Testimonial written by: Amy
At 5 feet 1 inch tall, I’m lucky to have been born with the ability to hide my weight well. In high school I was on the varsity gymnastics team for 2 years which required 2 weeks of hard conditioning prior to the season starting, and then 2 hours a day, 4 days a week of regular practice. I was still somehow a size 6. I chalked it up to that just being my natural state.
I quit after the second year and ballooned up to a size 12…in less than a year. I was eating nothing different and thought “wow I need to run again.” So I did. Still a size 12. I get to college and live in the dorms. As we know dorm food is SOOOOO nutritious…and I ballooned up to a size 14, though even I have to admit in pictures I didn’t look it.
I had always had a weird cycle. It never showed up until I was 15, then I had 2 cycles and didn’t see it again until I started college at 17. I had one a few more times and then just completely gone. My mom finally got weirded out enough that she sent me to see a gyno…oh the things she didn’t warn me about…and that’s when they found the cysts. I was on every type and form of birth control you can imagine, and they all made me sick even after the “you’ll feel like crap until…” period.
I was still up in weight and that’s all I would hear about from my doctor was “eat healthy, you’re too heavy”. I switched to whole grains and followed the diet he laid out for me, nothing helped. Also, every once in a while I would end up in the ER throwing up everything including water. They’d give me the usual (an anti-nausea shot and a IV) and send me on my way, until finally a doctor actually asked me questions (huh…go figure). One thing she did ask me was if there were any autoimmune issues in myself or family. I mentioned that I had PCOS and that my brother had a newly discovered gluten intolerance. He’s my half brother who’s 20 years my elder and they didn’t find his until he was in his 30′s.
She did a blood test and called me a week later and said she looked into a gluten intolerance for me at the mention of my brother. Apparently…I was more than intolerant..I was Celiac. (Of course this was when I was eating my mothers leftover thanksgiving stuffing…). She told me about a gluten free diet and to see how I felt and call my regular doc in about 2/3 weeks. I did the gluten free thing and Oh my gosh did I feel better. All that weight I couldn’t lose..gone…to a point.
I started out at the age of 19 at 5 foot 1″ and 185lbs. After going just gluten free, and the only exercise being walking on campus (which is small)… there went 20 pounds. My jeans were now a 10/12. Woohoo! No matter what I did I still maintained in the 160 range though. Then my gluten intolerant brother told me about this guy named Robb Wolf (p.s I’m pretty sure he has a man crush on you) and The Paleo Solution.
I took the book and I could not put it down for the life of me! So I thought I’d give it a shot. I started reading beyond that and couldn’t get enough of the medical articles and journals and blogs and books. Serious nerd attack. I even thought of changing my major in school to dietetics and nutrition, and may go back and get that as a masters.
I started doing Paleo and even without super exercise broke the 150lb mark! I’m getting married this upcoming may and am almost able to fit in my wedding dress. If I can get to my goal by October I may not have to! (Other than to shorten it). Side bar, my cycle came back and is almost a regular 36 days, and there are no cysts to be found. My skin is the clearest its ever been and I hardly burn anymore in the sun! Can’t get enough!
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