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I just wanted to add my little bit to this forum, which has been the source of great inspiration and knowledge to me.
I, like a lot of people I suspect, was taken aback and shocked when I was diagnosed as Type II diabetic on 15th September 2017. I know I shouldn't have been, people had been telling me for years I should lose weight, having got to 300lbs with my 60th year looming.
But yet, still I was a little bit in shock. I remember that weekend I was terrified that every mouthful of food was poisoning me and would inevitably lead to blindness and limb amputation.
I was enthusiastic about my meeting with the Diabetic Nurse, but cannot say I came away truly satisfied. I'm not sure what I expected but pretty much I was told they offer newly diagnosed type II diabetics two options - Diet Control or tablets. I opted for diet control. But this came with what I interpreted as a stern warning that if diet didn't work I would "have" to go on medication.
I was advised that it wasn't necessary to measure blood glucose levels regularly.
And then I found this forum. The initial reassurance from people was more than comforting and beyond generous. It made me realise that although it was down to me to make changes, I wasn't totally alone in my efforts.
I read everything I could, devouring dozens of posts, articles and videos. Like the sugar addict that I am I couldn't get enough of this sweet sticky stuff.
I also scoured the ubiquitous YouTube for information. In particular I liked this video which, for me, better explained what my diabetes was all about:
Plus I looked at many, many other videos.
I bought an AccuCheck blood glucose monitoring kit and meticulously checked levels before and after meals in an attempt to help my understanding of how different foods affected things. What a shock I got the day I inadvertently added a plateful of new potatoes to my dinner!
I set upon removing as many carbohydrates as I could from my diet.
Prior to diagnosis a typical week would see me eat 2, 3 or even 4 take-away meals (Indian or Chinese), each one washed down with a bottle of red wine.
I do not consider mysef to be a highly driven or motivated person at all. I wish I could distill and bottle whatever it is that made me diet and exercise and pass that on to others.
I started walking to the local garage, about 500 yards. I was, to put it bluntly, knackered, upon my return from each walk. Sweating and breathless it took me about 30 minutes each time to "calm" down. This old bod didn't know what was happening after almost 40 years of sedentary non-activity.
In retrospect it was these (literally) initial steps that were by far the hardest. I was self conscious and embarrassed by the effort it took for such a simple activity, confident that everyone I passed would be smirking at me. But I persevered and after a relatively short time it became much easier. To the extent that I realised I could do more. I now walk about 2km each morning, my reward being a copy of the newspaper bought from the local service station which I read over breakfast. I walk everywhere I can, relishing the opportunity to do something I used to dread and avoid like the plague only a few short months ago.
For diet I stopped drinking pretty much anything alcoholic. In the last 4 months I have consumed about 4 glasses of red wine. Bizarrely it was much easier than I thought it would be. I didn't think I could function without the fortification of a few glasses of confidence, but was surprised when I could. In truth, I get a little bit of smug satisfaction from being able to remove this particular dependence from my life.
I was eating all the wrong things - orange juice, porridge, "healthy" cereals to name but a few.
I now eat an omellette at breakfast made with 2 eggs, onions, mushrooms and peppers. As a treat at weekend I often add smoked salmon or cheese.
For me I found I wasn't really hungry at lunchtime so I tend not to bother. If I'm peckish I eat bluberries, cherries or strawberries, sometimes with a small pot of full fat greek yoghurt.
For dinner I have fish, I'm fortunate in that I love fish. Usually salmon, trout or mackerel. Ocassonally I have chicken breast instead. I match this with a mixture of some of these vegetables, carrots, peas, kale and spinach.
The net result is that I am now 250 lbs and my recent Hba1c test came back with a score of 42. Twelve weeks since my initial diagnosis.
More than that I feel better than I have done for twenty years, with more energy for life than I can remember for a long time.
I appreciate that I am lucky. It seems my body has reacted in a positive way to the regime I have been following. I appreciate that not everyone has that luxury.
I also know that this is but the start of a long journey and it will require more effort to stick to the regime. I hope the benefits that I am now enjoying will carry me through.
I seem to have rambled on a bit more than I intended, but thanks once again to all that moderate and contribute to this forum. For me it has been a rock that I return to constantly when I need help and motivation.
