Type 2 How to gain weight and are protein bars good/bad?

[Caz141]

Looking for some help. I’m 6 months into this journey and I’ve done kinda keto for a beginner i guess. More cutting the carbs to a low carb diet would maybe be closer to a description of my diet. I’ve cut out all the foods that i think currently spike me through doing lots of FP testing. I’m currently on 30g net carbs most days. I track my figures in my fitness pal because this keeps me accountable. I have the 3 nutritional values set at 20%carbs, 59% fat and 21% protein. My fat figure is often over, same with the protein, carbs are always under unless i have a demon sweet tooth moment… my bmi is 18.5 and I’m 5ft.9” which I’m reading is low. On the diet currently using I’m struggling to put my weight up or sustain it when i do and juggling to keep my blood sugar readings on a finger prick tester between the 5-7 mark. I’ve just about got on top of this target and am maintaining this level of BG. But I’m still not sure how to gain the weight . My fat levels are already at my limit and I’m wary about adding more fat to the diet? I’ve tried not to do snacking or sweet things too often as i don’t want to walk down this familar path after breaking it for 6 months., however I’m feeling that sweet tooth need kicking in again after 6 months of being fairly good. I’ve just recently brought a protein bar to keep in my bag as i figure this is going to be better than the snickers, mars bars or Victoria sponge that my hands keep creeping over!!! Would this help with the weight gain or the sweet tooth or should i steer clear of the protein bars? No experience of protein bars or gaining weight healthily in my previous non diabetic life. Whole new ball game that I’m trying to learn. Help would be really appreciated as I’m doing my own head in reading such contradicting info on the web at times…

 

[catinahat]

Hi Caz141
The healthy weight bmi range is 18.5 to 24.9 so you are actually in the healthy range. I agree that if you think the bmi score is important you can't afford to drop any more weight.
Personally I think the bmi is hardly a conclusive way to measure how healthy you are, it takes no account of your age, body composition, or activity levels, it's just a hight to weight ratio. According to the bmi, most of our sportsmen/women and athletes would be classed as unhealthy.
How you feel in your own skin is more important than your score on something devised by insurance companies.
But if you really feel that you would be more comfortable being heavier, you just have to eat more.
I have no idea about ratios, fat v protein & carbs, I've never measured anything like that, too busy getting on with life to fill my head with numbers.
I like to keep thing simple, if my blood sugar is rising, eat less carbs, if my weight is rising, eat less fat, if I loose to much weight(never happened yet) I will eat more fat.

 

[AndBreathe]

Hi there - I'm another slight person managing on a reduced carb diet. At times, I also find myself having to gain a kilo or two to be in a decent range.

A really useful tip a GP once gave me was to eat my carbs to please my blood glucose meter and eat fats to please the bathroom scales.

For me, when trying to gain, I firstly up my protein intake, then if necessary up the fats. That way I know I am getting a decent level of solid nutrition.

When you say you are at the limits of fats, what does that mean to you? Do you mean in relating to a description of your proportions, or because additional fat makes you unwell?

When I do up the fats, I tend to do that by focusing on fattier cuts of meat (pork belly, lamb, chicken thighs), rather than the leaner stuff.

 

[Caz141]

Hi Caz141
The healthy weight bmi range is 18.5 to 24.9 so you are actually in the healthy range. I agree that if you think the bmi score is important you can't afford to drop any more weight.
Personally I think the bmi is hardly a conclusive way to measure how healthy you are, it takes no account of your age, body composition, or activity levels, it's just a hight to weight ratio. According to the bmi, most of our sportsmen/women and athletes would be classed as unhealthy.
How you feel in your own skin is more important than your score on something devised by insurance companies.
But if you really feel that you would be more comfortable being heavier, you just have to eat more.
I have no idea about ratios, fat v protein & carbs, I've never measured anything like that, too busy getting on with life to fill my head with numbers.
I like to keep thing simple, if my blood sugar is rising, eat less carbs, if my weight is rising, eat less fat, if I loose to much weight(never happened yet) I will eat more fat.

Thanks for info catinahat, as to comfortable in own skin, starting to not be. Feel/look very drawn. Not enjoying seeing the skellington figure lol. Nurses or Dracula would love me for the defined vein works appearing. Question myself sometimes if i would know if i was type 1 but then think nah. My BG is quite stable between 5-6 majority of days so think i would know? But I’ll put the question out there “i would know right?”

 

[Caz141]

Hi there - I'm another slight person managing on a reduced carb diet. At times, I also find myself having to gain a kilo or two to be in a decent range.

A really useful tip a GP once gave me was to eat my carbs to please my blood glucose meter and eat fats to please the bathroom scales.

For me, when trying to gain, I firstly up my protein intake, then if necessary up the fats. That way I know I am getting a decent level of solid nutrition.

