Sugar and carbs - how did you cut it? Looking for success stories...
carlaringuette
Posts: 158 Member
I always seem to be over on my sugar column. We have to get biometric screening at the end of the year and it's my son's wedding in January. I am looking to cut way back on the sugar.
Let background - I am 57 in fairly good health just have a lot of allergies. Go to the gym daily but not loosing much.
I don't do diet drinks because they give me migraines. Looking for natural ways to cut way back on the sugar intake.
Biggest culprit is Dr. Pepper - I am down to one can per day and working on one every other day and eventually none.
Also need help with doing this "simply" (i.e. food prep on weekends, 30 min. meals, shortcuts) because I am dedicated to getting 1 hour at the gym per day on my way home from work and my father in law just moved in with us for the next 3 months. We just moved him out of his house and it has sold. So stress levels are high but it's all good.
I was also allowing myself one Hershey's chocolate nugget in the evenings. Only one, honest!
My husband (who is very skinny and trying to gain weight) has them hidden and that's our little treat each night.
Please be gentle. How did you cut your sugar and carbs down?
Let background - I am 57 in fairly good health just have a lot of allergies. Go to the gym daily but not loosing much.
I don't do diet drinks because they give me migraines. Looking for natural ways to cut way back on the sugar intake.
Biggest culprit is Dr. Pepper - I am down to one can per day and working on one every other day and eventually none.
Also need help with doing this "simply" (i.e. food prep on weekends, 30 min. meals, shortcuts) because I am dedicated to getting 1 hour at the gym per day on my way home from work and my father in law just moved in with us for the next 3 months. We just moved him out of his house and it has sold. So stress levels are high but it's all good.
I was also allowing myself one Hershey's chocolate nugget in the evenings. Only one, honest!
My husband (who is very skinny and trying to gain weight) has them hidden and that's our little treat each night.
Please be gentle. How did you cut your sugar and carbs down?
1
Replies
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do you have any kind of medical reason to cut back on sugar? i have 100+g a day and that hasn't stopped me from losing weight (or maintaining depending on my goal) - but Dr Pepper is a hefty calories for a soda9
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I work out a bit extra sometimes because I make some pretty bomb oatmeal cookies.2
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I didn't get my carbs down, I'm one of those people who feels better eating around 200g of carbs daily, so I can't help you there.
I also didn't try to get my sugar down. What I did do is try to increase stuff I decided I needed more of - protein, fiber, and veggies. As I did that but kept to my calorie goal, my sugar settled to a lower level without me doing anything specific about it.
I would suggest looking back at your diary and figuring out exactly what foods are contributing the excess sugar, and how to either replace them with a substitute, or maybe decide whatever point they are serving isn't necessary at all. I'm sure your one chocolate nugget isn't the culprit!
Also keep in mind that reducing sugar does not necessarily mean losing weight. Calories determine weight loss/gain. If sugary foods are making it difficult to hit your calorie goal though, cutting back can help. I know people have other reasons to cut back on sugar, but you seem to be specifically talking about weight, sorry if I'm not reading it right.
As far as the Dr. Pepper, what are the benefits of drinking it for you? The caffeine? The carbonation? Just something yummy? Often figuring out the "why" can help uncover the best plan. :drinker:8 -
I'm the same as kimny72. I eat about 200g of carbs per day and still lose weight. I have been working to increase fat, protein and fiber for satiety which incidentally decreases my sugar intake, but I don't otherwise intentionally restrict sugar.4
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Yeah, I think one piece of chocolate seems like mental health to me. The Dr Pepper I'd probably work on replacing just because the sugar is so high in it - but even so, one isn't cause for alarm.
I drink coffee and hot tea only, one teaspoon of sugar in each and I'll have two in a day. Dr Pepper has 40g of sugar in one 12 ounce can. That's 10 teaspoons, but still...one can...I mean, some things are worth it.
I had Peeps yesterday. I don't have stuff like that every day, and that was 220 calories of pure sugar. 66g. I make my big-sugar things be treats not daily indulgences, but I'm not giving them up for the rest of my life. Today I'm eating lots of vegetables, no treats and staying in calories.
