Personal Blog

  • Health, Hormones, Personal Blog, WEIGHT LOSS

    Hypothyroidism and losing weight: How I lost 22 pounds after being STUCK for years.

    Hypothyroidism and losing weight: they aren't mutually exclusive. Learn more.

    If you are like me, you’ve probably thought that hypothyroidism and losing weight were indeed mutually exclusive things. I’m here to tell you that this is not true, and in fact that you can be losing weight with hypothyroidism. I’m living proof: I’ve recently lost 32 inches and 22 pounds (since June 1st of this year) and I have hypothyroidism. Having hypothyroidism and losing weight isn’t EASY, that’s true. It requires extra effort and some sacrifice. But if you are willing to do the work, losing weight with hypothyroidism is within your grasp. After reading this post, you’ll realize that hypothyroidism and losing weight can go hand in hand, if you practice the right diet and are supplementing (I’ll get into all of that below) and addressing your hormones. Let’s not wait any further, let’s get this hypothyroidism and losing weight discussion GOING shall we– that’s what you came here for, right?

    What Most Women Don't Know About Hypothyroidism and Weight Loss.

    best diet for hypothyroidism

    What most women don’t know about hypothyroidism and weight loss is that (and this is strictly my opinion and my experience talking- but backed by my doctor’s experience and opinion backed by her extensive research/data)– your hypothyroidism is far LESS the reason for your inability to lose weight than you think. WAIT, WHAT? read that again. It’s not a typo. So many women think hypothyroidism and weight loss is a perpetual cycle of going nowhere and the reality I discovered is that- -it’s not the hypothyroidism situation that’s the problem. We’ve all been focusing so much on our thyroid and ignoring what we should be focusing on; INSULIN RESISTANCE. Crazy right? I remember my last functional medicine doctor saying something to me like “I don’t know if we’ll EVER be able to truly repair your thyroid….” and I was devastated…..I think that’s because we’ve all read and heard so much about hypothyroidism and that it means you can’t lose weight. So when we find out we are hypothyroid- which MOST OF US ARE– we obsess about fixing that. And we read everything about thyroid and fixing the thyroid– has this been you? Is that what drew you to this post? I get it. I was there for YEARS until this year. Or actually until last October when I hired my new doc and she said “it’s not your thyroid that’s the problem with you losing weight, it’s your insulin“. 

    Why Insulin Resistance is the REAL problem, not necessarily the thyroid situation.

    So, please know as you read this post, I’m coming at you from my own experience– and my own experience, if you are new to this blog is this: for the past decade or so, I have been on the weight loss STRUGGLE BUS. Even though I am a fitness fanatic, love working out and even enjoy eating healthy and dieting – and even though I have constantly been on a diet for the past decade (literally nonstop) and have worked out for 6-7 days a week 1-2 hours a day- I was always 20-25 pounds overweight. A lot of people thought I was “fine” because I was just “curvy girl” but I FELT every pound. I could not lose. Even when I started seeing functional medicine docs and getting on bio-identical hormones, I’d lose 3-4 pounds but gain it back. I had a brief period in 2017 when I did the HCG diet injections where I lost a good amount of inches (not pounds) but I gained it back (my doctor explained when I met her that until I fixed my hormones, that would continue to happen– I’ll be interviewing her on my YouTube channel on these topics so stay tuned, she can explain it better than I can for sure)– I just strugggggglleeedddd!!! And last year the end of the year was the LOW POINT, I clearly had some major ESTROGEN DOMINANCE going on (see before photo below)– MY BOOBS went up a whole size and I just couldn’t fit in anything. I had to go up 2 sizes in jeans and workout pants– it was the worst feeling……BUT when I hired my current functional medicine doctor and did my first consult with her she told me I had to give her 6 more months of working on my hormones — and during that time I was laying off the hard workouts, I was in a REVERSE DIET and I was prepping for the “right” to diet again. You see, I had to take a break from dieting after all those years. But in that consult, my doctor told me my primary issue to focus on was FIXING MY INSULIN. And I later learned that when women enter into perimenopause their bodies essentially automatically become insulin resistant– so all of us should be moving in this direction as we experience hormonal imbalance that comes with aging…..

