Charlotte had a weight issue her entire life, and despite experimenting with various diets, she was never able to get it under control.
In 2019, after Charlotte realized that she could no longer recognize herself in the mirror, a friend introduced her to a keto diet and intermittent fasting. And finally, the door opened.
In just 18 months, Charlotte lost 75 pounds (34 kilos), reversed her pre-diabetes, and improved her sleep issues and arthritis.
“I am finally living my best life,” Charlotte says.
Here, Charlotte shares why she thinks slowly reducing your carb intake may be a good idea, what keto meals she eats in a typical day, and why the word “crêpe” makes her cringe.
Charlotte’s story has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
My name is Charlotte, and I’m 52 years old. I live in Florence, South Carolina, USA.
The longest streak that I’ve been able to follow a diet, consistently, was for six months. That time, it was to lose weight before my daughter got married. I religiously followed the diet plan and struggled to lose about 20 pounds (9 kilos) over those six months.
Right after my daughter’s marriage, I resumed my regular eating habits, and my weight ballooned back up. I ate carb-rich food throughout the day, and every night I indulged in dessert, usually ice cream. At the time, I was eating anywhere from 250 to 400 carbs per day!
In Feb. 2019, I had to travel for business and needed a seat-belt extender. At the video conference, I had to watch myself on a screen all day long. That’s when I realized that I didn’t recognize myself.
When I got home, I decided to make a change. I was at my all-time highest weight of 282 pounds (128 kilos), which is significant because I’m only 5-foot-2-inches (157 cm).
I began researching on the internet. This time, I wasn’t looking for the latest gimmick, but rather, I needed to find something that I could stick to for life.
A girlfriend of mine mentioned how the keto diet and intermittent fasting had had a positive impact on her life. I’d tried low carb in the past but didn’t eat enough fat. That wasn’t sustainable.
I came across Dr. Jason Fung‘s videos and that led me to Diet Doctor. I consumed the information throughout Mar. 2019 and I decided that I had nothing to lose but the weight.
In the second week, I reduced my carb intake to 150 grams, and in the third week, I was down to 75 grams per day. By the end of March, I had successfully reduced my carb intake to less than 20 grams per day. I believe that this slow step-down approach helped me avoid the keto flu.
When I’d successfully followed this way of eating for several months, I went on vacation with my family. There was a crêperie in the town we visited, and so I decided that I wanted to have crêpes for dinner.
My husband and I split both a sweet and savory crêpe. In the next few days, I felt horrible. All of the sugar that I consumed threw my body for a loop, and I felt like someone had drugged me.
I learned my lesson. If I even mention that I crave something sugary, my husband says, “CRÊPE,” it reminds me that I never want to feel that way again. It’s a great deterrent and probably one of my most important lessons learned on this journey.
A typical day for me now consists of coffee in the morning (with some heavy cream). I usually don’t eat until later in the afternoon, and then, I mostly break my fast with some eggs, homemade chicken salad, or a pizza chaffle. Sometimes, I wait and only have dinner with my husband.
I don’t follow a formal exercise program. To tone up my arms, I do some repetitions with my kettlebell. But I feel that my way of eating has been the real reason for my success – and not exercise.
A little over 18 months later, I’m down 75 pounds (34 kilos). I still have about 30 pounds (14 kilos) more to lose. I feel confident that I’ll get there since this way of eating is easy to maintain for the rest of my life.
My parents joined me on this journey a couple of months after I started. I told them all of the positives that I had experienced, and they have lost about 100 pounds (45 kilos) combined.
As two of my daughters have seen my success, they recently started a low-carb diet too. We’re all amazed that once we got started with this way of eating, it became such a natural way of life. I have not felt deprived as I have in the past with other plans.
I used to have trouble with my knees and arthritis in my shoulders. The inflammation has reduced so much that I have no problem getting on the floor to play with my granddaughters and getting back up without help. I can run up and downstairs.
My top three tips for starting low carb are:
Thank you again! Charlotte
Congrats on your success, Charlotte! I really appreciate your tips of not being ruled by the scale and make sure you get support. Those are both so important! And I love how your success has led to your family’s success as well. Their health is from your work. Keep it up! Best, / Dr. Bret Scher
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, medical review by Dr. Bret Scher, MD
in Arthritis, Diabetes stories, Success story 