Peeps, though.3 -
cmriverside wrote: »Yeah, I think one piece of chocolate seems like mental health to me. The Dr Pepper I'd probably work on replacing just because the sugar is so high in it - but even so, one isn't cause for alarm.
I drink coffee and hot tea only, one teaspoon of sugar in each and I'll have two in a day. Dr Pepper has 40g of sugar in one 12 ounce can. That's 10 teaspoons, but still...one can...I mean, some things are worth it.
I had Peeps yesterday. I don't have stuff like that every day, and that was 220 calories of pure sugar. 66g. I make my big-sugar things be treats not daily indulgences, but I'm not giving them up for the rest of my life. Today I'm eating lots of vegetables, no treats and staying in calories.
Peeps, though.
have you tried the vanilla creme peeps that have chocolate on the bottom? just saying - i buy a 3 pack and have as a treat1 -
There is a huge confusion and misconception going on about sugar and carbs. I don't know who comes up with these things and spreading them but it's stupid. There are two types of carbs, complex carbs and Simple carbs. Complex carbs is what you need to eat, and Simple carbs is what you don't want to eat. Simple carbs are basically just things made with refined/granulated sugar, like cakes, cookies, jelly beans, and things like that. Complex carbs are plants that we need to eat, like vegetable, and fruits. Lately I've been hearing more and more people telling others not to eat complex carbs too because they heard from some where that it makes people fat and it is just silly. Like seriously, it's like they never even looked at any of the nutritional facts, they're just going by what these people are telling them over the internet. If you don't eat complex carbs, where are you going to get your all your vitamins and minerals from, you know?
If you look at a celery for example, 2 stalks of celery is considered 1 serving, that 1 serving is 15 calories, mostly water, 80%carbs and 20% protein. On a daily basis, the average adult needs to eat anywhere from 1,500 to 2,500 calories depending on their height, size, and body type. You'd literally need to sit on the table for almost the entire day eating over 1,000 stalks of celery and you probably still won't get fat, you'd just be stuffed with all that celery and also gain water weight if you don't die from drowning from all that celery water first or from any other vegetable first. I'm not a vegan, but if complex carbs are really that bad, vegans wouldn't exist because most plants are carbs and most vegans are actually on a high complex carb diet, and I have yet to meet a obese vegan person. If carbs were really that bad for you, look at what the average bodybuilder eats and still staying under 10% body fat. The most commonly and widely known staple in prep meals by bodybuilders is: chicken breast, broccoli, rice, and maybe like a quarter of sweet potato. That's protein, complex carbs, complex carbs, and complex carbs. And they eat these premade homemade meals for at least 3 times per day per week.
Now, the thing about sugar, we do need to have a certain level of sugar. The reason is simple, if we don't have any/enough, we get low blood sugar, too much and we get high blood sugar. So, we need to keep sugar at a certain level. If you just follow the nonsense these people tell you about 100% cutting out complex carbs that can provide good carbs and sugar your body needs, you are going to suffer. Complex carbs is basically fuel for the muscles, and it is important that you eat them if you lift weights or just exercise in general.
Side effects that occurs in the long run:
If you avoid eating complex carbs The most common side effects that are experienced when restricting carbohydrates are:
Headache
Bad breath
Weakness
Fatigue
Constipation or diarrhea
When you restrict sugar intake, have low blood sugar, or it's below the recommended levels, you may get:
Nervousness
Sweating
Intense hunger
Trembling
Weakness
Palpitations
Often have trouble speaking.18 -
ImSoSquishy wrote: »There is a huge confusion and misconception going on about sugar and carbs. I don't know who comes up with these things and spreading them but it's stupid. There are two types of carbs, complex carbs and Simple carbs. Complex carbs is what you need to eat, and Simple carbs is what you don't want to eat. Simple carbs are basically just things made with refined/granulated sugar, like cakes, cookies, jelly beans, and things like that. Complex carbs are plants that we need to eat, like vegetable, and fruits. Lately I've been hearing more and more people telling others not to eat complex carbs too because they heard from some where that it makes people fat and it is just silly. Like seriously, it's like they never even looked at any of the nutritional facts, they're just going by what these people are telling them over the internet.