    The Best Diet For Insulin Resistance and Weight Loss (and Hypothyroidism!)

    hypothyroidism diet plan

    I’ve told you my background. I was truly desperate to get to NORMAL. I was willing to do anything and probably at the point where I thought that nothing would work. I felt like a freak to be honest. I felt broken. I mean, here I was eating organic healthy foods all the time and working out and I was overweight. I could only wear 1/8 of the clothes in my closet. I was not comfortable naked or on a beach. I hated it. When my doctor finally told me in May of this year that I was cleared to diet again I was like SOCK IT TO ME DOC and she emailed me my macros and they were…..keto. KETO??? WTH?? Y’all. I was so not into this you have no idea. I had made fun of keto. I thought it was a joke. I thought it was the diet that people who aren’t serious about being healthy do. But the doc gave me all this data to support why it’s good for women over 40 with insulin/hormone imbalance and so I begrudgingly decided to do it. FAST FORWARD TO TODAY I am 32 inches and 22 pounds lighter. I literally do a double take in the mirror about every day. I look better now than I did in my twenties. I’m 4lbs away from my goal weight. It’s been the easiest “diet” to do– I eat a diverse selection of amazing tasting foods– my husband is NOT keto and we still enjoy cooking together and eating together without having to do ‘his and hers”. I drink alcohol. I haven’t cheated once. I don’t feel the need to “go off” this diet. It’s my lifestyle now and in fact I’m becoming a certified keto coach early in January so I can coach other women with a certification behind me. I’m so passionate about getting the word out because I TRULY BELIEVE THIS IS THE MISSING LINK FOR WOMEN AGED 40+ with hormone imbalance– because you probably have insulin issues and when you go keto– BAM– you solve that problem! EASY PEASY. All those years I spent wasting my time chasing down how to solve thyroid issues when it was all about INSULIN– funny thing is when I FIRST got my first set of bloodwork done it showed I was insulin resistant and I remember that was the one time I did research and cut out corn/potatoes gluten etc and lost 10lbs FAST……and a year or so later I added that all back in. ;-( I forgot about it. I never will again. NOT EVERY WOMAN HAS INSULIN PROBLEMS but– if you are that woman who cannot lose weight— you — I’m telling you- you’d be crazy to not consider RUNNING DOWN THIS PATH. Grab my hand, I’ll run with you and be your guide. I know this can change your life like it did mine. WHAT QUESTIONS DO YOU HAVE ABOUT INSULIN RESISTANCE AND KETO AND SUCH? HOW CAN I HELP?

    But Wait, There's MORE!!

    BUT WAIT THERE'S MORE

    If you found this post helpful, you’ll probably like these as well: How Can A REVERSE DIETING PLAN Help With Weight Loss? CLICK HERE.  How to Reverse Insulin Resistance Naturally. CLICK HERE.  How to lose weight after 40. CLICK HERE.  To get my FREE Keto Kwik Start Guide– CLICK HERE
    bit.ly/KellysKetoKwikStart 

    I also launched my brand new online course= Kelly’s KETO BOOTCAMP– a self-paced video tutorial course teaching you everything you need to know on how to do KETO the right way like I do so you can lose weight while enjoying YUMMY foods and adult beverages: IT’S JUST $99. Click here to start today! 

    Lastly, if you are interested in a more personal approach, I offer LIMITED one-on-one coaching. I only book 1 hour of my day M-F so these spots go fast. Email kelly@kellyolexa.com to inquire about packages and specials.


    Also– join my FREE Facebook group- A YEAR OF YOU FIRST where I’ll be hosting weekly Facebook Lives with Q&A and giveaways and more: CLICK HERE. 

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  • KETO, Personal Blog, WEIGHT LOSS

    Eating 1200 Calories and NOT Losing Weight? Here’s Why.

