How to lose weight and keep it off

Why can’t I lose weight? Have you been asking yourself this question for a while?

The truth is, you CAN lose weight and keep it off. Losing weight doesn’t need to feel like a big struggle with no end in sight.

As we know by now, there’s no magic potion for effortless weight loss, but there are effective natural, diet-based methods to give you the best chance of losing weight and maintaining your ideal weight. I previously wrote a blog on the Top 3 reasons why you are not losing weight to discuss a few less known physiological reasons – check it out.

This case study report describes just one client journey to achieving a healthy weight and maintaining it without counting calories or following fad diets. To succeed, you just need to know how to go about it and do what worked for the others before you.

Our method is based on food sensitivity testing and following a diet guided by the test results which indicate inflammatory (problematic) and anti-inflammatory (safe) foods to make the meals with. Read more about the IgG food sensitivity testing in this post.

So, let’s find out!

How to lose weight and keep it off – Maritza’s story

Clinical case presentation

Maritza, a 57-year-old financial counsellor, suffered with a number of complaints and symptoms and excess weight. She listed the following main symptoms or conditions prior to the IgG food sensitivity testing:

Gut imbalances – bloating (especially after having wine), constipation, reflux, flatulence
Stress/ nervous system – unable to relax, mood swings, memory problems, brain fog, hard to get up in the morning
Fatigue – chronic tiredness, hard to get up in the morning
Cardiovascular – high blood pressure for the past 5 years. Swollen ankles and knees especially in hot weather, shortness of breath with moderate exercise. Taking a blood pressure medication.
Menopausal symptoms for around 6 years – hot flushes, irritability, insomnia, low mood and brain fog. The symptoms intensify after she eats too much sugar.
Feeling heat at the bottom of the feet – an unusual symptoms that persisted for years with no solution despite seeking help from many doctors
Constant pain in the left elbow and upper arm
Iron deficient for a long time – was taking vit B12 supplement and had B12 injections
Sleep problems – tired but wired, sleep apnoea
Overweight – her weight was 75kg in 2017 and she put on weight since then to currently 93kg

Martitza’s initial IgG test results

High sensitivity ‘red’ foods: 27
Borderline yellow foods: 9

Main foods/ food groups that needed to be eliminated for 6 months included:

Dairy – all kinds: cow, goat, sheep
Wheat and barley and products made of them
Eggs white
Yeast – both Brewer’s and baker yeast
Nuts (6 types)
Corn and soy

Progress timeline

We consulted on a regular basis during the 6-month period to make sure she stayed on track and ate a good variety of foods to prevent any nutrients deficiencies developing.

Consultation #2: 1 month of the elimination diet

Maritza reported that she was struggling to follow the diet as she was getting headaches almost every day. She also felt very tired for the past 4 weeks after starting the elimination diet. It likely these were signs of a detoxification process activated by the body in the first phase of the diet. She understood and accepted this and persevered with the diet, and also increased daily hydration to help eliminate the toxins faster.

She removed all the ‘red’ foods but she felt a bit lost as to what she can eat. Also, she was working long hours and didn’t have much time to cook. This added to her feeling rather overwhelmed in the first 4-6 weeks on the elimination diet. Despite this, she was determined to continue. To her amazement, she reported she was not missing any of the trigger foods she removed.

As she was struggling with her food choices, we spent time discussing food selection principles and food preparation shortcuts. She received more recipes and tips to improve and broaden her food choices and nutritionally balance her meals well. It was also suggested she starts planning her meals one week in advance, and buy the ingredients to do some prep and batch cooking. She could then divide the yummy food into portions and freeze them for easy access anytime she wanted.

Her initial blood tests indicated a few nutrition deficiencies including low vitamins D and B12, low zinc levels and elevated ESR (inflammation marker). Subsequently, she was prescribed vitamin D, digestive enzymes and a gut powder to facilitate gut repair. Her GP also suggested doing a colonoscopy to exclude internal any bleeding as her hematology blood results indicated irregularities in iron metabolism.

Weight loss achieved in the first month: 1kg.

