I've always been fit, but over the years with many sports I've found I've got fatter, thinner etc... repeatedly.

I've been training martial arts since I was a child and recently in MMA for the past 4 years and had deliberately pushed my weight up to 100kgs to wrestle big guys, but had sustained impingement & a torn meniscus. So after I had my knee operation, I decided to drop from light heavyweight to a middleweight. I stopped lifting heavy and incorporated circuits of my own design in my home gym. I expanded my core strength exercises and started kcal counting (e.g. if you want to weight 80kgs, eat what an 80kg guy should eat).

I was attempting to drop 1lb a week from my 93kg frame whilst maintaining my muscle mass. I'd already been checked for CKD (as my muscle mass for my age showed that I had excessive creatinine within my blood, after many tests it turned out I was too fit & muscular for my age).

I ended dropping my weight quickly and then decided to tune it a little further. I'd started at 93kgs and 16% body fat. My skeletal muscle was at 39%, I feared I would lose muscle on the way, so then I increased my protein & fat intake reducing my carbs further. Now I sit at 41.5% skeletal muscle. I'm 80kgs (my body wants to go lower, but I'm trying to keep it between 80-82kgs). I'm 11.5% fat. 

I'm stronger and faster then before, if I eat certain carbs I find I sweat and feel ill. Some things I'm still able to tolerate. Basically I'm trying to follow the primal concepts now to improve further. I've removed sodas from my diet, I've tried to remove most drinks other then water. I still enjoy some beers and wine, but now I find I get a hangover (never used to) and cannot drink as much. In my diet, my fat intake is now about 40%, my protein is 32% and my carbs at 28%.

What was the biggest challenge to adopting a carbohydrate-restricted or paleo diet?
Dropping diet Dr Pepper Z....

What advice (if any) would you give to someone interested in trying a carbohydrate-restricted or paleo diet? Were there any obstacles that you overcame that could help future dieters?
Reduce first, then drop. Don't eat out whilst you're learning about yourself. Agree with yourself you don't need the item first. Remove things as you feel comfortable. Then decide if you're missing them or not. Is it habit or is it a desire.

I had worked for 6 months working out 5x a week and counting calories on a low fat diet. I initially lost 5 lbs, but gained it back and was unable to make any progress. I thought I was just unable to lose because of my age. 

The minute I went off the grain and sugars, the weight started falling off. My original goal was to hit 175 in 3 months. I prayed to eventually get to 170, but thought that wouldn't be sustainable for me. I blew past both those goals like a joke. I got into the low 150's yet maintained my muscle mass to the oz (using hydrostatic body fat test) . I went from 24% bf to 11% in 3 months and continue to see slow improvement - total scale loss 36 lbs. 

The past 4 months have cut back working out significantly (due to work) but kept eating paleo/primal, while consciously increasing my fat and protein levels. Been able to maintain my scale weight without problem. At the end of my 90 day challenge, I had my blood work done and all my numbers were rock star status and blew away my Dr. He could not believe my triglycerides and HDL. My vitamin D also was off the charts good.

Other results - waist went from 36.5" to 31", shirts went from 16+" to 14.5". energy level, attitude, all increased. Chronic daily rotator pain (which was daily icing), disappeared. Decreased acne.

What was the biggest challenge to adopting a carbohydrate-restricted or paleo diet?
Peer / family and social pressures were a constant challenge. After 7 months primal, people have finally started to leave me alone and quite trying to have me eat like them. (the blood work and bf% tests helps squash that crap)

What advice (if any) would you give to someone interested in trying a carbohydrate-restricted or paleo diet? Were there any obstacles that you overcame that could help future dieters?
I found it easiest to tell people that I think I have an allergy to grains and sugars. Since people all seem to be allergic to things (and don't question it anymore), people rarely give me stress. If you say you gave up bread and pasta and eat more meat, the lecturing begins.

I have been primal for almost a year now and let me tell you it has been life changing! First off I want to thank you for everything, with you your site and the hard work everyone put into it I would not have reached my goals!

Let me give you a little back ground. I am 25 years old and I am a cancer survivor. When I was 11 years old I was diagnosed with Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), I went through intense chemotherapy for 6 month and continued with chemo for a while after that. I have taken so many drugs in my life that I couldn’t even begin to name them all. All these drugs kept me alive but at the price of possible liver, heart and other damage in the future. Needless to say I went into remission on September 11th 2001 (I will never forget where I was that day, such a strange sensation of relief and grief at the same time) and lived the rest of my life like a normal teen.

Fast foreword now to last April, I was sent to a liver specialist because I have a high level of an alanine aminotransferase (ALT) enzyme in my blood work(which I still need to go for every 6 months). The enzyme is a marker for liver failure and because of my medical history my doctor wanted me to see a specialist ASAP. I also had high cholesterol, triglycerides and high iron. This scared me so I rushed to this doctor and was told I have a fatty liver and the beginning stages of Metabolic Syndrome. All these signs were pointing to overeating and obesity. Now I would not say I was obese, but I would tell you that I was overweight and not happy with myself. 

