I am a lawyer, CEO, Certified Bulletproof® Coach, and passionate road cyclist. I was an athlete in high school and college (college sports were volleyball and basketball), but after my college career was finished I quickly left behind any type of discipline when it came to working out.   Instead I went right into law school and the next 3 years were consumed with work, school, socializing, and the occasional recreational basketball game. The last thing I was thinking about was my physical health, or the health of my brain.

At around age 28, I was thrust into the role of caregiver for a great aunt who was more like a grandmother to me. She was in her late 70s, and had developed dementia of the Alzheimer’s type. She also had physical limitations as the result of having polio as a young child – post polio syndrome caused numerous physical problems resulting in her walking with a cane for the later part of her life, and then a wheelchair toward the end.

My mom and I (mom lived about 4 hours away) did the best we could to care for her but we truly weren’t equipped with the knowledge and resources to do so. It wasn’t until my great aunt passed that I was able to take a deep breath and realize that families really need assistance as they or their loved ones grow older. I made the decision at age 31 to become an elder law attorney.

As an elder law attorney I was always interested in dementia and other “age-related” diseases. I put “age-related” in quotes because I am learning that dementia is not something that naturally occurs because of age. It is a disease of the brain that can be prevented.

Although my great aunt was the first in the family to be diagnosed with dementia, my grandmother was not far behind and lived with the disease for about 12 years before passing at the age of 99.

My interest in dementia has only increased over the years as a result of working with clients, and dealing with it on a personal level. Imagine my surprise when a friend recently recommended a book to me called “Grain Brain.” It was that book that opened my eyes to the possibility that dementia can be prevented through something very simple – our diet. Grain Brain and others that I will mention later provide compelling evidence that brain disease happens in large part because of what we eat – mainly processed food, in particular sugars and other carbohydrates.

I had followed a low carb diet plan in the past for the purpose of losing weight – it just seemed to work for me.  I had gotten away from it, but  last year I resumed that lifestyle due to weight gain once again following a stressful year in 2013. So I was thrilled to learn that I was already practicing what the experts were saying about the need to eliminate processed foods, grains, sugars, etc. from my diet. What really blew my mind was the science behind following a high fat, medium protein diet and staying in a state of “nutritional ketosis.” After devouring all of the books and online articles I could find, I made the decision to adapt my body to nutritional ketosis – thus the name “keto adapted.” The challenge I now face, and the reason for this blog, is how an endurance athlete/cyclist can follow this diet on a ride that lasts anywhere from 4-12 hours. I’ve had trouble finding much research or anecdotal evidence, so I’m hoping others will share their experience through this blog, as I will share mine in this “nutritional experiment.”

With my wonderful husband, Jonathan Mintz