Hello all, I'm embarking on my first attempt at an extended low-cal diet to try to make some improvement to my type 2 diabetes, and ideally reduce or remove the need for medications. I hope to post here daily about my progress, status and experiences.
Background:
I am a male 48 YO. I am 5'7.5" (171.5 cm) tall and currently weigh about 185 lbs (83.7 kg).
I am on Metformin (1000mg x2) and Jardience (25 mg). With these meds, and with some moderate dietary discipline, I keep my fasting BG generally between about 6 and 7.5. With better diet I've seen numbers as low as mid-5s, but I haven't been able to sustain those results.
I am also on Ramipril and HCTZ for blood pressure and a statin for lipids.
I mentioned the Newcastle study to my GP, and he was not very receptive about it. He believes in modest change and sustainable lifestyle choices rather than drastic diets. I am doing this without his support or knowledge,
My Plan:
I plan to do about 8 weeks on an 800 calorie (plus or minus 50) per day diet. I am going to cut all BG meds initially (actually I did 2 days ago due to travel logistics), and will reintroduce some if needed. As long as fasting levels stay below 10, I will give it 2 weeks of no meds before I make any changes.
My diet for the first 2 weeks will consist of:
Breakfast: Diet shake mixed with 1% milk (230 Cal)
Lunch: Diet shake mixed with 1% milk (230 Cal)
Dinner: 300-400 Cal worth of protein and non-starchy vegetables.
After 2 weeks I will make any necessary adjustments.
I plan on drinking coffee (black) whenever I feel like, and drinking water and soda water frequently.
Day 1: August 28, 2018
Weight: 83.7 kg
FBG: 9.5 mnol/l
It's not quite lunch, so there isn't much to talk about just yet. My BG is significantly higher than its usually is. Part of that is due to cutting meds out 2 days ago, and part is likely due to having poor dietary controls during vacation (which I just returned from). I had a diet shake (I'm using "Slim Fast Original" for now) for breakfast. I expect dinner time to be where it gets hard. I'll have more to say tomorrow.
Update: Eating wasn't too bad. I'm aiming for 800-850 calories, and I nailed it at 805. The habit of eating is worse than the hunger, which to be honest is only minor so far.
Day 2: August 29, 2018
Weight: 82.4 kg
FBG: 8.6 mmol/l
Weight and BG both down, which is good, although weight always drops due to water loss early in dieting anyway. Good to see glucose heading in the right direction. I had a bit of a miss with eating, coming in at 960 calories (110 above my goal). Not a catastrophe, but I'll have to work at it. I was just hungry at dinner and ate more protein than I should have. Woke up with a headache. I must make a point of drinking more water.
Day 3: August 30, 2018
Weight: 81.8 kg
FBG: 8.5 mmol/l
Weight is down again, and FBG is not up, so that's good. Hunger hasn't been too bad. I've had a busy day today which keeps my mind off food. The real struggle is cooking for my kids while my wife is out. I'm a bit of a foodie, and a lot of my life revolves around making and/or eating good food, so there needs to be a real reset on how I live. I was spot-on for eating today so far...796 calories.
I have a full-day work-event in about 2 weeks time and I'm already thinking about how to navigate it. There's a catered lunch and dinner at a steak-house. It's basically team-building, so opting out is not a very good option. I have some time to think it through. I suspect it will have to be a compromise with a little bit of "cheat day" thrown in.
Day 4: August 31, 2018
Weight: 80.8 kg
FBG: 7.9 mmol/l
Obviously FBG and weight are both down. Weight is dropping at a rate that is only really explainable as shedding fluid, but that's all good. I ate a few calories over my intended, but I had a very active day. We had a family outing that resulted in a lot of extra calorie burn. Felt low-energy in the evening, but I think it's more the active day than the calorie restriction.
Day 5: September 1, 2018
Weight: 80.6 kg
FBG: 7.3 mmol/l
This was a hard day. My energy was low, and I had to handle food for my kids all day. I'm sad to say but I didn't make my calorie goals. I came in just over 1k calories. That should still be a significant calorie deficit for the day as my activity tracker tells me had a good bit of active calories burned (over 500). Weight and FBG metrics are both improved though, so there's that...
Day 6: September 2, 2018
Weight: 80.5 kg
FBG: 8.2
Weight seems to be stabilizing, which is expected. The early fast gains (mostly fluid loss) are mentally very encouraging, but now the work begins. Glucose was actually up this morning. Although I over-ate yesterday, I doubt that's too blame since I still had a significant calorie deficit. The other explanation is possibly liver dump. I did take my reading sooner today after waking than I usually do. I will take it again (still fasting) in an hour and see how things go.
