Counting carbs

[ajbod]

I can't help thinking you are miscalculating somewhere. If you could give an idea of a meal with approx' amounts of each thing, perhaps we may be able to help.
The actual targets are dependent on YOUR metabolism, if your meals don't affect your sugar levels much then they would be right for you.

 

[JimPartie]

I can't help thinking you are miscalculating somewhere. If you could give an idea of a meal with approx' amounts of each thing, perhaps we may be able to help.
The actual targets are dependent on YOUR metabolism, if your meals don't affect your sugar levels much then they would be right for you.

Sure.
breakfast cwc
lunch cheese/Parma ham/green olives/homemade saukraut (bugs should have eaten carbs!) 5 cherry tomatoes/1/2 an apple.

dinner wild Alaskan salmon stir fry in large wok brocolli/cauliflower/red pepper/onion/garlic/cabbage (large plate full)
fage 5% yoghurt/ berries/flax seed/kefir/mixed seeds.

prior to bed cheese and maybe a few nuts.

got hba1c down from 47 to 44 with weightloss 19st to 17st. Been stuck at this weight for 3 months.
I take 2.5 mgs of Olanzapine which is world famous for causing weight gain and type 2.
Reduced it from 10 mgs.

 

[Daibell]

I know. It's just that the simplistic "calories in, calories out" model doesn't account for how human metabolism actually works.

Which is why it makes sense to completely ignore Calories and just take account of the Carbs plus Proteins and Fats

 

[KennyA]

Hi Kenny
i get very confused about what to eat. A good plate of above ground vegetables puts me over 20 grams of carbs. Add in some cheese and nuts and I’m at 75 grams and hungry!!
Can I ask you to give a sample of a days food consumption that has led to a 25kg weigh loss.
thanks
john

How do you get to those quantities? Veg varies a bit but let's say approx 5-6g per 100g which is where cabbage is. To get to 20g carbs you'd need to eat about 400 grams of veg ie 8/10 of a pound (lb). That's quite a bit.

Cheese is effectively zero, almonds are 7g per 100g. Another 50g of carb from nuts would mean eating around 700g of nuts - one and a half pounds. I don't think you can possibly be eating that amount.

Here's what I have had the last couple of days (I'm not keeping note at the minute so that's as far back as I can reliably go) :

Saturday
0600-1000 4x coffees with double cream and sweetener.
1300 3x fried eggs and some sliced 98% meat garlic sausage, grated cheese, chilli sauce.
1900 snack of cheeses and smoked sausage, fennel sausage, etc. Glass red wine
2100 330ml zero sugar beer and a rum

very few carbs here - 4 or 5 in the wine and one or two from the chilli sauce. Maybe another couple from the sausage.

Sunday
0600-1000 4x coffees with double cream and sweetener.
1400 snack - cheeses and smoked sausage, fennel sausage, etc.
1700-1900 3x 330ml zero sugar beer
2000 tuna steak fried in garlic butter with creamed leeks.
2100 small sherry
2300 a rum

as before - a few from the leeks and maybe 12-15g from the sherry (a rare event)

Monday
0700-0900 4x coffees with double cream and sweetener.
1430 snack cheeses and smoked sausage, fennel sausage, etc.

pretty much nothing carby so far. I have a chili coming up later which will have maybe 10-15g from kidney beans

I've therefore stayed in ketosis over the weekend and checked a few minutes back. Ketones are still there.

 

[KennyA]

Sure.
breakfast cwc
lunch cheese/Parma ham/green olives/homemade saukraut (bugs should have eaten carbs!) 5 cherry tomatoes/1/2 an apple.

dinner wild Alaskan salmon stir fry in large wok brocolli/cauliflower/red pepper/onion/garlic/cabbage (large plate full)
fage 5% yoghurt/ berries/flax seed/kefir/mixed seeds.

prior to bed cheese and maybe a few nuts.

got hba1c down from 47 to 44 with weightloss 19st to 17st. Been stuck at this weight for 3 months.
I take 2.5 mgs of Olanzapine which is world famous for causing weight gain and type 2.
Reduced it from 10 mgs.

That doesn't look too bad at all. I wouldn't have the apple or the low fat yoghurt, but that's me.

