Going into the new decade I wanted to make a major change to my personal health. I looked up many methods on how to lose weight and decided on a diet that would be easy for me to keep. My experience following a ketogenic diet has been successful so far.

Keto might not be for everyone. Anyone looking into it should review other dieting options as well in order to make an informed decision and decide what is right for them. My mother tried to do the keto diet with me, but ended up getting sick from it, causing her to stop.

Following a ketogenic diet has already had a great impact on my weight-loss progress. I have only been on the diet for two weeks, and I have already lost almost 20 pounds. Adding more exercise to my daily routine should also help me maintain my progress.

I heard about the diet from friends and family who had recently tried it, and they told me it worked well for them. When they told me it consisted mainly of decreasing carbohydrates and increasing protein and fat in meals, it instantly seemed like a diet I could maintain.

Consuming a very low amount of carbs causes the body to go into a state called ketosis. Ketosis is a metabolic process that occurs when the body burns stored fat to produce energy when there is not enough glucose, according to Medical News Today. This allows for fast weightloss through the burning of fat cells by ketones produced in the ketosis process. Every day I use ketone urine testing strips to make sure that I am in ketosis, which means that I haven’t messed up the weightloss process.

I also use the Atkins Carb Tracker app to help keep track of my daily nutrition. The app recommended I limit my carb intake to between 18 and 22 grams a day. This is a significant decrease from the Dietary Guidelines for Americans’ recommendation for an average American who consumes 2,000 calories a day to include between 225 and 325 grams of carbohydrates in their diet.

My diet consists mostly of meats such as steak and chicken, vegetables such as lettuce and broccoli and cheeses, which all have low amounts of carbs. Whenever I eat anything, I log it into my Atkins app and look up the total number of carbs to make sure I am on track to stay under 22 grams.

Atkins, among other companies, sells low-carb versions of food that you normally wouldn’t be able to eat while following a ketogenic diet. For example, Atkins has a personal-sized pepperoni pizza that has only 11 grams of carbs. I have even tried low-carb ice cream from Rebel Ice Cream, and it tastes completly normal.

I have, surprisingly, not missed grain products like bread, pasta or rice. Going out to eat has also been easier than expected. If I’m at a restaurant and I want a cheeseburger, I can just eat it without the bun, and when I want pizza I can eat the toppings off of the crust to avoid the many carbs in the bread.

My experience following a ketogenic diet has been all around positive. Those who are looking to improve their health this decade should feel encouraged to do so by the effectiveness of keto. While it might not work for everyone, it has definitely worked for me.