When you say you are at the limits of fats, what does that mean to you? Do you mean in relating to a description of your proportions, or because additional fat makes you unwell?

When I do up the fats, I tend to do that by focusing on fattier cuts of meat (pork belly, lamb, chicken thighs), rather than the leaner stuff.

When i say on the limit of fats it is referring to in relation to proportion of meals. Still that generational info of lots of fat is bad for you and trying do the unsaturated fats more. But really not at all sure on the fats and the cholesterol levels. Don’t want to get to my next blood test with a great BG level and a shocking cholesterol level. Feel at times i could be being quite ocd but not found comfort zone/relaxed feeling on weight yet @ 8st 7pound

 

[EllieM]

But I’ll put the question out there “i would know right?”

You would eventually if your insulin production went down far enough (and you go into DKA)
But reducing carbs can stave off T1 for quite a while if you are slow developing LADA.

If in doubt you can ask your GP for cpeptide and GAD tests.

 

[HSSS]

In the keto world there’s a phrase - carbs are a limit (not to exceed), protein a goal (ie a minimum) and fat a lever (to adjust up and down for satiety and weight). So in your shoes I’d be happy to go over protein and fat numbers.

Cholesterol is another huge and controversial topic. It 100% isn’t as simple as looking at the total number and predicting doom and gloom as is so common. There’s a large thread on the subject started by @bulkbiker you could look through. Essentially almost everyone on keto gets much better trig levels which are one of the most predictive measures. They also almost always improve HDL which is also very important when they look a bit deeper into ratios. LDL is more variable and for those that rise this is where it happens. BUT the size of the ldl is never measured (and the total is calculated on questionable assumptions, not actually measured). Keto encourages large LDL particles and it’s the small dense ones that increase risks so again the standard cholesterol tests won’t identify if raised ldl is an issue. For post menopausal women slightly raised levels appears to be protective too.

 

[Oldvatr]

As the manager of a high street health shop explained to me, if it tastes like cardbosrd, then its probably good for a diabetic, but most protein bars have fillers and additives to make them appeal to the consumer. Get the powder instead and make your own snacks with it. Then you know how much carbs you have added. Many commercial bars use sugar alcohols such as Malitol, Maltose, and fruit extracts (fructose) to make the bars taste better. It will be hidden sugars and listed as emulsified starch and other fancy names for HFCS.

 

[HSSS]

You might want to take a look at these when checking the sweeteners on those bars (and consider the rest of the stuff in there)

Polyols do not all have the same effect due to the way they are or are not digested and where that might occur. I can 100% say maltitol raises my levels the way sugar does, and it doesn’t take a lot to upset my stomach either. Do I have the odd one (without maltito) yes I do but it’s always with a bit of guilt and a last resort. They can trigger me to wanting more of the same sort of thing mentally too.

Keto Sweeteners - The Visual Guide to the Best and Worst - Diet Doctor

What sweeteners are good on a low-carb diet? Check out our visual guide. The ones to the right are worse for people’s weight and blood sugar. If you’re aiming to stay low carb, try to avoid them. The best options are to the left. We suggest primarily using stevia, erythritol or xylitol.

www.dietdoctor.com

19 Types of Sweeteners: How Do They Compare?

There is a wide range of sweeteners, but they are all very different. Here is a guide to 19 popular options, their glycemic impact, and more.

www.nutritionadvance.com

The Ultimate Guide to Keto Sweeteners

What are the best sweeteners for the keto diet? Check out this comprehensive guide to baking with sugar substitutes, and learn how to get the taste and texture you crave! Today, my keto friends, I

alldayidreamaboutfood.com

 

[ajbod]

On the subject of Cholesterol, YOUR body regulates how much YOU need. The more you eat the less it produces itself. Statins work by stopping your body producing enough of it's own Cholesterol. Without Cholesterol there can be NO life.
Many of the hormones and other things needed in the body are, manufactured by our bodies from Cholesterol. Reducing YOUR level below what your body needs causes problems, these are referred to as side effects, many of them are actually very damaging to our bodies.
My understanding (it could be wrong) is that only Cholesterol produced by our bodies is usually used to manufacture what is necessary for the working and REPAIR of the body. It will make what it needs.
What we eat is transitory and passes through the body on about a 3 day cycle, so if your bloods were done 4 days after the first test, you would get a totally different reading. The level is dynamic, much like Insulin but obviously a slower cycle.
30% of the brain IS Cholesterol, if our levels are less than the body needs, this logically explains the foggy brain many takers suffer, maybe even actually being the start of alzheimers. Who knows I'm not a scientist who can look into things like that, and if i was any research would be funded by Pharmaceutical companies. and since the Statin market is so VERY lucrative, funds would not be forthcoming.

