My name is Sarah Ellison (@sarahelizabeththeII), and I am 24 years old. I live in El Paso, Texas, and I am a full-time caretaker of my child with special needs. When I was diagnosed with kidney disease and endometriosis, I decided to adopt a healthier lifestyle by starting with the keto diet and doing HIIT and yoga. These changes helped me lose 85 pounds.
As a teenager, I played sports and had muscle. And I managed to stay healthy through my teens and my early years of marriage at 20. But then I got pregnant with my first child at 21.
Pregnancy cravings quickly turned into binge eating disorder and, after the baby was born, I was bigger than I’d ever been in my whole life. I was taking care of a special needs child while my husband was away in the military, and I couldn’t find the mental strength to lose the weight. At age 21, I reached 221 pounds.
I also had a lot of health problems that weren’t caused by my weight, but were exacerbated by it. Once my son was born, my kidney and liver went into serious decline. At 22, I was diagnosed with kidney disease.
I was also diagnosed with endometriosis. My doctor sat me down and said, “If you don’t start eating healthy and get some of this weight off, we aren’t going to be able to manage your diseases as easily—and you will be taking years off your life.” My second child had just been born, and those words shook me.
My turning point came in that doctor’s office with the ultimatum of life and death in front of me—and my children in my arms. I had to do better. I had to start taking care of myself, so I could be around to take care of my kids.
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At first, I tried keto. It worked well for me for a while until my health issues began to clash with it.
It was extremely hard going from binge eating to keto. I had to pretty much cut out everything. It was hard to move to a 1,500-calorie diet as well. Not only did I have to really focus on the nutritional value of what I was putting in my body, but I had to retrain my brain to see food as fuel and not an enemy.
I had managed to lose about 60 pounds in six months, but my doctor advised me to add more food and calories to my diet, so that’s what I did.
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Here’s what I eat in a day now.
- Breakfast: An omelet with cheese and ham, or oatmeal with Greek yogurt. (Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day!)
- Lunch: Grilled chicken with bell peppers, black beans, or white rice.
- Snacks: Either extra-protein peanut butter, or avocado on toast.
- Dinner: A grilled turkey sandwich on whole wheat with a side of spinach or cabbage.
- Dessert: A protein shake. I have a Fruity Pebbles one that I don’t add anything to. But if I get vanilla, I throw some fruit in.
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When I was doing the keto diet, I didn’t exercise at all. I implemented exercise when I upped my calories.
I was seeing the results I wanted to and I didn’t think I had the time to work out. But when I stopped keto about four months ago and switched to a higher-calorie diet, I knew I needed to supplement with exercise.
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As soon as I did start exercising, I fell in love! I started with light Pilates and yoga but quickly moved to HIIT (high-intensity interval training). It makes me feel good and fits perfectly into my busy schedule! I started by mimicking the routines of super fit women I’d see on Instagram, and now I feel confident creating my own.
These three changes made my weight loss journey a success.
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I have lost a total of 85 pounds.
I think it’s so important to remember that our bodies are so amazing! They do every single function for us, voluntary and involuntary. We have to put that same love, respect, and work back into it. I didn’t just get my confidence back—I literally got years of my life back.
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