What was your fasting blood glucose? (full on chat)

[RFSMarch]

Greetings - I know I have been sporadic. Anxiety is a strange beast and the last two months have been very up and down for me BUT - I managed to keep a Libre sensor on for a month without knocking it off, ripping it off in my thrashy sleep, and... by and large it worked!
So maybe I feel ready to rejoin the daily BG chat as I think I will be able to at least post about that!

FBG at 05:44 4.8

Since the start of the year I have been experimenting with working to a TDEE calculator. I take my measurements (Neck, Waist, Hips and use a free Body Fat calculator to get a number) and so in January I lost my 1lb of Christmas indulgence by largely staying within a range of 76-132g of carbs in a day.

February - I would say honestly that crept up to around 168g at its most but my average BG a la Swipey is 6.8 and my estimated A1c is currently 5.9% - so it will be interesting to see what is said in the diabetic check-up I have next week.

Work wise - well who knows. I have some BBC shifts and have trying and largely failing astronomically to find more stable work -applying for jobs - hearing absolutely nothing and yet seeing the same job being advertised on linked in is demoralising to say the least.
Trying to develop skills and testimonials for copywriting - but again very hard to get off the ground at the moment. Applying for lots in sites like Upwork but most likely being undercut or worse, approached off platform by people who expect you to work for free first - a big no-no for the platform too. Depressing, to say the least.

Took a part time job as a Marshall at my golf club - ostensibly to earn enough to pay my monthly subs. I totally didn't realise that as staff... my membership is paid for. So have been earning a little from that which hopefully with the lodgers' rents will see me cover costs when the energy subsidy disappears in April.

I know (and hate) being all doom and gloom when I drop by so I need to make a concerted effort not to be such a miserable mouse so a positive for ya. I have managed to work out on the Treadmill, Spin Bike and Elliptical every week since the start of the year, and that included overnight shift nonsense with the Australian Open for the BBC. This is why I decided to change my approach to carb counting as I was finding on those days, protein shakes and then breakfast, lunch and dinner was putting me over the arbitrary 100g of carbs and I just decided I wanted to apply a bit of s science to proceedings. What level of carbs could I live with to stay in normal range. So January was a better month but I think February's numbers were equally important to understand.

Oh and by some miracle golf handicap has come down twice in the last month so hopefully before long, the lovely ladies will stop rolling their eyes in despair if I tag on to their tee times for competition days.

Spinbike and light weights today and hopefully will see you all tomorrow.

TL,DR? I think I might be back-ish and will try not to be such an anxiety-ridden soggy blanket.

 

[gennepher]

Fbg 6.4

Wildlife Camera...
Cat Merlin's busy night...
Cat Jade
Cat Amy
Cat Midnight ...the eyes watching Amy...
Foxy Loxy
Badger

Creative is a sheep painted in Procreate.
Have your best kind of day.

A cuppa needed now ..

 

[dunelm]

Good morning everyone. A quick toe in the water as we have no time to stand and stare. There may be movement of cars in a wee while but fist I need to investigate where the aroma of brewing koffy is coming from. Art bit - the next bit. Hope you all have a wonderful Wednesday. Now where is that koffy.

 

[dunelm]

Fbg 6.4

Wildlife Camera...
Cat Merlin's busy night...
Cat Jade
Cat Amy
Cat Midnight ...the eyes watching Amy...
Foxy Loxy
Badger

Creative is a sheep painted in Procreate.
Have your best kind of day.

A cuppa needed now ..


View attachment 59628

Smashing

 

[alf_Josiah]

Nice to see you posting again @RFSMarch .
Good pre national bin day Ladies and Gentlemen. All other fictional genders can go fly a kite, ah the benefits of being old and grumpy.

Today blood blood sugars 7.4 No comment from me, me’s and myself.

Again today’s posting has to brief, places to go, things to do and lastly people to annoy if they try to pull the woke nonsense.

Now it’s time to renew my subscription to “Grumpy Weelky”
Stay safe, stay warm.

 

[Krystyna23040]

Greetings - I know I have been sporadic. Anxiety is a strange beast and the last two months have been very up and down for me BUT - I managed to keep a Libre sensor on for a month without knocking it off, ripping it off in my thrashy sleep, and... by and large it worked!
So maybe I feel ready to rejoin the daily BG chat as I think I will be able to at least post about that!

