I initially read the Atkins New Diet Revolution book, this taught me how my body works and how it would work with a low carb diet. Understanding how my body used the food to burn the fat enabled me to make the correct food choices. I had my own rules, when shopping I only bought products that are less than 5g per 100g of carbs. Higher than that and I didn't purchase them. I still do that today 14 months since starting. I reached my goal after 12 months and I am now maintaining. 

I totally understand my body and I know what foods I am and am not able to eat. High carb foods now literally hurt me, not only do they bloat me, I hurt for three days after! That has taught me now to steer clear of them, they are just not worth it. I am now able to have high carb foods around me and I do not even want them (I was the biggest bread lover ever born), but now I don't even "pinch" a tiny bit from my husband etc. I love this way of eating and I am still able to choose from sooooo many foods. I eat out regulary and I "party" every weekend, my lifestyle has stayed the same but my food choices have changed. I am finally happy with my body. I am the healhiest, fittest and happiest I have ever been in my life!!! xx

What was the biggest challenge to adopting a carbohydrate-restricted or paleo diet?
Myself!!!! I only lost a lb a week. I wanted to see big losses and that wasn't happening but thankfully I accepted the small losses and after lots of weeks it added up to lots of poinds lost.

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?
Have only the "right" foods in the home, it is easy to be tempted until you learn to choose the right foods. Thankfully I had no little ones at home and I was able just to have "my type" of foods in the cupboards. Drink lots of water, this is so good for you and helps with weight loss. Also, do not scrimp on foods, eat until you're full and make sure you are getting plenty of fats in.

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I've struggled with weight my whole life, but especially since puberty, when I began to balloon. The only diet that worked for weight loss (I tried a lot) was a 500-cal/day regimen that I could only sustain a few months at a time before getting weak and ill. In my late 30s I finally tried Atkins and lost 40 or so pounds, but my (now ex-) doctor begged me to quit, so I did and regained all the lost weight, plus more. 

Fast-forward into my early 40s: I was riddled with joint pain, weighed over 220 pounds, and was on a cocktail of anti-depressants and anti-seizure meds. I had just found out I was adopted, and that my birth mother had weighed over 300 lbs at one point. Fed up and scared, I went to a nutritionist and paid a lot of money to be put on a 1,200 cal/day standard low-fat diet, which I complied with meticulously, despite being miserably hungry all day long. And I worked out nearly every night, too. After five weeks, I was up a pound. The light bulb flashed for me: I needed to eat low-carb, and to heck with my doctor and conventional wisdom. 

I quit the nutritionist's program and started the Protein Power plan in April 2007. By June I was down to 190, but my weight stayed their for nearly two years, despite eating less than 30g carbs/day. However, I was able to ditch my anti-depressants, so I stuck with the plan, tweaking here and there (dropping dairy, skipping breakfast, even upping my carbs) to no avail; I was stalled. Finally I tried something that initially sounded crazy to me: An all-meat, "zero-carb" (ZC) diet. 

To my utter surprise, it worked beautifully, and quickly, too. I started in September 2009, and by December was down to 155 pounds. My joint pain disappeared completely, too. I've been ZC ever since then, with one (failed) "safe starch" experiment during the 2010 holidays. I had my labs done in June, and my doctor was shocked at my perfect numbers. Not only had my weight dropped, but every single number was in range, and my triglycerides were 32 (a number that won't surprise low-carb researchers). Despite those numbers, she still insisted that I was killing myself with a fork, and that's why she's now my ex-doctor.

I plan to eat this way for the rest of my life. Not only has my health improved spectacularly, but I have no cravings at all, and food takes up very little of my mental energy. I don't think everyone needs to go "zero-carb" -- far from it -- but for me, it's been pretty close to a miracle.

What was the biggest challenge to adopting a carbohydrate-restricted or paleo diet?
Overcoming my doctor's extremely agitated objections. The first time I did Atkins, years ago, I listened to her and regained all the weight I had lost. She's now my ex-doctor.

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?
Read Gary Taubes, either book (GCBC if you can handle the in-depth analysis). Being armed with that excellent information gave me the insight I needed to realize that my doctor's fears were misguided, and that my results told the real story.


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