in 1998.
When I packed up to move here to Little Rock, I started eating badly again (no kitchen while in transition) and just didn't stop. I put back on 40 lbs in 6 months. from June -December 2013 I went from 177.4 up to 210. I am disgusted with myself. So, I set goals, I wrote them down ( a first for me), and here I am. This is my novel.I try to be supportive and uplifting, bc sometimes I need supportive and uplifting but I also need to be told "Hey, fattie! Get up off your *kitten* and do what you need to do." I have a lot of pain issues but I am better off than most.
I had surgery on my wrist on Dec 31st, so I am still coming back from that so things like push ups or any kinds of weights are out. But I love my *kitten* crack of dawn elliptical sessions. Feel free to add me.

juliacatherine1

Glad to see you are dedicated to a healthy lifestyle. Sometimes its hard to have a healthy lifestyle, i understand that! Lets get on track! Would you want to tell me more about your adapted low carb? is it like paleo?

TattooTwinset

I adapt it by including calorie counting. I try to maintain 65-70%fat and 10%carbs and the rest protein. I eat at or just under 1500 clories/day. I don't follow Atkins, though they have some pretty tasty recipes!

juliacatherine1

That is a pretty decent calorie intake. I know mine for weight loss is around that depending on activity, and we are starting at the same weight. Sounds good to me. I started on lowering carbs and cut out bread and pasta the first week, last week. I have been feeling so much better in many ways. So now I am waiting to see the doctor about a possible gluten intolerance. Either way, I feel better on low carb and I have my own kitchen to cook delicious low carb, weird foods like cauliflower rice! and black beans with sweet potatoes!