FBG at 05:44 4.8

Since the start of the year I have been experimenting with working to a TDEE calculator. I take my measurements (Neck, Waist, Hips and use a free Body Fat calculator to get a number) and so in January I lost my 1lb of Christmas indulgence by largely staying within a range of 76-132g of carbs in a day.

February - I would say honestly that crept up to around 168g at its most but my average BG a la Swipey is 6.8 and my estimated A1c is currently 5.9% - so it will be interesting to see what is said in the diabetic check-up I have next week.

Work wise - well who knows. I have some BBC shifts and have trying and largely failing astronomically to find more stable work -applying for jobs - hearing absolutely nothing and yet seeing the same job being advertised on linked in is demoralising to say the least.
Trying to develop skills and testimonials for copywriting - but again very hard to get off the ground at the moment. Applying for lots in sites like Upwork but most likely being undercut or worse, approached off platform by people who expect you to work for free first - a big no-no for the platform too. Depressing, to say the least.

Took a part time job as a Marshall at my golf club - ostensibly to earn enough to pay my monthly subs. I totally didn't realise that as staff... my membership is paid for. So have been earning a little from that which hopefully with the lodgers' rents will see me cover costs when the energy subsidy disappears in April.

I know (and hate) being all doom and gloom when I drop by so I need to make a concerted effort not to be such a miserable mouse so a positive for ya. I have managed to work out on the Treadmill, Spin Bike and Elliptical every week since the start of the year, and that included overnight shift nonsense with the Australian Open for the BBC. This is why I decided to change my approach to carb counting as I was finding on those days, protein shakes and then breakfast, lunch and dinner was putting me over the arbitrary 100g of carbs and I just decided I wanted to apply a bit of s science to proceedings. What level of carbs could I live with to stay in normal range. So January was a better month but I think February's numbers were equally important to understand.

Oh and by some miracle golf handicap has come down twice in the last month so hopefully before long, the lovely ladies will stop rolling their eyes in despair if I tag on to their tee times for competition days.

Spinbike and light weights today and hopefully will see you all tomorrow.

TL,DR? I think I might be back-ish and will try not to be such an anxiety-ridden soggy blanket.

Really great to hear from you @RFSMarch . Please do post whatever is on your mind.

 

[Krystyna23040]

6.3 this morning. Had my Linwoods ground flaxseeds and hemp seeds mixed with kefir and inulin with a dollop mascarpone cheese on top for breakfast - it was beyond delicious.

Hardly increased carbs at all so thank you @lindisfel for pointing that out to me - and thank you @ianpspurs for the rather delicious sounding biscuit recipe with flaxseeds and inulin. I will definitely try that.

 

[Annb]

BG at 3.30 am 13.4. Just now 12.9.
Much of my pain has disappeared this morning and has receded into my hip, where it started a couple of weeks ago. So we're looking up. Much to do today that I have failed to do in the last couple of days in particular. Must try not to push it too hard in case it all comes back again. Poor Neil made himself a loaf of bread during the night but he must have forgotten to put yeast in it, it is a sad looking piece of unlevened, hard, undigestible material but he says it is edible if cut very thin and toasted. He has run out of bread flour as well, so will have to wait to make more after the next shopping trip (Thursday, while I am having my US scan at the hospital).

 

[RFSMarch]

Nice to see you posting again @RFSMarch .
Good pre national bin day Ladies and Gentlemen. All other fictional genders can go fly a kite, ah the benefits of being old and grumpy.

Today blood blood sugars 7.4 No comment from me, me’s and myself.

Again today’s posting has to brief, places to go, things to do and lastly people to annoy if they try to pull the woke nonsense.

Now it’s time to renew my subscription to “Grumpy Weelky”
Stay safe, stay warm.

Thank you. I might only be able to dip in first thing in the mornings and then get on with the grind of trying to develop a side hustle as a copywriter, try and find more freelance or even permanent work, yada yada. When can I retire? Oh when I am 100? ok. *Actually I think I get my IBM pension in about a decade's time so... yay.

 

[RFSMarch]

Really great to hear from you @RFSMarch . Please do post whatever is on your mind.

