starting over, but now with Type 2 Diabetes

G0ldengirl68

Thought I was doing good, keeping weight down, lots of exercise, then Winter, Covid, and a surprising diagnosis after yearly lab workup, I get 7.0 Abnormal on the A1C I think it's called. Ok, so I'll deal with it through diet and exercise.

I need help setting my macros, and total cals per day. I'm wondering about setting the carbs way low, like I read 35%/35/30 Protein, Fats, carbs. Lots of opinions but I figure if I can come close. What I don't get is whether or not my TDEE changes. I get 1400 some when I calculate, all before the diagnosis.

Would anyone be able to help me with that? Someone with Type 2 would be wonderful, but I know others may know as well Denise

rheddmobile

Oh hi! Bad luck, but not the end of the world. My a1c was 11 when I was diagnosed and now with diet and exercise it’s consistently under 5. It’s a bit of a learning curve but you can do it too.

I strongly recommend buying a blood glucose meter and strips for yourself and using them often. Most insurance will not pay for a meter unless you are insulin dependent, but you can get a kit with everything you need for less than $40 and strips are not that expensive if you buy them on Amazon rather than Walgreens. My meter is Bayer Contour Next which has a high accuracy rating, but the Walmart Relion is another low cost alternative. Then test after every meal until you learn how your body tolerates different numbers and kinds of carbs. Without a meter you are just guessing because every diabetic is different. For example, I can eat tons of tomatoes, fruit, and sweet potatoes without a spike, but hardly any processed flour or rice, and I have a friend who is the exact opposite. Some diabetics like me find their glucose drops after weight lifting, and some have it temporarily rise due to stress.

As far as macros, eating fewer carbs will definitely help but you won’t know how few is necessary for you to stay within a good range unless you test. I have one diabetic friend who eats straight up carnivore - no carbs at all! and another who is vegan and eats more than 50% carbs. Both have good glucose control. There is more than one way to skin a cat, and knowing yourself and your preferences and your body isn’t something someone else can do for you!

What works for me is eating between 30 - 45 g net carbs per meal, and about 150 g per day. How much you eat at one sitting is more important than how many you eat daily. Timing of exercise is also important, because exercise uses glucose from your bloodstream. I am a runner and after a long run I can eat over 90g without a spike. So yes, you can probably up your carbs when you exercise and add back in your exercise calories. I don’t like to eat fewer than 150g per day because I start going into ketosis and getting symptoms of keto flu. Keto is a great way to eat for diabetics but you need to either do it or not do it - dipping in and out of ketosis by eating just about enough carbs to be on the edge is very uncomfortable!

One other thing, from your picture you don’t appear obese and you have mentioned you exercise regularly. Because of this I want to make you aware of something to bring up with your doctors. There is a kind of diabetes called LADA, which is basically type 1 adult onset diabetes caused by autoimmune problems. Unlike type 2 which is caused by lifestyle and can be helped through lifestyle modification, LADA is progressive and will eventually require medication. Because it’s comparatively rare, it is very common for doctors to misdiagnose LADA as type 2, sometimes for several years. Since you don’t fit the profile of a typical person who gets type 2 I hope you will specifically bring this up to your doctor and ask why they have ruled this out in your case.

Best of luck, feel free to ask anything you want to know!

G0ldengirl68

Wow, I certainly appreciate your letter and I am going to copy and keep it. I have a telmed/phone appt Thurs. to discuss meters, diet etc. All I have is a MD, or GPs assistant and on low income I don't have a choice. But, I manage my money very good so I want to pick my own meter. Sticking my finger does not appeal, but who would like that. I think you are amazing and I want to do the same. They sent me out to get Metformin and it is not going to work for me, no surprise, hate drugs. But I can stick to my cals per day, and change them up for this.

I am 5'2" and right at 136. Most fat has accumulated around my midsection, belly, I guess you could say trunk area. Lowering those carbs will help with that. I will bring that up to her about the LADA issue. I am sorry to say this, but honestly, I do not believe everything a doc tells me. I've brought my own cholestrol down without meds, and I brought my thyroid to normal. This last lab show short on D3, and I'd been taking 2000 iu's a day. Now she has me on 5 of those a day. I stopped the metformin because it was causing digestion problems. I also had overcome acid reflux, and have reduced what I believe to be LPR.

Thanks so much for writing to me, I understand I need the meter and I didn't want to do it. But I feel a bit more confident now about using one so I can really "know how the foods I eat" react re: glucose/blood sugar.