Are you adding soy sauce or anything similar to the stirfry? I'm also not familiar with that medication and its side effects.

My fat loss hasn't been linear. I have lost very little through the summer and a lot more in the winter months. It's gone down in bumps - nothing for a bit and then a lot goes quickly. I have gone from +40 waist in January 2020 to a current 34 which is a better measure as far as I'm concerned. It's complicated by the fact that I've probably been building up a bit more muscle since this time last year - my actual weight doesn't really concern me that much, but fat loss is a nice spinoff from good bgs.

Some people find that a fast can bump your system into action - it doesn't have to be that long - a couple of 16 hr fasts might work?

 

[JimPartie]

That doesn't look too bad at all. I wouldn't have the apple or the low fat yoghurt, but that's me.

Are you adding soy sauce or anything similar to the stirfry? I'm also not familiar with that medication and its side effects.

My fat loss hasn't been linear. I have lost very little through the summer and a lot more in the winter months. It's gone down in bumps - nothing for a bit and then a lot goes quickly. I have gone from +40 waist in January 2020 to a current 34 which is a better measure as far as I'm concerned. It's complicated by the fact that I've probably been building up a bit more muscle since this time last year - my actual weight doesn't really concern me that much, but fat loss is a nice spinoff from good bgs.

Some people find that a fast can bump your system into action - it doesn't have to be that long - a couple of 16 hr fasts might work?

KennyA
Thanks very much for your reply and detailed diary. It is much appreciated.
I have stir fried a whole chopped savoy cabbage recently, with lots of other veggies. I think it’s pretty clear I’ve been overeating the carbs.
My keto tests show an average of 0.4.
The yoghurt is full fat fage and only has 3G of carbs per 100g. It has live cultures so carbs are probably zero.
I will reduce my veg portions and up my fats and protein.
I’m on the wagon so will pass on the liquids
Thanks again
john

 

[KennyA]

KennyA
Thanks very much for your reply and detailed diary. It is much appreciated.
I have stir fried a whole chopped savoy cabbage recently, with lots of other veggies. I think it’s pretty clear I’ve been overeating the carbs.
My keto tests show an average of 0.4.
The yoghurt is full fat fage and only has 3G of carbs per 100g. It has live cultures so carbs are probably zero.
I will reduce my veg portions and up my fats and protein.
I’m on the wagon so will pass on the liquids
Thanks again
john

I really like savoy cabbage but I'm not sure I could eat a whole one. It pairs well with Cholulu Hot Sauce.

Are you testing bg before and after eating? It's the only way (imo) to be clear about which foods do what to your levels. You're clearly making inroads into it so you might want to give it a bit of time and see how you go.

I have my own six monthly tomorrow so have my usual doubt and uncertainty - I think I'll be OK, but I just want to get it over.

 

[Matt2023]

Hi good people,

This is my two cents worth,

I always count my carbs, well have done the past 5 years as it helps to know how much quick acting insulin I need to take.

I have to say though that I seem to eat way more carbs than my fellow diabetics on here, on average snacking 15 to 20 grams a time and meals 40 to 90 grams and on a rare occasion 140 grams, as I was of the understanding that as long as you take enough quick acting insulin to cover those carbs, you are good to go.

I am not advocating that you eat what you want and just cover that all with quick acting insulin, but I personally do not avoid bread, rice or potatoes (Or Ice Cream as recently admitted in another post), I just calculate the carbs and work out how much quick acting insulin I need to take to cover those carbs. This could all be wholly wrong, but this is what I have been doing. I also need to put on weight and then maintain my weight, something I have struggled with for some years, so avoiding potatoes, bread (Whole Wheat that I make myself from scratch) and rice (the number one dish where I live) does not sound like a good option when I am trying to put on weight and maintain it, again I may be totally wrong on this theory. I have had very limited education when it comes to diabetes.

Sorry I feel like I have highjacked the OP post.

Thank you.

 

[JimPartie]

I really like savoy cabbage but I'm not sure I could eat a whole one. It pairs well with Cholulu Hot Sauce.

Are you testing bg before and after eating? It's the only way (imo) to be clear about which foods do what to your levels. You're clearly making inroads into it so you might want to give it a bit of time and see how you go.