If you look at a celery for example, 2 stalks of celery is considered 1 serving, that 1 serving is 15 calories, mostly water, 80%carbs and 20% protein. On a daily basis, the average adult needs to eat anywhere from 1,500 to 2,500 calories depending on their height, size, and body type. You'd literally need to sit on the table for almost the entire day eating over 1,000 stalks of celery and you probably still won't get fat, you'd just be stuffed with all that celery and also gain water weight if you don't die from drowning from all that celery water first or from any other vegetable first. I'm not a vegan, but if complex carbs are really that bad, vegans wouldn't exist because most plants are carbs and most vegans are actually on a high complex carb diet, and I have yet to meet a obese vegan person. If carbs were really that bad for you, look at what the average bodybuilder eats and still staying under 10% body fat. The most commonly and widely known staple in prep meals by bodybuilders is: chicken breast, broccoli, rice, and maybe like a quarter of sweet potato. That's protein, complex carbs, complex carbs, and complex carbs. And they eat these premade homemade meals for at least 3 times per day per week.
Now, the thing about sugar, we do need to have a certain level of sugar. The reason is simple, if we don't have any/enough, we get low blood sugar, too much and we get high blood sugar. So, we need to keep sugar at a certain level. If you just follow the nonsense these people tell you about 100% cutting out complex carbs that can provide good carbs and sugar your body needs, you are going to suffer. Complex carbs is basically fuel for the muscles, and it is important that you eat them if you lift weights or just exercise in general.
Side effects that occurs in the long run:
If you avoid eating complex carbs The most common side effects that are experienced when restricting carbohydrates are:
Headache
Bad breath
Weakness
Fatigue
Constipation or diarrhea
When you restrict sugar intake, have low blood sugar, or it's below the recommended levels, you may get:
Nervousness
Sweating
Intense hunger
Trembling
Weakness
Palpitations
Often have trouble speaking.
ummm...most fruits are simple carbs....4 -
ImSoSquishy wrote: »I'm not a vegan, but if complex carbs are really that bad, vegans wouldn't exist because most plants are carbs and most vegans are actually on a high complex carb diet, and I have yet to meet a obese vegan person.
Vegans can do high, moderate, or even low carbohydrate diets, although it's true that many of us do tend to eat at least moderate carbohydrate. Most of us include simple carbohydrates in our diets, since we eat things like fruit (which includes simple carbohydrates). There are obese and overweight vegans. Excess weight is gained when you consume more calories than your body is using and vegans can certainly do that (I was overweight myself when I started here and I'd been vegan for nearly ten years).
While it's true that vegans, on a population level, are less likely to be overweight or obese than non-vegans, this certainly doesn't exclude it for individuals and it doesn't mean that there will be *no* overweight or obese vegans. It just means that (according to studies done to date), we're just less likely on a statistical level to have excess weight.4 -
I eat relatively low carb which also tends to keep my sugar values much lower. I am diabetic so this is a "must" for me, not an option.
That being said, how did I do it? Making some simple swaps while measuring food and using accurate data entries for the food diary. Because I'm diabetic I do use some artificial sweeteners, usually I'll consume a Splenda each morning in my coffee. I don't eat many products that are marketed as "light" or "diet" with the exception of my Greek yogurt and diet soda/drinks.
I try to get most of my carbs from sources that pack a nutritional "punch", when possible. I avoid fruits that are high on the glycemic index because they just spike my blood sugar. I stick to lower GI foods, like berries. I try to be mindful of how I space my carb intake throughout the day to keep my blood sugar as even as possible. I tend to eat the highest amount of carbohydrate with dinner because my after-dinner walk will help to lower my blood sugar. Eating between 80-110 g of carbohydrate leaves me consuming between 15-35 g of sugar daily. I'm not sure what your current intake is. This week my lowest day was 15 g of sugar and my highest was 29 g of sugar.
