Meal Plan & Weight Gain

Hi @Scott Agnew

The best way I've found to put on weight is to increase carbs, and eat well day after day, fitting in 3 meals plus 2 snacks. I try to spread the carbs across the day not have them all in one go.

To me, it sounds like your main problem is waking high. Have you done a basal check?

What do you mean by lazy? Mentally lazy - ie not bothering to take control of your sugars or physically lazy?

Scott Agnew said:

Both,
More mentally due to the fact every time I take control I feel good and I mean really good then I get lazy with checking sugars and making sure I count the carbs correctly then I splurge and end up with DKA because I have over splurged.
what I need help to create a healthy meal plan, something I can stick to...
An easy simple and uncomplicated, quick easy meals,that can me made at home and at work.

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Ok - I totally understand the 'can't be bothered' feeling. Diabetes is hard work and it does get wearing day after day.

If you're saying your eating becomes a bit chaotic and then your sugars go mad, then routine will be your friend. Stick to the same few breakfasts and lunches for a start - less thinking involved.

I don't think anyone can write you a meal,plan because your needs will be different from, say, mine, and you'll like different foods and have a different routine. So start one meal at a time - get that ok then move on. Keep it simple - cereal, sandwiches, etc and add in protein and fat. Get a list of snacks in your head and do the same for those - eg banana, digestive biscuits and cheese. I also add extra fat - whole milk, butter, olive oil, etc.

You may find an app like MyFitnessPal good as you can put in targets and it'll tell you how you're doing.

Scott Agnew said:

I will try my best,
The problem I have is I'm not sure where to start, what do I choose brown toast with butter and jam or cereal (which cereal).
lunch is easy, sandwhich, a soup and fruit.
Dinner is the hardest due to it changing every night. this is where I think I'll use my carbs and cals book as well as my fitness pal app..
thanks for you advise...

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If you want toast, add some fat and protein. Poached eggs on toast? Cheese on toast? For cereal, I have a mix of muesli or granola and a bran cereal. For me, that slows the spike. I have it with whole milk. I always weigh my cereal. You can add nuts for extra fat.

I often have rye bread as it works for my sugars. Seeded bread can be good too.

Sounds a good start Remember that you can add in protein and fat too eg slices of cheese, Babybel, nuts,,hard boiled egg and mayo. That all helps get the calories up

Don't beat yourself up if things aren't perfect - go in baby steps and congratulate yourself every time you achieve a little success

I'm back in the process of bulking starting monday and i usually just add nuts and peanut butter as they're both high in calls. That next to my normal meal plan which consists of generally healthy food. Eating 100 grams of nuts can easily increase your callorie intake by +600 calls and a couple of teaspoons peanut butter with about 100 calls a spoon (depending on what brand). The carbs in both nuts and peanut butter and manageable but do require some extra insulin. I weigh myself weekly and if i'm not gaining i increase my intake. I'm not big on breakfast either so i usually just have a protein shake and a teaspoon of peanut butter which is about 300 calls. Off course i workout regularly so i'm also gaining some muscle weight though that will not make out the majority of my weight gain. I'm aiming for a slow steady gain over the period of several months, once i reach my goal i'll maintain my weight and after a period start losing it again to see how lean i can get.

You can also add peanut butter into your protein shake if you have a blender but i find it easier to just take a spoon and eat it from the jar.

I second the peanut butter suggestion

Tagging @TorqPenderloin as he knows a lot about weight gain and protein supplements.

azure said:

I second the peanut butter suggestion

Tagging @TorqPenderloin as he knows a lot about weight gain and protein supplements.

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Thanks for tagging me. I always appreciate it

I'm happy to touch on what I know and what works/worked for me when it comes to gaining weight. However, in my honest opinion, I'd focus on one thing at a time and the first priority should be getting to more steady levels.

I'm a firm believer that exercise is a HUGE part in managing diabetes of all types. However, it can also be extremely frustrating especially for those of us on insulin.

