‘This Diet Saved Our Lives!’: How a Mother-Daughter Duo Used Keto Diet Smoothies for Weight Loss

Ketogenic diets are notorious for excluding a fair amount of fresh fruits and veggies because they’re simply too high in carbs. But according to experts, including some nutrient-rich produce in your keto diet can actually help you lose more weight. Want proof? Ask Denise King, who used keto diet smoothies to lose a total of 164 pounds and get her health under control. In fact, they worked so well, she got her mom Veola on board – and she got off 17 different prescription medications! Keep reading for more of their inspirational story, plus why keto diet smoothies can help melt your middle.

Denise’s starting point before turning to keto smoothies for weight loss

“I don’t have time to be sick,” whispered Denise King, newly discharged from the ER. She’d had a scary heart arrhythmia — doctors said reducing stress would fix the problem, but how much could she slow down? Denise was in Memphis to care for her ailing mom, Veola, 81, and was running a busy consulting business from Veola’s dining table. You can at least relax a little, Denise told herself.

She checked her sleeping mom, then collapsed in front of the TV with a huge bag of M&M’s. Settling in, she suddenly realized the bag was empty. Ugh. I must’ve spilled some, she thought, feeling around the recliner cushion. Nothing. She strained her 299-pound body to the floor, looking under the chair. Nothing. She furrowed her brow. Denise, still on her hands and knees, heard a voice in her head say: You ate all that candy in 60 seconds. You’re out of control, and it has to end. She froze, fairly sure it was the voice of God.

How Denise discovered keto

Denise spent the next 11 hours on her laptop, taking in huge amounts of information from websites, studies, doctors’ YouTube posts. For decades, her shape-up efforts had been haphazard. Now she was focused. And all signs pointed to the keto diet. Whoa, she thought, reading that keto’s impact on blood sugar could eliminate her intense cravings, shrink her giant appetite and speed fat burning.

Curious, Denise began looking up her specific issues. It looks like a healthy version of keto will give my body nutrients and micronutrients to help my heart, she realized. Next, she saw keto eases joint pain. Then she read that the strategy might get her off blood-pressure meds she’d taken for 16 years. “That’s it!” she yelled.

“What is?” called Veola from the other room. Denise went to explain to her mom why she was going keto due to the amount of health benefits. And later that day, she peered into the fridge to see what keto fixings were on hand…

How to start a keto diet Denise’s way for weight loss

Denise made her first keto meals with chicken, salad, steak, green beans, olive oil and more. She entered it all in a free tracking app and managed to hit her new daily goals: about 70 percent of her calories from fat — a nutrient with no impact on blood sugar — plus 20 percent from protein and 5 percent from carbs. She left 5 percent wiggle room for unlimited veggies, since they were key to better blood pressure. I want to get seven to 10 servings a day, she reminded herself, adding veggies galore to her grocery list.

Denise kept at it. For about 72 hours, she was tired, hungry, pushing through her meal plan. Then everything changed. On day four, she sprang out of bed and was supercharged all day. The internet said her body had begun to burn mostly fat for fuel. “It feels amazing!” she said to Veola.

There was one hitch: Denise’s appetite was suddenly so low, she couldn’t finish her meals. How would she get enough veggies? Remembering a keto doctor who made smoothies, she created her own keto smoothie recipe with spinach, berries and almond milk. The drink was… delicious! And an easy way to get three servings of leafy greens and veggies. Sipping green smoothies most days, her always-achy ankles stopped hurting. After a month, she was down 17 pounds.

“Mom, I’m onto something,” Denise said of the healthy fats making up her diet. “Based on my research, if you try keto too, we can reverse your congestive heart failure, liver cirrhosis, acid reflux and high cholesterol. What do you think?”

Veola replied, “Baby, I want to live!”

Keto diet smoothies work at every age

“Denise gave me smoothies, more veggies and less carbs, but I didn’t notice too much difference,” recalls Veola of her carb intake and physical sensations when starting out. At that point, she got winded walking 100 steps from her bed to the kitchen. After 10 days on keto? “I came in, and she was vacuuming!” shares Denise. “Her energy went way up.”

Adds Veola: “My doctors said, ‘Keep up whatever you’re doing.’ They took me off 17 medications. Oh, it was great!” In a year, Veola shed 67 pounds and lost extreme bloat that made her look pregnant. Her heart improved. Reflux is gone. Her liver, cholesterol and blood pressure are normal. As for Denise, she’s off her blood-pressure meds too — and down 164 pounds! She now coaches other keto dieters. “My mom and I can’t get over how great we feel,” says Denise, 57. “This diet saved our lives!”

How to use keto diet smoothies

To get the biggest benefit from keto diet smoothies, start by cutting carbs – your carb diet should consist of about 30 grams per day so your body can’t make enough blood sugar for fuel. “You’ll naturally start turning fat into an alternate fuel called ketones,” explains keto authority Eric Berg, DC, whose YouTube posts helped inspire Denise. Studies show that ketone production blasts fat 7.5 times faster than normal.

Many keto plans limit carbs, even from nonstarchy veggies, but Denise and Dr. Berg both swear by at least seven to 10 servings per day. “All the fiber in veggies keeps them from affecting blood sugar,” says the doc. More importantly, “Veggies infuse your body with nutrients that lower inflammation, clear excess fat from the liver, optimize your health and get you to your goals more quickly.”

Research shows if we simply blend — say, spinach or kale — for 40 seconds, it helps our body absorb three times more nutrients from the veggies. That means the keto smoothies and juice Denise and Veola love deliver a triple hit of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants to work fat-blasting and health-restoring magic thanks to a state of ketosis. The boost is so fantastic, Dr. Berg has seen women use the drinks to drop up to 22 pounds in 9 days!

How to start a keto diet meals

To keto like Denise and Veola, eat between about noon and 8 p.m. each day, a timing trick proven to boost results. At each sitting, enjoy nice servings of protein, good fat and nonstarchy veggies. Aim for seven to 10 servings of veggies a day. Carbs in veggies don’t count; limit other carbs to 20 to 30 grams daily. A free app like CarbManager.com makes tracking easy. We’ve got meal ideas to inspire you. Find more recipes at DrBerg.com.

Turbo green drink

Blitz 3 cups frozen greens, 1 cup nut milk, 1⁄4 cup berries, 1⁄4 cup keto protein powder, 1 Tbs. MCT oil, stevia to taste.

Veggie omelet

3-egg omelet with cheese and veggies (such as peppers and onions) prepared in butter. Optional side of bacon.

Salmon and mash

Salmon and asparagus roasted with olive oil over cauliflower mashed with butter and heavy cream.

Bonus recipe: Keto brownies

Healthy treats like these make keto eating pure joy. Makes 12 servings.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup peanut butter
• 3⁄4 cup Swerve confectioners’ sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1⁄2 cup cocoa powder
• 1⁄2 tsp. baking powder
• 1⁄3 cup sugar-free chocolate chips

Instructions:

1. Beat peanut butter, Swerve and eggs.
2. Add cocoa, baking powder and a pinch of salt. Stir in chips.
3. Bake in a greased or lined square pan at 325ºF until mostly set, 10 – 12 min.

Additional reporting by Kate Arcell

This content is not a substitute for professional medical advice or diagnosis. Always consult your physician before pursuing any treatment plan.

This article originally appeared in our print magazine.

For more on losing weight with keto:

“I Lost 100+ Pounds and Cut My Grocery Bill by $100s a Month With These Dollar Store Tricks!”

“I Lost 224 Lbs — More Than Half My Size! — With This Keto Hack That Cured My Cravings”

A version of this article originally appeared in our print magazine, Woman’s World.