All of this aside, if you have no reason to track carb consumption, why do you want to do it? In all honestly, I do not enjoy eating this way. If I wasn't diabetic I would happily gobble up 200 g of carbohydrate daily. Instead, I tend to eat between 80-110 g. I will say that lowering carb consumption does negatively affect my energy level if I'm not getting enough protein. I definitely notice how my speed varies while walking depending on that day's foods.
Good luck to you and congrats on your son's wedding! Whatever your weight loss, I'm sure you will look gorgeous!1 -
Sugar isn't really an issue for me...I don't have much of a sweet tooth so most of what I get in sugar is from fruit and veg, etc. I don't cut carbs down either...right now I'm eating my lunch which is a chicken thigh and lentil stew over quinoa. Nothing wrong with carbs and there's all kinds of good, nutritious sources of carbohydrates.ImSoSquishy wrote: »There is a huge confusion and misconception going on about sugar and carbs. I don't know who comes up with these things and spreading them but it's stupid. There are two types of carbs, complex carbs and Simple carbs. Complex carbs is what you need to eat, and Simple carbs is what you don't want to eat. Simple carbs are basically just things made with refined/granulated sugar, like cakes, cookies, jelly beans, and things like that. Complex carbs are plants that we need to eat, like vegetable, and fruits. Lately I've been hearing more and more people telling others not to eat complex carbs too because they heard from some where that it makes people fat and it is just silly. Like seriously, it's like they never even looked at any of the nutritional facts, they're just going by what these people are telling them over the internet. If you don't eat complex carbs, where are you going to get your all your vitamins and minerals from, you know?
If you look at a celery for example, 2 stalks of celery is considered 1 serving, that 1 serving is 15 calories, mostly water, 80%carbs and 20% protein. On a daily basis, the average adult needs to eat anywhere from 1,500 to 2,500 calories depending on their height, size, and body type. You'd literally need to sit on the table for almost the entire day eating over 1,000 stalks of celery and you probably still won't get fat, you'd just be stuffed with all that celery and also gain water weight if you don't die from drowning from all that celery water first or from any other vegetable first. I'm not a vegan, but if complex carbs are really that bad, vegans wouldn't exist because most plants are carbs and most vegans are actually on a high complex carb diet, and I have yet to meet a obese vegan person. If carbs were really that bad for you, look at what the average bodybuilder eats and still staying under 10% body fat. The most commonly and widely known staple in prep meals by bodybuilders is: chicken breast, broccoli, rice, and maybe like a quarter of sweet potato. That's protein, complex carbs, complex carbs, and complex carbs. And they eat these premade homemade meals for at least 3 times per day per week.
Now, the thing about sugar, we do need to have a certain level of sugar. The reason is simple, if we don't have any/enough, we get low blood sugar, too much and we get high blood sugar. So, we need to keep sugar at a certain level. If you just follow the nonsense these people tell you about 100% cutting out complex carbs that can provide good carbs and sugar your body needs, you are going to suffer. Complex carbs is basically fuel for the muscles, and it is important that you eat them if you lift weights or just exercise in general.
Side effects that occurs in the long run:
If you avoid eating complex carbs The most common side effects that are experienced when restricting carbohydrates are:
Headache
Bad breath
Weakness
Fatigue
Constipation or diarrhea
When you restrict sugar intake, have low blood sugar, or it's below the recommended levels, you may get:
Nervousness
Sweating
Intense hunger
Trembling
Weakness
Palpitations
Often have trouble speaking.
Just a point of clarification, sugars in any form are simple carbohydrates, including the sugar in fruit and veg. Complex carbs are starches and fiber. Many carbohydrates consist of all three to one extent or the other.3 -
All my carbs and sugars come from vegetables and fruits, and added complex carbs from roots vegetables and beans on occasion. I am a low carb eater because that is what I like and makes me feel better. But I don't worry if on occasion I go higher.
