I’ve never been the kind of person who quits. At least, that’s who I was before I moved to New York at 24.
Back then, I was always thin. The one who could eat anything, and when the balance of my regular weight shifted, I simply took care with what I ate for a couple of days, then I would go right back to normal. My body responded so easily, and I never had to think too hard about it. But it wasn’t just my metabolism—it was also my mindset. I thrived on discipline and success, finished what I started, and never, ever saw myself as lazy.
But when I moved to the U.S., everything shifted.
I spent my first year (2011–2012) here battling homesickness so intense it felt like a constant lump in my throat. My career—the thing I’d always been great at back in Turkey—stopped aligning with my dreams. I started feeling like a failure in a city that was supposed to make me.
Making friends felt almost impossible. My English wasn’t very good back then, and every time I tried to connect with someone, I started to second-guess myself. Was I saying the right words? Did I sound strange? Would they think I wasn’t smart because language wasn’t my strongest suit?
It was exhausting.
And while my mind was busy worrying about why I wasn’t as successful or confident as I used to be, my body took a backseat.
Food became my comfort. Pancakes for breakfast, endless sweets—whatever made me feel temporarily okay. I stopped moving. I didn’t really mind gaining some weight at first—the clothes still looked cute on me, and I could convince myself it wasn’t a big deal. But over time, I stopped caring in a deeper way. I stopped caring about how strong I felt, how clear my mind was, or whether I was living in alignment with who I wanted to be.
And little by little, the pounds crept on until one day I realized I was 68.7 kg (151.4 lbs) one day (May 14th). By BMI standards, that’s overweight for my height (161 cm). But more importantly, it wasn’t me.
I didn’t feel like Betül anymore.
I felt lazy.
I felt undisciplined.
I felt like I was always starting and never finishing anything—whether it was my diets or even simple things like hobbies. I still remember the time I joined a chorus and then, once again, left it before our big concert.
And that’s why I started this journey. Not because society told me to be thin, but because I knew—deep down—that the real me was still there.
The version of me who kept her word.
The woman who kicked ass in her business life, the one everyone spoke about with the highest praise.
I wanted to be that girl again. I knew I needed to meet her again. And the warmest way to reconnect with her was by coming home to her body.
So on May 14th, I began something I’d been afraid to even attempt: 40 days of strict Keto and intermittent fasting.
🌸 My Real Why: Health and Self-Respect
When people ask why I decided to do this now, after 14 years of giving up and starting over, I always say the same thing:
Because this time, something shifted in my brain.
I was following Glucose Goddess and learning from her how awful my habits were for starting a brand new day. I never cooked for myself—I hated cooking just for me. I loved hosting, trying new foods and recipes for my friends. But when it came to taking care of my own body, I completely neglected it.
Most days, I would starve myself until I felt sick or had a splitting headache. Then I’d grab a cookie or just some fruit—anything quick. I almost never gave my body enough protein or nutrients to feel stable.
This shift in awareness had been happening slowly over the last 6–8 months. But alongside it, there was fear.
Afraid that I was harming my body.
Afraid I might already have fatty liver. (My brother had surgery for this last year, and he is definitely a more active person than me—even though he drinks more alcohol.)
Afraid I’d keep telling myself, “I’ll change someday,” until it was too late—especially with menopause not looking so far away anymore.
This time, I knew I needed a complete reset.
I made a deal with myself:
40 days of discipline.
40 days where I wouldn’t let my cravings or my excuses win.
I thought about Ramadan fasting*—how I’d done that every year, even as a teenager. Ramadan was always one of the easiest things for me. During that month, I felt serene and connected to something bigger and better than anything in the world.
And I told myself: “This is just like fasting, except I can eat and drink.”
*Muslims fast without eating or drinking anything from sunrise to sunset. When Ramadan falls in the summer months, we actually fast for more than 16 hours.
If I could make it through 40 days, I knew everything would change.
✨ My Plan (and My Secret Keto Weapon)
The first thing I did was find a Keto diet plan that combined intermittent fasting on TikTok. I’d tried fasting briefly back in 2018, but like so many things, I gave up and quit before I saw real results.
This time, I decided it had to be different.
