It's a struggle that every mother has dealt with: between having a baby, dealing with the stress of parenting, and trying to find and maintain a work-life balance, weight gain is virtually unavoidable. For one mother in Texas named Elena, motherhood came along with a large amount of weight gain, causing her to reach 256 pounds at her heaviest. Elena knew that she needed to make a change for her own health and to be a better mother and example to her young daughters. After years of yo-yo dieting and frustration, Elena finally found success with keto, dropping a whopping 90 pounds in just ten months.
A heavy problem
For Elena, aesthetics were the least of her concerns when it came to losing weight. Describing herself in an interview with The Daily Mail as a lifelong ” happy, yet overweight, girl,” Elena found herself limited by her size after the birth of her daughter. Due to her excess fat, Elena had trouble with nearly all of her everyday tasks; from operating her business to chasing after her little ones, life was simply more difficult for Elena thanks to her weight.
“I also couldn't fit in roller coaster rides anymore, even first class or business seats on an airplane was starting to get tight. One day I just couldn't continue like that and started researching what I could do,” she confessed.
This moment of clarity would begin a whirlwind ride of on-again, off-again dieting that would ultimately lead her to keto.
Frustration and disappointment
Elena, who started her Instagram account TheStairLady to share her weight loss journey with other women and mothers around the world, is no stranger to just how difficult it is to drop the pounds as a working mom. Before she started the ketogenic diet, Elena was reeling from the failure of yet another fad diet, the Paleo diet. Paleo, which focuses on limiting consumption to natural, raw, and organic foods, failed to help Elena effectively lose weight. After completing a six week Paleo challenge, Elena found that she had only dropped a measly 8 pounds.
Discouraged and angry, Elena turned to keto as a sort of “last resort” to either lose the weight for good or give up on herself. Thankfully, by carefully counting her macros and limiting her carb intake, Elena finally found the lasting success that she was looking for.
“I was very frustrated and upset and although I was a Keto skeptic I decided to jump in head first. My only regret is not doing it sooner,” she explained.
Slow and steady wins the race
The best advice that Elena has for women who are new to the ketogenic diet? Don't be afraid to start slowly! Taking each day one at a time was what got Elena through the most difficult times in her diet, and allowed her to unlock a new sense of inner strength that has helped her to become not only a stronger warrior in the gym but also a better mother.
“My goal was to get through one day at a time. After a few weeks, it started to become a habit and my goal changed to being healthy and lose weight.”
Elena's journey is far from over. So far, she's down 90 pounds and she's shed a whopping 50 inches total. If you are thinking of giving the ketogenic diet a shot, give Elena a follow on Instagram for a daily dose of strength and motivation!
NUTRITIONAL DISCLAIMER
The content on this website should not be taken as medical advice and you should ALWAYS consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. We provide nutritional data for our recipes as a courtesy to our readers. We use Total Keto Diet app software to calculate the nutrition and we remove fiber and sugar alcohols, like erythritol, from the total carbohydrate count to get to the net carb count, as they do not affect your blood glucose levels. You should independently calculate nutritional information on your own and not rely on our data. The website or content herein is not intended to cure, prevent, diagnose or treat any disease. This website shall not be liable for adverse reactions or any other outcome resulting from the use of recipes or recommendations on the Website or actions you take as a result. Any action you take is strictly at your own risk.
Dr. Rosmy Barrios, MD is an aesthetic medicine specialist whose work focuses on patients who are treated for obesity, metabolic syndrome, and other weight-related issues through nutritional analysis, keto diet programs, and supporting medications.
- Keto Drives Increased Calorie Burn - July 11, 2019
- New High-Protein, Low-Sugar Greek Yogurt Hits Market - April 1, 2019
- Can Going Low-Carb Fight Back Fat? - December 4, 2018
Check Out More Articles:
You'll Love The Keto in Five Cookbooks!
We believe that the key to success is simplicity and satisfaction with your diet. That's why you'll love the Keto in Five ecookbook series which includes Breakfast in Five, Lunch in Five, Dinner in Five & Dessert in Five.
Each ebook contains 30 recipes. Every recipe is made with just 5 ingredients and has up to 5 grams of net carbs. That means you can have seconds of any meal and you'll still be within your daily carb limit!