    Still eating 1200 Calories and not losing weight? Read on to learn why.

    eating 1200 calories and not losing weight

    If you are eating 1200 calories and not losing weight, I understand why you are frustrated. You’ve probably been told that eating 1200 calories and not losing weight is not possible– you must be doing something wrong. You’ve probably told yourself you need to add more cardio. You’ve probably thought about even cutting those calories lower- am I right?  DON’T! If you are eating 1200 calories and not losing weight, there is a reason! Based on what I’ve learned, 1200 calories is TYPICALLY too low for most women ESPECIALLY if you are working out in addition to eating 1200 calories. Where this idea came from about the 1200 calorie a day diet I don’t know- but use this blog post as your red flag. The reason you are eating 1200 calories and not losing weight is because you are likely undereating and overtraining like I did for years — you PROBABLY. need to slowly up your calories through a reverse diet (I suggest you do this through a qualified trainer….I recommend Alex Mazzurco who I used– you can inquire with her here) and heal your body. You’ll be surprised how your body will recover and rebound when it is FUELED!! We’ll get into that later in this post. Just know that LIKE YOU– I too was once eating 1200 calories and not losing weight. I too was frustrated and angry. But I learned why it wasn’t working. In this post I’ll share what I’ve learned has worked and how I have now transformed my body at age 52 and recently lost 24 inches and 18+ pounds and am still losing and will likely hit. my goal weight of 138 in the next month or so! EASILY– the way it should be. Weight loss should be a death sentence and 1200 calories a day is close to it. Let’s dive in and learn why 1200 calorie a day diets are not a good idea anymore, shall we? 

    1200 Calorie Diet

    Why you are eating 1200 calories and not losing weight.

    Before we go any further, I want to say that I’m writing this post from MY EXPERIENCE. Everything here is written in my OPINION. I’m not writing this as if this is in medical journal– this is my opinion based on a lot of reading and data and information from trainers and doctors– so you do with it what you will, my goal is always to help you make better informed decisions, not to suggest that I am the only right perspective out there. 

    The reason you are (probably) eating 1200 calories and not losing weight is– if you are like I was for years– you are probably UNDEREATING (1200 calories is incredibly low, that’s the lowest anyone should go for daily caloric intake) and OVERTRAINING. 

    If you are exercising daily 4-6x a week and burning even 200-250 calories, you are overdoing it and your body is in WTH mode. 

    Whether you call it “starvation mode” or cortisol-is-getting-jacked-up mode or whatever, things are NOT GOOD. Your body is not being taken care of…..and ultimately, IT WILL FIGHT YOU BACK. 

    You’ll start to gain weight around your middle. That’s the cortisol/stress reaction. It happened to me. Your body and your mind are STRESSED THE HELL OUT that you are so active and UNDERFED and then — you are probably wigging out every day WORRYING ABOUT YOUR WEIGHT– so you are adding extra anxiety– and THAT is affecting your cortisol. This becomes a hurricane of bad hormonal activity underneath the skin. 

    If you add in anything else like taking antibiotics, birth control pills, anti-depressants, or any other kinds of prescribed drugs….that plus any kinds of fake foods with bad chemicals…..that plus all the lovely environmental factors affecting our hormones….you’ve got a tsunami of madness going on preventing your body from performing as it should. 

    Crazy right? IT ALL ADDS UP. But see, this is the BIG PICTURE stuff that we all don’t think about — for years I ONLY thought about my workouts and my calories. 

    It took me years to understand the “bigger picture” part of things…..how much my anxiety and my STRESSING OUT ABOUT MY BODY and losing weight was ADDING TO THE PROBLEM and jacking up my cortisol and messing up my hormones. I didn’t realize that because I was on The Pill and Spironolactone, my testosterone was suppressed and that was making it very hard to lose fat. I didn’t know that all the antibiotics I was on were creating a nightmare in my gut. I didn’t realize that 2 hours of training a day was overtraining. I didn’t realize how much of a binge eater I had become. I didn’t realize a LOT. I hope that by sharing here– I help a lot of YOU wake up. The more we talk about these things the more we can get past them. 

