Welcome to Eat. Be Fit. Explore!
Hello! I’m Lesya Holzapfel, the face behind eatbefitexplore.com. I am a Holistic Nutritionist and Mom of two little girls.
I have a Bachelor’s Degree in Nutrition and Dietetics and have always had a passion for nutrition and health.
One of my favorite things in life is cooking and (eating) a lot. Unfortunately, my food choices usually sucked, which leads me to the story behind how this blog got started.
During my first pregnancy, I gained 50 lbs. I had intense cravings for carbs and sugar during my pregnancy, and even though I was still pretty active, I couldn’t avoid all the weight gain.
I have been a long-distance runner since I was in my early 20s and I knew what it took to be healthy, but I made too many bad food choices.
After I gave birth I started “dieting” right away. I cut calories, ate low-fat foods, avoided meat, ran 5 miles a day, and was only losing a few pounds here and there.
The weight would not come off.
My friend suggested the Ketogenic diet and how it helped her lose weight, but with my nutritional background, I thought what she was doing was crazy.
How can it be healthy to eat fat, meat, and cheese? How can anyone cut carbohydrates when we are taught 5 servings of grain a day is essential?
I didn’t understand the difference between what I learned growing up and what I have learned over the last 3 years.
I had tried everything to this point except Keto so I decided to give it a shot.
After a few weeks of following the Ketogenic way of eating, I lost all my baby weight and a few months later I weighed the same as I did when I got married in 2014.
I thought I found the golden ticket….. and I was set, little did I know that the journey can have many HIGHS and lows.
Fast forward roughly a year, I was playing with Keto, going on and off whenever there was an event, party, traveling, or Holiday. I gained some weight back and got pregnant the second time.
I tried following Keto during my second pregnancy. Sounded great…..did not work.
After a few months, I wanted carbs and sugar so badly that I started binging. At least once a week I would binge on chips, candy, chocolate, dare I say it, fast food.
It was bad.
In 9 months I gained 60 lbs. I weighed over 200 lbs when admitted for labor & delivery.
I was very ashamed and embarrassed by myself. How could I let myself go like that? How could I, as the person who claimed to know “nutrition and fitness” gain that much weight during pregnancy? I knew as soon as I gave birth that I had to make Keto my lifestyle.
It took me 8 months to lose the 60 lbs by following the Ketogenic lifestyle, working out, and fasting. I was determined to lose this weight and successfully lost my pregnancy weight so much faster than with my first child… Then, the light bulb turned on and eatbefitexplore.com was born.
I started getting a lot of inquiries from family and friends on how I was losing weight so quickly and what is this “Keto” thing I kept talking about.
Soon after, I decided to start an Instagram page to help people who are struggling with weight loss or just want to better their health. After 6 years of doing and studying keto, I’ve learned a thing or two and I share it all with my audience and private clients.
Fast forward to today, I run this successful Holistic Clean Keto blog, a Holistic Clean Keto Weight Loss Program, and a Clean Keto Carb Cycling Coaching Program.
I work with high-achieving, professional women that are ready to lose weight, regain confidence, and feel sexy in their skin again.
If you need help with keto, you can download my 5-Day Clean Keto Reset here. If you’re ready to bring back carbs, download my Keto Carb Cycling Guide here.
Come follow me on Instagram, YouTube, and Pinterest. This is my passion, I hope to help you on your weight loss journey as well!
Health is Wealth,
Lesya Holzapfel