Weight and diet restrictions

[Mep]

Hi

Of course one of the things you think about when it is new year is weight loss. But for me I've been feeling really uncomfortable for quite a few months now. I've never been a skinny person, but I was managing to not gain weight for quite a few years even when I was put on insulin. Well 2015 that changed when I was pulled off a drug I'm on and put back on it. Suddenly I've gained a fair amount of weight which I certainly don't need and I'm feeling uncomfortable because most of it has landed on my stomach. Also I've had to increase my insulin dosages lately because my sugar is high from sickness.

I already have problems with my stomach being full of gas all the time (not the normal take anti-gas med type of thing I'm afraid... it's chronic) and I have a lot of pain with various conditions. When docs check my stomach and pelvic area they normally comment I'm too tender and sore. I'm so bad at times I can't stand my clothes touching me.... they really irritate. Just doing my grocery shopping puts me in a fair amount of pain too.

But I know I have to look at how to lose weight as no way am I keeping this weight on me and I want to get it off. So my first thought is try some of these diet shakes the endo told me to do initially when I was first diagnosed with diabetes... but the only thing is they have artificial sweetener which I'm not supposed to have with my bladder condition. I guess I have to weigh up either put up with a pain reaction or put up with trying to move some weight short term. Then I will have to seriously revise my diet as what I'm doing at the moment isn't really working. I've increased fat intake in my food because I can't swallow too easily anymore and things get stuck at times. With my bladder condition I can't eat most fruit, soy products, processed meats, processed cheeses, some nuts, tomato, tomato paste, chilli, mustard, vinegars, paprika, cloves, cayenne pepper, green capsicum, raw onions, anything with ascorbic acid added, artificial sweeteners, anything with caffeine, on it goes... some of the so called safe foods I can't eat either like watermelon and fuji or royal gala apples. Some people with the same condition can't even tolerate eggs or dairy which is supposed to be safe as well... but I seem to be ok with both of those. Then I have trouble eating some salads now because of texture and I can't have most salad dressings anyhow. I tend to try and eat most my vegetables cooked. Also eating a steak can put me in pain for days, it has to be extremely tender for me to eat it. It is hit and miss for most meats for me. I'm not supposed to eat processed fish either, but I do eat the canned tuna and seem ok with it. It is hit and miss with everything with me. But what it does mean is I've cut a lot of what I used to love out of my diet. I'm eating more softer foods.

So I'm going to have to put my thinking cap on and re-do an eating plan for myself I think.

I wish everyone success with their weight loss goals. Just wondering if there are others like me who have restrictions in their diet?

 

[AndBreathe]

Hi

Of course one of the things you think about when it is new year is weight loss. But for me I've been feeling really uncomfortable for quite a few months now. I've never been a skinny person, but I was managing to not gain weight for quite a few years even when I was put on insulin. Well 2015 that changed when I was pulled off a drug I'm on and put back on it. Suddenly I've gained a fair amount of weight which I certainly don't need and I'm feeling uncomfortable because most of it has landed on my stomach. Also I've had to increase my insulin dosages lately because my sugar is high from sickness.

I already have problems with my stomach being full of gas all the time (not the normal take anti-gas med type of thing I'm afraid... it's chronic) and I have a lot of pain with various conditions. When docs check my stomach and pelvic area they normally comment I'm too tender and sore. I'm so bad at times I can't stand my clothes touching me.... they really irritate. Just doing my grocery shopping puts me in a fair amount of pain too.

But I know I have to look at how to lose weight as no way am I keeping this weight on me and I want to get it off. So my first thought is try some of these diet shakes the endo told me to do initially when I was first diagnosed with diabetes... but the only thing is they have artificial sweetener which I'm not supposed to have with my bladder condition. I guess I have to weigh up either put up with a pain reaction or put up with trying to move some weight short term. Then I will have to seriously revise my diet as what I'm doing at the moment isn't really working. I've increased fat intake in my food because I can't swallow too easily anymore and things get stuck at times. With my bladder condition I can't eat most fruit, soy products, processed meats, processed cheeses, some nuts, tomato, tomato paste, chilli, mustard, vinegars, paprika, cloves, cayenne pepper, green capsicum, raw onions, anything with ascorbic acid added, artificial sweeteners, anything with caffeine, on it goes... some of the so called safe foods I can't eat either like watermelon and fuji or royal gala apples. Some people with the same condition can't even tolerate eggs or dairy which is supposed to be safe as well... but I seem to be ok with both of those. Then I have trouble eating some salads now because of texture and I can't have most salad dressings anyhow. I tend to try and eat most my vegetables cooked. Also eating a steak can put me in pain for days, it has to be extremely tender for me to eat it. It is hit and miss for most meats for me. I'm not supposed to eat processed fish either, but I do eat the canned tuna and seem ok with it. It is hit and miss with everything with me. But what it does mean is I've cut a lot of what I used to love out of my diet. I'm eating more softer foods.

So I'm going to have to put my thinking cap on and re-do an eating plan for myself I think.

I wish everyone success with their weight loss goals. Just wondering if there are others like me who have restrictions in their diet?

I have no dietary restrictions (aside from a past T2 diagnosis), but when I reduced the carbs I was eating, to bring down my bloods, the modest excess weight I was carrying went, with no other effort. To stop the weight loss I had to up my fats.