Oh god - my mind has been a dark and horrible place in this 8-week long Blue January! I blame finally succumbing to the signs I had probably been ignoring since 2019 and admitting that I was actually menopausal. Since getting the gel and tablets a lot of the crippling brain fog has gone, and I am a bit more of a functioning adult. God bless my bestie who is younger than I am and she was the one that gently suggested that some of the exhaustion and concentration issues I have had for the last few years was most likely that.

 

[jjraak]

Oh god - my mind has been a dark and horrible place in this 8-week long Blue January! I blame finally succumbing to the signs I had probably been ignoring since 2019 and admitting that I was actually menopausal. Since getting the gel and tablets a lot of the crippling brain fog has gone, and I am a bit more of a functioning adult. God bless my bestie who is younger than I am and she was the one that gently suggested that some of the exhaustion and concentration issues I have had for the last few years was most likely that.

Not my field, clearly

But my other half has found very similar results .

She's a heavy advocate of hrt & gel...( & Loves Davina McCall for her work breaking down barriers & improving information )

Hugs for the muddled confusion & energy losses
Most distressing

But a huge win for taking notice of a good friends advice .

Sure life looks a lot brighter now .

 

[ianpspurs]

Dydd Gŵyl Dewi Hapus all from Little America. There and back, an old geezer's journey across the worst of the sinking, cracking, undulating and winding fen roads earlier because the much better route is being excavated and gentrified. Collected 1 yo grandson and safely delivered him here which is a blessing so thanks be to God. Same journey tomorrow for immunotherapy but I'll take the venerable RR now I'm sure of the route. The scheduled other two grandchildren are elsewhere today as 10 yo grandson is ill. MIL is now eating and drinking so may be discharged Friday which will save JKP the round trip to Bury St Edmunds and ridiculous parking fees. Not to mention stress. @RFSMarch wonderful to see you here and good news on the exercise, handicap dropping, scientific approach and help with the other problem. @Krystyna23040 good news on the drop in fbg and breakfast. For the cheesecake base obviously use butter to bind it and a spell in the fridge is useful. Try this for the cheese for an aspirational taste. I use The Grape Tree linseed milled with the flat blade of a Nutribullet and obviously bulk foods inulin. @dunelm and @gennepher thanks for delighting us with your art. So tempting to see the green shoots of common sense but its always the hope that kills. BFN chums.

 

[Annb]

Oh god - my mind has been a dark and horrible place in this 8-week long Blue January! I blame finally succumbing to the signs I had probably been ignoring since 2019 and admitting that I was actually menopausal. Since getting the gel and tablets a lot of the crippling brain fog has gone, and I am a bit more of a functioning adult. God bless my bestie who is younger than I am and she was the one that gently suggested that some of the exhaustion and concentration issues I have had for the last few years was most likely that.

So glad to see you here on the forum again. It's a good place to unload some of those stresses and strains of modern life which seem to be piling up on your shoulders right now. Great that your friend advised you about menopausal symptoms and the help that is ot there for you. You need some optimism in your life and with the HRT and gel things should get much better, allowing the rest of your problems to have less impact on your life. Keep posting when you feel like it and let us all know how you are getting along.

 

[Annb]

Does anyone think that, with the current financial problems, more people are taking the advice to cook from scratch, rather than buy in ready-made meals and this is contributing to less of the raw ingredients on the shelves, and higher prices of those raw materials? As a rule you get better food cooked from scratch, so it's all to the good, but I think that some of our shops aren't geared up for a changing market. Or perhaps, some producers. The wholesale market, I suspect, isn't as flexible as it once was. Or is it just on the Islands?

 

[ianpspurs]

card members get 20% off meat Does anyone think that, with the current financial problems, more people are taking the advice to cook from scratch, rather than buy in ready-made meals and this is contributing to less of the raw ingredients on the shelves, and higher prices of those raw materials? As a rule you get better food cooked from scratch, so it's all to the good, but I think that some of our shops aren't geared up for a che asanging market. Or perhaps, some producers. The wholesale market, I suspect, isn't as flexible as it once was. Or is it just on the Islands?