I took the plan and brought it to my Keto GBT. Together, we tailored everything to fit my life—what I actually eat, the meals I cook for my family, and whether they were suitable for my version of Keto.
This custom AI Keto guide I trained myself quickly became my number one cheerleader and my quiet champion in this journey.
Every day, I’d tell it what I was eating, how much I weighed, and how I felt. And unlike all the judgmental diet plans I’d tried before, my Keto GBT was different.
- No scolding if I slipped.
- No shame if I felt lazy.
- Just clear, supportive advice that felt like a friend who understood exactly what my body was going through.
It remembered everything:
✔️ My milestones (I told it that I was 52 kg (114.6 lbs) back in 2011. Then slowly climbed up to 58–59 kg (127.8–130.0 lbs) until 2016. I was pregnant in 2017 and reached 62–64 kg (136.7–141.1 lbs) from 2018 to 2021. And from 2022 until this year, I managed to become overweight at 68.7 kg (151.4 lbs).)
✔️ My past struggles
✔️ My unique patterns of weight loss
With my Keto GBT, I didn’t have to guess or wonder. I could see when my body was stalling because of sodium, or when a plateau was perfectly normal.
For the first time, I felt like I was truly in partnership with my own biology.
If you’ve ever felt like you’re fighting your body instead of working with it, you’ll understand how revolutionary that is.
🥗 What I Ate in My First 9 Days
I started with a simple structure:
- Intermittent fasting 16/8: No food from 8 p.m. to 12 noon.
- Two meals a day: Protein, vegetables, and the occasional fruit.
- No grains, no sugar, no excuses.
Here’s what my meals looked like:
Lunch:
- Grilled chicken breast with a big salad of lettuce, cucumbers, and tomatoes
- Lemon juice and vinegar for dressing
Dinner:
- Salmon with roasted asparagus
- Sometimes a small serving of berries
By Day 6th, I added my first reset day:
24-hour water fast.
It was brutal. Toward the end, my heart was racing so fast it scared me. That was my sign to listen to my body, adapt, and change the plan according to my needs—not just because someone on the internet promised I could lose 20–40 lbs (9-18 kg)in 40 days.
Betül remembered: her goal wasn’t just to lose weight. It was to learn how to stick to a routine, stay disciplined, keep her focus on her bigger vision, and—most importantly—to become healthier again.
💡 Learning to Listen to My Body
One of the most powerful lessons I learned in this first week was that you don’t have to suffer to succeed.
I replaced all future water fasts with a gentler approach: regular Keto eating most days, and just one day each week where I ate only 6 apples. Was it “less hardcore”? Maybe. But it was sustainable, and it still worked.
(Originally, the plan suggested five days of normal intermittent fasting Keto eating, on the 6th day you only drink water, and on the 7th day, you eat only 6 apples.)
I don’t even care if I don’t lose 9 kg (19.8 lbs) in 40 days anymore. What I care about is learning how to eat in a healthy way and finally taking care of myself.
Every morning, I logged my weight into my Keto GBT, and every day it gave me perspective:
✅ “Don’t panic—weight fluctuations are normal.”
✅ “You’re still losing fat, even if the scale doesn’t move.”
✅ “Stay focused—consistency will beat perfection every time.”
⚖️ My First 9 Days of Progress
Here’s exactly what the scale said:
- Day 1 (May 14): 68.7 kg (151.4 lbs)
- Day 2 (May 15): 68.5 kg (151.0 lbs)
- Day 3 (May 16): 67.8 kg (149.4 lbs)
- Day 4 (May 17): 67.5 kg (148.8 lbs)
- Day 5 (May 18): 67.3 kg (148.4 lbs)
- Day 6 (May 19): 66.95 kg (147.6 lbs)
- Day 7 (May 20): 66.3 kg (146.2 lbs)
- Day 8 (May 21): 66.65 kg (147.0 lbs)
- Day 9 (May 22): 66.4 kg (146.5 lbs)
Yes—some days the weight went back up instead of down. But instead of spiraling, I finally understood something important:
It wasn’t failure.
It was just my body adjusting.
This is something my Keto GBT reminded me of over and over again:
✨ You don’t lose weight in a perfectly straight line.