Really can't thank you enough. I am 68, and I don't want to give up just because I'm that #68 Denise PS 40$ works great for me and I wrote down the name of your 2 suggestions I will let you know after I do about maybe a week or so, testing, eating, and my exercise-walking Oops forgot about my TDEE, does that stay the same? I think logically it would, just adjust the macros

rheddmobile

If you can tolerate the metformin at all, try it for a while - it has helpful side effects including appetite suppression for some people. Many people find they have less problem if they start at 500 and slowly increase the dose. Eating with it also helps.There’s also an extended release which may help. I’m lucky in that it never did upset my stomach. Tell your doc it is messing up your stomach and they can get you a different formulation.

The finger stick was scary for me at first, so much so that I made my husband do it! But now I could do it in my sleep, it doesn’t bother me at all. The Bayer kit comes with a thingy which does the poke for you, and you can set it not to go too deep, it’s really simple.

When you put in your goal in MFP your base calories are calculated from your activity level. What most do is to set the activity level to sedentary and then add purposeful exercise, which adds more calories per day. TDEE is total daily energy expenditure, so it’s your base level (on MFP including energy generated by digestion and non-exercise activity) plus your exercise calories. If you have a regular active job (teachers who walk all day, construction workers) you can set your activity level higher, but for most people it’s not necessary. Just put in your weight and your desired rate of loss and it should tell you your calories. Diabetes doesn’t change how much energy you use.

Yes, definitely keep me updated on how you do!

Megan_smartiepants1970

I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in 2019 ...fast forward to now ...I am considered pre diabetic now ...off all meds for diabetes and I have lost 50 lbs so far ...I am a keto'er ..my diary is open

G0ldengirl68

rheddmobile wrote: »

If you can tolerate the metformin at all, try it for a while - it has helpful side effects including appetite suppression for some people. Many people find they have less problem if they start at 500 and slowly increase the dose. Eating with it also helps.There’s also an extended release which may help. I’m lucky in that it never did upset my stomach. Tell your doc it is messing up your stomach and they can get you a different formulation.

The finger stick was scary for me at first, so much so that I made my husband do it! But now I could do it in my sleep, it doesn’t bother me at all. The Bayer kit comes with a thingy which does the poke for you, and you can set it not to go too deep, it’s really simple.

When you put in your goal in MFP your base calories are calculated from your activity level. What most do is to set the activity level to sedentary and then add purposeful exercise, which adds more calories per day. TDEE is total daily energy expenditure, so it’s your base level (on MFP including energy generated by digestion and non-exercise activity) plus your exercise calories. If you have a regular active job (teachers who walk all day, construction workers) you can set your activity level higher, but for most people it’s not necessary. Just put in your weight and your desired rate of loss and it should tell you your calories. Diabetes doesn’t change how much energy you use.

Yes, definitely keep me updated on how you do!

Will get back to you after 10:40 doc appt, thank you again, so much, Denise

Megan_smartiepants1970 wrote: »

I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in 2019 ...fast forward to now ...I am considered pre diabetic now ...off all meds for diabetes and I have lost 50 lbs so far ...I am a keto'er ..my diary is open

Thank you Megan, wonderful to hear, very encouraging! I will be posting more after doc (phone appt) appt after 10:40 although, taking my dog out showering and a short errand, then afternoon before I get back here, thank you too for posting for me, I am very grateful!! Denise

G0ldengirl68

Here's a snip of my diary just to get your feedback on whether or not I'm in the ballpark with carbs? I do understand this could change a lot when I am testing, but I can't test til after my appt on Thursday so I have to guess. I went with your macros Rheddmobile, because like I say, I have no number of my own body yet Thanks again, and I won't be right back since I have to do some things. Did I tell you I did my walk last night on or 2nd floor that goes all the way around the secure building, lastnight? I usually burn right around 200 but I wasn't that last night because of not doing it for about 2 months now. I messed up on when my doc appt is, and thought it was today. More brain food I suspect

G0ldengirl68

Megan_smartiepants1970 wrote: »

I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in 2019 ...fast forward to now ...I am considered pre diabetic now ...off all meds for diabetes and I have lost 50 lbs so far ...I am a keto'er ..my diary is open

hi again megan! Congrats on your 50 lb loss, and Keto I know nothing about, yet, but I will take a look at your diary. I appreciate the offer so much as I am scraping for ideas on what to eat Denise

G0ldengirl68

rheddmobile wrote: »

If you can tolerate the metformin at all, try it for a while - it has helpful side effects including appetite suppression for some people. Many people find they have less problem if they start at 500 and slowly increase the dose. Eating with it also helps.There’s also an extended release which may help. I’m lucky in that it never did upset my stomach. Tell your doc it is messing up your stomach and they can get you a different formulation.