I have my own six monthly tomorrow so have my usual doubt and uncertainty - I think I'll be OK, but I just want to get it over.

I have a bag of Fiery red chillies in the freezer that I grew in the greenhouse last summer, I add them to stir fries.

I weighed out veg yesterday and savoy cabbage (smallish portion for me) was 131 g @ 6g of carbs. Portion of ratatouille approx 10 g carbs. Raspberries 10 g carbs. It soon creeps up.
However drum roll the scales dropped from 17st 3 lbs at beginning of last week to 16st 13 lbs this morning.

I’ll try a bottle of Cholulu Hot Sauce.

Took delivery of Libre 2 yesterday, for a 2 week testing campaign.

Good luck with your 6 month review.

 

[JimPartie]

Hi good people,

This is my two cents worth,

I always count my carbs, well have done the past 5 years as it helps to know how much quick acting insulin I need to take.

I have to say though that I seem to eat way more carbs than my fellow diabetics on here, on average snacking 15 to 20 grams a time and meals 40 to 90 grams and on a rare occasion 140 grams, as I was of the understanding that as long as you take enough quick acting insulin to cover those carbs, you are good to go.

I am not advocating that you eat what you want and just cover that all with quick acting insulin, but I personally do not avoid bread, rice or potatoes (Or Ice Cream as recently admitted in another post), I just calculate the carbs and work out how much quick acting insulin I need to take to cover those carbs. This could all be wholly wrong, but this is what I have been doing. I also need to put on weight and then maintain my weight, something I have struggled with for some years, so avoiding potatoes, bread (Whole Wheat that I make myself from scratch) and rice (the number one dish where I live) does not sound like a good option when I am trying to put on weight and maintain it, again I may be totally wrong on this theory. I have had very limited education when it comes to diabetes.

Sorry I feel like I have highjacked the OP post.

Thank you.

Hi @Matt2023
I don’t think we have hijacked original post. We are still talking about carb counting.
I am border line type 2 and have to minimise my blood sugars from carbs and lose some weight. Maybe another 3 stones.
As a type 1, yours is a much trickier path to follow and I wish you the best of luck.

 

[KennyA]

Hi good people,

This is my two cents worth,

I always count my carbs, well have done the past 5 years as it helps to know how much quick acting insulin I need to take.

I have to say though that I seem to eat way more carbs than my fellow diabetics on here, on average snacking 15 to 20 grams a time and meals 40 to 90 grams and on a rare occasion 140 grams, as I was of the understanding that as long as you take enough quick acting insulin to cover those carbs, you are good to go.

I am not advocating that you eat what you want and just cover that all with quick acting insulin, but I personally do not avoid bread, rice or potatoes (Or Ice Cream as recently admitted in another post), I just calculate the carbs and work out how much quick acting insulin I need to take to cover those carbs. This could all be wholly wrong, but this is what I have been doing. I also need to put on weight and then maintain my weight, something I have struggled with for some years, so avoiding potatoes, bread (Whole Wheat that I make myself from scratch) and rice (the number one dish where I live) does not sound like a good option when I am trying to put on weight and maintain it, again I may be totally wrong on this theory. I have had very limited education when it comes to diabetes.

Sorry I feel like I have highjacked the OP post.

Thank you.

The difference is that the OP is not on insulin and most people commenting on this thread are also not T2 on insulin. You are, so we will have totally different considerations. I certainly wouldn't advise anyone T2 and not on insulin to be eating what you're eating.

 

[Matt2023]

The difference is that the OP is not on insulin and most people commenting on this thread are also not T2 on insulin. You are, so we will have totally different considerations. I certainly wouldn't advise anyone T2 and not on insulin to be eating what you're eating.

Noted KennyA

I guess then I need to be paying more attention to what type of diabetes other people have on a particular thread before replying with my two cents worth.

I also clearly stated in my post that I am not advocating that people can eat what they want, I also made it very clear that I could have this all wrong and that finally I felt that I had highjacked the OP post, so your reply really had nothing useful to add for me personally, as I had already said all that myself in my original post.

Thank you though for your reply and I will make a point of seeing what type of diabetes the other participants have on a particular thread before making a comment.

