My first post on this forum was pretty brief – it was like a lot of first posts on here – basically it said;
I was still reeling from an HBA1C result of 10% and a series of problems that I was starting to realise were all complications of my condition. I began to reduce my carb intake, but looking at my food diary for the 22nd January, I’m shocked to see what I was eating. That day I had;
Breakfast: Spelt Toast and 2 Weetabix
Lunch: 2 x Burgen bread, Eggs, Mushrooms, a baking powder biscuit, a piece of Spelt bread,
cheese and a fruit scone :shock: .
Supper: Curry and Rice, Cheesecake and Fruit.
I was still taking both long and short acting insulin plus Metformin then and in quite big doses.
I weighed 80 kg.
6 weeks later and I had another HBA1C test. I wasn’t too optimistic at the time, as the HBA1C was a 3 month reading and it’d only been half that. The result came back as 7.2%, which was a good improvement. By now my food diary shows that I was still carbing-up in the morning (with porridge) but had dropped potatoes, rice and bread. I was still eating quite a bit of fruit though.
On the 30th March I posted;
This is something of an understatement. My new mother-in-law had described me as “a bit fat” in my wedding photos, a comment she strenuously denies now, but I didn’t regard myself as fat. I was overweight, sure, but most of my fatness was carried in a shelf of relaxed muscle just above my belt.
By the end of March I had lost a little over 2 inches off my waist and I was having to change my wardrobe rapidly. I was swimming more and further. I bought myself some James Bond style swimming trunks (mail order of course), tried them on, laughed and sent them back.
At the end of March my 30 day average was still around 7.4 and my weight was continuing to fall. Looking back at my posts I’m starting to worry about cholesterol but also wondering why anyone who wants to lose weight wouldn’t eat what I eat. My carb craving has all but gone and I’ve tried to drop the insulin altogether.
I have a graph of my levels from that time. My 30 day average breaks below 7 in early April and below 6 in mid May. Then it stabilised at around 5.8, which is where it is now. At the end of May my HBA1C was tested again – at 6.4%.
My weight continued to fall and I bought a set of weights (mail order of course) to try and build some muscle tone in to my arms and stomach.
It’s been 6 months almost to the day since that first post.
The only carb I intentionally eat is 10g of Porridge Oats in the morning, Milk and the occasional cracker. My weight has stabilised at around 62kg (down 18kg or 2.83 Stone in that time).
My doctor, who has always been supportive, has arranged for me to see a specialist at the local hospital next week so I booked myself in for a barrage of blood test, the results of which I got back today.
My HBA1C is now 6.0% and as far as I can tell my cholesterol levels are good.
My waistline is now 30” instead of 34” and whilst I don’t have a 6-pack yet, my stomach is at least perfectly flat. To celebrate I went and bought those James Bond trunks again – but from a shop this time.
6 months in and I’ve none of the complications that plagued me just 180 days ago. I am fitter, slimmer and have far more energy.
I know that there are different ways to deal with Type 2 diabetes, but after 6 days, 6 weeks, 6 months I just wanted to share what has worked for me.
I was still reeling from an HBA1C result of 10% and a series of problems that I was starting to realise were all complications of my condition. I began to reduce my carb intake, but looking at my food diary for the 22nd January, I’m shocked to see what I was eating. That day I had;
Breakfast: Spelt Toast and 2 Weetabix
Lunch: 2 x Burgen bread, Eggs, Mushrooms, a baking powder biscuit, a piece of Spelt bread,
cheese and a fruit scone :shock: .
Supper: Curry and Rice, Cheesecake and Fruit.
I was still taking both long and short acting insulin plus Metformin then and in quite big doses.
I weighed 80 kg.
6 weeks later and I had another HBA1C test. I wasn’t too optimistic at the time, as the HBA1C was a 3 month reading and it’d only been half that. The result came back as 7.2%, which was a good improvement. By now my food diary shows that I was still carbing-up in the morning (with porridge) but had dropped potatoes, rice and bread. I was still eating quite a bit of fruit though.
On the 30th March I posted;
This is something of an understatement. My new mother-in-law had described me as “a bit fat” in my wedding photos, a comment she strenuously denies now, but I didn’t regard myself as fat. I was overweight, sure, but most of my fatness was carried in a shelf of relaxed muscle just above my belt.
By the end of March I had lost a little over 2 inches off my waist and I was having to change my wardrobe rapidly. I was swimming more and further. I bought myself some James Bond style swimming trunks (mail order of course), tried them on, laughed and sent them back.
At the end of March my 30 day average was still around 7.4 and my weight was continuing to fall. Looking back at my posts I’m starting to worry about cholesterol but also wondering why anyone who wants to lose weight wouldn’t eat what I eat. My carb craving has all but gone and I’ve tried to drop the insulin altogether.
I have a graph of my levels from that time. My 30 day average breaks below 7 in early April and below 6 in mid May. Then it stabilised at around 5.8, which is where it is now. At the end of May my HBA1C was tested again – at 6.4%.
My weight continued to fall and I bought a set of weights (mail order of course) to try and build some muscle tone in to my arms and stomach.
It’s been 6 months almost to the day since that first post.
The only carb I intentionally eat is 10g of Porridge Oats in the morning, Milk and the occasional cracker. My weight has stabilised at around 62kg (down 18kg or 2.83 Stone in that time).
My doctor, who has always been supportive, has arranged for me to see a specialist at the local hospital next week so I booked myself in for a barrage of blood test, the results of which I got back today.
My HBA1C is now 6.0% and as far as I can tell my cholesterol levels are good.
My waistline is now 30” instead of 34” and whilst I don’t have a 6-pack yet, my stomach is at least perfectly flat. To celebrate I went and bought those James Bond trunks again – but from a shop this time.
6 months in and I’ve none of the complications that plagued me just 180 days ago. I am fitter, slimmer and have far more energy.
I know that there are different ways to deal with Type 2 diabetes, but after 6 days, 6 weeks, 6 months I just wanted to share what has worked for me.