Day 7: September 3, 2018
Weight: 80.4
FBG: 7.2
This day was pretty textbook. Weight and FBG both slightly improved. Blood pressure is still in the normal range, and I hit my calories pretty much dead-on.
Day 8: September 4, 2018
Weight. 79.7 kg
FBG: 6.3
The numbers were good in the morning. I have decided to start taking my metformin while on the diet until my glucose is lower. The reason for NOT taking it is to have a clear view on what the effects of the diet are. I think that was probably important for the study, but for me, the lower glucose levels would be more desirable. As far as eating goes, today was not good. It's my first day back at work since the diet started (vacation), and the change in routine plus a very low energy level resulted in poor self control on my part. I didn't log my food, but I suspect I ate at least 1200 calories today. I might need to tweak my meal timings to accommodate work.
Day 9: September 5, 2018
Weight: 80.5 kg
FBG: 5.7
Weight bounced up a bit. Not sure if it's "noise", or due to my miss on eating yesterday. Either way, I don't expect it to last as long as I can be on point today. BG took a significant drop today. Most likely this can be attributed to my return to Metformin.
Day 10: September 6, 2018
Weight: 79.8 kg
FBG: 6.5
Returning to work after vacation (Sep 4) put a wrinkle in my routine, and after 2 days of missing my calorie goals significantly, I made some tweaks to my daily routine to try to get back on track. Basically I'm moving breakfast to late morning, and having lunch mid-afternoon. Today I had 950 calories vs a goal of 850, which is not too bad considering I played volleyball for an hour at lunch. Weight is back down after yesterday's jump. FBG was up slightly but still okay. Interestingly this was the second time glucose went up, and both times I had a diet soda the evening before. Probably coincidence, but maybe I'll experiment with that later on.
Day 11: September 7, 2018
Weight: 79.4 kg
FBG: 6.4
Day 12: September 8, 2018
Weight: 79.3
FBG: 5.9
Decided to have a "real food" breakfast. 250 calories worth of bacon and eggs. Slightly more calories than my usual shake, but I can make it up later in the day. I regret nothing.. I definitely noticed a difference in how long I felt full after that though. The shakes do work somewhat.
Day 13: September 9, 2018
Weight: 80.2
FBG: 5.6
Truth be told, I had a rough day with the calorie restrictions yesterday, and I'm assuming my bounce in weight was a result of extra carbs resulting in fluid weight. I'm not going to stress about it. On the bright side, glucose is lowest fasting reading to date. I took it a little later today than I usually do (slept in to 9), so I don't know if it's reasonable to expect the same level tomorrow or not.
Day 14: September 10, 2018
Weight: 79.2
FBG: 5.4
A very good day food-wise. I managed to stay within parameters. Weight and FBG were best to-date. It's not easy, but so far, it's worth it.
Day 15: September 11, 2018
Weight: 78.0 kg
FBG: 6.2
Interesting morning results. Weight took a significant drop, but glucose is up. Not really sure what accounts for either of these. I'm assuming both are more or less fluctuations, and I expect them to revert tomorrow.
Suffered a little burnout from the rigours of this diet, and I ate poorly and more than my allotment. I am still motivated, and expect to be fully back on track tomorrow. There is no question that mentally this is difficult. I need to keep reminding myself why I'm doing this at all.
Day 16: September 12, 2018
Weight: 79.4 kg
FBG: 6.2
Yesterday's breakdown is probably behind today's results. Weight bounced up a little, and FBG stayed up a bit for the second consecutive day. Oh well...it's a new day. Eating went very well today in the end, and I was pretty close to my calorie target, in spite of playing beach volleyball at lunch. Trying to put a good day in today since tomorrow is going to be less good.
Day 17: September 13, 2018
Weight: 78.7 kg
FBG: 5.3
Yesterday's discipline is reflected in today's results. Both weight and glucose went the right direction. Had a full-day work event, and my eating was even worse than I thought. Everything they provided was carb oriented. Tomorrow's results will likely be a step back.
Day 18: September 14, 2018
Weight: 80.5 kg
FBG: 5.8
Not too bad. The day off from the diet yesterday hasn't blown things up completely. Weight went up a little, and there was a slight regression in blood glucose, but certainly not outside the range of daily fluctuation anyway. I feel it's important to have a disciplined day after the mess from yesterday.
