"I am every woman I see," she said. "I am exactly where they were. I thought that if I just ate right and exercised, I would lose the weight. I thought there was something wrong with me because I could never lose it. I thought it was my fault. I gave up on myself."

Like many of the clients she works with, Wisneski says she tried several types of weight-loss strategies and diets. Yet she found despite eating smaller amounts of food, she still didn't feel well.

"The grains, the hidden sugar — even when I thought I was doing well, I was slowly creating a storm of inflammation," she said.

After a pit stop at the town of Schererville's 9/11 memorials, 12 cyclists with Bay2Brooklyn ride to the Merrillville Fire Department, the final stop of their 50-mile trek from Chicago Friday. Video by Mary Freda

Mary Freda, The Times

At first, Wisneski didn't want to try keto because of some negativity surrounding the diet due to its high-fat plan. Also known as ketogenic, this type of diet focuses on high fat, adequate protein and low carbohydrates as a way for the body to burn fats instead of carbs.

Once she got on board with it, she says the results were overwhelming.

"I lost 70 pounds during menopause, went from a size 18 to a 7, and have maintained that for five years," Wisneski said.

What's most important to her, however, is that she is no longer considered pre-diabetic, her blood pressure is down, and she no longer has joint pain, migraines or chronic sinus issues.