I was very active, I went to the gym all the time. I was (and still am) an avid cross-fitter but I was gaining weight constantly. At the time of this doctor visit I was 6'1" 265lbs.

Something needed to be done. The doctor wanted me on this experimental high cholesterol medicine. I was 23 years old and needed to be on medicine? That was not the answer. I was complaining to my Dad about this and he told me about the Primal Blueprint and how it changed his life and got him healthy. He gave me the book and that was the start of it.

I started with a two week trial, two weeks and I was sold. I remember feeling like I had endless amounts of energy, I slept so much better and fell asleep faster, that bloated feeling? Gone. Constant burping after meals? Gone. Weight? Down. I made a commitment, I was going Primal and not looking back.

April-May. May-June, June-July, by August I was down to 230lbs and feeling amazing. My friends and I signed up for the spartan sprint for September and one of my main goals was to get down to 220lbs by the time the race rolled around. That would have been 5 months and 45lbs. Now most people might think I am losing muscle mass, that no one can lose that much body fat so fast. Wrong again. I was breaking PR's (personal records) left in right, with time, reps and weight. 

September comes and its race time and I hit my goal weight!!

In 5 months I went from 265lbs to 220lbs and increased my muscle mass. What about the blood work and the doctors? My Cholesterol went from 260 (very High) to 193 (desired). My Triglycerides went from 450+(about to die) to 67 (wow that's low).

The liver specialist didn't believe me when I told her I accomplished this by eating whole eggs, red meat and no carbs... needless to say I never went back to her again. Almost a year later and I am still going strong. I have started writing a blog to track my progress and all of my friends and family love it!

I have always wanted to give something back, I remember how inspirational those success stories where for me (and still are) and I want to share mine with people. I want to inspire someone and help them. Thank you again and Grok on!

What was the biggest challenge to adopting a carbohydrate-restricted or paleo diet?
Stop eating Pizza

What advice (if any) would you give to someone interested in trying a carbohydrate-restricted or paleo diet? Were there any obstacles that you overcame that could help future dieters?
Just make the commitment and do it, stop saying you could never give up grains because when you do you realize how easy it is to give up and how much better you feel

A common criticism of eating low carb or paleo is the negative side effects that may accompany your new way of eating. As described by the Mayo Clinic, if you "suddenly and drastically cut carbs, you may experience a variety of temporary health effects, including Headache, Dizziness, Weakness, Fatigue, Constipation..."

Based on our data, it looks like they may be onto something, emphasizing their choice of "suddenly and drastically." Below is a depiction of the most common side effects reported, which can also be seen on our results page.

Members commonly report withdrawal-like symptoms, very similar to those smokers experience when trying to quit. Headaches, irritability, intense cravings for carbohydrates and sugar, and flu like symptoms were common as people transitioned to their new way of eating. 

Based on our data of 3,000+ entries, it seems like these uncomfortable symptoms can me ameliorating by slowly transitioning into your new diet. Subjects that slowly transitioned into their new way of eating were more likely to experience no side effects, and less likely to report feeling weak or having headaches:

Just like any dramatic change to your daily living, a slow and easy transition may increase the likelihood of your longterm success and help you achieve the health benefits so many others have.

How have these side effects affected your experience?

Almost two years ago, after finally giving in to my husband's pleading to try LC (and after a 10 lbs additional gain from a disastrously successful foray into baking), I cut out all carbs cold-turkey. I lost 40 lbs over the ensuing 6 months (without doing any exercise--my knees were in a bad state from the extra weight), and discovered a lifelong wheat allergy that was responsible for my painful separation from physical activity due to asthma in my youth, and was also responsible for horrible mood swings and coldness!

Now, I'm not totally strict no-carb (sometimes I will still eat rye or gluten-free bread, but it's rare), but maintaining my weight is effortless and I continue to avoid wheat entirely. My 20's were spent declining further and further into misery, fat, ill-health, and bitchiness, and now hopefully my 30's will be everything I was supposed to have then! I also now have a paleo-breastfed infant, and he is bursting with personality, energy, and strength at a mere 2 months!

What was the biggest challenge to adopting a carbohydrate-restricted or paleo diet?
Discovering that pretty much all desserts don't fall into the paleo category (except straight-up raw fruit).

What advice (if any) would you give to someone interested in trying a carbohydrate-restricted or paleo diet? Were there any obstacles that you overcame that could help future dieters?
Seeing the endless amounts of bread, rolls, bread bowls, etc. as if they were styrofoam just holding the food, and not edible in and of themselves. I used to adore bread, and now it seems very processed and unnatural to me.