Hi there! A year ago I retired and decided it was time to start taking better care of myself. So... I started getting more exercise. After 6 months of "behaving myself" , I decided it was "safe" to go see my doctor for the 1st time in quite some time. Big surprise (not) it wasn't pretty! Long story short, overweight, elevated blood pressure and labs suggestive of either pre or T2D. Since then I have knuckled down to business, started the LCHF/ IF lifestyle, increased my exercise, started doing BS tests 3-4 x a day. Ever so slowly, I have seen steady progress and just wanted to say what a huge help this forum has been in terms of education, support and empowerment, especially during wt loss plateaus and seemingly unbudging BS numbers. Thanks everybody! I am currently about 1/2 way to where I hope to be weight wise and on track BS wise. (28 lb wt loss/28 weeks, HbA1c 6.3, FBS in the 5's from 8-10s and all the other BS levels WNL) I am swimming 3 x a week, walking twice /wk outdoors with shorter treadmill sessions and recently purchased a bicycle. It's been really hard, but my husband is walking the path with me and my doctor has been an amazing support and the forum is a real life saver.
1st Post
- Thread starter Gran25
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bulkbiker
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Brilliant stuff well done for taking control and by the looks of things having some great success too.
Thanks for your words! I have such an embedded 'fat girl" persona that it is hard to see the changes as being for real & it is so easy to hear that (annoying as hell) inner critic!
shelley262
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Wow welcome and we’ll done with what you’ve achieved. Sounds like you are well on way to getting back to excellent health and having passed the half way point hope rest of the journey is more down hill good luck keep going you’re getting there
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Welcome @Gran25 sounds like you are making great progress. Look forward to seeing your posts.
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Hi @Gran25 and welcome to the Forum. Congratulations on your achievements to date and long may it last. You seem to be sorted with what you’re doing but it’s tradition to tag in @daisy1 for her welcome info post for Newbies, so there, I’ve done it! You may still find a nugget or two of info in it that you weren’t aware of.
jayney27
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Hello and welcome, I don’t need to add anything more than has already been written, so will just add my congratulations, well done and well deserved, you have done amazingly well, keep doing what you’re doing. Hopefully your first post won’t be your last, look forward to reading about your further progress.
Kittycat_7_
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Hi,
Welcome to the forum, you've done amazingly well.
Great weight loss, you are an inspiration to others.
Take care
Welcome to the forum, you've done amazingly well.
Great weight loss, you are an inspiration to others.
Take care
A brilliant result. Have you thought of rewarding yourself for having reached the half way point to where you want to be, then think of a treat for when you have reached your target. I found it helped to keep me motivated. I also raised money for a local charity by taking part in a sponsored walk. By trying to do the walk in personal target time it added intensity to my 'training'.
daisy1
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@Gran25
Hello Gran25 and welcome to the Forum
Here is the Basic Information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. Ask as many questions as you want and someone will be able to help. Congratulations on your progress so far!
BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEW MEMBERS
Diabetes is the general term to describe people who have blood that is sweeter than normal. A number of different types of diabetes exist.
A diagnosis of diabetes tends to be a big shock for most of us. It’s far from the end of the world though and on this forum you'll find well over 235,000 people who are demonstrating this.
On the forum we have found that with the number of new people being diagnosed with diabetes each day, sometimes the NHS is not being able to give all the advice it would perhaps like to deliver - particularly with regards to people with type 2 diabetes.
The role of carbohydrate
Carbohydrates are a factor in diabetes because they ultimately break down into sugar (glucose) within our blood. We then need enough insulin to either convert the blood sugar into energy for our body, or to store the blood sugar as body fat.
If the amount of carbohydrate we take in is more than our body’s own (or injected) insulin can cope with, then our blood sugar will rise.
The bad news
Research indicates that raised blood sugar levels over a period of years can lead to organ damage, commonly referred to as diabetic complications.
The good news
People on the forum here have shown that there is plenty of opportunity to keep blood sugar levels from going too high. It’s a daily task but it’s within our reach and it’s well worth the effort.
Controlling your carbs
The info below is primarily aimed at people with type 2 diabetes, however, it may also be of benefit for other types of diabetes as well.
There are two approaches to controlling your carbs:
A large number of people on this forum have chosen to reduce the amount of carbohydrates they eat as they have found this to be an effective way of improving (lowering) their blood sugar levels.
The carbohydrates which tend to have the most pronounced effect on blood sugar levels tend to be starchy carbohydrates such as rice, pasta, bread, potatoes and similar root vegetables, flour based products (pastry, cakes, biscuits, battered food etc) and certain fruits.
Choosing better carbohydrates
The low glycaemic index diet is often favoured by healthcare professionals but some people with diabetes find that low GI does not help their blood sugar enough and may wish to cut out these foods altogether.
Read more on carbohydrates and diabetes.
