It is a long time since I posted last, but, here I am, 6 months since I started the Blood Sugar Diet, or rather my new eating plan as I like to call it. A “diet” feels like something you go on and then off at the end. I have finally accepted the fact that this is an eating plan for the rest of my life.
I started in March, officially “finished ” after 8 weeks but decided to continue until I got sick of it…but to my surprise I am still happy eating this way. I have allowed myself a small leeway, experimented on a few foods and have even been out for many meals. It is amazing to find the right food on menus because I never “saw” them previously, only all the carb foods ! I have lost 20 lbs, not as much as a lot of you, but I am very happy, and will continue to try for about 10 more lbs if possible. This is the lowest weight I have been for about 45 years, people are noticing, clothes are quite loose, old clothes are coming out of boxes and I feel as if I have a new wardrobe.
But my biggest thrill was my first visit to my endocrinist since I started the eating plan and I was curious to see the results of my HbA1 test and see his surprise……well, his first surprise was to see that my insulin was either down to 6 units at some times or none at all. He looked rather bemused then took my test and I am 6.1. He said that I am now in the ideal level….hurrah !! Then he wanted to know what I had been doing so I hestitatingly told him { I had been reading all the forums about others getting no support from their doctors, indeed, some were quite hostile, and I suspected my guy might be like that } but he was delighted and curious, wanting to know all about it and was musing out loud that he must tell other patients. That was my crowning moment for the whole of the 6 months .
I read through some posts last night but couldn’t find any names I started with except CaptainLynne, all the kind people who helped me on my way, Bill1954, Hashimoto [ who turned into Judith ! ] and many others. Bill1954 even chastised me gently for calling it ” this wretched diet “, this was in the first week if I remember correctly.
So, thank you all….I will continue my quest and occasionly read the posts to keep in touch with you all. Time for bed, this is down-under and 10.00pm.
jillyB
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Hi JillyB, glad to meet someone who has done it and still enjoying the benefits. Also, you are the first person to mention insulin besides myself and a lot of others on this way of life are not diabetic so can just drop it if they feel like it. For me, 10 weeks in and only lost just under 10 lbs, it is not a race to become slim, it is a way of life and to save me from the horrors that diabetes can bring in later life. I too hope to be able to severely reduce or even stop my insulin injections and I have gone down from 37 units to 26. I am seeing morning readings of 90 to 110 but dropped the units by just one a couple of nights ago and the next morning I was up to 120 and again the next day, 120, so I have put it back to 26. It was just the test I needed to make me realise I still have some way to go. I have 10kg to lose so maybe when I see a shift in that my b/g will continue to improve. Last HBA1c 6.7 down from 8.2. I have another test in December and hope to be down to 6.0 or lower.
Keep us informed, it is always good to hear what happens after the rush of enthusiasm for posting has died down and life just continues. Keep on keeping on.
Denise
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Really, enjoyed reading your post, jillyB. I’m at an early stage (just over two weeks in) and I’m not diabetic. But it is so inspiring to read posts like yours. Great to hear about the response you got from your endocrinologist. The results speak for themselves!
Anyway, just wanted to say thanks for posting. Best of luck with your other 10 lbs. -
Hi jillyB
Great to see your results so far. How long do you think you’ll stay on the BSD?
Pleased that your endocrinologist reacted in the way he did. The word is spreading
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Hi JillyB
Congratulations on your good results. I totally agree that when you are diabetic this is a way of life as we cannot put any weight back on (as Professor Taylor says in the forward to MMs book). -
Hi Sunshine-girl
I am diabetic and was on insulin also. I suddenly became very ill and was admitted to hospital and diagnosed with diabetes. There was quite a lot of debate between the doctors about which type of diabetes I had. After a lot of thought they decided I had type 1 and I was discharged with a supply of insulin (Lantus for night time and Novarapid after each meal). Since then there has been speculation about which sort of diabetes I had. It was quite confusing but a nurse did tell me that it didn’t matter what the diagnosis was because the important thing was that I got the right treatment.I started on the BSD because I was gradually becoming less sensitive to the insulin (when diagnosed, and a few years after I was very sensitive to insulin) and had also developed retinopathy. I was really hopeful that I could help the retinopathy with the BSD.
Luckily, I must have had type 2. On the BSD my insulin sensitivity improved to what it was when first diagnosed and the retinopathy has completely gone. I think my visceral fat didn’t go first – I think it didn’t start going until I was close to my ideal weight and my waist started getting smaller. Once I got closer to my ideal weight an amazing thing happened – I suddenly no longer need the insulin. None at all.
I am assuming that you are on Lantus which is apparently notorious for putting on weight and I am sure it was the Lantus that contributed to my very slow weight loss – 1stone 1lb in 4 months (although it did’t help that I was guessing the weight of my food). I have lost another 8lb since the beginning of September and am very close to my ideal weight.
I totally agree that this has to be a way of life if you have diabetes. Prof Taylor says in the forward to MMs book that you only stay diabetes free if you don’t put the weight back on. In my case that means I have to stay on the BSD for life. Actually that is not going to be a hardship as I love the food now.
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Hi sunshine-girl,
Nice to receive your reply. interesting to hear about another diabetic, or are we now ?? I remember reading in MM’s book that it is harder for a long time diabetic to completely reverse diabetes. I was diagnosed over 20 years ago, so I guess this means me. I fluctuate between 4.5 and 7 ….perhaps this is the best I will get, but it is certainly better than nothing. However, I am thinking that a further weight loss might do the trick. My last 10 lbs is proving very stubborn to remove……my body is determined to keep it on, and I am equally determined to get it off ! It has probably become very comfortable with excess weight as I have been overweight all my life. I have never had this determination before and am quite surprised with myself…..I think it may be because people are noticing my loss and comment favourably
on it, and I can see results in the mirror for the first time. Also, I am not treating this as a diet then reverting to my old ways, but realising that this is my new way of life.