Thank you.
I, like a lot of people I suspect, was taken aback and shocked when I was diagnosed as Type II diabetic on 15th September 2017. I know I shouldn't have been, people had been telling me for years I should lose weight, having got to 300lbs with my 60th year looming.
But yet, still I was a little bit in shock. I remember that weekend I was terrified that every mouthful of food was poisoning me and would inevitably lead to blindness and limb amputation.
I was enthusiastic about my meeting with the Diabetic Nurse, but cannot say I came away truly satisfied. I'm not sure what I expected but pretty much I was told they offer newly diagnosed type II diabetics two options - Diet Control or tablets. I opted for diet control. But this came with what I interpreted as a stern warning that if diet didn't work I would "have" to go on medication.
I was advised that it wasn't necessary to measure blood glucose levels regularly.
And then I found this forum. The initial reassurance from people was more than comforting and beyond generous. It made me realise that although it was down to me to make changes, I wasn't totally alone in my efforts.
I read everything I could, devouring dozens of posts, articles and videos. Like the sugar addict that I am I couldn't get enough of this sweet sticky stuff.
I also scoured the ubiquitous YouTube for information. In particular I liked this video which, for me, better explained what my diabetes was all about:
I bought an AccuCheck blood glucose monitoring kit and meticulously checked levels before and after meals in an attempt to help my understanding of how different foods affected things. What a shock I got the day I inadvertently added a plateful of new potatoes to my dinner!
I set upon removing as many carbohydrates as I could from my diet.
Prior to diagnosis a typical week would see me eat 2, 3 or even 4 take-away meals (Indian or Chinese), each one washed down with a bottle of red wine.
I do not consider mysef to be a highly driven or motivated person at all. I wish I could distill and bottle whatever it is that made me diet and exercise and pass that on to others.
I started walking to the local garage, about 500 yards. I was, to put it bluntly, knackered, upon my return from each walk. Sweating and breathless it took me about 30 minutes each time to "calm" down. This old bod didn't know what was happening after almost 40 years of sedentary non-activity.
In retrospect it was these (literally) initial steps that were by far the hardest. I was self conscious and embarrassed by the effort it took for such a simple activity, confident that everyone I passed would be smirking at me. But I persevered and after a relatively short time it became much easier. To the extent that I realised I could do more. I now walk about 2km each morning, my reward being a copy of the newspaper bought from the local service station which I read over breakfast. I walk everywhere I can, relishing the opportunity to do something I used to dread and avoid like the plague only a few short months ago.
For diet I stopped drinking pretty much anything alcoholic. In the last 4 months I have consumed about 4 glasses of red wine. Bizarrely it was much easier than I thought it would be. I didn't think I could function without the fortification of a few glasses of confidence, but was surprised when I could. In truth, I get a little bit of smug satisfaction from being able to remove this particular dependence from my life.
I was eating all the wrong things - orange juice, porridge, "healthy" cereals to name but a few.
I now eat an omellette at breakfast made with 2 eggs, onions, mushrooms and peppers. As a treat at weekend I often add smoked salmon or cheese.
For me I found I wasn't really hungry at lunchtime so I tend not to bother. If I'm peckish I eat bluberries, cherries or strawberries, sometimes with a small pot of full fat greek yoghurt.
For dinner I have fish, I'm fortunate in that I love fish. Usually salmon, trout or mackerel. Ocassonally I have chicken breast instead. I match this with a mixture of some of these vegetables, carrots, peas, kale and spinach.
The net result is that I am now 250 lbs and my recent Hba1c test came back with a score of 42. Twelve weeks since my initial diagnosis.
More than that I feel better than I have done for twenty years, with more energy for life than I can remember for a long time.
I appreciate that I am lucky. It seems my body has reacted in a positive way to the regime I have been following. I appreciate that not everyone has that luxury.
I also know that this is but the start of a long journey and it will require more effort to stick to the regime. I hope the benefits that I am now enjoying will carry me through.
I seem to have rambled on a bit more than I intended, but thanks once again to all that moderate and contribute to this forum. For me it has been a rock that I return to constantly when I need help and motivation.
Thank you.
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