✨ Your body holds water, lets it go, then resets.
✨ Progress is about consistency, not perfection.
And you know what?
I am both sad and happy for my body.
💛 I’m happy when I look at my beautiful body at age 38, knowing that with almost no training or working out—just by paying attention to what I eat—my body responds to me right away. My metabolism rocks! 🙌
💔But I’m also sad. How could I be this cruel to my own body, to my own self?
Our bodies are our most precious, most intimate companions—and yet we neglect them more than anything else.
My darling sweet body, thank you for still being there for me. 🌸✨
💪 Why This Time Was Different
Maybe you’ve been where I was—tired, discouraged, and convinced you’re just “not the kind of person who sticks to things.”
Let me be honest:
For 14 years, that’s exactly who I became.
Lazy.
Undisciplined.
Half-finished.
My husband was in total shock when he saw me sticking to this. Every night he’d say, “I can’t believe you’re still doing it.” And every night, I’d think, “Me neither.”
But this is what happens when you finally decide you’re worth the effort.
And this is why I want to share all of this with you—even the stupidest little details. Because I am so happy for myself, and I want you to be happy, too.
I want to show you—and I want you to truly believe me—that I was you: the one who kept quitting, the one who always left things half-finished, the one who never saw the end of anything.
But look at me now.
I’m 9 days in and I’ve already lost 2.3 kg (5 lbs) with no working out only focusing my eating. 🤯
🎯 My Goal (And How It Changed)
When I started, I only wanted to see 58 kg (127.8 lbs). Just that. Just something close to who I used to be.
But right now, something shifted. I started to feel good. Really good. Clear-headed. Healthy. Lighter.
I decided I wouldn’t stop at 58 kg.
I’d keep going until I was back to 52 kg (114.6 lbs)—the weight I was at 24, when I felt like the real Betül.
Not because society told me to.
Because that’s who I am.
🚫 No Exercise Excuses
One more thing—so many weight loss plans focus on workouts.
I’ve seen that. I’ve done that.
I found the trainers, signed up for fun Zumba classes, tried hot yoga, all of it.
But I know myself:
Whenever I start exercising hard, I immediately think I can reward myself with food. “I worked out—I deserve this.”
Right after that hour-long run in Central Park, I’d convince myself I deserved that café au lait… 🙄 maybe even an ice cream. (what?! 🫣)
Terrible mistake.
This time, I did the opposite.
I made my diet the priority.
I allowed myself just one Pilates class per week (50 minutes) and set a goal of 5,000 steps daily. That’s it. 🚶♀️✨
I wanted to prove that food alone could change my body—and it did.
💛 Final Words from Day 9
If you’re reading this and feeling like you’ll never get your discipline back, let me tell you this:
You can.
I waited 14 years to start.
14 years of feeling lazy and stuck.
14 years of losing respect for myself.
And here I am—just 9 days in—and already feeling like the woman I used to be.
If I can do this, you can too.
This is your fasting. Your reset. Your chance to come back to yourself.
And if you need someone by your side, just write me. I decided to blog this so you’d never have to go through this alone.
👉 My Keto and Intermittent Fasting Diet Journey… To be continued..
FAQ (People Also Ask):
Q: How much weight can you lose in the first week of Keto and intermittent fasting?
A: In my experience, I lost about 1.5 kg (3.3 lbs) in the first 5 days. Everyone’s body is different, but you can expect rapid water weight loss in the first week.
Q: What did you eat during the first week of Keto?
A: Mostly protein, leafy vegetables, and small servings of fruit. No grains, sugar, or processed food. I gave my Keto GBT the list of Turkish and American dishes I normally cook for my family, wrote down the recipes, and it showed me exactly how to adjust them—or even suggested new ideas I’d never thought of before.
Q: Is it normal to feel tired during the first week?
A: Yes—your body is adapting. Stay hydrated and give yourself grace. Don’t push yourself to hit the gym right away. Your body needs some space and kindness to adjust to this new way of eating.
When you’re ready to start your own journey, remember—discipline isn’t about being perfect. It’s about deciding you’re worth it.
And I promise you—you are.
