Going Keto

Sometimes, you just need to make a big change in your life to accomplish a goal.

Since I moved to Austin four years ago, I’ve packed on quite a bit of weight. Some of it was due to stress, some of it was due to inactivity and some of it was due to medication. (My doctor prescribed medication that made me gain 20 pounds in less than a month. I never lost it.)

I’m not looking to do anything crazy like drop down to my college weight. I just want to be healthy and fit back into my favorite jeans, sweaters and t-shirts.

In January, I returned to CrossFit after more than a year away due to plantar fasciitis and surgery to fix my sinuses. I’ve been training consistently three days a week plus additional days at the gym. I’ve been consuming less that 2,200 calories per day – sometimes around 1,800 – and have seen zero results.

Actually, that’s not completely true – I’ve gotten stronger, faster, improved my endurance and lowered my resting heart rate. I just haven’t decreased my girth.

I finally decided that it might be time to change my diet.

About 15 years ago, I tried Atkins. It worked pretty well but was difficult and expensive to stay on it for long stretches of time and didn’t work well with my anxiety. Plus, I was doing it alone – my wife wasn’t into it.

Atkins is similar to a Ketogenic diet, though not quite as strict, so instead of Atkins, my wife and I decided to give Keto a try.

It’s been about a week of eating high fat, moderate protein and low carbs – sometimes less than 20 grams of carbs per day. The food is delicious and the recipes we started with are pretty easy to prepare.

I was sedentary all last week due to a cold and even so, I’ve noticed a difference already.

I think this might be the regimen that actually works for me. Time (and persistence) will tell.

In the meantime, I’ll share some of my experiences here.