Hi. My name is Amy and I’m just a regular Joe.. or Jill as the case may be. Like many I’ve struggled with finding a weight loss plan that works and would improve my health. I’ve finally found what works for me and learned that it’s been a lifeline for many others too. I’ve now been living the low-carb lifestyle since November of 2001 – and let me tell you – it’s been a thrill! This site was built to tell you my story (below), give you all the facts, and encourage you along the way.

You’d like little more personal info than that, you say? Okie dokie. I’m in my mid-thirties and have been married to the love of my life since 2001. We have two wonderful children who have learned what buttons they can push. I homeschool said children and have learned that they are way too smart for their own good. When I’m not spending my time blogging/writing or homeschooling, I like to be with my family and friends. I also am a professional photographer and have just started my own business.

Our Story

(This was written starting in 2002)

You’ll notice at the beginning that this is mostly about my LC (low-carb) experience. My husband is also doing LC but has only just started, so I don’t have a whole lot to write about him just yet.

I never had much of a weight problem as a child. I was very active and ate fairly normal. As I reached my teens life began to change very rapidly. There were lots of pressures that I didn’t have in my carefree grade school days and gradually my eating habits changed. I became an emotional binge eater. I slowly started gaining weight. It wasn’t much at first. So little in fact that I really didn’t notice it. By the time I graduated from high school in 1991, I had went from 125 to a little chubbier 145. Not too bad really for 5’3″. I didn’t worry about it too much. I still fit into my dress for my June wedding, so no problem.

As I settled in to marriage I gained a little more, as most people seem to do. I’m not sure what happens…maybe we just get lazy. I was up to about 150 by the end of our first year. By this time I was ready to start a diet. I was going to change my life! I belived that change would be achieved through Slimfast. After a few days of shakes and small portions of real food, I decided I couldn’t take it anymore. I don’t like being hungry! I wanted to find something else..something, anything, better. Once again I was ready to make the change. This time my hopes of being slim and trim manifested itself in the form of Nutri-system. Now I’ll admit, at first it worked. I took off 15 lbs in a matter of about 2 months. There were two problems though. #1 I had to buy the food I ate and also buy the groceries to feed my husband. It was getting very expensive, very quick. Not realistic in the long run. #2 They were not teaching me how to eat or deal with my eating problems. It wasn’t long before I could no longer afford it and had to quit. As you probably already guessed, I gained it back, plus about 5 more pounds. I gave up dieting for awhile and just tried to eat as healthy as I knew how. I ate lots of pasta and rice dishes, occasionally throwing in a salad. I never did like salads much. I ate fat-free and low-fat everything! (As the cartoon says, “So why am I still 99% fat when I eat 100% fat-free?”)

Sometime later I started a new job teaching pre-school at a daycare. The local newspaper came and took a picture of all of the staff for a story on the new facility. When I saw that picture I couldn’t believe that chubby person was me! I decided it was time to try again. On this occassion it used Weight Watchers. Now this was way back before points. They used selections, which were pretty easy for me to follow. The first day I weighed in the scale said 153. I stayed on WW for at least 6 months. At this point I had reached 133 and was very happy with my success. Unfortunately I was always hungry. It seemed I was never satisfied and I still had my eating disorder. Shortly thereafter a job change occured in which I went from being with active pre-schoolers all day, to a desk job at with 2 breaks and a very tempting vending machine. I caved in and started eating the way I used to. BUT I WASN’T HUNGRY ANYMORE!!!

When I left that desk job I was back up to 155 lbs. A few months later we found out we were expecting our first child. Naturally any ideas of dieting went out the window. I was in perfect glee! I could eat all I wanted, what I wanted, when I wanted -because I was supposed to eat for two. Well, I ate for two alright..I ate “like” two people instead of “for” two people. At the end of my pregnancy I had ballooned to 195! After we were blessed with our son’s birth in 1996, I was ready to hit the diet trail again. When I felt it was safe I went back to WW and got to work (this time they were using fat and fiber instead of selections). Only this time it wasn’t working so well. I only managed to lose about 10 lbs and then everything seemed to come to a screeching halt. I couldn’t seem to lose anymore and again I was tired of being hungry all the time. I was stuck at around 163. I just accepted it, gave up, and went on with my life.

In 1998 I was expecting our second child. I went to the doctor. for my first check up, and I’ll never forget what he said to me. He didn’t want me gaining over 25 lbs with this baby. He said it wasn’t healthy for the baby or me. I was still around 165 and was determined to do as the Dr. said. I took good care of myself (the best I knew how anyway) and got lots of exercise. When I gave birth to my daughter at the end of the year, I again weighed around 195.

I was back down to 184 when a friend told me about some great new pills that helped you lose weight and gave you energy. These were what is now known as stackers, an ephedra and caffine combo. I had never heard of anything like it before. It sounded like a miracle to me. I had a 2 1/2 year old and a newborn. I needed all the energy I could get! She gave me a sample to try. In 4 days I lost 4 lbs and I had a high energy level – I was sold! These were not the most expensive diet pills out there. I was only paying about $26 per months supply. I could eat the foods I loved and still lose weight! In 9 months time I had went from the 184 to 144. I was again happy with the results and this time no hunger! But something happened. The pills eventually quit working. I wasn’t as energetic as I used to be when taking them, and even worse when I didn’t take them at all. I wasn’t losing anymore weight either. I decided they were getting too expensive to keep taking so I quit. YEP! YOU GUESSED IT! I GAINED IT ALL BACK! It wasn’t a realistic plan anyway. Did I really think I could take them the rest of my life??? And to make matters worse I was having some pretty rough health problems. Even to this day I don’t have a clear diagnosis. The Dr’s kept saying they suspected fibromyalgia. Once again I just accepted it, gave up, and went on.

