I’ve been trying to lose weight, but I just can’t seem to do it the right way. I tried counting calories, cutting out carbs, and exercising – nothing worked. So I finally asked my friend Becky what she did to lose all that weight, and she told me about her keto diet! It’s been two months now since I started following her meal plan, and I’ve already lost eight pounds! Scroll down to read about the keto diet and see how you can use it to lose some weight too!

1. The day I met Joe, who changed my life

• I was walking along a street in New York City, looking down at my phone, and almost stepped on him. Joe was curled up on a mat, his head resting on a plastic bag filled with trash. He was wearing only torn jeans and dirty sneakers, and he had nothing but his bare hands to keep warm during a freezing February evening. He looked about 30 years old—old enough to know better than sleeping out on an asphalt sidewalk near Times Square but young enough to still have some sort of future ahead of him if he got help. I didn’t have any change or spare food with me, so I offered what little I could: I'll walk you to a shelter. It turned out that Joe didn't want to go anywhere.

2. My weight loss goal

• I wanted to lose 24 pounds. I was 24 pounds overweight and knew that if I didn’t make a change, I wouldn’t live a healthy lifestyle. So I decided to do something about it. After researching ways to lose weight, I decided that keto was right for me because it's all-natural and sustainable. That decision got me started on my journey to changing my life forever...and led me to create Ketogenic Consulting! Learn how you can lose weight without giving up your favorite foods or having insane workout schedules by reading my story! The key is making small steps towards big changes!

3. A healthy diet vs. a low carb diet

• What's best for weight loss? When we try to lose weight, our bodies don't always cooperate. No matter how well you eat and exercise, sometimes our bodies will hang on to every calorie they can get. So when you need to lose weight as quickly as possible, there are a few tricks you can use to accelerate your progress towards your goal. One way is with a low-carb diet: switching from carbs to fat can be an effective way of speeding up your metabolism, helping you burn more calories throughout the day (with bonus points if your calories come from healthy fats!). Another strategy is simply cutting portion sizes; when we reduce our overall food intake, that tends to lead to weight loss as well! Keep reading for details on these two strategies...

4. How can you get into ketosis?

• The easiest way to get into ketosis is to eat a very low-carb, high-fat diet. After about three days, most people report being pretty much keto-adapted and ready to start using fat as fuel. When you're there, it's a good idea to check with your doctor or dietitian just to make sure you're on track. Once you're done getting into ketosis and not experiencing symptoms of keto flu, you can focus on other areas of your health that might need improvement.

5. How do you know if you’re actually burning fat for energy, or whether you are just losing water weight from eating fewer carbs?

• If you’re tracking your body weight, try to lose at least 1-2 pounds per week over a 3-4 week period. Losing more than 2 pounds a week probably means that you’re losing a lot of water along with fat. If it’s only one pound, then it might not mean anything but might still be worth watching out for. You should also see an increase in lean muscle mass if you are strength training at home or a gym as well. If so, congratulations! That means that there is likely some muscle being built up despite what seems like a fat loss on paper.

6. My go-to meal before starting a workout routine

• For years, I worked out sporadically, but never saw any major results. Then I stumbled upon a keto-friendly meal that’s become my go-to pre-workout meal. It’s super easy to make and leaves me feeling fueled for my workout (and hungry again soon after). In just two weeks of eating these tacos before each workout, I lost an incredible 8 pounds—and most importantly, they helped me develop a regular fitness routine! For every pound you’d like to lose: 500 calories is equal to 1 pound.

7. My go-to meal after a workout - eggs and veggies combo

• The key to healthy weight loss is having a diverse and well-balanced diet, which is why I love eggs. They’re cheap, versatile, high in protein, low in calories, and available pretty much everywhere – perfect for those times when you need a quick meal. I eat them three times a week as part of my dinner (yep! It's that important!) topped with lots of veggies or sometimes avocado. Just 15 minutes is all it takes to cook up six hard-boiled eggs plus five minutes on either side to prepare my greens (spinach salad or steamed broccoli).

8. The result - I lost 12 lbs in 10 days!

• Since starting a Keto diet, I've been eating what is called fat bombs to help curb my appetite. They are 100% fat but oh so delicious. There's no sugar, no carbs, and often only a few calories per bomb. I made them for a party and ended up eating all of them myself - that's how tasty they are! After that, I was hooked on making keto desserts. So far, my favorite is Fat Bombs! This Keto recipe makes 24 servings at about 90 calories each! Do yourself a favor - make these before you start your new diet! By putting them out with little bowls of nuts on a dessert tray, it helps keep me from snacking during dinner or just after dinner before bed.