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bufferz

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Location
Wallasey, Wirral
Having read about the low carb successes, I too have decided to give it a go, at least until the end of February. So as of 1600hrs today, it is low carb for me and the wife. It's shocking how many carbs are in everything though, we went to tescos to do an initial shopping trip, and it was like "Ooh how about this.....oh ****** its got too many carbs in" :roll: so we are on chicken and stirfry veg tonight to start with. Wish me luck folks!
 
Generally speaking you will do better with making your own meals from scratch. Once you get into the swing of it you will find you can eat better and spend less, it just takes a bit more organisation. Enjoy your chicken and stir fry veg! :)
 
Synonym said:
Generally speaking you will do better with making your own meals from scratch. Once you get into the swing of it you will find you can eat better and spend less, it just takes a bit more organisation. Enjoy your chicken and stir fry veg! :)
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Eat better? probably... Spend less? Heck no!

We've always cooked from scratch in my house but we've lived for a long time on a sort of extended (and cheap) student diet. Since we've been low carbing our grocery bill has at least doubled. I also seem to spend my life popping into Aldi for more salad and eggs, rather than just the one weekly shop at Asda. However, my blood sugars are much more level (6 point something represents a spike these days, not a low) and the husband's losing weight. So we see it as an investment.

On the positive side we pay fewer visits to the take away because low carb food is SO quick to make (pan-fried salmon and stir-fried veg tonight) that I don't have the midweek thing when I come in from work and can't face cooking, so that saves some money.

Bufferz, the very best of luck with the diet experiment. It was the best thing we've done and I wish I'd found out about low carbing YEARS ago - I actually have my hubby's expanding waistline to thank for getting me into this way of eating.

I'm waiting for my appointment with the diabetologist next month to see what my bloods are like - the one thing I haven't managed to shake off is the feeling that all this fat is not doing my cholesterol/triglyceride levels much good. Before anyone posts to tell me all the evidence to the contrary, PEASE, I've read everything I can get my hands on BUT I need to see the figures in black and white - all that old diabetic diet conditioning is kinda hard to finally shake off....

Cheers, BB :D
 
bufferz said:
Having read about the low carb successes, I too have decided to give it a go, at least until the end of February. So as of 1600hrs today, it is low carb for me and the wife. It's shocking how many carbs are in everything though, we went to tescos to do an initial shopping trip, and it was like "Ooh how about this.....oh ****** its got too many carbs in" :roll: so we are on chicken and stirfry veg tonight to start with. Wish me luck folks!
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Good luck - to both of you!

Be prepared to have big improvements in your blood glucose levels ........and quickly too.

Cutting back on carbs really does work!

Best wishes - John
 
Hi Banjo brunette

I suppose the comparative cost depends on what base you are starting from. I have not been a student for many years so I am a bit out of touch in that respect. :)

I shop online and have it delivered every 10-14 days as I am unable to do it any other way. I have to be very organised to make this work and so make out a menu and shop to that menu. I divide into portions and freeze too and in these ways have managed to reduce the overall costs.

I know that not everyone would be able to do this but I have to and I can, so I do. 8)
 
Initially, low carb food may seem cosily, but when you factor in what you save by not having carby snacks, it evens out.
The only carby snacks I ever have in the house are Twiglets, which I eat just a few at a time, in any one day. The family sized packet lasts me a week or more. The most expensive item is the spring clip on the bag I put them in
Hana.
 
Right, a quick update. A breakfast of scrambled eggs and a lunch of bacon & sausage with a side of tomatoes, it was day one, sans carbs, so I thought I had better do my BGs. Now in all honesty my BGs are good anyway, mainly due to the meds I am on. This morning they were 4.6, getting no higher than 5.1, and in fact dropping to 3.5 at approx 3pm (which coincidentally now means I know what a hypo coming on feels like having never had one before) dealt with via a couple of apples. Was a bit apprehensive of going the gym after that, but went anyway, did my half hour cardio, checked again, and it was 3.8 :roll:

What do I do about my low BGs? I have an appointment on Friday with my GP, and so I am looking at cutting my Gliclazide from 1 tablet twice a day to half twice a day and then if things stabilise, ask him to keep me on this for a while, as the only other one I could reduce is the Actos, but Im a bit more wary of that one as it is that which got my BGs under control properly in the first place.
 
Hi Bufferz

I can't offer any advice about the hypos - but I'm interested in what your GP recommends. I've become much more hypo unaware since I've been low carbing - had a proper shaky, sweaty hypo and found my sugars were as low as 2.9 when before I would get wobbly on mid 4s.

I think I'll start a new post to ask what people think about this....

Well done on the low carb start BTW - is your wife OK so far?

Cheers, BB :D
 
hanadr said:
Initially, low carb food may seem cosily, but when you factor in what you save by not having carby snacks, it evens out....
Hana.
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Hmmmmm!!! Speaking of snacks.... Thanks, Hana, for letting drop about Aldi's 85% chocolate. I'm now SERIOUSLY addicted to the stuff on the excuse that it's only 5g carbs per little bar. Who am I kidding? :oops:
 
we are both doing ok thanks....we are both in a craving sweet carbs right now though, having to tell each other no!! lol.....may have to investigate the diabetic choclates available, as dark chocolate is vile :twisted: I take it the aldi chocolate is dark?
 
Hi Bufferz

If you can give each other moral support, that's great and you both benefit :wink:

From what I understand, the carb cravings go away quite quickly. Try munching nuts rather than hitting the diabetic chockies -they're not good for man not beast - honest! Not too many nuts but a handful should be OK if you're desperate and preferably not high carb ones. I'm sure someone can recommend a web-site that gives info on this but from memory: brazils, walnuts, almonds and hazelnuts are OK, peanuts and cashews are carbier. Macadamias are OK too.