The finger stick was scary for me at first, so much so that I made my husband do it! But now I could do it in my sleep, it doesn’t bother me at all. The Bayer kit comes with a thingy which does the poke for you, and you can set it not to go too deep, it’s really simple.

When you put in your goal in MFP your base calories are calculated from your activity level. What most do is to set the activity level to sedentary and then add purposeful exercise, which adds more calories per day. TDEE is total daily energy expenditure, so it’s your base level (on MFP including energy generated by digestion and non-exercise activity) plus your exercise calories. If you have a regular active job (teachers who walk all day, construction workers) you can set your activity level higher, but for most people it’s not necessary. Just put in your weight and your desired rate of loss and it should tell you your calories. Diabetes doesn’t change how much energy you use.

Yes, definitely keep me updated on how you do!

I am really not into the side-effects I'm having and don't think I should take this stuff. I already have acid-reflux, esophageal spasms, and LPR (self-diagnosed anyway) although the latter I am not positive because no docs around here seem to have the vaguest idea what it is ;( I also have what feels like a slightly enlarged spleen (right area anyway). They did an ultra sound, and an upper gi, supposedly to see if I had acid reflux, yes I do they said, but not one thing seen/found with my spleen. Funny though, I can feel the dang thing, whatever it is.

I'm trying to get moved closer to better medical. That can't come soon enough for me. I love alternative methods to fix something but I also believe in conventional medicine. I just don't want to take anything I don't absolutely have to. Every night I get cramping, and it didn't start until the Metformin. I always take it with food, and didn't notice any other side effects except increase in tinnitus, and also headaches. All of these things came on my like someone put a curse on me 5 years ago when I moved here. I was 63, thin, muscled up and felt wonderful. Now it's like I aged bigtime just moving here.

Enough for now, just a bit discouraged although I've lost 2 solid pounds, check and double check, first thing in a.m. bare-butt naked, so maybe just the cutting of carbs. Hope so, like to thinkin can do this without the Metformin Denise

G0ldengirl68

Hello gals, wanted to update you on what kit they got for me through my insurance. It's called the Freedom Freestyle Light. I watched a youtube video so I'll know how to do it. Have to wait til I hear the Pharmacy has the kit. They'll text me. I haven't done very good with my diary, but I am doing great on the walking again. I did at least an hour last night, especially because a neighbor guy was out there and we walked and talked at a very good pace. I've also been going my half hour walks. Foods seem pretty easy for me, with just a few adjustments. The biggies was my M&M caramels, potato chips with lunch sandwich, and too much honey. I also stopped the baking

I did get my Metformin Glucophage changed to the Glumetza I think it is. Can't find my note on that and still have to go get it at Riteaid. It is a time-released I'll try to see if my stomach evens out.

I seem to want to eat a little bit here and there all during the day, but I can over-eat my dinner. I don't feel starved, kinda weird, but I want to eat, but mostly snacks, and steel cut oats for breakfast, with some safe fixins

G0ldengirl68

couldn't tolerate the meds, but the good news is I am back on MFP as in "active" that is, lost 12 lbs since Jan. 20, 2021, and numbers are down in the pre-diabetic range. I joined a group here for Diabetics, and they even have a section for T2. I hope to truly be active in supporting others, and letting others know me, as well as anyone can online anyway Covid has certainly taken it's toll and it's not finished yet, but thank goodness for realizing and learning so much from being "locked down".

I'm 68 and never thought I'd even get old, when I was young, never thought about it. Immortal right? Well, I have no husband, no children, and truly feel very alone much of the time, but I am staying busy for the most part, dropping to low-carbs has helped with depression, amazingly! I don't find a lot of active people in my teenie town, and am actually looking into moving, maybe back home to Oregon, not sure. I have old friends there. I left so many friends along through the years as I always wanted to move. This time, I do have some roots, and find I am way more tuned into what I truly want to do. I don't just jump into the fire. Although I did when I was diagnosed with the T2. It's paid off for sure, videos, articles MFP, etc.