Over 145,000 people have taken part in the Low Carb Program - a 10 week structured education course that is helping people lose weight and reduce medication dependency by explaining the science behind carbs, insulin and GI.
Eating what works for you
Different people respond differently to different types of food. What works for one person may not work so well for another. The best way to see which foods are working for you is to test your blood sugar with a glucose meter.
To be able to see what effect a particular type of food or meal has on your blood sugar is to do a test before the meal and then test after the meal. A test 2 hours after the meal gives a good idea of how your body has reacted to the meal.
The blood sugar ranges recommended by NICE are as follows:
Blood glucose ranges for type 2 diabetes
Access to blood glucose test strips
The NICE guidelines suggest that people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes should be offered:
Therefore both structured education and self-monitoring of blood glucose should be offered to people with type 2 diabetes. Read more on getting access to blood glucose testing supplies.
You may also be interested to read questions to ask at a diabetic clinic.
Note: This post has been edited from Sue/Ken's post to include up to date information.
Take part in Diabetes.co.uk digital education programs and improve your understanding. Most of these are free.
Hello Gran25 and welcome to the Forum
Here is the Basic Information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. Ask as many questions as you want and someone will be able to help. Congratulations on your progress so far!BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEW MEMBERS
Diabetes is the general term to describe people who have blood that is sweeter than normal. A number of different types of diabetes exist.
A diagnosis of diabetes tends to be a big shock for most of us. It’s far from the end of the world though and on this forum you'll find well over 235,000 people who are demonstrating this.
On the forum we have found that with the number of new people being diagnosed with diabetes each day, sometimes the NHS is not being able to give all the advice it would perhaps like to deliver - particularly with regards to people with type 2 diabetes.
The role of carbohydrate
Carbohydrates are a factor in diabetes because they ultimately break down into sugar (glucose) within our blood. We then need enough insulin to either convert the blood sugar into energy for our body, or to store the blood sugar as body fat.
If the amount of carbohydrate we take in is more than our body’s own (or injected) insulin can cope with, then our blood sugar will rise.
The bad news
Research indicates that raised blood sugar levels over a period of years can lead to organ damage, commonly referred to as diabetic complications.
The good news
People on the forum here have shown that there is plenty of opportunity to keep blood sugar levels from going too high. It’s a daily task but it’s within our reach and it’s well worth the effort.
Controlling your carbs
The info below is primarily aimed at people with type 2 diabetes, however, it may also be of benefit for other types of diabetes as well.
There are two approaches to controlling your carbs:
- Reduce your carbohydrate intake
- Choose ‘better’ carbohydrates
A large number of people on this forum have chosen to reduce the amount of carbohydrates they eat as they have found this to be an effective way of improving (lowering) their blood sugar levels.
The carbohydrates which tend to have the most pronounced effect on blood sugar levels tend to be starchy carbohydrates such as rice, pasta, bread, potatoes and similar root vegetables, flour based products (pastry, cakes, biscuits, battered food etc) and certain fruits.
Choosing better carbohydrates
The low glycaemic index diet is often favoured by healthcare professionals but some people with diabetes find that low GI does not help their blood sugar enough and may wish to cut out these foods altogether.
Read more on carbohydrates and diabetes.
Over 145,000 people have taken part in the Low Carb Program - a 10 week structured education course that is helping people lose weight and reduce medication dependency by explaining the science behind carbs, insulin and GI.
Eating what works for you
Different people respond differently to different types of food. What works for one person may not work so well for another. The best way to see which foods are working for you is to test your blood sugar with a glucose meter.
To be able to see what effect a particular type of food or meal has on your blood sugar is to do a test before the meal and then test after the meal. A test 2 hours after the meal gives a good idea of how your body has reacted to the meal.
The blood sugar ranges recommended by NICE are as follows:
Blood glucose ranges for type 2 diabetes
- Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
- 2 hours after meals: under 8.5 mmol/l
- Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
- 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l
- Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
- 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l
Access to blood glucose test strips
The NICE guidelines suggest that people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes should be offered:
- structured education to every person and/or their carer at and around the time of diagnosis, with annual reinforcement and review
- self-monitoring of plasma glucose to a person newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes only as an integral part of his or her self-management education
Therefore both structured education and self-monitoring of blood glucose should be offered to people with type 2 diabetes. Read more on getting access to blood glucose testing supplies.
You may also be interested to read questions to ask at a diabetic clinic.
Note: This post has been edited from Sue/Ken's post to include up to date information.
Take part in Diabetes.co.uk digital education programs and improve your understanding. Most of these are free.
- Low Carb Program - it's made front-page news of the New Scientist and The Times. Developed with 20,000 people with type 2 diabetes; 96% of people who take part recommend it... find out why
- Hypo Program - improve your understanding of hypos. There's a version for people with diabetes, parents/guardians of children with type 1, children with type 1 diabetes, teachers and HCPs.
