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Need to tweak what I eat?

W

W&D's Nana

Active Member
Messages
30
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
I've been eating LCHF (or so I think) for the past month or so. I have seen my BG numbers go down but they are still too high and I am not sure if it is due to the meds or what I am eating. My weight over the last 6 weeks hasn't budged a bit - I thought I would see it just miraculously melt away like many have experienced.

Here is my typical day of food consumption:

Breakfast - Chia Flax "porridge" made with almond milk topped with 1 Tablespoon chopped walnuts, cinnamon, cardamom and a bit of sugar free syrup.

10:00 am - a cup of tea with cream (no sugar of course)

Lunch: 2 eggs, 3 pieces of bacon, sauteed spinach. A serving of plain Greek yogurt with 6 raspberries for dessert.

3:00 pm decaf tea with cream. If I feel especially hungry I will have 1 oz of cheese or 1 Tablespoon of almonds. Sometimes both!

Dinner: 3 oz of meat (usually chicken or pork), roasted cauliflower, or roasted zucchini with mushrooms. Or a salad.

Evening snack: 2 squares of Lindt 85% dark chocolate

My numbers two hours after eating have never been over 2 mmol the before meal reading and sometimes are even lower than the pre meal test so I think I am doing things right.

Any suggestions or advice is greatly appreciated.
 
The foods looks good, and nicely low carb as your meter results show, so I'd suggest either
• You are not eating enough at meal times, hence the hunger in between, so possibly look at bigger portions or bigger meals and cut out the snacks ie eat what you have for snacks but with your meals)
• Or look at the times you eat so you shorten your eating window. Simplest is to move breakfast later and dinner earlier and don't eat after dinner at all.
• Third is movement of some kind. Needn't be a gym and sweat but a walk of 15-20 minutes after each meal is a good place to start.

Try not to get frustrated. Your body is being like a toddler whose favourite toy (carbs) has been taken away and so it will either scream, shout cry or sulk (sounds like the latter here) until you resume , but you are the sensible adult in charge and won't give in and return dangerous toy (carbs). Instead you swap, distract or ignore until the tantrum gets forgotten . Takes patience, but you will get there
 
Hi @W&D's Nana Sugar free syrup? - how many carbohydrates in that? Remember it is carbs not just sugar that need to be reduced for Low Carb.

Not everybody loses weight on Low Carb, but most people find their Blood Glucose reduces. How fast it drops differs between individuals because our body gets used to a particular level and tries to maintain that - it's the same with weight.
However, there are a long list of things apart from food/drink which can raise Blood Glucose. The main ones are illness, injury, stress, lack of sleep, various medications particularly Steroids and Statins.
 
Sugar free syrup information says 1 g carbohydrate per 1/4 cup serving. I use about a tablespoon at most.

I do not sleep well and am usually awake for a few hours each night between 2:30 am and 4:30 am. This despite practicing good sleep hygiene.

Not taking any Statins or Steroids. Normal stress of being on a fixed income and the price of everything going up each day.

I can't do much walking as it is extremely painful (arthritis in both knees) but now that my foot ulcer has fully healed up I have started to swim again.

Yesterday before supper my reading was 7.2 mmol/l - an all time low for me! Two hours after supper it was 8.3 which I believe is an acceptable increase after eating.

So as long as my BG continues to reduce I'll be happy and will resign myself to not losing any weight but be satisfied that I am not gaining weight either.
 
Apart from the two cups of tea a day what else are you drinking, and do you get enough fluid?
I didn't restrict my protein, in fact I try to increase it as I can be a bit low. You could eat more at dinner as you don't need to restrict unprocessed or lightly processed protein and fats?

Although some here are on a carnivore diet I aim for at least three veg for my last meal of the day to get to the minimum 5 portions a day.
I'm also aiming for at least 30 different plant-based foods a week to make sure my gut biome is getting the food it needs.
 
I drink a lot of water every day averaging about 9 8oz glasses.

The dietician told me to aim for at least 8 5g of protein a day. I usually consume 90g to 100g.

I have been increasing my vegetable intake which has been difficult as the vegetables that I liked are not allowed doing LCHF.

I do miss eating fruit and limit myself to 6 raspberries a day to flavour my yogurt. I used to eat at least 5 servings a day of fruit so that has been quite the adjustment.
 
You are doing well. Just concentrate on keeping the bg down and the rest will follow.
Movement doesn't need to be weight bearing on legs, there are chair based exercises or even just arms and a couple of food cans.
And swimming is great!
 
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