I don't have a sweet tooth so deserts or any kind and/or chocolate are a very seldom treat, so added sugar are not a problem for me . Congratulations on your son's wedding. Have fun!2 -
No need to cut carbs for most people. I do try to avoid added and artificial sugars with some exceptions for treats. I eat lots of carbs, mostly complex carbs. They keep me full and have lots of health benefits.0
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Hi there - I am HFLC because I like to feel quite full when I eat (twice a day) and I don't get overtly hungry signals - I get a bit rumbly and thats it. I eat 50g net carbs a day and I also allow a cheeky extra few if I've exercised a lot. My comfort treat thing is a lovely hot cup of tea (I am a Brit after all) and an Atkins Choc Wafer bar (like a KitKat). I have that at the end of every day more or less and its lovely. I 'spend' my carbs on complex carbs - homemade wholegrain spelt toast, dark green veg, cauliflower (obvs !) and the milk/carbs for me tea. Other than that, I only drink still water. Apart from the Atkins, there is no other processed food in my diet. My BG has reduced along with everything else so this way of eating works for me. I note you have allergies so am wondering if inflammation might be playing a role with the sugar peaks ? And a cheeky can of fizz is quite the hit (not judging, we all have our 'thing' !).1
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I don't cut them. I personally think the focus on sugar and carbs is the wrong focus when dieting. It takes the focus away from what really does matter long term: habits and sustainability. Many people get distracted from the important by the less important (or even irrelevant in some cases).
I asked myself if I can live happily without ever eating chocolate, and the answer was no, so I decided to work on strategies for managing my chocolate intake in a way that makes me happy and satisfied without making keeping to my calories harder. I eat just enough chocolate to be happy, but not a gram more - any more and it would be stealing calories from other things I like.
As for carbs, I didn't see a point in cutting them because they don't affect my ability to stay within calories, on the contrary, I find them filling.
Cooking, I can't help much with that because I don't do meal prep. Is the way you cooked pre-diet not working for you anymore? Maybe someone else can help with that.4 -
amusedmonkey wrote: »I don't cut them. I personally think the focus on sugar and carbs is the wrong focus when dieting. It takes the focus away from what really does matter long term: habits and sustainability. Many people get distracted from the important by the less important (or even irrelevant in some cases).
I asked myself if I can live happily without ever eating chocolate, and the answer was no, so I decided to work on strategies for managing my chocolate intake in a way that makes me happy and satisfied without making keeping to my calories harder. I eat just enough chocolate to be happy, but not a gram more - any more and it would be stealing calories from other things I like.
As for carbs, I didn't see a point in cutting them because they don't affect my ability to stay within calories, on the contrary, I find them filling.
Cooking, I can't help much with that because I don't do meal prep. Is the way you cooked pre-diet not working for you anymore? Maybe someone else can help with that.
^^This. I try to be reasonable with my choices - most of the time. Life without sweets would make me sad, so I make them a part of my choices. I’ve made a choice to cut out carbonated drinks and juice - because they don’t sustain me. It’s an easy choice for me because I never developed a taste for either, and I’ve also switched to black coffee. It’s personal preference, and trying to be perfect all the time is a recipe for frustration or failure. But that’s just me!1 -
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Thanks everyone for your posts. I am trying not to go over the pre-diabetic line. We have a biometric screening coming up in December and I want to make sure I am not borderline diabetic like last time.
At my age (57) it's not about losing weight although that is a very nice side effect it is more about being healthy. Health = wealth. I was concerned that the only column that is red everyday in my MFP diary is Sugar and the carbs that I need to get rid of are the junk food ones....it's a work in progress.1 -
carlaringuette wrote: »Thanks everyone for your posts. I am trying not to go over the pre-diabetic line. We have a biometric screening coming up in December and I want to make sure I am not borderline diabetic like last time.
