Healthy Transformation Entries

After yo-yoing up and down (I had to lose weight for our wedding of course, and then a few years after had 3 babies back to back!) I have finally found my groove and am now living the way I will forever. The Maria way! My weight loss and journey to feeling fabulous has literally been almost effortless, once I learned the truth about the foods to eat for health, cooking techniques and recipes to make the healthified versions of the foods I couldn’t live without, and the science of being a fat burner for life!

The first picture is me when my third baby was about 4 weeks old. From April 2009 until when this before picture was taken in November of 2013, my body had gone through 3 pregnancies back to back without ever getting back to my pre pregnancy weight of 215. My highest weight ever was when I was 9 months pregnant with this little guy, at about 285 lbs. I was 265 in this before pic. I found and started living the Maria way in February of 2014. The after pic here was taken on my son’s first birthday this past October. I was 100 lbs less than I was the day I went into labor with him! Today I weigh 179, the lowest weight I’ve ever been in my entire adult life. My husband has also lost almost 50lbs to date. My mother is also living the Maria way now! The best part is, I don’t even feel like I’m trying to lose weight at this point. I’m just living! And that’s what it’s all about. Living this fabulous life! Thank you for your part in that Maria.”

“Hello Maria,
I enjoy your posts and have gleaned so much information from your website that I am your unofficial press agent.  I have told a minimum of 80 or 90 people about your website and about your helpfulness in helping us healthify along the way.  When I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in October 2013, I knew that I had to face my demons of being a junk food addict and an emotional overeater who had to make lasting changes.  I knew that Low Carb worked but was afraid of the incessant thought of returning to the way I ate once low-carbing boredom got the best of my resolve.I was exhilarated to find recipes that would allow me to have breads and muffins, as well as crepes and waffles–the very things I knew that would make the journey more palatable.  I had several years of institutional food prep under my belt as well as cooking in a remote northern camp where necessity became the mother of invention, hence these alternative ingredients for baking did not pose any threats or fears.  As a matter of fact, your wonderful recipes have been the lifeline in that they save you from ever wanting to “go off” the diet/lifestyle and they have truly riddled my psyche of the “oh well I went and did it now, so I might as well stuff my face with everything in sight” mentality.

Being fully menopausal, I honestly had adopted the mentality that losing a pound a week would be quite okay.  I followed the lower carb program and even ate more of the allowed foods as I was afraid that I might get hungry.  I lost 60 lbs in the first three months and all I did for activity was stroll for all my coffee breaks and lunch breaks.  I could not believe how fast my weight came off, and how well I felt.  (I power walk now!)

I am pleased to say that my diabetic meds were cut in half dosages every time I visited the doctor, approximately every two months.  The end result was that I went from a combination med for the diabetes to taking 1/2 of a metformin tab within about 8 months, and have been off all diabetic meds for 4 months now, with perfect A1C results. I was on meds for 10.5 months.  I am down 130 lbs in one year!  Never thought this would happen 🙂

My other soap-box item that I often pontificate about is the mental clarity.  I had seen bits and pieces posted about the mental clarity but did not pay much attention to it.  I was on this lifestyle to change the diabetes sentence and the mental clarity was a bonus that I began to recognize.  My colleague Jill is a tall, willowy 61 year old lady who began walking with me on my breaks.  When I mentioned the mental clarity, she who suffered with a fuzzy head, began eliminating excess carbs in her daily diet, and although weight was not her issue, she lost 15 lbs without even trying.  I would share my baked good with her and she always felt satisfied.  The persons who are devout Weight Watchers followers in the office began questioning me about my lifestyle when they exclaimed,  “you’ve even got Jill (who doesn’t need to lose) losing weight.  I have to talk to you more about your program.”

Jill asked me if I could help her learn to bake the “Maria” way and I the seasoned cook, and Jill the non-cook, non-baker (with a little help from me) produced a veritable cornucopia of baked goods for her freezer.  I have told people that if Jill can bake the delicious Maria treats and other low-carb items, anyone can do it.  Here’s to living lower carb.  You do great things Maria, and I am your Canadian press agent by word of mouth  here on the Canadian west coast, as well as north-western Ontario whenever I go back to visit.  Several of my friends and colleagues have jumped on the lower carb bandwagon with recipes that I recommend and I get to encourage them along their way.  Thanks again Maria.  I am forever indebted to you.”