Background:
I am a male 48 YO. I am 5'7.5" (171.5 cm) tall and currently weigh about 185 lbs (83.7 kg).
I am on Metformin (1000mg x2) and Jardience (25 mg). With these meds, and with some moderate dietary discipline, I keep my fasting BG generally between about 6 and 7.5. With better diet I've seen numbers as low as mid-5s, but I haven't been able to sustain those results.
I am also on Ramipril and HCTZ for blood pressure and a statin for lipids.
I mentioned the Newcastle study to my GP, and he was not very receptive about it. He believes in modest change and sustainable lifestyle choices rather than drastic diets. I am doing this without his support or knowledge,
My Plan:
I plan to do about 8 weeks on an 800 calorie (plus or minus 50) per day diet. I am going to cut all BG meds initially (actually I did 2 days ago due to travel logistics), and will reintroduce some if needed. As long as fasting levels stay below 10, I will give it 2 weeks of no meds before I make any changes.
My diet for the first 2 weeks will consist of:
Breakfast: Diet shake mixed with 1% milk (230 Cal)
Lunch: Diet shake mixed with 1% milk (230 Cal)
Dinner: 300-400 Cal worth of protein and non-starchy vegetables.
After 2 weeks I will make any necessary adjustments.
I plan on drinking coffee (black) whenever I feel like, and drinking water and soda water frequently.
Day 1: August 28, 2018
Weight: 83.7 kg
FBG: 9.5 mnol/l
It's not quite lunch, so there isn't much to talk about just yet. My BG is significantly higher than its usually is. Part of that is due to cutting meds out 2 days ago, and part is likely due to having poor dietary controls during vacation (which I just returned from). I had a diet shake (I'm using "Slim Fast Original" for now) for breakfast. I expect dinner time to be where it gets hard. I'll have more to say tomorrow.
Update: Eating wasn't too bad. I'm aiming for 800-850 calories, and I nailed it at 805. The habit of eating is worse than the hunger, which to be honest is only minor so far.
Day 2: August 29, 2018
Weight: 82.4 kg
FBG: 8.6 mmol/l
Weight and BG both down, which is good, although weight always drops due to water loss early in dieting anyway. Good to see glucose heading in the right direction. I had a bit of a miss with eating, coming in at 960 calories (110 above my goal). Not a catastrophe, but I'll have to work at it. I was just hungry at dinner and ate more protein than I should have. Woke up with a headache. I must make a point of drinking more water.
Day 3: August 30, 2018
Weight: 81.8 kg
FBG: 8.5 mmol/l
Weight is down again, and FBG is not up, so that's good. Hunger hasn't been too bad. I've had a busy day today which keeps my mind off food. The real struggle is cooking for my kids while my wife is out. I'm a bit of a foodie, and a lot of my life revolves around making and/or eating good food, so there needs to be a real reset on how I live. I was spot-on for eating today so far...796 calories.
I have a full-day work-event in about 2 weeks time and I'm already thinking about how to navigate it. There's a catered lunch and dinner at a steak-house. It's basically team-building, so opting out is not a very good option. I have some time to think it through. I suspect it will have to be a compromise with a little bit of "cheat day" thrown in.
Day 4: August 31, 2018
Weight: 80.8 kg
FBG: 7.9 mmol/l
Obviously FBG and weight are both down. Weight is dropping at a rate that is only really explainable as shedding fluid, but that's all good. I ate a few calories over my intended, but I had a very active day. We had a family outing that resulted in a lot of extra calorie burn. Felt low-energy in the evening, but I think it's more the active day than the calorie restriction.
Day 5: September 1, 2018
Weight: 80.6 kg
FBG: 7.3 mmol/l
This was a hard day. My energy was low, and I had to handle food for my kids all day. I'm sad to say but I didn't make my calorie goals. I came in just over 1k calories. That should still be a significant calorie deficit for the day as my activity tracker tells me had a good bit of active calories burned (over 500). Weight and FBG metrics are both improved though, so there's that...
Day 6: September 2, 2018
Weight: 80.5 kg
FBG: 8.2
Weight seems to be stabilizing, which is expected. The early fast gains (mostly fluid loss) are mentally very encouraging, but now the work begins. Glucose was actually up this morning. Although I over-ate yesterday, I doubt that's too blame since I still had a significant calorie deficit. The other explanation is possibly liver dump. I did take my reading sooner today after waking than I usually do. I will take it again (still fasting) in an hour and see how things go.
