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Type 1 and Bodyfat

K

ks91

Member
Messages
5
Hey everyone,

I've had Type 1 Diabetes for just over a year now and I'm an 18 year old.
I am very active, in the gym roughly 4-5 times a week and my diabetes control in general is excellent *touch wood*.

Obviously the summer's here and I'm going on holiday to a few sunny beach locations. My bodyfat at the moment is 15%, I want to lower this slightly (to get the abs showing) but having a bit of trouble.

I tried a calorie deficit diet for a month, managed to lose only 2lb's and bodyfat is still the same. So then I decided to go for a carb cycling diet, where 2 days a week I ate 0 carbs, 3 days I ate 50g carbs and the other 2 days I ate roughly 100-150g carbs. I managed to lose a fair bit of water weight with this but still confused about the whole carb/fat concept with diabetics.

In a healthy person, when they don't eat carbs for a day their insulin levels drop and their gylogen stores start depleting which begins the fat-burning process. Is this the same idea with diabetics, if I don't eat carbs for a day (therefore don't inject insulin) will the same thing happen? How about on days when I do inject a lot more insulin, what happens here?

My weight is fine, I'm just looking to lose a bit of bodyfat (cutting, as its referred to in bodybuilding terms). Would really appreciate any recommendations on how I can shed those last few lb's of fat whilst holding onto muscle

Thanks a lot!
K
 
I can't be hugely helpful as I find losing body fat impossible! But I would say it's a bad idea to deplete your glycogen store. If you have a hypo in your sleep, the glycogen store is the thing that'll stop you going in to a coma.
Sorry I can't help properly :-)
 
The good news is that it can be done...because I have done it. I eat carbs as I did before becoming a T1 and I still have a curry with all the trimmings on a Sat night and a big roast dinner on a Sunday every week..

My typical diet in the week is:-

6.30 - 3 Weetabix and pear (6 Novorapid)
8.30 - Whey protein shake (Usually test before and I'm 4.0-4.5 so no need to inject)
11.30 - 3 Sandwiches with wholemeal bread and either tuna, cheese, turkey etc and a piece of fruit (with 8 units of Novorapid)
3pm - Protein shake (again test before and no need to inject)
5.30 - Meat and salad and potato (jacket) (usually chicken breast, gammon whatever really) 8 Novorapid
8pm - Train (3 x a week heavy weights, 2 x cardio/ab work (very intense) - weekend off)
9pm - Another protein shake with no injection and a handful of cashew nuts..

So in the week I take in 3 protein shakes a day and I dont worry about the carbs I eat, I just don't eat anything that is not good for me. My dietician told me not to take the protein shakes but I ignored the advice as I cannot afford to eat chicken breasts etc all day and I do need to take more protein than normal due to my training. (My dietician suggested I make my own out of ice-cream and yoghurt so don't think she has a scooby to be honest!!).

Anyhow, I am able to hold onto my muscle and lose fat at the same time and I am im in very good shape, the abs are showing through nicely. I know a lot may be down to genetics but for me, I just train hard, eat well and take in plenty of protein..

JC
 
Joelcam - I love your dietician, what a genius! I know you can freeze protein shakes into a sort of manky ice cream but I'm not convinced it works the other way round... :-)
My hospital thinks toast is high protein though, so I reckon they make it up as they go along.
 
I had to take my protein shake container in to my dietician to convince her it provides good, healthy nutrition. And the same with soya milk - she didn't believe me when I said it had next to no carbs.

Once you show them you know what you're talking about and that you're serious, they seem to give you more respect.

I'm low carbing to lose the (slight) amount of fat I'm carrying round my middle. Have spent the last few weeks lifting weights every day and pigging out.

Got to say one thing - diabetes makes me aware of what I'm eating in a way that I never was before!

Sam.
 
Ha ha @ manky ice-cream thing...I imagine it would not be the nicest thing to freeze and eat! Yuk..

Sam - You dietician sounds the same as mine..and I think I may take my protein in with me on my next visit too - good idea. I think they just assume that protein shakes are bad because they are linked to body building and people link body building with steroids! Just my opinion, *******************************************************************************************************************
...she told me that ALL protein shakes are full of creatine, when in fact they are not.

Annoying.
 
Can ALL members please refrain from making derogatory and ill informed comments about HCP's. We had complaints about the last post which has been edited to remove the comment.

cugila
Forum Monitor
 
Thank you Ken - as a qualified and accredited sports dietitian I feel able to comment.

I also realise that you can be selective in what you post ! I have already spoken to my professional body about remarks on the other forum - not sure if they can do anything but it is not right as the dietitian in question cannot comment anyway - code of ethics!

Why are you taking protein shakes all over the place- you need to take them post training for best effect- also it is likely that you will be taking more protein than you need. Resaerch has shown that taking more than 2g protein/kg does not build any more muscle. You may be loosing fat as you intake of energy is low - perhaps you ought to get your diet analysed properly!

Ally
 
one more thing - to become a Dietitian (preferred speliing) you have to do a 4 year BDc Hon degree - the subjects studied are in deed at the same level as doctors biochemistry, physiology and of course nutrition and diet therapy , which doctors do not study or if they do they get about 5 hours in their training.