At my age (57) it's not about losing weight although that is a very nice side effect it is more about being healthy. Health = wealth. I was concerned that the only column that is red everyday in my MFP diary is Sugar and the carbs that I need to get rid of are the junk food ones....it's a work in progress.
Thanks for clarifying! Considering that, I would reiterate the idea of figuring out what that extra sugar is crowding out of your diet, and find ways to make substitutions to correct it. If the sugar is coming from "junk food", it can help to look at when and why you are reaching for it. As far as the Dr. Pepper, if it's the caffeine, an iced black coffee or tea might do the trick. I also love the dark chocolate Dove Promises - they are only 40ish cals and taste rich so I only need one or two. I find richer treats (rather than just sugar! zing! pow!) satisfy my sweet tooth longer with less sugar. Anyway, good luck!5 -
I want to add that if I ever feel like having something sweet at the end of the day, like after dinner, I get a dry prune or a dry apricot. They are quite sweet for my taste so one of either of them is really satisfying for me, and the fiber really "activates" my GI track the next day
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carlaringuette wrote: »Thanks everyone for your posts. I am trying not to go over the pre-diabetic line. We have a biometric screening coming up in December and I want to make sure I am not borderline diabetic like last time.
At my age (57) it's not about losing weight although that is a very nice side effect it is more about being healthy. Health = wealth. I was concerned that the only column that is red everyday in my MFP diary is Sugar and the carbs that I need to get rid of are the junk food ones....it's a work in progress.
There’s no need to cut all carbs to hit those biometrics. I’m a type 2 diabetic and eat about 150g net carbs a day while keeping my daily blood sugar and a1c within normal, non-diabetic range. The “sugar” column on MFP is based on the FDA recommended value of added sugars, not all sugars. Because the MFP entries don’t distinguish between the two, MFP lumps all sugar under the same heading. It’s not necessary to pay any attention to this column at all - in fact I often go over it when eating fruit. I have replaced the sugar column with a fiber column, which is much more useful to know when calculating the effect of food on blood glucose. Try to make sure your carbs have some fiber and fat eaten with them to slow absorption if you want to lower blood glucose levels, and make sure to exercise regularly. The best thing you can do for budding insulin resistance is to get any excess weight off, and the second best is to exercise some every day.
As a person who is not yet diabetic, you should be fine as long as you’re only having one soft drink and one chocolate, if it’s not crowding other, healthier foods out of your calorie allotment. For me, one soft drink is a slippery slope - it’s all or nothing - and even one would spike my levels as a diabetic. So I have given it up. But I still have chocolate on the regular.6 -
carlaringuette wrote: »Thanks everyone for your posts. I am trying not to go over the pre-diabetic line. We have a biometric screening coming up in December and I want to make sure I am not borderline diabetic like last time.
At my age (57) it's not about losing weight although that is a very nice side effect it is more about being healthy. Health = wealth. I was concerned that the only column that is red everyday in my MFP diary is Sugar and the carbs that I need to get rid of are the junk food ones....it's a work in progress.
I decreased the carbs that I don't find especially filling as a way to decrease calories. So, I stopped having bread (and wine) with pasta meals but added more veggies.
I eat less baked goods and more fruit. This satisfies my sweet tooth for less calories. Nothing wrong with Hershey's nuggets - these are indeed a nice little treat at night. I do prefer the Dove Promises, but I might prefer them a little too much. Will have to experiment and blame @kimny72 if it goes horribly wrong
I think you are on the right track - let us know how it goes
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rheddmobile wrote: »carlaringuette wrote: »Thanks everyone for your posts. I am trying not to go over the pre-diabetic line. We have a biometric screening coming up in December and I want to make sure I am not borderline diabetic like last time.
At my age (57) it's not about losing weight although that is a very nice side effect it is more about being healthy. Health = wealth. I was concerned that the only column that is red everyday in my MFP diary is Sugar and the carbs that I need to get rid of are the junk food ones....it's a work in progress.
