Candace Oates

Before adopting a low-carb diet, I had tried the Apple Diet, the Cabbage Soup Diet, calorie restriction diets, Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig, and even followed a vegetarian diet for eight months. All these diets were a lot of work–without seeing much success. Several doctors recommended that I eat 1,200 to 1,500 calories a day and that I visit ChooseMyPlate.com for nutrition information. Following this advice, I constantly felt faint, gassy, extremely hungry, deprived, cranky, and I experienced headaches and low energy. Throughout all these diets and nutritional advice, I barely lost any weight,. In fact, I never weighed less than 278 pounds; my blood pressure and cholesterol were high, and I was borderline diabetic. That is when I finally decided to stop following the official Dietary Guidelines.

My habits began to shift after I graduated from college 18 years ago, a time when the Atkins Diet was popular. The low-carb lifestyle helped me lose over 20 pounds in one month, and I was finally no longer hungry or cranky. After doing Atkins Phase One for seven months, my weight was down to 180 pounds. By staying low-carb, I have been able to maintain this weight loss for years.

While pregnant, I allowed myself to eat from all food groups, and my weight shot back up. After having a baby girl eighteen months ago, I went back to a low-carb lifestyle. Living low carb has done nothing but improve my life. I am no longer constantly hungry or borderline diabetic. I’ve lowered my cholesterol and lost 123 pounds. I feel energetic and happy, have clear skin, and look younger at 40 years old than I did at 20!