 

[AndBreathe]

When i say on the limit of fats it is referring to in relation to proportion of meals. Still that generational info of lots of fat is bad for you and trying do the unsaturated fats more. But really not at all sure on the fats and the cholesterol levels. Don’t want to get to my next blood test with a great BG level and a shocking cholesterol level. Feel at times i could be being quite ocd but not found comfort zone/relaxed feeling on weight yet @ 8st 7pound

Have you lost weight recently? If so, how much?

it is noteworthy that when we are losing or have recently lost weight our lipids can go a bit wonky for a while.

Any dietary changes you make, to gain weight, will eventually need to be tapered back, or you would likely not stabilise at your desired “sweet spot”. We’re you to resort to upping your fats (e.g more butter on veg, fattier meats, additional cheese or nuts), that would likely be temporary.

 

[Oldvatr]

On the subject of Cholesterol, YOUR body regulates how much YOU need. The more you eat the less it produces itself. Statins work by stopping your body producing enough of it's own Cholesterol. Without Cholesterol there can be NO life.
Many of the hormones and other things needed in the body are, manufactured by our bodies from Cholesterol. Reducing YOUR level below what your body needs causes problems, these are referred to as side effects, many of them are actually very damaging to our bodies.
My understanding (it could be wrong) is that only Cholesterol produced by our bodies is usually used to manufacture what is necessary for the working and REPAIR of the body. It will make what it needs.
What we eat is transitory and passes through the body on about a 3 day cycle, so if your bloods were done 4 days after the first test, you would get a totally different reading. The level is dynamic, much like Insulin but obviously a slower cycle.
30% of the brain IS Cholesterol, if our levels are less than the body needs, this logically explains the foggy brain many takers suffer, maybe even actually being the start of alzheimers. Who knows I'm not a scientist who can look into things like that, and if i was any research would be funded by Pharmaceutical companies. and since the Statin market is so VERY lucrative, funds would not be forthcoming.

This is an important point. Our cholesterol has to be marked with chemical and genetic markers (DNA.RNA) that identify it as being part of us, so that the immune system does not attack it as it journeys round the body. Dietary cholesterolhas non human DNA markers, so it is stripped down and some of the basic components (glycerol, choline etc) are reused to save energy. So eating cholesterol does not increase the amount or type of cholesterol in our blood. Our liver does that On Demand. when we eat, we trigger the storage process where glycogen and lipids get stowed away. Inside the liver, cholesterol is not needed, but movement of goods to and from storage elsewhere in the body requires cholesterol to protect the packaged fats from a watery grave (blood) So any activity such as exercise or weight gain/ weight loss leads to high cholesterol.. so rushing to the surgery for your blood test could actually be pushing your levels up. Shivering on a cold day could similarly trigger movement of fat stores to the brown fat cells. Even cuttting yourself shaving (except I have a beard) also triggers a rush of repair kit cholesterol to the site to effect emergency repairs.

 

[Caz141]

Looking for some help. I’m 6 months into this journey and I’ve done kinda keto for a beginner i guess. More cutting the carbs to a low carb diet would maybe be closer to a description of my diet. I’ve cut out all the foods that i think currently spike me through doing lots of FP testing. I’m currently on 30g net carbs most days. I track my figures in my fitness pal because this keeps me accountable. I have the 3 nutritional values set at 20%carbs, 59% fat and 21% protein. My fat figure is often over, same with the protein, carbs are always under unless i have a demon sweet tooth moment… my bmi is 18.5 and I’m 5ft.9” which I’m reading is low. On the diet currently using I’m struggling to put my weight up or sustain it when i do and juggling to keep my blood sugar readings on a finger prick tester between the 5-7 mark. I’ve just about got on top of this target and am maintaining this level of BG. But I’m still not sure how to gain the weight . My fat levels are already at my limit and I’m wary about adding more fat to the diet? I’ve tried not to do snacking or sweet things too often as i don’t want to walk down this familar path after breaking it for 6 months., however I’m feeling that sweet tooth need kicking in again after 6 months of being fairly good. I’ve just recently brought a protein bar to keep in my bag as i figure this is going to be better than the snickers, mars bars or Victoria sponge that my hands keep creeping over!!! Would this help with the weight gain or the sweet tooth or should i steer clear of the protein bars? No experience of protein bars or gaining weight healthily in my previous non diabetic life. Whole new ball game that I’m trying to learn. Help would be really appreciated as I’m doing my own head in reading such contradicting info on the web at times…

Thank you for the advice, I’ve lost just under a stone since being diagnosed 6 months ago. I’m thinking from the answers i have here that to continue as i am until next check up in may and compare blood results but kinda figuring at the end of the day there all just jumbled numbers like the brain cells in my head and life lol. I think I’ve found my sweet spot with BG sugars and my foods that i can or cant do any more. I mostly enjoy the healthy change in my foods.
Thank you all for giving me other angle to look at. I love this group for that. You have been most helpfulXx