Weight Gain

[JShep07]

Am i the only diabetic that really struggles to gain weight? I used to have really bad control of my diabetes so have always been really skinny but lately i have massively improved but still struggle to put on any weight

 

[Khushi Nagpal]

Not really no. A couple of years ago, I used to be really underweight and had a hard time gaining any.

It like you mentioned, during phases of hyperglycemia the glucose in our body cannot enter our cells, to be converted into energy. This leads to body burning fat and muscle for energy, resulting in a reduction of weight.

However, well done on getting a grip on diabetes and good luck!!

 

[ccassidy539635]

Am i the only diabetic that really struggles to gain weight? I used to have really bad control of my diabetes so have always been really skinny but lately i have massively improved but still struggle to put on any weight

Yep!! Massively. Last year I gained control again of my diabetes after years of skipping injections and having readings of HI constantly. However I suffered massively with treatment induced neuropathy- restless legs, insomnia, no appetite, lost 2 stone, anxiety, peripheral neuropathy. However I recovered eventually after 6 months or so and began to put on the weight lost and now I have slipped back into rubbish control again- not as bad as before but my hba1c is currently 13%. I am in a cycle of trying to gain control but then I gain 7lbs over night (literally). I know this is all water but it still is difficult to process. However I am really want to gain back control but my DSN has told me to lower my blood sugars very slowly (aim for the mid to low teens atm) so the neuropathy doesn’t come back suddenly.

 

[alphabeta]

Hey! I am a type 1 here, I was 64kg last winter, however I got down to 56.5 kg due to hyperglycemia which was caused by an expired bolus that i wasn't aware of. Anyway, I am also getting back on track here but it is hard for me now to gain a lot of weight. Now I am around 58kg but I need more fats in my diet to go back to mid 60s. It is indeed very hard to gain weight for me here, but as a general advice keep your sugars below 14.0 at all times (I am usually aiming for something between 10.0 to 14.0 before taking Lantus). I feel that in around a month with proper diet containing fat and carbs you should be gaining weight. Mind you, we all have different metabolism rates so we process energy difderently. Hope this helps.

 

[JShep07]

Yep!! Massively. Last year I gained control again of my diabetes after years of skipping injections and having readings of HI constantly. However I suffered massively with treatment induced neuropathy- restless legs, insomnia, no appetite, lost 2 stone, anxiety, peripheral neuropathy. However I recovered eventually after 6 months or so and began to put on the weight lost and now I have slipped back into rubbish control again- not as bad as before but my hba1c is currently 13%. I am in a cycle of trying to gain control but then I gain 7lbs over night (literally). I know this is all water but it still is difficult to process. However I am really want to gain back control but my DSN has told me to lower my blood sugars very slowly (aim for the mid to low teens atm) so the neuropathy doesn’t come back suddenly.

Sounds like you're going through exactly the same as me!!! If your ever free and fancy a chat private message me would be really nice to chat with someone going through similar problems to me

 

[alphabeta]

Sounds like you're going through exactly the same as me!!! If your ever free and fancy a chat private message me would be really nice to chat with someone going through similar problems to me

Always up for a chat here!

 

[novorapidboi26]

Na, I struggle now to lose it.....and I really need to....

my wee brother, who's 32, never seems to put much on and he has been diabetic all his days......we are built differently....

 

[Moggely]

You don't look like you need to lose any@novorapidboi26. Love the dog.

 

[JShep07]

Always up for a chat here!

Message me if you ever need someone to chat to

 

[NicoleC1971]

Hi there I am an old lady PT so here's my 2 p's worth!
At times of bad control I always lost weight (great if you love being skinny) but felt terrible. If your body can't handle the glucose you are eating or producing from your liver, then you will pee out a lot of calories as well.
Add to this being a young man in his 20's ? So you have high calorie needs which you then need to exceed in order to re gain fat and muscles but you can't do that if you are pee ing out all that sugar.
If you are used to running high then suddenly dropping to normal will feel like a hypo so it is sensible to gradually use a little more insulin and get used to those lower readings. You didn't mention the blood sugars you've recently achieved but I think anything over 7 will cause your body to try and excrete the excess sugar. They even give drugs that immic this effect to type 2s because they know that insulin causes weight gain. So if you are trying to gain then get the sugars better, eat more carbs so that you need more insulin to help you store the excess.
If its muscle you want then the rule of exceeding calorie needs still applies but make 100 of those extra kcals from protein but the key is going to be getting normal sugars first. And you need to train too obviously....
So its simple but not easy and a slower process than losing fat. Wish you luck. Everyone here is so much more sensible than I was at that age (that's a compliment).