 

[KennyA]

Noted KennyA

I guess then I need to be paying more attention to what type of diabetes other people have on a particular thread before replying with my two cents worth.

I also clearly stated in my post that I am not advocating that people can eat what they want, I also made it very clear that I could have this all wrong and that finally I felt that I had highjacked the OP post, so your reply really had nothing useful to add for me personally, as I had already said all that myself in my original post.

Thank you though for your reply and I will make a point of seeing what type of diabetes the other participants have on a particular thread before making a comment.

I'm sure you will do that in future.

You also need to have a good look at the forum rules, in particular B5, B6 and B8; C1, C2 and C3; and C10.

 

[lotuslight]

I counted carbs very carefully for the first year, tested my blood sugar before and after meals until I worked out how many carbs my body could cope with and weighed/measured everything until I could judge it by eye.
Unlike some others here I only needed to go down to 85g a day with a max of 30 in a meal to get into remission and lose loads of weight.

Amazing, I am finding having a gram amount helpful - I used to eat baked beans with out toast as a quick lunch , now realise that twice recommended card amount!
Thank you you are inspiring me!

 

[Ezmo J]

I’m now retired and able cycle on a regular basis, I find it (even more) important to balance the level of carbs and calories ‘burnt’ whilst exercising and those required to replace the burnt energy, that way I can help/avoid hypo’s and not go high by overeating the carbs in energy bars & drinks. So I find it really useful to use the Carb Manager app to log all my dietary intake, which provides the advice on the amount Carbs & diabetic net carbs I am consuming at each meal, which shows me that I can eat at each main meal just under 30g of diabetic carbs, plus 3 snacks (if required) of 10g per day.

 

[KennyA]

I’m now retired and able cycle on a regular basis, I find it (even more) important to balance the level of carbs and calories ‘burnt’ whilst exercising and those required to replace the burnt energy, that way I can help/avoid hypo’s and not go high by overeating the carbs in energy bars & drinks. So I find it really useful to use the Carb Manager app to log all my dietary intake, which provides the advice on the amount Carbs & diabetic net carbs I am consuming at each meal, which shows me that I can eat at each main meal just under 30g of diabetic carbs, plus 3 snacks (if required) of 10g per day.

Hi Ezmo J and welcome to the forums. You'll find that it helps people to reply to you, if you fill out some of your personal details - what type of diabetes you have, what treatment (if any) you use, for example.

 

[Horlicks]

Hi I just wondered if any of you count carbs and is it recommended?

Obviously we all have different BMIS so wondering how it could be worked out

No I dont. Much of the food I eat I prepare at home from fresh ingredients so it would entail weighing it out, knowing what carbohydrates/fibre it contains then doing a bit of mental arithmetic. Far too much unnecessary hassle, for me. On the occasion I'm buying packaged food I will sometimes look at the nutritional label on the back to see what the carbohydrate percentage is together with the fibre content. This is especially so if I am comparing products ( for example bread) so I can go for the one with lower carb and or higher fibre. I am fortunate my weight is very constant (70kg) and my last HbA1c was 6.4. I take metformin twice a day and have no particular desire to try and come off it by counting carbs as I have found a diet I am content with.

 

[Leolady19]

This is a bit misleading. Calorie (energy) deficits usually provoke the body into starvation mode, and this can have unwanted effects, including increased fat storage. Some calorie deficient diets are also (accidentally?) low carb diets - the 800 calories/day diet is one. If every one of those calories came from carbohydrate (zero protein, zero fat) you'd only need 200g of carb to produce the 800Kcal. In practice it's more likely that around half the 800 would come from fats and proteins, with the other half coming from 100g carb. 100g carb/day is definitely low carb territory.

The thing about low-carb for me is that it is primarily a way of reducing blood glucose, but it also has the side effect, for me as for many, of triggering fat loss.

I total agree but when u r slim and you don't have a lot of fat you will loss muscle but I do it to keep blood sugar down but in morning it don't work rest of day it works. But my nurse dietician keep telling me I need more carbs 30g to 50g which is silly more insulin injections then

 

[Paimaan Raheel]

carb counting is useful because it means you basically don't need to calorie count as long as you have a high protein diet and regulate other macronutrients, like a good chicken salad or some greek yoghurt