Day 7: September 3, 2018
Weight: 80.4
FBG: 7.2
This day was pretty textbook. Weight and FBG both slightly improved. Blood pressure is still in the normal range, and I hit my calories pretty much dead-on.
Day 8: September 4, 2018
Weight. 79.7 kg
FBG: 6.3
The numbers were good in the morning. I have decided to start taking my metformin while on the diet until my glucose is lower. The reason for NOT taking it is to have a clear view on what the effects of the diet are. I think that was probably important for the study, but for me, the lower glucose levels would be more desirable. As far as eating goes, today was not good. It's my first day back at work since the diet started (vacation), and the change in routine plus a very low energy level resulted in poor self control on my part. I didn't log my food, but I suspect I ate at least 1200 calories today. I might need to tweak my meal timings to accommodate work.
Day 9: September 5, 2018
Weight: 80.5 kg
FBG: 5.7
Weight bounced up a bit. Not sure if it's "noise", or due to my miss on eating yesterday. Either way, I don't expect it to last as long as I can be on point today. BG took a significant drop today. Most likely this can be attributed to my return to Metformin.
Day 10: September 6, 2018
Weight: 79.8 kg
FBG: 6.5
Returning to work after vacation (Sep 4) put a wrinkle in my routine, and after 2 days of missing my calorie goals significantly, I made some tweaks to my daily routine to try to get back on track. Basically I'm moving breakfast to late morning, and having lunch mid-afternoon. Today I had 950 calories vs a goal of 850, which is not too bad considering I played volleyball for an hour at lunch. Weight is back down after yesterday's jump. FBG was up slightly but still okay. Interestingly this was the second time glucose went up, and both times I had a diet soda the evening before. Probably coincidence, but maybe I'll experiment with that later on.
Day 11: September 7, 2018
Weight: 79.4 kg
FBG: 6.4
Day 12: September 8, 2018
Weight: 79.3
FBG: 5.9
Decided to have a "real food" breakfast. 250 calories worth of bacon and eggs. Slightly more calories than my usual shake, but I can make it up later in the day. I regret nothing.
. I definitely noticed a difference in how long I felt full after that though. The shakes do work somewhat.Day 13: September 9, 2018
Weight: 80.2
FBG: 5.6
Truth be told, I had a rough day with the calorie restrictions yesterday, and I'm assuming my bounce in weight was a result of extra carbs resulting in fluid weight. I'm not going to stress about it. On the bright side, glucose is lowest fasting reading to date. I took it a little later today than I usually do (slept in to 9), so I don't know if it's reasonable to expect the same level tomorrow or not.
Day 14: September 10, 2018
Weight: 79.2
FBG: 5.4
A very good day food-wise. I managed to stay within parameters. Weight and FBG were best to-date. It's not easy, but so far, it's worth it.
Day 15: September 11, 2018
Weight: 78.0 kg
FBG: 6.2
Interesting morning results. Weight took a significant drop, but glucose is up. Not really sure what accounts for either of these. I'm assuming both are more or less fluctuations, and I expect them to revert tomorrow.
Suffered a little burnout from the rigours of this diet, and I ate poorly and more than my allotment.
I am still motivated, and expect to be fully back on track tomorrow. There is no question that mentally this is difficult. I need to keep reminding myself why I'm doing this at all.Day 16: September 12, 2018
Weight: 79.4 kg
FBG: 6.2
Yesterday's breakdown is probably behind today's results. Weight bounced up a little, and FBG stayed up a bit for the second consecutive day. Oh well...it's a new day. Eating went very well today in the end, and I was pretty close to my calorie target, in spite of playing beach volleyball at lunch. Trying to put a good day in today since tomorrow is going to be less good.
Day 17: September 13, 2018
Weight: 78.7 kg
FBG: 5.3
Yesterday's discipline is reflected in today's results. Both weight and glucose went the right direction. Had a full-day work event, and my eating was even worse than I thought. Everything they provided was carb oriented. Tomorrow's results will likely be a step back.
Day 18: September 14, 2018
Weight: 80.5 kg
FBG: 5.8
Not too bad. The day off from the diet yesterday hasn't blown things up completely. Weight went up a little, and there was a slight regression in blood glucose, but certainly not outside the range of daily fluctuation anyway. I feel it's important to have a disciplined day after the mess from yesterday.
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