Can you lose weight when you're T1D?

I would probably try talking to your gp about it - from the angle that weight is making your medical conditions work. They have discretion for all sorts of exercise and diet resources. A work colleague currently has a personal dietician that she sees through gp. It's not on a personal trainer level but it's a start?

Hey @KitsuneRin Having been diabetic Type 1 for over 20 years, I've lost & gained weight over the last 6 at least. Though being more mobile & active than what you have stated. I'm currently on the Weight Watcher's program (having done it previously just on the no Count foods & reducing carbs, also working out at the gym a little too). There is a CAP course at my local church (Lincoln Alive - http://www.alivechurch.org.uk) called a release course, https://capuk.org/get-involved/your-church/partner-with-cap/cap-release-groups which changes your thoughts, creates distractions & alters behaviour when temptation sets in. Maybe this could help you kick start the weight loss? I've managed to lose a lot of weight through diet & exercise mostly, but as you're restricted, it may be more difficult, all the best.

Hi @KitsuneRin sorry to hear about your weight issue, you have my sympathy there. Start with a trip to your GP to check your medication and ask advice there. Increasing the exercise where possible would help loads and would help you mentally too, obviously you will need to keep a close eye on your blood glucose levels whilst doing any exercise, but try and find something gentle to start you off, say yoga, swimming or even walking. I hope your GP can help you and it sounds like you need some positive support to guide you through this, best wishes J

KitsuneRin said:

Thank you for the positive support guys! I will ask my GP, I have my LTC appointment coming up so I will ask then! Yoga is a good idea too, will have to search for some youtube videos and have a go!

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Yes yoga is an excellent idea - if you have any independent health shops in you're area they may know of a local class? My husband goes to yoga every Friday to help his back and he has definitely lost weight. Good luck, don't give up and be kind to yourself.

I'm in somewhat of a similar predicament but opposite goals, i consume average 2500 calories a day, but i seem to be breaking even on my intake:burn ratio, losing weight doesn't seem to be an issue but gaining weight is a really big challenge, never gone above 9 stone, before diabetes I was always around 7 stone at the height of 6ft. Not a good meat eater myself, always geared towards veggie alternatives or just really carb-rich foods.

I only see the problem as eating too much that the insulin only covers like half of it, whilst i'm peeing away the rest, as the doctor says.

scorpius14 said:

I'm in somewhat of a similar predicament but opposite goals, i consume average 2500 calories a day, but i seem to be breaking even on my intake:burn ratio, losing weight doesn't seem to be an issue but gaining weight is a really big challenge, never gone above 9 stone, before diabetes I was always around 7 stone at the height of 6ft. Not a good meat eater myself, always geared towards veggie alternatives or just really carb-rich foods.

I only see the problem as eating too much that the insulin only covers like half of it, whilst i'm peeing away the rest, as the doctor says.

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I lost weight massively pre being diagnosed. Surely once you you start taking the right amount of insulin you put weight on as you are not then peeing away the rest as you say? Do you manage your BG?

JRW said:

I lost weight massively pre being diagnosed. Surely once you you start taking the right amount of insulin you put weight on as you are not then peeing away the rest as you say? Do you manage your BG?

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I lost weight too and then put about a stone on in 2 weeks when I started with insulin. I was really depressed initially but it levelled out and I then managed to start losing some again. It's not really that easy for anyone to loose weight - particularly when you get to a plateau.

Right there with you! I lost about 14 kg pre diagnosis, around 8 kg of that in the space of a week, but as soon as I was put on insulin I piled on the weight back on, above what I was pre-diagnosis, and finding it hard to shift. I have always been very active, so finding it hard to balance BG and exercise at the start resulting in treating A LOT of hypos, but seem to be getting a good balance ish now. I just want to get rid of this weight, I hate it

I've lost 6 kilos in the past 3 weeks. I'm trying to get back to my ideal running weight for a race in September. I have gone back to a strict low carb diet < 30 grams per day and attempting to be in a calorie deficit of at least 1000 calories per day. I exercise a lot so that helps with the calorie deficit.

More than achievable if you're a T1, only thing to watch out for is your insulin dosages. I've had to reduce basal dosages as the weight decreases and it's been a trial and error process. I was taking 28 units of basal overnight but that's now reduced to 19 units and likely to drop further until I hit my ideal weight.

Re weight loss - if you are aiming to lose weight, you will have to work out what amount of cals/carbs work for you. At the same time you will need to monitor very very closely, ask your GP for extra strips and explain what you are doing. Weight loss increases insulin sensitivity - i lost about half a stone some years ago and the insulin sensitivity changes were huge - monitoring is the key, as you need to avoid hypos, which are very dangerous. Do not give up, as weight loss can cause a temporary insulin increase as your body burns fat (at least this was my experience). Always carry at least 2 lots of glucose tabs everywhere. Sadly, even when you reach a weight you want to be, to keep weight steady as a well controlled diabetic if you are unable to exercise a lot, it will not be easy - a little extra puts weight on very quickly, a treat one day means cutting food back the next, i have ended up, at my ideal weight, having to keep to 120-130 carbs a day, and trying to keep insulin use to the minimum, i dont eat meat, so have quite low cals - i have lots of veg, greens, carrots, beets, are all cheap at the moment , I am older now, so you may need more cals/carbs when you reach your ideal weight. Go slowly to be safe re Type one, aim for just one pound (half a kg) loss a month. That is nearly one stone a year, and ingrains habits, and should keep you safe re Type one - but you do need a support nurse who understands how volatile and potentially dangerous changes in insulin sensitivity in type ones can be with dieting. your clinic should help with this , hope it all goes well