If you can tolerate fats (and forgive me if I misinterpreted the long list of things you can't eat), you could try a fat fast, to get yourself started on things, as that can be a bit of a kick start. Of course, you would need to think through your insulin requirements for that, as it is likely to be less, I'm thinking. But less insulin can also help with weight, as I understand it.

 

[Mep]

I have no dietary restrictions (aside from a past T2 diagnosis), but when I reduced the carbs I was eating, to bring down my bloods, the modest excess weight I was carrying went, with no other effort. To stop the weight loss I had to up my fats.

If you can tolerate fats (and forgive me if I misinterpreted the long list of things you can't eat), you could try a fat fast, to get yourself started on things, as that can be a bit of a kick start. Of course, you would need to think through your insulin requirements for that, as it is likely to be less, I'm thinking. But less insulin can also help with weight, as I understand it.

yes it is hard because I have increased olive oil use just to get things down.

I will think of something though.

 

[AndBreathe]

yes it is hard because I have increased olive oil use just to get things down.

I will think of something though.

Have you googled Fat Fast? It is a short term regime to kick starter or restart stalled weight loss, with a high percentage of the content (over 85% if I recall accurately) fat based. So that's cheese, cream, oils and so on.

Some folks on here have used this with success, including @zand , I think.

 

[zand]

Thanks for the tag @AndBreathe

@Mep here's the link to details of my own fat fast. I intend to do another soon, it seems to be the only way that I can lose weight nowadays. I don't have restrictions in my diet as such, but I need to keep my carb intake fairly low so as not to gain weight.

https://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/threads/my-5-day-dairy-fat-fast.81433/#post-912479

 

[Mep]

oh yeh... sorry misunderstood. No, I need to cut fats because I'm one of those people that gets sky-high cholesterol readings. I can't afford it as my family has high cholesterol and heart disease runs in the family. So, no I can't afford to increase all the fat foods.

 

[zand]

Well all I can say is that the more I increase fats and reduce carbs, the lower my cholesterol reading.

 

[Mep]

Well all I can say is that the more I increase fats and reduce carbs, the lower my cholesterol reading.

You are fortunate that doesn't happen for everyone.

 

[AndBreathe]

You are fortunate that doesn't happen for everyone.

I have no idea what your personal findings on this are, but for me, when I was eating a diet when I was losing weight, fast, my total cholesterol fell a bit (and my component numbers improved). When I then increased my fats, in order to halt weight loss, my total cholesterol didn't alter too much, but my component figures continued to improve. I now find myself in a position of having all components in decent ranges, although the LDL is classed as "Borderline", but the total is an inconveniently large number.

I use the phrase "inconveniently large number" deliberately as that's all it is. The total is merely a representation of the underling components, so why would I want to reduce a load of scores classified as "Ideal"?

Unfortunately, not all of our Doctors look beyond the Total Cholesterol number, and I am sure there are a number of people who are medicated needlessly, at best, and probably misguidedly at least.

You have to do what you have to do, but it seems to me reading all you have written here and on other threads, that you may have to try some things you might not have considered before. You do have a complex medical picture it seems, but sometimes the changes we make are around flexing what we do, not necessarily a complete change of direction.

 

[Mep]

I have no idea what your personal findings on this are, but for me, when I was eating a diet when I was losing weight, fast, my total cholesterol fell a bit (and my component numbers improved). When I then increased my fats, in order to halt weight loss, my total cholesterol didn't alter too much, but my component figures continued to improve. I now find myself in a position of having all components in decent ranges, although the LDL is classed as "Borderline", but the total is an inconveniently large number.

I use the phrase "inconveniently large number" deliberately as that's all it is. The total is merely a representation of the underling components, so why would I want to reduce a load of scores classified as "Ideal"?

Unfortunately, not all of our Doctors look beyond the Total Cholesterol number, and I am sure there are a number of people who are medicated needlessly, at best, and probably misguidedly at least.

You have to do what you have to do, but it seems to me reading all you have written here and on other threads, that you may have to try some things you might not have considered before. You do have a complex medical picture it seems, but sometimes the changes we make are around flexing what we do, not necessarily a complete change of direction.

yeh you can probably tell that I've already tried the lchf diet previously... my cholesterol was very high from doing that diet... my LDL was too high also, not just the HDL. I can't afford to have high cholesterol as the heart disease runs in the family. The people who have had heart attacks and heart problems all have high cholesterol in my family and were put on meds. I don't want more meds thrown into the mix I'm already on if I can help it. I don't want statins introduced. So that means I had to change my diet and I've cut back the fats I used to eat. No doubt I'm probably still not out of the woods with my cholesterol as it goes up and down a lot. But I do know that lchf diet didn't work one bit for me and I felt awful on it as well. I just have to find what works for me, you're right there.

 

[duoduo]

For me personally, Pilates really is a very effective method to lose weight，It will not make my muscle grow, but also consumes me fat.

 

[Mep]

For me personally, Pilates really is a very effective method to lose weight，It will not make my muscle grow, but also consumes me fat.

that's good to hear movement for me generally causes me a lot of problems Gone are the days I used to spend 1-2 hours daily doing weights and cardio workouts. Suddenly I got so sick that I couldn't even get out and do the exercise. These days just doing my grocery shop puts me in a fair amount of pain. I make it a point to try and keep moving.... well for starters I wear the floor out at work walking to and from the toilet... I go every half hour to an hour so I have to walk the full length of the floor to get there and back. I reckon I get a fair bit of exercise just doing that... but when I leave to come home I'm in a lot of pain from all the walking.