By this point I have suffered with stomach problems for years. I couldn’t eat a meal without having severe stomach cramps. I almost always had to stay close to a bathroom after eating. I later learned that I most likely had Irritable Bowl Syndrome. I also had Acid Reflux which was very painful. I had trouble sleeping and my mind seemed “foggy” at times. I had terrible mood swings which my poor family had to endure. After doing some research on the internet, I suspected I had hypoglycemia and my problems were caused mostly by sugar. I have one Aunt who has diabetes. Not long after my internet search, I had another aunt diagnosed with diabetes. And another aunt was told she was headed in the same direction. These health concerns had been in the back of my mind for quite sometime and the idea of diabetes really scared me. One morning, while working with my son on his phonics (I home school), I realized I couldn’t keep up. There were actions to be done with each letter sound song and these simple movements were wearing me out! It was time to try again.

This time I tried the Atkins diet. I had bought the book several months before and sort of half way tried it. But I wasn’t ready to commit to it then. This time I was ready. I had to try this for my health, my family, for everything! I started on Nov. 11, 2001. The first few days were kind of rough. I had to get used to eating all the foods that I had always been told I shouldn’t eat. I was having withdrawals from not eating sugar. I was truly a carb addict. The first two weeks I lost 6 lbs! My progress has been slow but steady! Now, here I am over a year later and still on it. It really is a way of life for me now! I currently weigh 136 and wear a size 8 and some 6′s. I have lost a total of 41 lbs and almost 33 inches all over. I thank God everyday for showing me this way of eating. I no longer have any of the aforementioned health problems. After about the first month they had disappeared. I believe I am healthier than I have been in many years. Since I am the Mommy, I always take care of the sicklings in our house. In past years I have ALWAYS gotten whatever illness my family had. This last year has been wonderful. Our household has been through the flu and several other bugs and colds and I haven’t been sick once! That’s a great benefit in itself!!!

This is an eating plan I can stick to the rest of my life. This is my way of eating for life. I will never eat any other way. I eat the most wonderful food and I’m never hungry! People say they don’t understand how we can eat like this. For me it’s easy. I’ve been doing it so long it’s now second nature. I don’t even have to really think about it. It’s really a matter of changing habits and making a commitment to my health for a lifetime. I have a great amount of control over my eating now. No more emotional eating binges. Food no longer controls me. I am finally in control thanks to LC! I believe it has lengthened my life and spared my family and myself much heartache.

Now for my hubbys part!

When we were married he weighed in at a very thin 175 on his 6’4″ frame. After marriage he gained weight like the rest of us. His was very gradual and I never really even noticed. He still looked great to me.

By the time I had started LC he was up to 220. Not terribly overweight, just a little chubby. He had a cute double chin and a small gut. (The signs of a perfectly happy and well fed man! LOL!) As with every diet attempt he was 100% behind me. He loves me no matter what I weigh, but he knew each try was important to me and he wanted me healthy. LC was much different than the rest and the whole family got in the act a bit. My kids were wonderful at reminding me what I could and couldn’t have. At dinner I would fix a main and side dish I knew I could eat and then add a carby side dish or two for them. My husband eventually started leaving out most of the carby side dishes and cutting back his sugar consumption.

In Oct. of 2001 he had blood tests for his life insurance taken. They came back with alarmingly high triglycerides (in the 400+ range). We made an appointment with his doctor as soon as possible. By this time his weight had gradually dropped to 204. Not too bad considering he wasn’t correctly doing the diet, just kind of here and there. The doctor said his tg’s were way too high and he was pre-diabetic. Then we got a very pleasant surprise. The doctor himself was on a low carb diet and suggested my husband do the same! After getting through the withdrawals he has felt great! He is now down to 189 and still dropping. We are waiting for our next appointment to see how his tg’s are dropping too! He also had stomach problems that have been alleviated by LC. I believe LC will save his life. According to the doctor he was headed for diabetes and a heart attack..and he’s only in his mid 30′s.

We have now cut the sugar out of our children’s diets and most of the refined and processed carbs. They are much healthier and feel great!

I’ll give updates as soon as I have some! :0)

Update: As of 2-28-03 I am down to 132.5! I have lost a total of 34 inches and 44.5 lbs! My hubby John has is now at 179! His goal was 185 so he is very happy. I would give total inches on him…but he doesn’t measure very often..so I don’t have too much to go by yet.

Update: As of March 2003 I have reached my size goal! I was hoping for a size 6. John took me to a dress shop since it had been so long since I’d really bought any new clothes. I started with a 10 skirt and came out very happy that it was too big. I asked him to get me an 8. I emerged with a big smile..again too big. I was so excited at this point..a 6 was next! When I tried on the 6 is was shocked to see that it also was a bit big. I peeked out the door, smiled at him and asked..”would you see if they have a 4 please?” He grinned at me and went to find the 4. I’m happy to say it fits perfect! I know that not ALL 4′s are gonna fit me..they vary too much..but I have found that a 6 fits all the time. Check out pictures page for our latest photos! :0)