Anyone else pre-diabetic?

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catofisis
catofisis Posts: 34
in Introduce Yourself
Hi all,

I'm a new member here, just joined this week. I'm 31 and from the U.K. My starting weight here is 203 lbs (14.5 stone) and I am aiming to lose about 4 stones, although my first goal is to get under 200 lbs! I used to weigh 10 stones 10 years ago and it was the weight I was happiest at and looked best at. Thinking about that time, I was a LOT more active then...

The main reason I want to lose weight is that I have been recently diagnosed with IGT, i.e. pre-diabetic. Diabetes runs in my family, my Grandma has diabetes and lost her sight many years ago as a result, and my Dad was also diagnosed pre-diabetic but has controlled his blood sugars through dieting. What scares me is how I never thought I would be affected by this sort of health concern at my age. I want to learn as much as I can about nutrition and fitness, and lose weight which will hopefully help me not to develop diabetes.

Since I was diagnosed (two and a half months ago) I have cut out sugar from tea and coffee and practically given up chocolate, as a result I have lost 7 lbs. I'm still learning about the nutrition side of it though, still seem to be a bit over on sugars, and I would like to be a lot fitter.

Reading the success stories on here has been inspirational! I feel like this is something I could actually do! I've not read any stories from people who have diabetes or similar issues, but I hope to be able to chat to some of you who have good tips on getting my sugar levels down!!

(I did ask my Dad to help...his advice was "cake...or death"...yeh he has a dry sense of humour)

Replies

  • jw17695
    jw17695 Posts: 438 Member
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    I know this is way different but I'm a type one diabetic. For obvious reasons, I am insulin dependent and stuck with it for life. If you ever need anyone to to talk to, there is always me! :)
  • catofisis
    catofisis Posts: 34
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    Thanks JW. Is it OK if I add you as a friend? I am still learning on the whole low/no sugars thing...as is my husband who does most of our cooking. Always looking for low sugar recipes!!
    Well done on being over halfway to your goal!
    Cat
  • harley0269
    harley0269 Posts: 384 Member
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    YES I am.
    Last month i was diagnosed.
    my doctor sent me to a dietician & she sent me to this site (myfitnesspal.com).
    I just joined this week. this website is what told me how many calories etc i need.
    my dietician didnt say how many calories & etc i should have, but her meal planner was pretty easy to follow.
    mostly veggies (the greener the better)
    im struggling more with cutting back the carbs (bread is my comfort food) & ofcourse the sweets.
    she did say if i MUST have chocolate, let it be the dark chocolate. whew! dark is my fav! lol
    i havent checked it out yet but there is a website thats suppose to be good. its www.diabetes.org
    hopefully i will be able to reverse this prediabetes by taking off the weight. Im at 212 right now & want to get back down to 125. i dont know how many stones that is but it must be a truckload! :laugh:
    Anyways feel free to add me, maybe we can learn about this stuff together.
    ~Wendy
  • jw17695
    jw17695 Posts: 438 Member
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    Check out dLife. They have a website and regular apps for your phone.
  • catofisis
    catofisis Posts: 34
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    Hey...bread is (used to be?) a BIG comfort food for me too. I've stopped eating white bread every day though ( I don't believe in giving up anything "completely" otherwise I binge) now I just have it a couple of times a week. & I am with you on the dark chocolate! Since I cut down on chocolate/sweets, I thought to myself "well if I am only going to have it occasionally then I will have some expensive, extremely GOOD dark chocolate from time to time" - last time I was in London I went to Paul A. Young's chocolatier shop in Camden Passage where can be bought possibly the best dark chocolate in England. One mouthful lasts me a fortnight! So that's my advice - pay out and make it last!
    Cat
  • catofisis
    catofisis Posts: 34
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    BTW thanks for the site recommends guys. I have bookmarked and will check them out.
  • soccermum75
    soccermum75 Posts: 588 Member
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    i had gestational diabetes (insulin shots 3 times a day) so i am at high risk of developing diabetes. plus it runs in the family, my mom is diabetic and my sister also had gestational diabetes even though she is thin.
  • mrsmmg
    mrsmmg Posts: 1
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    Hi,
    I am also new to this site as well as newly diagnosed with prediabetes. I am really mad at myself about it too! I was gestationally diabetic 17 years ago, so I've known I was at risk, yet still, despite working in healthcare and seeing the end stage results of diabetes, I still somehow allowed myself to get up to a very unhealthy weight and put myself at risk. Well, no more. I am going to do something about it.

    I've have started a new exercise program and have already lost 3 pounds and my blood glucose is already coming down in a short time since I started. My diet was never horrible, but I've eliminated all sugar and am watching portions now. I am committed to a lifestyle change as I do not want to be a patient for anything other than routine health maintenance visits! I am so glad I found this site!
  • catofisis
    catofisis Posts: 34
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    Good on you for deciding to take control of your health. I never really worried about being a few lbs over, however there was a definite point in the last year (I didn't tend to weigh myself but I reckon it's when I went over 14ish stones) when I kind of "knew" my body was feeling unhealthy. This point was about 6 months before I got diagnosed though so even that feeling wasn't enough to spur me to get healthy! In fact what did it was my circulation getting sluggish which was kind of scary!
    So far this site is helping me a lot especially the daily breakdown of nutrients.
    Cat

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