Lovely to hear from you sunshine-girl ,jillyB
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Hi captainlynne,
At this point I think I might be staying on this style of eating, perhaps slightly relaxing it a bit….but NOT much !!
I have realised for a while that carbs do not agree with me, however, I DO like them, but this way of eating seems to have changed my attitude, but I also know that if I start to eat them, telling myself that a little won’t hurt, I will be right into them again. So, I intend to keep eating this way always.
Nice to hear from you captainlynne.jillyB
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Hi KrysiaD, how did you ‘suddenly’ know you didn’t need insulin. Had you reduced and reduced over time. I reduced my insulin then had to reduce my glycazides because I read that it is them that cause the hypos. As I was doing a lot of exercise I was sometimes getting very low readings. I now think I should go back to the original dose of Glycazide and concentrate on reducing my insulin more. After all, it is the needles I want out of my life.
JillyB , I think you are like minded with me and realise that this is a way of life. People ask what will you do after the diet but I am not on a diet. Yes, it is sometimes difficult but more difficult than injecting daily and taking multiple drugs and waiting for the next symptom to rear its ugly head. No, this is the easy part. This is why I think this has worked for me. It is the opposite of a vicious circle. I stick rigidly to the plan, I see a reduction in my symptoms so I become more determined to stick to the plan. Going back is not an option.
Next time someone says it must be hard I will tell them just how hard the alternative is.
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Hi jillyB
Exactly why I have kept well away from the carbs!
Years ago my father had to lose weight. He would walk past a certain shop selling bakery products muttering ‘poison’ under his breath. I found myself doing the same at the beginning of my BSD journey 😱
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Hi Sunshine-girl, because I had to take meal time insulin I have to test before each meal. Since being on the BSD I have also have tested at 1 hour and 2 hours after my meals.
In August my numbers actually weren’t that great – even though I had lost 1 stone 1lb and I knew I had to refocus.
On 3rd Sept I started using fat secret and did the 800 properly with 25 g of carbs. The weight now started coming off my waist and suddenly after some meals my blood sugars were dropping dramatically. So I had to start popping glucose tablets. I then started monitoring my meals and waiting to see if I needed insulin or not before I injected.Over the next few days I was only injecting one meal a day, and then none but was still injecting Lantus at night. I continued doing meal time testing and I was going quite low after meals (in the low 4s). I cut down a unit of Lantus 3 nights in a row but started getting lower readings at random times in the day (I tested when I felt I was having a hypo and was getting readings of around 3.8).
A week ago I stopped the Lantus completely because it was getting scary. I kept the carbs low and just did 1 hour and two hour tests after meals. Most one hour readings are only just above 6.0. The 2 hour tests are between 4.5 and 5.9. I never in all the 4 and a half years of using meal time insulin got anywhere as low as that. So although I have been following the the BSD since 1st May all this happened since 3 Sept.
I was not put on medication only insulin. I have read recently that early insulin therapy preserves beta cells but some of the oral medications exhaust the cells because they are forcing them to workm
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Thanks for that KrysiaD, you have clarified something, I will keep the Glycazide stopped (or reduced from 90 to 60) for now and leave my insulin where it is. As I see my weight go down and regular readings below 100 (5.5) I will try again to reduce the insulin. I think I may need to start, first of all counting carbs, I have been relying on the meal plans in the book but have probably been on between 50 and 80 grams. I get the recipe book this week so hope to get more inspiration and some of the meals now are getting repeated too often. Try to get between 25 and 50 to start with.
I think the first thing I need to worry about is having an official HBA1c at around 5.5. Fingers crossed for Novembers test.
Thanks again
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Sunshine-girl
For me it looks like the carbs are as important as the calories when it comes to losing the visceral fat. What is interesting is that I bought a pair of new jeans mid-August – they were quite tight, especially around the waist. I wore them today and they were so loose around the waist that they kept sliding down. This, I think, may confirm my feeling that I have lost visceral fat on the low carbs. Usually I never lose weight around my waist but usually lose weight from places that I don’t want to such as my face.
Good luck with your November HBIAc and with lowering your carbs.JillyB
Bill1954’s thread was the first thread I read and it got me believing I could do this. I am so pleased that captainlynne is still on this forum as I have learnt so much from her posts and will learn so much more as she continues her journey.
What is so nice is that there are so many people passing on their knowledge of this way of eating on this forum. It is so helpful because we are at the start of a diet revolution and our results will help to eventually overturn the current bad advice. -
I am keen to get my carbs down but right now I keep making silly mistakes like the baked beans this morning. Most days I am under 60 so getting there. I am hoping the new cook book has done the calculations but if not I will calculate all the recipes before I make them.
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Hi Sunshine-girl
I have made loads of silly mistakes with the carbs over the first 4 months on BSD but the good thing is that they are not harming us as they are all good carbs on the BSD. I have to confess that I haven’t followed the recipes in the book but have just taken out the bad carbs from all my favourite meals and just upped the good carbs a bit. The worst thing I did was guessing portion size. I thought I was really good at it but was underestimating by at least 50%. No wonder my blood sugars were a bit erratic when I was injecting insulin.
I never realised that non starchy vegetables had so many carbs – I thought they were carb free. The real surprise was tomatoes.Fat secret has been a revalation to me because it calculates everything and saves all my favourite meals.