My typical day looks something like this:
4am: wake-up, 8 units basal, test, .5 unit bolus (to combat dawn phenomenon) plus additional units if I need to correct a high, and drink a couple cups of coffee
6am: go to the gym or run. I almost always test just before leaving and my blood sugar levels will usually dictate what types of exercise I do.
8am: breakfast. I eat lots of eggs, meat (of all kinds), green veggies, cheese, avocados, and similar foods. Rarely do I eat carbs early in the morning because that's when my blood sugar levels are usually the most volatile.
8am-5pm: go to the office or work from home. My job is not physically strenuous which makes it easier for me to eat different types of foods (including carbs) without fear of my blood sugar getting out of control.
7pm: eat dinner. Predominantly protein and fat based meals, but I will have some carbs (rarely more than 50g). I will treat myself to the occasional sweet if my levels are under control and I feel like I've earned it.
8pm: I may go for a walk or some sort of low-intensity exercise. It actually helps a great deal with keeping my levels under control and it's good for my stress levels as well.
10pm: 8-10 units of basal (my diet changes frequently which has slight affects on my basal needs); head to sleep

That information may or may not be helpful (I hope it is), but hopefully you see a common theme throughout my day: there's rarely a point in my normal days where I'm exercising, eating, and giving myself lots of insulin all in a short period of time. I try to space those things out as much as possible in order to avoid over-complicating things. It's incredibly frustrating when you want to go to sleep, but you're worried about going low after working out and still having insulin in your system. I try to avoid those situations as much as possible.

As far as supplements: I'm not a fan. Too expensive and everything that's legal doesn't work (anything that's illegal is usually very dangerous). You can get things like protein, creatine, and omega-3s from regular food. Personally, I prefer to avoid wasting money on supplements and spend it buying nicer food instead.

TorqPenderloin said:

As far as supplements: I'm not a fan. Too expensive and everything that's legal doesn't work (anything that's illegal is usually very dangerous). You can get things like protein, creatine, and omega-3s from regular food. Personally, I prefer to avoid wasting money on supplements and spend it buying nicer food instead.

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In the context of gaining weight, supplements are not the best but some odd statements there. An average shake is about 0.70 euro, which is far less expensive when trying to get the same amount of protein out of any meal. Closest is canned tuna from a cheaper brand which still goes for more than 1 euro. If i ended up eating all the protein from food i would have a much higher bill and then you have the whole protein from meat discussion from which you can at least say that the jury is still out on whether it's healthy or not. Most proteins you get from food will be casein which is great for keeping a nice steady dose of protein in your body throughout the day, it's not so great for right after a workout. Comparable with long lasting insulin and fast acting insulin you need both forms of protein. As for supplements not working ... as long as you stick to the basics there's nothing to work as it's just whey protein. When used in conjunction with a proper food regime supplements have their place as a cheap and fast way to get extra protein. If you expect to look like Arnold because you're taking supplements, well then you're gonna be disappointed. In short supplements should only be used to augment your food plan.

But all this is about protein and off course there are a lot of supplements that are worthless as they promise the most ridiculous things. Furthermore gaining weight isn't about protein alone by a long shot. I do want to emphasize food first and foremost, supplements only if the need is there.

I wanted to clarify a bit. My point was to say that I enjoy a nice Ribeye or salmon fillet much more than a glass of protein powder mixed with water. I didn't mean to suggest that serving-for-serving they were comparable in price. I maintain the mindset that if I can, I'd much rather get my protein from food that I can enjoy at a dinner table. I do agree with you that if overall cost is an issue, supplements can (potentially) help save money.

I would agree with you that supplements have their place, and I own several different types of supplements myself. However, I personally think that supplements should be discussed when addressing someone's diet rather than someone's weight loss/weight gain goals. To explain that opinion:

-I buy protein bars (which I consider supplements) not because I want to gain/lose weight but because they are really convenient and easy to put in my briefcase for when I travel.

-Also when I travel I take a multivitamin because I don't always know what I'm going to eat on a particular day when I'm away from my kitchen.

I will end on saying that I absolutely agree with you, but wanted to clarify my previous opinions. Supplements absolutely have a place is my diet, but they're "Gap fillers" to an imperfect diet rather than being staples. Hopefully that makes sense.