Entry 4: Liz

“2007 I knew I had to do something or my “Golden Years” were going to be less than pleasant.  So I started eating lots of fruit.  Lots of grains.  Lots of “hangry”.  It was a battle of cravings.  As I watched my friend doing Atkins with good results and generous portions of protein I knew I had to try it.  It made dieting a lot easier.  AT LAST!  Then I plateaued without meeting my goal and the recipes were horrible.  My family wouldn’t touch them.   I kept having to lose the same 10 pounds.  As in the past I knew it was just a matter of time before I gained the weight back.  Then that same friend bought a new recipe book that Amazon recommended to her.  She was raving about it and I wasn’t thrilled to try another unappetizing recipe.  So she forced “The Art of Healthy Eating Sweets” on me and WOW was it GOOD!  My family even liked it.  The science that was included in the book convinced me to try the Accelerated Weight Loss program.  I cleaned out my pantry and toiletries, improving each day.  I’m in 9 months and now my ears are wide open.  In the past I had always tried to ignore the messages my body was sending me because I didn’t understand the cause and effect of the things I was doing.   Over Thanksgiving I enjoyed cheesecake, pumpkin and pecan pie with a weight loss.  YES WAY!  I’m gluten free.  Grain free.  And guilt free.  I have surpassed my goal weight and can now sneeze and run without LBL (Light Bladder Leakage).  I have made it past the turning point.  I’m confident about not repeating history.   With everything I have learned I won’t be regaining the weight.  Keto Adapted is just about all I talk about anymore.  I’ve become very zealous about sharing.  Scary version?  What if Amazon hadn’t recommended Maria Emmerich?”

“I started in mid-June and my family all joined me in July. My husband lost 67 lbs and went from a size 38 to a size 32 pants. He is off of bp meds and his cpap, and fixed his cholesterol.”“I have lost 63 lbs. I started at a whopping 320 (only 5 foot tall) and am down to 256.6. I have fibromyalgia and eating this way helps my pain so much! I feel so much healthier, no more glue in my gut, and no more insatiable hunger. My daughter was told she was borderline insulin resistant, adhd, and had a behavior disorder. She has lost 38 lbs, and no longer has any symptoms of any of her conditions. She sleeps better at night and has amazing grades in school this year, her first year in Junior high.

My oldest daughter also lost around 12 lbs, which was all she needed to lose. My husband is at his goal. I have a long way to go yet, but I’m going to keep on trucking. Keto is the way to go.

(The first photo was taken in April of this year.)”

“I remember thinking to myself, “Here we go again; another diet. We’ll see if this Keto thing really works.”In 5 short months, we have become transformed. We both are seeing a doctor who introduced us to this lifestyle and is monitoring our medical statistics. We are finding that this does really work![unordered_list style=’square’]

• My insulin was 16.7, down to 8.2. My sister’s insulin was 20, down to 6.8.
• I have lost 75 lbs (and still going). She has lost 50 lbs (and still going).
• My pant size has dropped from 28 to 20. Her pant size has dropped from 20 to 14. I love the hand-me-down clothing.
• Our skin and scalp is healthier, and our foot and leg pain is gone.

We are also educating our family and friends who are asking many questions about what we are doing. Our mom has lost weight and her diabetes medication has been cut in half. My sister has worked on reducing the carb footprint in her house, and my teenage nieces are beginning to learn that healthy food tastes good, too! They especially like the ice cream. This year we swapped out all of our traditional Christmas cookies for “healthified” versions, and they were a hit!

The best part of taking this journey has been navigating the changes together. We have learned a whole new way of Keto cooking with Maria’s recipes, how to shop in natural food stores, how to order food when eating out, and how to enjoy indulgences without the guilt. Fat is good for you! We are amazed daily at how this does not feel like a “diet.” We are not hungry and do not have cravings. We are not consumed by thoughts of food. We are satisfied, which is why this really does feel like a forever way of life.

Thank you for sharing your knowledge and recipes with us!

Sincerely, Kelle Hasenberg (far left), Krissy Cooper (3rd from right and 2nd from right)”

“These are a few of the meds I no longer have to take since starting a Keto diet in May 2014. I have lost 27 pounds…still a ways from my “after” photo, but feeling 100% tip-top and loving how I look and feel.

The prescription bottle contains a generic of Imitrex that I took for migraines. I haven’t had one migraine since Easter 2014…I used to get them at the rate of about three/month. I hated the side effects of that medication.

Not pictured is Afrin nose spray because I threw that away. I swear I was addicted to that stuff. ”

Entry 8: Lisa R.

“Dear Maria, Your site, recipes, and your books are amazing! Definitely my go-to for recipes of all kinds. Our transformation comes without pictures. Eating a ketogenic diet just worked too quickly for us, I guess. My 5-year old daughter has Celiac Disease (as do my other kids). We have been gluten-free for 4 years. However, she recently started getting eczema all over and had developed a cough that no one else was getting. The eczema started on her shoulder and started working its way down her chest and arms. Within 3 days of taking out grains and sugars her eczema was GONE and her cough was GONE. She LOVES eating this way and feels special. She is such a trooper.

I have joined her with the ketogenic diet. Besides losing ten pounds in the last 6 weeks, ALL of which has been fat according to my body fat scale, my transformation story is a little more feminine. I debated whether or not I should share it, but I figured it might help someone. Prior to the ketogenic diet, my period would last 12-14 days. A full week of spotting, followed by my period with a little spotting afterwards. Not cool…or cheap. Now my period is down to 5 days!! This all happened within 6 weeks!!!! I cannot tell you how much I love these changes and the ones that are sure to come as well. Thank you for all that you do!”

Entry 10: Patty

“My before and after (so far, photo on right).  The first pic was from last Christmas and I was horrified when my soon to be sister in law insisted I get in the family pic but it inspired me.  I hung it on my fridge and I look at it everyday to make sure I never get that way again.”