Woman loses over 100 pounds following 'lazy keto' diet

Nearly two years ago, Megan Faraday, a now 25-year-old woman from Ontario, Canada, decided she was ready to make a change to her health.

"I just felt really uncomfortable with myself for a really long time, a whole lifetime of dieting and binge eating," Faraday told "Good Morning America." "I woke up one morning and was like 'I'm going to try keto and see if it sticks,' and it did."

Faraday has since lost more than 100 pounds following "lazy keto," a version of the popular ketogenic, or keto, diet, known for its focus on foods high in fat and low in carbohydrates.

For Faraday, following a "lazy keto" diet meant skipping counting every macronutrient, like proteins and fats, she was eating and focusing solely instead on the amount of carbohydrates, or carbs, she was eating every day.

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"It's keto without all of the hardcore rules," Faraday said of her "lazy keto" approach. "I figured out how to calculate net carbs [the total grams of carbohydrates in a food minus the grams of fiber] and just went from there."

Faraday said she moved from a diet full of fast food, breads, potatoes and pasta to one that includes a lot of fresh vegetables and lean proteins. Within one month, Faraday had lost 15 pounds.

"I think the reason why this time really stuck with me was it was so easy for me to get into the swing of things with keto," she said. "Seeing the weight come off was the biggest motivator. I saw that and it just kept me determined to keep going."

Faraday said she lost just over 100 pounds in one year on a "lazy keto" diet and since then has been slowly introducing carbs back into her diet while still losing weight.

"It's a lot of things you would be eating otherwise, just minus the carbs. Things like chicken wings that you wouldn't normally think of as diet foods," she said of her approach. "And it's easy to make regular recipes that I would have been eating before more keto-friendly."

Where two years ago Faraday had difficulty walking up a set of stairs, she now goes on runs and exercises three to five times a week.

"My total attitude to life has changed completely," she said. "I'm more outgoing and like to put myself out there more and I've struggled with anxiety my whole life and it's a lot easier for me to deal with now."

Here are four weight loss tips from Faraday

1. Make eating simple: "I keep my diet really simple because I like to know exactly what I'm eating. It's easier to track it when you're not trying to make super complicated recipes."

2. Drink lots of water: "Everybody says that but it's seriously so important."

3. Have a support system: "Have people you can reach out to when you're having a bad day or someone you can ask a question to. It's so much easier than trying to navigate it on your own."

4. Make a change to make yourself happy: "You need to do it for yourself. You can't be worried about doing it for other people. There will be times you don't see the scale move. You need to keep moving past that and know what your goal is for yourself. You need to make yourself happy at the end of the day."

Editor's note: This was originally published on July 23, 2020.