Type 1 Diabetes

dturn23

Hello all! I am a type 1 diabetic diagnosed at the age of 14 months with a blood sugar of close to 1300 when the doctors finally diagnosed me! Thankfully they found out what was wrong as in a few more hours I wouldn’t even be here today.

I’ve seen the worst this disease has to offer as I watched my younger brother go through many challenges before he passed away at the young age of 34. (He was diagnosed after me when he was 3 1/2).

I’m looking for ideas as to how to lose some weight. I’m literally writing this from my bed at a Walt Disney World Resort. Quite a bit of walking and a stroll around the pool quickly made me get my focus back haha. I know there is a balance of the amount of insulin you take in vs weight loss. As any type 1 would attest, getting your A1C in check is a big priority.

I’m 44 years old
Diabetic for 43 years
5’10”
Range from 190-200 lbs

Would love to connect and share success stories!

collectingblues

It works for us the same way it works for people with functional pancreases: eat less than you burn.

kcs76

Welcome! I don't have any advice other than try to stay within a calorie defecit. Also as a diabetic consult your doctor before beginning any new exercise, but I'm sure you have that locked down. Diabetes, especially T1, is near & dear to my heart. I wish you success!!

klenz525

Hello! I am also a type 1 diabetic and I have struggled to maintain my weight since diagnosis. It is hard to balance while taking exogenous insulin. I follow the keto diet mainly to help with blood sugar control. Feel free to add me and we can commiserate about weight loss as type 1's!

lorrpb

You can set up your stats in MFP, weigh your food on a food scale, and log everything you eat. You can do this to get in the practice of logging.

You should consult with doctor or dietician about how much to lose per week, carb intake, insulin management etc. Don’t just start eating at a deficit on your own.

psuLemon

Tagging @midwesterner85 he is a type I and extremely knowledgeable.

T1DCarnivoreRunner

I was diagnosed when I was 9 with type 1 diabetes. I gained 20 lbs. in the first month, had doubled my weight in the first year, and nearly tripled my weight within a few years. Now you might think that the weight gain was because boys grow at that age, but the reality is that I was growing out more than up. 3 years after being diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, my endocrinologist couldn't believe the amount of insulin I was needing and still had poor control. She said she had seen this once before where a type 1 developed type 2 (this was less common at the time, but is now much more common). There is a formula used to diagnose type 2 in a type 1 using the amount of insulin and body weight. I don't know the exact threshold off the top of my head, but the endo had me studied on an inpatient basis for a few days before officially diagnosing me as type 2. This phenomenon later became known as "double diabetes." I tell you all of that to show you that I struggled with weight immediately upon starting insulin.

I finally started trying to lose weight in 2014. When I did that, I was just trying to track and cut calories, but still eating SAD. I struggled with having to adjust basal rates down regularly and treating lows until I did that. I experienced odd phenomenon that some on MFP would tell you isn't possible. For example, I had plateaus that would last for months and then end with a big "whoosh" of a lot of weight loss over a few days. Still, with meticulous calorie counting, I never lost as quickly as the CICO math would suggest.

Eventually, I decided to cut carbs during a particularly frustrating time. I figured I had little to lose and it would probably make BG easier to manage even if it did nothing for weight loss (as everyone told me calories are all that matter). Indeed, it did help. Finally, the calorie math worked! So I kept cutting carbs further and further until I got to zero (just meat). I do eat carbs if my BG gets low, but it takes usually 1 glucose tablet or maybe 2 in severe cases. Since the calorie math actually works when carbs are taken out of the equation, I can eat more and maintain... which I've been doing lately as I've been increasing running mileage.

Anyway, that is my experience. Do what you will with it, and feel free to ask questions if you would like.

RodaRose

Work closely with a good endo AND nutritionist so that you can loose weight while using the appropriate amount of insulin. Foods that do not spike sugar of course will be easier than others: eggs, beef, lamb, pork, chicken, fish. Also broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, spinach and other low calorie veggies.

bethanyroselinton

T1D here! 28 now, diagnosed at 10. I wear a pump and am getting the Dexcom G6 soon. I've been logging for a week and a half now on MFP and all the lows are driving me crazy! Hate using some of my daily calories on the Capri Suns to get me back in range!

Overall, MFP has been really eye opening to start looking at the calorie count instead of just the carbs as I have only been doing in the past. I do love that eating restrictive calories does require less insulin overall. Any T1Ds feel free to add me!

T1DCarnivoreRunner

bethanyroselinton wrote: »

T1D here! 28 now, diagnosed at 10. I wear a pump and am getting the Dexcom G6 soon. I've been logging for a week and a half now on MFP and all the lows are driving me crazy! Hate using some of my daily calories on the Capri Suns to get me back in range!

Overall, MFP has been really eye opening to start looking at the calorie count instead of just the carbs as I have only been doing in the past. I do love that eating restrictive calories does require less insulin overall. Any T1Ds feel free to add me!

I would suggest doing a full 24 hours of basal testing before proceeding. It sounds like your basal rates, particularly during the day, are set too high. Of course, it is certainly possible that your insulin:carb ratio is too high instead, but you wouldn't know that until proving basal rates are spot on.

earlnabby

T2Dm here so I have nothing to offer in the way of advice but I just wanted to tell you good luck! MFP is a really great tool to use in conjunction with the information you receive from your medical team.

leannemanley1

Hi all, I was diagnosed at 30. Been doing this for about 4years now. Initially lost 50kg and then plateaued. I have picked up about 5kg now due to incorrect eating. I have been put on a new strict eating plan and food diary to monitor my mmol for the next 2 weeks. I'm hoping logging it on here and in my journal, I can see where I'm going wrong.

dturn23

Thank you all so much for your insight! My apologies that i didn't know how to get back into this feed. Thought I'd check in with everyone to see how you've been doing. I've been up and down with success......such as life when trying to lose weight!

Melh1969

Just wanted to say best wishes. My son is a T1. He was diagnosed at 8. It's such a challenging condition to live with, let alone lose weight. Best of luck!