Hope that clears that up!

Allyx
 
Ally,

Sorry if I have ruffled some feathers, was not my intention. Also apologies that my spelling of your profession is not up to scratch.

I will refrain from making further comments but you have to appreciate that I was commenting on my own experiences with my own 'specialist' who has given me some advice that is factually incorrect. My own protein intake is what it needs to be and protein intake is not needed only after training. My results speak for themselves too by the way. I do not take them 'all over the place' nor do I take in more than 2g per kg of bodyweight (which is what I assume you mean).

What I think you also need to appreciate is that I was diagnosed with this bummer of a disease within the last year and when you are put in the hands of 'experts' you expect to have a degree of confidence in what they are telling you and in MY OWN experience this is not the case. If I don't manage my disease then I will have complications, possibly die young and never see my kids grow up so excuse me if I get a little pi**ed at the lack of support and advice I am given. Everything I have learnt has been from this website, which speaks volumes....
 
mmm - I would like to understand the logic of the protein shakes between meals ?

Why are you taking them - I am very curious !

I acn understand your frustration - alot of dietitians do not understand the use of protein in exercise - it is a specialist area!
 
I feel like I have hijacked someone elses thread so I am sorry..

The logic behind me taking 3 protein shakes on the day I train is:-

- 40g of protein per whey protein shake (so 120g protein in total). I weight 70kg so recommended protein intake is 2 x 70kg (140g). I get the other 20g of protein from me evening meal, sometimes a bit more depending on what I eat.

- On the days I train, I tend to be around 4mmol 2 hours after eating and because the protein is whey protein it is very low card. By taking one, not only do I replenish my sore and aching muscles but I also take my levels back up to 5.5 where they reamain until my next meal. This allows me to keep my concentration throughout the day and not have any hypos at work.

- I work as a Senior Manager in a huge call centre operation and generally rush from meeting to meeting most days, so these are a quick and easy fix in between meals that stops me getting hungry too.

I have thouroughly researched protein intake and I believe I am doing the right things. My glucose levels are always very good, I always feel good and my physique is really good too.

I have an open mind though and if you feel you can offer advice that will be of benefit I am more than willing to listen.

JC
 
You sound like living proof that this protein and exercise business works :-)
(now, if only I had the willpower to stick to my sporadic phases of exercising...)
 
joelcam said:
On the days I train, I tend to be around 4mmol 2 hours after eating and because the protein is whey protein it is very low card.
JC
Click to expand...

Joel, just be careful being around 4mmol 2 hours after eating, as you are sailing close to the wind here and nearly going hypo. Even tightly controlled type 1's would be unhappy to have such low levels so soon after eating, as most quick acting insulin's are still active for 4-5 hours after injecting. Perhaps you may want to look at your previous meal and reduce your insulin dose by say 1 unit or increase your carbs by 10g/1cp, this may keep you in your desired range of around 5.5 from 2 hours on.

Not wanting to join the debate, but do worry when fellow type 1's run such low bg's, and as you are recently diagnosed, you don't want to run the risk of losing your hypo awareness symptom's at such a early stage of your diabetes. Keep safe!

Nigel
 
joel

another question or two.

Why are you using soya - there are question marks over its use and the levels of isoflavones ?

Where are you getting the protein figures from as just adding up your intake from your meal plan it is probably nearer 200g ?



Allyx
 
Hi Ally,

I saw your most recent post on soya protein, and am curious. I use soya protein every day as part of my breakfast shake and then use whey after the gym. I was of the understanding that soya is the most complete protein aside from eating actual meat. The advice I've read suggest it has the best amino acid profile of the protein supplements.

What are the concerns with soya and isoflavones?

Cheers,
Sam.
 
Hi all,

Few replies to questions raised..

Being at 4mmol 2 hrs after eating...I do this on the days I am training as I follow the 4-4.5 reading with an immeidate protein shake that gets me back to a more 'normal' range...Maybe this is not the right thing to do but appears to work for now.

The only reason I use whey protein is due to it's low carb content but again if this is not something that is safe (allie) then I am keen to here more from you..

Allie - If you believe my protein intake is more like 200g you are probably correct as mine is all estimates...happy for you to suggest a better dietary routine for me!

JC

JC
 
I agree with the comments earlier...

Specifically that if you demonstrate you know what you are talking about to a dietician they will treat you with more respect. This is probably due to the fact that they have to cater to people with various levels of understanding/intelligence so if you just sit there they will start at a very basic level - this could be misconstrued as them not know what they are talking about - which I am sure is not true.

Also about becoming more aware about what you are eating - I never had a clue, and now i track everything!

With respect to losing body fat:

Insulin is one of the body's 'fat building' chemicals. So less insulin, less fat.
Whenever I do exercise (I tend to play squash 1-2 times a week usually before lunch) - i tend to knock a couple of units of my lunch time dose and my BG is usually pretty good.

I think timing the exercise well has a big effect on how effective it is. Although since I only get the opportunity to play at lunchtimes i haven't had a chance to experiment with this - just a wild theory of mine!

Good luck though!
 
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