    The bottom line is this– starving ourselves or close to it and overtraining and being obsessive about our weight loss is a road to destroying our health. I was DESTRUCTIVE to my body for years and had to UNDO a lot…..I want to SAVE YOU TIME!! Don’t make the mistakes I did! Stop eating too little! Eat more! Lift heavy- focus on rest and recovery and self-care…..you’d be amazed what that will do for you. 

    In my future blog posts, I will go into greater detail on what that looks like. In other words– how do we get away from this diet culture that’s been around for decades of 1200 calorie diets (there is nothing wrong with a diet ok??) and get to a place where we respect and understand our bodies more and give ourselves more GRACE and TIME and understanding and stop the whole COMPARISON thing…..these are all lessons I have learned and practices I’ve adapted that have helped me tremendously in my “new” life. 

    I’m not the overwhelmingly insecure woman I was 3 years ago. I’m happy to share how I got here. So be sure you are subscribed– I’d love to take you with me. 

    Tell me where you are right now– are you currently dieting and eating a really calorically LOW diet? Does it freak you out the idea of a reverse diet and healing? Or do you know that’s what you need? What questions can I answer? Let’s stop treating ourselves like crap and running ourselves in the ground all for the sake of losing weight. Fitness is supposed to be FUN. I’m losing weight now and — I’m eating foods I LOVE, enjoying adult beverages, working out actually less than ever, loving my life and feeling GREAT..this is how it should be!! No more feeling dead to the world and stressed out all the time! Cheers to that!!! 

    1200 Calories Meal Plan

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    But Wait There's MORE!

    BUT WAIT THERE'S MORE

    If you enjoyed this post — it’s highly likely you’ll want to check out these ones as well. I recommend the following: Why I Said NO to the 75 Hard Challenge: CLICK HERE. And How to Lose Weight After Age 40 CLICK HERE. And My KETO Transformation CLICK HERE. See you soon! 

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  • Fitness, Personal Blog, WEIGHT LOSS

    Losing Weight After 50: It’s NOT Impossible.

    Is Losing Weight After 50 Possible?

    If you are struggling with losing weight after 50, you aren’t alone. Heck, most women are struggling to lose weight after 40, and it can just get harder after that. Losing weight after 50 is not impossible, I assure you. In this blog post I will share my recent success in losing weight after 50 (I’m age 52! and have lost 24 1/2 inches and 18 lbs with the supervision of my doctor) and explain how I know you can too. Don’t be concerned about losing weight after 50, that’s it’s not possible for you simply because you’ve been at a plateau for a long time. I was stuck at 20-25 lbs over my ideal weight for the past DECADE! I can feel your pain! After you read this blog post and hear my story, you’ll understand that losing weight after 50 IS doable and I’m happy to be your guide. Let’s get started.

    trouble losing weight after 50

    How to Start Losing Weight After 50

    Those of you that have been following me for a while know what I’m going to say here. BEFORE YOU START getting serious about losing weight after 50- you have to understand how important one thing is: your HORMONES. If you have not yet had comprehensive bloodwork done yet and seen a functional medicine doctor to get on bio-identical hormonal treatment yet– most diet approaches will be a short term fix at best. Your body will ultimately end up fighting back and you’ll gain weight. I’ve seen this happen with me. That’s a sad but real truth. You can get comprehensive blood-work done via Ulta Lab Tests nationwide- CLICK HERE. They will save you soooo much money and then you’ll have bloodwork you can take to any functional medicine doctor which will save you time. GET IT DONE, TRUST ME. 

    fat loss after 50

    What I know is the secret to losing weight after 50

    Here is what I know to be true about losing weight after 50- and it’s the same as losing weight after 40. The first most important thing is to have that foundational focus on getting your HORMONES checked out. Once you are this age (and truthfully, it’s no longer even about being in your 40’s or 50’s or older, women are presenting with hormonal imbalances as early as in their twenties now– go listen to my interviews with Laurie Christine King and Alex Mazzurco if you want real life examples!) your hormones are 50% of the equation when it comes to your body’s ability to lose weight — in my opinion. Ignoring your hormones means you’ll be facing an uphill battle to get in shape. Further– I won’t get off topic here but — YOUR ENTIRE LIFE AND FUTURE CAN CHANGE when your hormones are balanced– WHY NOT PURSUE THAT? I look and feel better at age 52 than I did at age 32…..if that’s not an argument for anti-aging I don’t know what is. So- to summarize my history- as briefly as possible, my body started changing around age 40. At that time I began to gain weight while not changing anything with my diet and exercise. I was training with a trainer and he thought I might be pregnant because my boobs got so big. Still, it took years for me to even THINK of hormones. I just kept pushing and pushing, dieting harder and working out harder. (one of the major mistakes most women make) I sought out every secret diet that might work. I never stopped dieting. For the past 10 years I kept pushing and going and going…..harder and harder. 