I mostly eat salad. Both Ocado and Waitrose have been well stocked with my staples - cucumber, tomato, radish, spring onions, celery and leaves. At least one son has calculated they spend less by using Gousto than going shopping then figuring out a menu. Plenty of ev olive oil but price has risen. Aspirational farm shops have veggies but at a premium. We don't use physical supermarkets much but Waitrose seemed to be well stocked last week: catch weight swede and celeriac, several types of carrots, grandchildren's favourite, and brassicas (I like kalettes). Ocado delivered today - no subs and no limit on the salad stuff we wanted. JKP reckoned by using vouchers and deals she saved about 40% so value is out there. TLDR?.

 

[Annb]

I mostly eat salad. Both Ocado and Waitrose have been well stocked with my staples - cucumber, tomato, radish, salad onions, celery and leaves. At least one son has calculated they spend less by using Gousto than going shopping then figuring out a menu. Plenty of ev olive oil but price has risen. Aspirational farm shops have veggies but at a premium. We don't use physical supermarkets much but Waitrose seemed to be well stocked last week: catch weight swede and celeriac, several types of carrots and brassicas (I like kalettes). We try to buy a Sunday joint from Waitrose - 20% off with loyalty card (and "free" coffee). Meat cut to size where feasible and "forgotten" cuts like ox cheek. Ocado delivered today - no subs and no limit on the salad stuff we wanted. JKP reckoned by using vouchers and deals she saved about 40% so value is out there. TLDR?.

Must depend on where you live then. My brother, in Swindon tells me that their fortnightly grocery order is usually short of items or contains too many subs, these days. So it is difficult to buy enough for their free delivery. Tinned, dry and frozen are OK but fresh is becoming difficult.

Here, we don't use deliveries - Neil is happy to go himself and make his own selection - sometimes good, sometimes not what I would have chosen. Some things, especially fruit and salads, are in short supply, or not there at all. Eggs were a problem this week. Bread flour is often difficult to get. Milk isn't always there. In any case the range of foods here is quite limited. Ready meals are there in abundance though.

We've just had a notice through the door to say that our bins are to emptied less frequently, cost saving, I suppose. Trouble is, it doesn't say when the new regime is to start so we don't know when to put the bins out. Have to see if I can see anything on the council website.

Edit: Just checked - their website hasn't been updated. So, who knows when it has to be?

 

[lindisfel]

Sorry to hear bird flu has mutated in Cambodia and got In the human population. Roughly 50% of the human infections led to death.
Will be very dangerous if it gets into human population world wide.
We have no immunity I hope they get something to halt it, I wouldn't fancy another Black Death.
D.

 

[Annb]

Sorry to hear bird flu has mutated in Cambodia and got In the human population. Roughly 50% of the human infections led to death.
Will be very dangerous if it gets into human population world wide.
We have no immunity I hope they get something to halt it, I wouldn't fancy another Black Death.
D.

I hope there is already something being worked on to help to treat any potential spread of the disease in Cambodia (and the rest of the world, of course, if it does spread). Not to be complacent, of course, but it seems as though transmission from person to person is not easy. Most infections are associated with close contact with live or dead infected birds.

 

[RFSMarch]

Does anyone think that, with the current financial problems, more people are taking the advice to cook from scratch, rather than buy in ready-made meals and this is contributing to less of the raw ingredients on the shelves, and higher prices of those raw materials? As a rule you get better food cooked from scratch, so it's all to the good, but I think that some of our shops aren't geared up for a changing market. Or perhaps, some producers. The wholesale market, I suspect, isn't as flexible as it once was. Or is it just on the Islands?

I remember during that pandemic when everyone was loading up on rice and pasta - I had my pick of cauliflowers and cabbage and stuff I needed for most of my diabetic diet needs. I actually posted in NextDoor that I must be the only person in town who didn't give a ... Castlemaine XXXX (there's an ad reference for you) that were was no rice and pasta! Someone in the app got really mad and told me that wasn't very nice!!! (Probably as they loaded up for a year's supply of Fusili!)

 

[gennepher]

Good morning everyone. A quick toe in the water as we have no time to stand and stare. There may be movement of cars in a wee while but fist I need to investigate where the aroma of brewing koffy is coming from. Art bit - the next bit. Hope you all have a wonderful Wednesday. Now where is that koffy.


View attachment 59629

The rock protecting the light house against the high powered waves.
Hope that coffee was good @dunelm