Oodles of folks have commented on my ability to move mountains, while taking care of my children. Raising a family, while working full time and completing three degrees plus a teaching credential, leaves no time for self care.’ As a matter of fact, poor habits were the norm; little sleep, bad diet, fast food & always the crutch of caffeine for my dose of daily energy or afternoon ‘pick-me-up.’ My focus was on completing my degrees and caring for my kids, which took every waking moment, as a single wage-earner and mother.
Worrying has also been something that’s hindered my self-care journey, as well as my weight-loss. Every waking moment, as a single mom brought on high levels of cortisol, a hormone known to make it increasingly difficult to lose weight. My life-style prevented me from jumping off the merry-go-round of life to provide the necessary self-care I needed. Not only for mental health, but weight-loss and my mindfulness, which I’ve found necessary as a daily part of life.
The purposes of this blog post is to impress upon young mothers and fathers the importance of self-care, while you’re young, and to provide tips on how I lost weight and continue to lose, amidst the abundance of dietary fads on the market.
The Keto-Diet is something I’d heard about for several years prior to trying it out. Like many, I was skeptical, but really, I had no idea what it really entailed and how it would change my thought towards food. Spring of 2019 brought huge change for me, not only did I discover the joys of hiking, the benefits would initiate my weight-loss journey. April of 2019 I hiked my first 9 mile hike and I thought I would die, after-all the longest I’d ever hiked was five miles, and I thought that was a huge feat. My journey started because as a mental health advocate, I was bound and determined to reduce the stigma of mental illness globally. In addition to my work in my classroom around mindfulness, I also signed up to walk for the American Suicide Prevention Foundation’s ‘Out of the Darkness” overnight walk; a 16-mile night walk in San Francisco. Such a walk required one to be in better shape than I was, so I signed up with other like-minded people to walk. This became a habit of mine and since then, I’ve maintained my love for the great out-doors, signed up to walk with people from Meet-up and have found Lake Chabot, Joaquin Miller, and Mission Peak, as inspirationally beautiful places to hike.
Summer of 2019 is when I began my break from social media, took a trip with the entire family to Oahu and started my Keto-Diet. My eldest daughter and I watched the documentary, “Fat” on Netfilx and found out, for me, the first time, that mayonnaise, cheese, good fatty foods, where actually going to help propel a 45 pound weight-loss. She and I both went on the keto diet, sharing ideas, tips, and recipes; encouraging each-other. I started my day with eggs, bacon, or with a coconut creme, hemp-seeds and coconut ‘oatmeal’ breakfast. I ate more avocado’s, nuts, cheeses, and lunch meats than I’d ate before, all with mayonnaise and salads with garlic/lemon/mayonnaise dressing. Who knew you could eat the foods many told me would make me fat, and lose weight? I was always satisfied, never hungry and had tons of energy.
I also did some research and knew I couldn’t live on the Keto-Diet, but rather use it as a tool to lose weight. I’ve always thought about eating health and love eating clean and green. I’d never eaten so much meat before, but after three months, I’d reached a plateau and felt the desire for a change.
My next blog post will be about my switch to a plant-based diet and my exercise routine, outside of hiking.