Consultation #3: 2 months on the elimination diet

She continued improving across the board and the symptoms were swiftly subsiding:

Aches and pains, swollen legs and knee – good improvement, down from 6/10 to 2/10=severe*
Fatigue, low energy, tiredness – good improvement, down from 6/10 to 2/10
Insomnia – little improvement, down from 6/10 to 5/10
Headaches – significant improvement, down from 6/10 to 3/10
Pain in the left elbow – slight improvement, down from 5/10 to 4/10
Heat at the bottom of the feet – completely resolved: from 5/10 to 0/10. Nothing worked before for this despite trying for years. It’s not uncommon for unusual symptoms such as this resolving on the elimination diet, although we were not able to identify the trigger food(s) associated with it at that stage.
Gut: bloating, reflux, diarrhoea – much improved, down from 6/10 to 2/10
High blood pressure – improved, she had less hot flushes
Weight loss – 2 kg in the past month. Overall weight loss: 3 kg from the start

*Rating scale 1=mild to 10=severe symptoms

Overall, she reported feeling much better and having more energy throughout the day. Maritza was relieved that the headaches decreased significantly, as they were considerably impacting her daily activities. She was very motivated by her positive results so far and was strictly adhering to the elimination diet.

Having worked to start the day on a positive note, she started to eat more nutritious breakfasts and that made a big difference to her energy levels and moods for the rest of the day. It also helped with having a better sleep.

Sugar carvings were gone and she didn’t crave any foods she removed. This was hard to believe for her as she wasn’t able to manage her cravings well in the past. She continued drinking plenty of water throughout the day (around 8 glasses plus herbal teas).

By this time, Maritza was excited seeing and feeling the positive changes and significant lessening of symptoms. She said: ‘waking up without any pain is great!’

Consultation #3: 4 months on the elimination diet

Maritza continued following the diet closely. Importantly, her knee pain and swelling completely resolved by now and she was able to walk, dance and even run using her ‘new’ knee! She couldn’t believe such improvements can be achieved by just changing the foods she ate. After 4 months Maritza felt much happier and confident with the food choices she made.

She slept very well and her skin was glowing. People commented on her appearance and asked what was she doing to get such improvements in a short period of time.

She still experienced aches and pains in the left elbow but at significantly lower levels – see the Symptom tracking table below.

Weight loss: she lost around 8kg in the past 4 months – from 93kg initially down to 85kg.

Consultation #4: 6 months on the elimination diet

Maritza was feeling good and was very happy to report that all the initial symptoms either resolved completely or significantly subsided – see the Symptom tracking table below.

She was ‘full of energy and sleeping like a baby’. Amazingly, she still had no cravings for the trigger foods she used to eat, and very much enjoyed her new meals.

Overall, she lost 11kg and dropped two dress sizes in 6 months without calorie counting or watching portion sizes.

It was achieved by removing the inflammatory foods from her diet and then allowing the body to make whatever adjustments were needed to decrease inflammation and improve digestion and the gut function, among others.

Her blood pressure stabilised and she was experiencing hardly any hot flushes associated with it.

At the end of six months on the elimination diet Maritza decided to continue eating according to the test guidelines without doing a retest at that stage. She said she found a balanced and yummy nutrition plan to follow and she felt much more in control of her symptoms and overall wellbeing. This experience was truly empowering and life changing for her.

When starting the program, she wanted to lose weight and keep it off and she found the way to do both by following one, food-based method.

Overall, Maritza experienced around 90%-95% overall improvement from baseline.

Read the fully referenced clinical study HERE.

Do you need help with decreasing food sensitivities and improving your health?

Maritza’s health journey inspired many of my clients to take a similar path to feeling better and enjoying life again.

If you have been searching for an experienced weight loss online naturopath or nutritionist helping clients based anywhere in Australia, please get in touch. Find out more about my methods and therapeutic approach HERE.

Book an online consultation now or click on the button below to book a free 25-minute initial discussion to talk about your circumstances and how I can help.

I look forward to helping you get better health and wellbeing soon!

Best of Health

Joanna Sochan
Wholistic Health and Lifestyle Therapist
Natural and Lifestyle Therapies for Abundant Health and Wellbeing

Additional resources

Disclaimer: The above material is for informational and educational purposes only. It should not be used to self-diagnose and it is not a substitute for a medical advice, diagnosis, treatment, prescription or recommendation. All viewers of this content, especially those taking prescription or over-the-counter medications, should not make any changes in their health regimen or diet before first consulting a doctor or other qualified health provider with any questions they may have regarding a medical condition or their particular circumstances.

Joanna Sochan is a Natural Therapist and founder of Naturimedica Wholistic Wellcare. She has a passion for helping clients transform their lives by becoming healthy and well naturally. Joanna has 12+ years experience in clinical practice and has special interest in solving complex cases, gut health, food sensitivities, hormone imbalances, autoimmune disorders and weight loss. She helps clients individually (mostly online) Australia-wide and also offers online therapeutic programs, eCourses and self-help eBooks. View full bio.