Disillusioned!

It's taken me a while since mid January but I have lost just over a stone. Same age as you but I am convinced it works. My need for insulin has reduced my HbA1c has reduced from 60 to 50. Keep at it.

Are you having carbs in some other form? Maybe hidden? I suppose it could be that it just doesn't work for you? I've lost almost two stone on LCHF, and I'm just trying to avoid carbs rather than actively counting them.

Ballerina said:

Will keep at it,maybe my portion sizes are still too big. From being a big carb lover to this ,must be something I'm doing wrong!

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Not necessarily something you are doing wrong. It's very easy these days to eat things with hidden carbs. I still remember having some mini wheats for breakfast. I only had five with a splash of milk and my BG went sky high but I was as hungry as if I'd eaten nothing. Now these had no sugar but still caught me out back then.

Hi @Ballerina and welcome to the forum. I didn't lose any weight for about the first four weeks, then lost 1-1.5 lbs a week.
Soo don't give up. Also, as you say, you do need to control portion size too.

Ballerina said:

I'm feeling comforted by the replies on this forum. Seems like we all have to find our own way to get results. Does anyone drink wine in moderation? I'd love a glass right now!

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Yes. I do and I know of others. Red is the lowest in carbs.

Ballerina said:

I'm prediabetic and have been advised to lose at least 2 stone. Need to get levels down. I'm clued up on nutrition and always cook meals from scratch. So why,after 7weeks of no bread,cakes,cereals,pasta etc have I lost only 3 pounds? I keep fairly active,but find jogging too difficult! I'm 63 yrs young! The lchf keeps popping up on the forum,I'm not totally convinced.

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welcome Ballerina

you must count your carbs and stay under 100 grams a day maybe even lower.. some really begin loosing weight when under 50 grams of carbs a day..
3 pounds is also fine, of cause many will loose faster but you are loosing weight and it is in a healthy way, low carb really is the way to control diabetes and to avoid becomming diabetic... so you are doing the right thing.

do you move also every day like long walks or even doing some gym ? long walks is about the best way of lowering blood glucose so dont dispair , just keep on doing what you already have begun doing... bread cakes and pasta an rice is the past... here is much more one can eat... like fat bombs...

https://paleomagazine.com/what-are-ketogenic-fat-bombs-recipes-how-to-make

Ballerina said:

I'm prediabetic and have been advised to lose at least 2 stone. Need to get levels down. I'm clued up on nutrition and always cook meals from scratch. So why,after 7weeks of no bread,cakes,cereals,pasta etc have I lost only 3 pounds? I keep fairly active,but find jogging too difficult! I'm 63 yrs young! The lchf keeps popping up on the forum,I'm not totally convinced.

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Depends how much you eat.
LCHF leaves you satiated very quickly, so it's actually quite low calorie.

If you lose weight gradually, about 1 pound each week. , you will find that your body has time to adjust. If you try to lose weight faster then you end up with flaps of skin, this way you skin has time to shrink back, you can work on your arms to replace fat with toned muscle. You will still have a new wardrobe for Christmas and you are much more likely to be able to keep the weight off. Just be a little patient and it will become easier.

Ballerina said:

I'm prediabetic and have been advised to lose at least 2 stone. Need to get levels down. I'm clued up on nutrition and always cook meals from scratch. So why,after 7weeks of no bread,cakes,cereals,pasta etc have I lost only 3 pounds? I keep fairly active,but find jogging too difficult! I'm 63 yrs young! The lchf keeps popping up on the forum,I'm not totally convinced.

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Hi @Ballerina ,

Welcome to the forum..

If you haven't got one already? Get a blood test meter. If you have already? Fantastic. You know what the carbs are doing...
I know nothing about weight loss.. Though have done ballet.

Tagging in @daisy1 & @Bluetit1802

Ballerina said:

I'm prediabetic and have been advised to lose at least 2 stone. Need to get levels down. I'm clued up on nutrition and always cook meals from scratch. So why,after 7weeks of no bread,cakes,cereals,pasta etc have I lost only 3 pounds? I keep fairly active,but find jogging too difficult! I'm 63 yrs young! The lchf keeps popping up on the forum,I'm not totally convinced.

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Sometimes, weight loss comes slowly, which is good. Slow weight loss has less tendancy to bounce back. Take your time, one day at a time.

@Ballerina


Hello Ballerina and welcome to the Forum Here is the Basic Information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. Ask more questions when you need to and someone will be able to help.


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

Reduce your 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 free 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

Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (adults)

• Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l

Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (children)

• Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l

However, those that are able to, may wish to keep blood sugar levels below the NICE after meal targets.

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. They're all 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.

Ballerina said:

So do I test blood before and after each meal to get a picture of what is good or bad for me? Need to find out also what 50 grams of carbs looks like.

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Tests after each meal and before you retire. Depending on the severity of your diabetes, you can lessen the number of tests per day.