Protein conversion in exercise

Can't help you regarding weight loss, but wanted to say "don't listen to stuff about curing your diabetes" you're to be congratulated on getting your HbA1C down to the levels you have, but that's due to your low carb/exercise regime. Lots of us get to "non diabetic levels" on that sort of regime, but it doesn't mean your diabetes is cured. Go back to a normal diet and you'll see. So please stick on your regime, and manage your diabetes to mon-diabetes levels ad opposed to curing it.
Good luck and well done again.

Not sure what exactly your 'workouts' consist of in detail, so a few pointers which may help you Alice. Eating more protein does not make your muscles grow bigger or faster. Your body converts any excess protein into fat for storage or glucose for energy if you do not have enough carbohydrates in your diet.

I wouldn't expect 'workouts' at a gym to make me lose weight in the first instance, they would be more likely to increase my muscle mass. As the density of muscle is higher than that of fat then you may well find you put on weight, let alone lose it. As the regime continues you may find that as your body shape changes you will eventually also begin to lose weight.

The type of exercise has a large bearing on the overall results you will obtain. Maybe the fitness plan might need adjusting to fit in with your goals?

To lose weight efficiently and effectively the regime has to contain a number of specific elements. It should include exercises that use fat for energy and that encourages the body to increase its oxygen usage and energy expenditure and which increase your resting metabolic rate. This quickly puts your body into a fat burning mode.

Examples of this are:
Cardiovascular Exercise which is done continuously over a period of time and elevates both your heart and breathing rate. These exercises include brisk walking, running, cycling, swimming and exercises done on cardio equipment in a gym. 60 to 90 minutes of moderately intense cardio activity that elevates both heart and breathing rate, yet allows you to carry out a conversation at the same time five days a week for weight loss. Alternatively, strenuous intense cardio should be done 20 minutes a day, three times a week.

High Intensity Cardio, for example, using a treadmill, do a warm up of brisk walking for three minutes, break out into a run or sprint for two minutes, then slow down into a walk for two minutes or until your heart rate and breathing drop to near normal. Then repeat for a total period of 10 minutes. According to Len Kravitz, PhD, the American Council on Exercise fitness presenter of the year in 2006, HIC results in higher post-exercise energy expenditure and oxygen usage than ordinary cardio exercise. This results in greater weight loss.

Incorporating resistance weight training into your regime will help maximize weight loss. This should be done two to three times a week, 30 to 45 minutes per session. This will increase your lean muscle tissue, which has higher energy needs, and will thus result in an elevation of your resting metabolic rate. A high resting metabolic rate enables your body to burn fat more efficiently.

I hope that has been of some assistance to you.

Hi Alice
Sorry if I may have confused you a bit. If there is anything I can clarify please feel free to ask a supplementary. I will do my best to answer if at all possible.

You sound like you are doing all the right things and I admire your resolve and determination. Well done to you.

Angeleyes is right, working out will build lean muscle mass, which weighs more than fat does. For this reason, get yourself a tape measure and both weigh yourself and measure yourself. Choose the same time of day and the same circumstances each time too.

I've lost very little weight since I started the gym, but always have people coming up to me saying how much "weight" I've lost. They actually mean inches. lol. My body shape has changed completely, but the weight has been very slow in coming off.

Vikingepigen said:

@Fencer - Thanks for this, very useful and reassuring to know. May I ask you of the time scale you are talking about from starting gym to you could see results?? I have never done gym before and patience is not my best vitue ( :lol: ) and hence anxious to "see results" and also a little bemused (I am NOT amused! LOL) that I have put on 2lb in the first two weeks!! LOL

If I know I have to give it 4-5 weeks to begin to see result and if it will take 3 months to drop the weight, I can deal with that.

Grateful for your time!
Thanks
Alice

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I started noticing small differences very quickly, but they were more to do with how I felt than anything. My psoriasis cleared up in a matter of weeks. I think that other people started to notice improvements in me quicker than I did. I started in March and when I went to an annual event in July/August the comments were amazing (so people who hadn't seen me since the summer before).

What kind of workouts are you doing (free weights, machine weights, cardio machines, classes, etc?)

Vikingepigen said:

So I am on 40-60 carbs/day - 1600-1800 cals. I workout in gym 3 times a week and walk 5km 3 times a week. But despite all this, I have not lost any weight in the first two weeks and am confused, as when I just walk 5km day with this diet, I would loose around 1lb/week.

My PT says it most likely has something to do with the conversion of the protein to muscle, as I am on a relatively high protein diet and weightloss will only come slowly for this reason.

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Hi Alice, do you as many low carbers do increase the amount of fat in your diet along with the protein as if you do this is almost certainly the reason for your weight not shifting as if you are not in ketosis ie eating less than 30g of carbs a day any increased fat in your diet will simply be stored as fat and not burned off as energy.

You may find this link interesting http://www.keto.org/summary.htm

I go to the gym regularly watch what I eat but am getting good results. On cardio machines I look at the read out for calories used. The instructors at my gym are all well trained as it's part of a university that does sports science degrees, they advise me that cardio will lose weight, they recommend interval training as well as changing the exercises you do do you're body doesn't get used to your workout. I don't know the technical terms etc but basic resting metabolism rates muscle burns more calories than fat, so if you build muscle and don't increase calories consumed then your weight should reduce due to the muscle burning more of the calories.