Switched to really Low carb

smartywishbone · 2025-12-03T01:27:24+0000

Greetings from down under. Apart from commiserations to those who are England cricket fans - well you are about to be thrashed again - I’m here to comment about my being on a really low carb diet for the last 4 months. I had a 1 month hiatus on this whilst I went trekking in Nepal - which was terrible for my BSL - but fantastic otherwise.
Anyway, apart from this diet being a tad boring, it is the best thing I have ever done generally for my T1 diabetes in 35 years! (I’m 63).
I am using a Dexcom G7 - a great bit of kit. I use novorapid and Optisulin (Lantus).
Since being on this diet I am 90% in range and using less than 1/2 the insulin I used to take. I have had my best HbA1c results since diagnosis.
For many years - particularly after doing a 4 days DAFNE course about 16 years ago - I was dose adjusting depending on what I ate.
As it transpires and knowing how I feel now and my results, I would NOT go back to DAFNE. Having said that, DAFNE was an improvement on the advice I received upon first diagnosis and the first 12 years of this disease.
The only time I get out of range is when fall into temptation and eat something stupid - like potato chips or Korean noodles! - or I slightly overdose having eaten something stupid. Sometimes I just say stuff it and eat that bit of cake at a party but I always suffer as a result.
When I was trekking I didn’t have much choice and had to eat high carb food.
I can only recommend that anyone should give this a go. Eat less than 50 grams of carbs each day. Let me know if anyone else has given it a go. I have honestly never felt better since whenever.

grantg · 2025-12-03T07:34:16+0000

welcome to forum. Glad you enjoyed your trek in nepal any particular hike/spot that you particularly enjoyed?

awesome 90% TIR. would struggle a little with sub 50g dsn keeps telling me to up carbs. (not for lows, ketones regularly fairly high most likely nutricinal) did cut carbs from around 200ish to somewhere between 80-100g.

Tony337 · 2025-12-03T08:23:43+0000

Hi and welcome.
You have enjoyed success and improvement in results so well done you.
I am 95% in range over the last 3 months but do it differently.

I rely on activity and by that i mean walking and nothing strenuous and average out 20000 steps per day.
I graze during the day to stay level with no fast acting insulin but then have a large meal at 6pm usually around 90g carbs.

Analysing my libre over the years helped me enormously and my last hba1c was 39 or 5.7.

This works for me as your regime works for you.

I wish you well

Tony

Nicola M · 2025-12-03T09:48:09+0000

It varies on what people believe is a low carb diet, I eat only 100g of carbs a day, some would say that’s a lot others would say it is classed as low carb. I stopped night time snacking, so I only eat lunch/dinner now. I’m usually above 90% in range for most days, since dropping carb snacks in the evening my TIR has gone from 70% to 90% and my insulin needs have gone down by 10 units a day which is a lot for me. I’ve noticed my basal is a lot lower now. My TIR for the last 3 months is 77% although that also counts the fact that 2 of those months I was snacking at night. My 30 day average is 88%

lovinglife · 2025-12-03T12:52:25+0000

Nicola M said:
It varies on what people believe is a low carb diet, I eat only 100g of carbs a day, some would say that’s a lot others would say it is classed as low carb. I stopped night time snacking, so I only eat lunch/dinner now. I’m usually above 90% in range for most days, since dropping carb snacks in the evening my TIR has gone from 70% to 90% and my insulin needs have gone down by 10 units a day which is a lot for me. I’ve noticed my basal is a lot lower now. My TIR for the last 3 months is 77% although that also counts the fact that 2 of those months I was snacking at night. My 30 day average is 88%

I believe that anything under 130g carb a day is considered a low carb diet so you are definitely a low carber

https://www.bda.uk.com/static/015e7600-28a8-4fc6-8758567f538dfc29/lowcarbdietsfoodfactsheet.pdf

smartywishbone · 2025-12-04T00:30:58+0000

Tony337 said:
Hi and welcome.
You have enjoyed success and improvement in results so well done you.
I am 95% in range over the last 3 months but do it differently.

I rely on activity and by that i mean walking and nothing strenuous and average out 20000 steps per day.
I graze during the day to stay level with no fast acting insulin but then have a large meal at 6pm usually around 90g carbs.

Analysing my libre over the years helped me enormously and my last hba1c was 39 or 5.7.

This works for me as your regime works for you.

I wish you well

Tony

That’s a lot of steps!

Melgar · 2025-12-04T02:43:25+0000

Tony337 said:
Hi and welcome.
You have enjoyed success and improvement in results so well done you.
I am 95% in range over the last 3 months but do it differently.

I rely on activity and by that i mean walking and nothing strenuous and average out 20000 steps per day.
I graze during the day to stay level with no fast acting insulin but then have a large meal at 6pm usually around 90g carbs.

Analysing my libre over the years helped me enormously and my last hba1c was 39 or 5.7.

This works for me as your regime works for you.

I wish you well

Tony

@Tony337 I also use exercise as a means of controlling my blood sugars. I watch my carb intake, but I can’t say it’s low carb.

Tony337 · 2025-12-04T07:28:23+0000

smartywishbone said:
That’s a lot of steps!

Hi
Not really i have modified my life to suit my diabetes or the other way round lol.

I'm a school caretaker and changed schools 3 years ago as i was getting fed up of driving.
Thats 1000 steps to work.
I do a split shift so thats 4000 steps before i've actually done anything.

I can be as busy as i want to be and if i am outside the grounds are a decent size to cover.
Mopping the hall takes some doing too.
Its getting towards christmas so there are events and lights to put up.
All normal things that add to my daily step routine.
Yesterday i did 22500.
I always have my phone even going to the toilet! so it all adds to the step count.
Its become an obsession but a positive one as i need less insulin and my sensitivity is acute to say the least.

I had about 90g of carbs last night for tea ( i'm from up north so its me tea at 6pm) and took 6 units of novorapid and still needed a snack 4 hours later going to bed.
On a sunday i would have 10 units for similar carb intake simply because i'm not as active.

So walking is my friend and where people go on about carbs i go on about walking.

It works for me.

Good luck

Tony

Switched to really Low carb

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Switched to really Low carb

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