There’s no need to cut all carbs to hit those biometrics. I’m a type 2 diabetic and eat about 150g net carbs a day while keeping my daily blood sugar and a1c within normal, non-diabetic range. The “sugar” column on MFP is based on the FDA recommended value of added sugars, not all sugars. Because the MFP entries don’t distinguish between the two, MFP lumps all sugar under the same heading. It’s not necessary to pay any attention to this column at all - in fact I often go over it when eating fruit. I have replaced the sugar column with a fiber column, which is much more useful to know when calculating the effect of food on blood glucose. Try to make sure your carbs have some fiber and fat eaten with them to slow absorption if you want to lower blood glucose levels, and make sure to exercise regularly. The best thing you can do for budding insulin resistance is to get any excess weight off, and the second best is to exercise some every day.
As a person who is not yet diabetic, you should be fine as long as you’re only having one soft drink and one chocolate, if it’s not crowding other, healthier foods out of your calorie allotment. For me, one soft drink is a slippery slope - it’s all or nothing - and even one would spike my levels as a diabetic. So I have given it up. But I still have chocolate on the regular.
Yes, I too replaced Sugar (and Sodium) with Fiber (and Iron) which are more useful for me to track.2 -
carlaringuette wrote: »Thanks everyone for your posts. I am trying not to go over the pre-diabetic line. We have a biometric screening coming up in December and I want to make sure I am not borderline diabetic like last time.
At my age (57) it's not about losing weight although that is a very nice side effect it is more about being healthy. Health = wealth. I was concerned that the only column that is red everyday in my MFP diary is Sugar and the carbs that I need to get rid of are the junk food ones....it's a work in progress.
In addition to what has been suggested you should watch your fiber column and work on hitting or exceeding your minimum each day. If you are really low currently though work on gradually increasing it. If you increase it too fast it can be uncomfortable. Fiber will give you a little cushion on your carbs while you work to reduce them.2 -
Thanks ya'll. I just updated my MFP columns - took sugar out and now have a Fiber column. We'll see how it goes. Thanks for all your suggestions ya'll are AWESOME!3
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BTW I just skimmed through my food diaries for this week and my Fiber was only half of goal on most days. I know where I need to focus. Thanks again!4
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rheddmobile wrote: »carlaringuette wrote: »Thanks everyone for your posts. I am trying not to go over the pre-diabetic line. We have a biometric screening coming up in December and I want to make sure I am not borderline diabetic like last time.
At my age (57) it's not about losing weight although that is a very nice side effect it is more about being healthy. Health = wealth. I was concerned that the only column that is red everyday in my MFP diary is Sugar and the carbs that I need to get rid of are the junk food ones....it's a work in progress.
There’s no need to cut all carbs to hit those biometrics. I’m a type 2 diabetic and eat about 150g net carbs a day while keeping my daily blood sugar and a1c within normal, non-diabetic range. The “sugar” column on MFP is based on the FDA recommended value of added sugars, not all sugars. Because the MFP entries don’t distinguish between the two, MFP lumps all sugar under the same heading. It’s not necessary to pay any attention to this column at all - in fact I often go over it when eating fruit. I have replaced the sugar column with a fiber column, which is much more useful to know when calculating the effect of food on blood glucose. Try to make sure your carbs have some fiber and fat eaten with them to slow absorption if you want to lower blood glucose levels, and make sure to exercise regularly. The best thing you can do for budding insulin resistance is to get any excess weight off, and the second best is to exercise some every day.
As a person who is not yet diabetic, you should be fine as long as you’re only having one soft drink and one chocolate, if it’s not crowding other, healthier foods out of your calorie allotment. For me, one soft drink is a slippery slope - it’s all or nothing - and even one would spike my levels as a diabetic. So I have given it up. But I still have chocolate on the regular.
This isn't true for all diabetics, though. I am also diabetic (Type II, non-insulin dependent) and my a1c is 5.8 (prediabetic) even with eating 80-110g of carbohydrate daily. What is good for one diabetic is not necessarily good for all diabetics. Our bodies are pretty complex--things like illness, stress, and sleep patterns can affect our blood sugar is scary ways.0
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