Thought I would describe my journey so far in the hope it may assist others and also to get any helpful observations.
I was told I was type 2 diabetic back in May. At the time my HbA1c was 11.5% and I was on medication for BP and Cholesterol. I had already started on a weight loss program - I am 182cm, 59 years old and was 117kg in January after spending most of 2020 in lockdown.
As soon as I got the news I put all my focus into two priorities - changing my diet (low carb and no sugar) and weight loss (which sort of naturally followed). I told my doctor I wanted 3 months without diabetes medication and I am still not on any medication to date. I got a BG monitor and started prick testing 5 or 6 times a day. I made appointments with optometrist (all clear) podiatrist (all clear) and nutritionist. On the surface anyway it appears as if my very high BG readings were relatively recent (my tests in 2018 I had elevated BG but not diabetes).
I also started exercising - everyday at least 45 minutes mainly walking and swimming. After a couple of months, again picking up on advice on forums, I started doing weight training - this was a game changer for me. After about 3 weeks of weight training my BG numbers started dropping significantly.
My BG testing was starting to show me patterns with my food. The foods that really spiked my BG were porridge, bread and rice. Pasta seemed OK and a glass or two of red wine seemed to drop my BG numbers (happy days). I also had higher readings first thing in the morning. My diabetes councillor advised me to eat something like yoghurt or a banana just before going to bed and this has lowered my morning readings.
I have tracked and logged all food/exercise/BP/BG and after 4 months of doing so, some clear patterns have emerged. Right now, I can almost predict to within a couple of points or so what my BG reading will be before even taking it. But I do get surprised quite often - the other day I got a morning reading of 9 after 2 or 3 weeks straight of low 6s. I'm learning that you can't completely master this but you should also not panic at when you do get unexpected results as long as the main trend is OK.
Today my weight is down to 93kg, my BP is now in normal range and I have reduced medication dosage. My BG readings across the last 4 months have averaged 6.4 and down to 6.1 in the last 2 months. I have my next HbA1c tomorrow and appointment with doctor early next week. I think I am feeling like I will ask to go on medication to see if it can push me into the "normal" BG range. I feel I can sustain what I am doing but not sure I can go harder to get BG down without meds.
My main learnings so far is that positive action can have very significant positive impacts on BG and therefore I hope lowering risk of complications. Weight training - or more correctly the building of muscle and low carb has a huge impact on BG readings. Testing your BG a lot in the first months quickly shows you what foods work and importantly don't work for you.
Number one learning is a diabetes diagnosis does not have to be a big negative in your life. In fact you can turn it into a big positive. Had I not been diagnosed I have no doubt I would still be 100 plus kgs with high BP and Cholesterol and on track for poor medical outcomes in the next 5 years. After diagnosis, right now I am as fit and healthy as I have been for 20 years
I was told I was type 2 diabetic back in May. At the time my HbA1c was 11.5% and I was on medication for BP and Cholesterol. I had already started on a weight loss program - I am 182cm, 59 years old and was 117kg in January after spending most of 2020 in lockdown.
As soon as I got the news I put all my focus into two priorities - changing my diet (low carb and no sugar) and weight loss (which sort of naturally followed). I told my doctor I wanted 3 months without diabetes medication and I am still not on any medication to date. I got a BG monitor and started prick testing 5 or 6 times a day. I made appointments with optometrist (all clear) podiatrist (all clear) and nutritionist. On the surface anyway it appears as if my very high BG readings were relatively recent (my tests in 2018 I had elevated BG but not diabetes).
I also started exercising - everyday at least 45 minutes mainly walking and swimming. After a couple of months, again picking up on advice on forums, I started doing weight training - this was a game changer for me. After about 3 weeks of weight training my BG numbers started dropping significantly.
My BG testing was starting to show me patterns with my food. The foods that really spiked my BG were porridge, bread and rice. Pasta seemed OK and a glass or two of red wine seemed to drop my BG numbers (happy days). I also had higher readings first thing in the morning. My diabetes councillor advised me to eat something like yoghurt or a banana just before going to bed and this has lowered my morning readings.
I have tracked and logged all food/exercise/BP/BG and after 4 months of doing so, some clear patterns have emerged. Right now, I can almost predict to within a couple of points or so what my BG reading will be before even taking it. But I do get surprised quite often - the other day I got a morning reading of 9 after 2 or 3 weeks straight of low 6s. I'm learning that you can't completely master this but you should also not panic at when you do get unexpected results as long as the main trend is OK.
Today my weight is down to 93kg, my BP is now in normal range and I have reduced medication dosage. My BG readings across the last 4 months have averaged 6.4 and down to 6.1 in the last 2 months. I have my next HbA1c tomorrow and appointment with doctor early next week. I think I am feeling like I will ask to go on medication to see if it can push me into the "normal" BG range. I feel I can sustain what I am doing but not sure I can go harder to get BG down without meds.
My main learnings so far is that positive action can have very significant positive impacts on BG and therefore I hope lowering risk of complications. Weight training - or more correctly the building of muscle and low carb has a huge impact on BG readings. Testing your BG a lot in the first months quickly shows you what foods work and importantly don't work for you.
Number one learning is a diabetes diagnosis does not have to be a big negative in your life. In fact you can turn it into a big positive. Had I not been diagnosed I have no doubt I would still be 100 plus kgs with high BP and Cholesterol and on track for poor medical outcomes in the next 5 years. After diagnosis, right now I am as fit and healthy as I have been for 20 years