    I never really made progress. 

    Aside from a few windows of success: after doing a round of the HCG Diet- and following that up with some ill-advised direction to dive right in to Faster Way to Fat Loss without any reverse dieting out of HCG …followed by a HORRIBLE experience with a horrible dietitian who helped me gain a bunch of weight…..let’s just say the most recent 5 years or so have been the most miserable for me. I’ve lived in black baggy clothes, I’ve dieted my A&& off and….nothing worked. 

    UNTIL THIS YEAR. Actually – it was last summer that I took the first steps toward my new future, but I did not know it at the time. 

     

    I do think it’s important to mention here. After 10+ years of nonstop dieting and overtraining I listened to Alex Mazzurco, hired her as my trainer and committed to doing a reverse diet to heal myself. I did a reverse diet for almost a year. I fired my last functional medicine doctor who was not getting me results. In October I hired a female functional medicine doctor– Dr. Ruthie Harper in Austin TX- and started working with her. From our first consult I KNEW she’d heal me. She told me I had to work MOST on my insulin resistance, not my hypothyroid issues. That was an eye opener: I think far too many women focus way too much on hypothyroid issues as the reason why we can’t lose weight. Dr. Harper said the primary reason I wasn’t losing fat was insulin not thyroid. When April/May of this year hit and she told me I was finally well enough to diet again and she gave me my macros– and it was basically keto….I freaked out a bit. Well, a lot. I was the most skeptical person on the planet about the keto diet. SPOILER ALERT: The secret to losing weight after 50 for most women is keto. That’s right. Keto + Fasting + Exogenous Ketones is the magical combination that has transformed my body and helped me shed 24 inches and 18lbs since June 1st. I am wearing clothes I haven’t worn in YEARS. I am 8lbs from my goal weight. I do a double take in the mirror about every day!!! I walk with a strut now! I haven’t looked this good in over a decade. AND I FEEL GREAT. And guess what else: this is a lifestyle. I don’t feel deprived at all. I drink. I eat food I love. My cravings are virtually gone and I never binge anymore! This has transformed my LIFE!! I never ever would have expected all of this from just going keto but heck if I knew this I would have done it 3 years ago!!!! I’m so passionate about sharing this — I’m becoming a certified keto coach — so I can help more women aged 40+ with hormone issues lose the weight-  THIS IS THE SOLUTION. I’m telling you. Keto + Fasting + Exogenous Ketones will change your life– it changed mine. My husband stops me at least once a day somewhere in our house and will remark about how much my body has transformed. I have to buy new clothes all the time because I’m losing pounds/inches….it’s amazing. 

    Who would have thought something so simple was the answer— but when you think about it— if INSULIN RESISTANCE is the key- then keto really is the thing that automatically removes all the foods that cause insulin response. It removes what causes cravings. It removes what causes binges. It’s transformative more than you know. I’d love to know what this post did for you– what questions you have and how I can help? Are you ready to take the leap?? 

    But WAIT, There's MORE!

    BUT WAIT THERE'S MORE

    If you found this blog post helpful, you will probably enjoy these podcasts and videos and other blog posts below. And if you think these might be helpful to a friend or family member, I’d love it if you’d share this post with them– spread the love! Thank you in advance! “My Keto Diet Results” CLICK HERE to read. “How to Balance Hormones to Lose Weight” CLICK HERE to Listen. “Kiss Hormonal Weight Gain Goodbye” CLICK HERE to watch. 

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