Yes, the Aldi chocolate is dark but they do a 70% one which even my husband can tolerate in very small pieces - he hates bitter chocolate too. I LOVE it and it's supposed to be full of anti-oxidants.

Keep us updated on your progress....

Cheers, BB :D
 
banjo brunette said:
Hi Bufferz

I can't offer any advice about the hypos - but I'm interested in what your GP recommends. I've become much more hypo unaware since I've been low carbing - had a proper shaky, sweaty hypo and found my sugars were as low as 2.9 when before I would get wobbly on mid 4s.
Click to expand...

My GP was fine -- told him i was hypo-ing, and he said straight away drop the glic to half twice a day, and IF I still found I was too low to go to a quarter.....so thats cool, Im hoping i can do well enough to get off the sodding things though!
 
Hi Bufferz , wishing you lots of luck ! I started low carbing about 2 months ago , I felt terrible at first, just for the first couple of days but ever since then, its become second nature ! What even better is that my BG readings are good, my cholesterol has taken a nose dive ( despite eating butter and cheese ) and best still , with the help of exercise too , I`ve lost weight ! OK so i have my moments of longing for starchy carbs, but it passes . Wont say I will never lapse, wouldnt be that daft but when its for health reasons, its such an insentive , good luck to you !
 
Wednesday's update....

Well, I am on day 3, and am REALLY not bothered about the carbs...even so far as one of my workmates brought some danishes is as it was his birthday, and I didnt even WANT any ofthem, which is a shock to me even as I used to love them. Finding I am getting more peckish but that is usually deal with by some tomatoes and a slice of ham as my snacks (tho i always used tomatoes as my sugar substitute) instead of a sarnie. Only slip I did have was yesterday evening, when I had to nip to the shop for some milk for work, when I bought a 200g block of crumbly cheshire cheese. This was devoured in a space of 3 hours by myself :roll: And I cant believe how guilty I felt afterward...

BGs are still in the 4-5% range, even with dropping down to 1/2 a gliclazide twice a day, and when i go to the GP on friday, Im hoping he will let me get rid of them eventually, and maybe even reduce my Actos, although I think I will give it a couple more weeks first.

Will give you all an update on Friday, together with my (please God, let it happen) weight loss...Fingers crossed!
 
Hi Bufferz
Sounding good so far! Looking forward to the next update...
Love the little piccie thingy in the corner BTW - I'd like that for my office wall :D :D :D
Cheers, BB :D
 
Lo-Carb can be expensive. I told my brother in law so. He is a bit of a spendthrift. I called round tonight and he gave me a bag of :-
7 portions of parma ham and 8 packets of various cheeses.....
....ticket value £33 !!!.

Cost him ??? :- £1.50!!!!.
Apparently if you go to a 24 hour Asda after 22:00, they slash the perishables going out of date to 10p and then dump them at midnight if they are not sold!!. He then freezes them and defrosts as he needs them.

(May not be common policy?)

Last week he declined 30 bags of frozen berries for £3 value £60 as he didnt have freezer space for them!!!


Also buy 3 packs of large chicken breasts from Farm Foods for a tenner (3kg, thats nearly 6 and a half pounds of chicken!)

All the best Steve.
 
Update.update..update...

Right today is my weigh-in day.....A day not really too depressing, I guess, [sarcasm]though I really don't think it has anything to do with the diet, sorry, lifestyle choice I have taken [/sarcasm] but at today's weigh in, I have lost, since starting this on Monday.......drum roll......

wait for it..............

well I'm amazed.......

Shocked to be honest................

You'll never guess...............

7lbs! Yes that's right half a goddam stone in 5 days!! un-believeable :lol: :lol:
Roll on next week, at this rate ill be diabetes free by the end of Feb! (I wish! :roll: )
And in all honesty, if i keep getting results like this every week, then bu**er the expense of the food, might even see if the NHS will feed me as it would be cheaper than the tablets for them! :mrgreen:

Not once have by BGs gone over 5.1% either! woooooo
 
hi bufferz, I've been low-carbing since July, wife and daughter joined me in October as they saw my meals were healthier and tastier than their carb-laden ones. They're non-diabetic but were both obese and candidates for T2 in the future. We've lost just under 10 stone between us. I've been taken off of insulin, and blood pressure tablets, and have HBA1C of 5.4% from 9.7%.

Like you, we don't even get carb cravings, getting our food-kicks from tasty, healthy, and varied meals. I plan all of our meals each Thursday for the following week, and then do a single shop on a Saturday morning. I've always done a single shop in one of the big supermarkets but find now that veg and salad prices are so high that I'm going to use the local market for fresh produce.

Breakfasts was the big problem for me at first, but then I discovered flaxmeal porridge which plugged the cereal gap very well. I can recommend the egg/cheese base pepperoni pizza too as a meal that seems to make a mockery of the idea that this diet is a punishment of any kind.

We find it easy to cope with regards our sweet side; we make brownies and chocolate cakes using pecan nuts and cocoa or 90% chocolate, cookies with lowest-carb peanut butter, coconut macaroons, and also cheesecake, almond muffins etc. (I've just re-read this last bit and want to point out that we don't make all of these at the same time :))
 
Whoops, Sorry, forgot to say "Well done Bufferz!!!!" That's fabulous.
Cheers, BB :D

PS Am I the only person here NOT to lose wait on a low carb diet (and I mean 20-30 g a day)? :( Blood sugars are great and at least I'm not gaining anymore :wink:
Cheers, BB
 
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