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Hi... new here

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This thread is now closed. Please contact Anna DUK, Ieva DUK or everydayupsanddowns if you would like it re-opened.

owlhog

New Member
Relationship to Diabetes
At risk of diabetes
Been put on register and taking first steps
weight loss and diet modification...
pointers gratefully accepted 😳
 
Hi and welcome.

Your profile shows you as "At risk of diabetes" so looks like you haven't yet crossed the red line into a diabetes diagnosis, or is that a mistake on your part? If you know your HbA1c blood test result.... this is the blood test used to diagnose and monitor your diabetes and will be a number in excess of 47 if you have a formal diagnosis or between 42 and 47 if you are "at risk of diabetes" that will help us to understand your situation better.

Do you have much/any weight to lose?

The two main approaches to tackling the situation are....

A short term VERY LOW CALORIE diet like the Newcastle/Fast 800 which restricts calories over an 8-12 week period to 800 per day usually by means of meal replacement shakes for convenience, with a view to burning off the visceral fat in and around the pancreas and liver in particular which has been found to be a cause of Type 2. It is about 50% successful in pushing diabetes into remission but the key thing with this is to maintain the weight loss to maintain the remission. If you are a YoYo dieter then that might be the challenge.

or

A LOW CARBOHYDRATE way of eating. This is more a new way of eating for life and it can be quite enjoyable once you get your head around it but it is pretty challenging at first. What I love about it is that it has given me control over my eating that I have struggled with for years and I no longer battle with cravings and in fact rarely feel hungry even though I sometimes have just 2 meals a day. I still have treats that I really enjoy but they are different to the high carb treats I ate before.... I was a sugar addict and chocoholic 🙄 I am nearly 4 years into this way of eating now and it gets easier as you go on. I just had a very tasty lunch of courgettes with lamb and haggis bolognaise sauce to which I had added some chilli and salami and topped with shavings of parmesan and of course black pepper. I eat more fat to make up for the loss of calories fromcarbs and my body seems to run really happily on this. My cholesterol is reducing despite eating more fat (lots of cheese and cream and fatty meat) and my weight is stable where I want it and I am fitter than I have been for the past 20 years which is pretty good for a 58yr old approaching 59!

Some people do a bit of a combination of both approaches, but that seems more complex to me trying to track calories and carbs and I am now down to a healthy weight due to cutting the bulk of the carbs from my diet anyway.
No harm in trying one way and if it doesn't work for you try a different approach. The important thing is that many people here who have made changes to their lifestyle feel enormously better for it and many have other improvements to their health than just the diabetes. Far from being less healthy as a result of getting diabetes, I have used it as the kick up the backside to become more healthy and that really pays off, so I hope we can help support you to a new slimmer healthier fitter you and perhaps push the diabetes into remission in the process.
 
Thanks for your welcome! And your input!
It's all new to me - but I want to get on the best path for me - quick.
HbA1c 49 Nov 2022. Need to shed 20 to 30 kilos...! On statins. Just hit 60. Next bloods in January...
The only input I have had - other than a quick call from local ANP is this Diabetes UK site. I have some reading material of Roy Taylor's just hit my door mat which I am getting stuck into.
Very low cal diet - like the Newcastle/Fast 800 sounds like it's the way to go for me - plus the dog is getting more walks! 🙂
 
Sounds like you have every chance of success. Positive attitude, reliable reading material, motivation .... as I am sure the dog will be encouraging for more walkies and only just over the diabetes threshold so not far to go to push it back. You might even manage to get back into the prediabetes range by Jan if you put your mind to it..... Not the easiest time of year for this I know but "with a will, there is a way"!

Keep posting with progress reports ie weight loss achievements and walking distances if it helps to keep you accountable and please ask any questions you have, no matter how basic they might seem. Most of us knew nothing or had misconceived ideas about diabetes at diagnosis and there is a lot to learn on a steep learning curve in the early days, but really does get easier.
 
Welcome to the forum
If you don't fancy the low-calorie option, then you might want to look at a low carb approach which has been successful for many in reducing blood glucose and losing weight as in this link https://lowcarbfreshwell.co.uk/
Whatever you choose has to be enjoyable otherwise it will not be sustainable for the long term.
 
Welcome to the forum @owlhog

Good luck with the Newcastle diet.

We have a few forum members who have successfully used variations of that approach to kickstart weight loss, or restart a slowed loss of weight.

It’s not an approach that works for everyone, but it can be very successful. Especially if people can lose visceral fat from the abdomen.
 
Been put on register and taking first steps
weight loss and diet modification...
pointers gratefully accepted 😳
Making progress!!!
 
Thanks for your welcome! And your input!
It's all new to me - but I want to get on the best path for me - quick.
HbA1c 49 Nov 2022. Need to shed 20 to 30 kilos...! On statins. Just hit 60. Next bloods in January...
The only input I have had - other than a quick call from local ANP is this Diabetes UK site. I have some reading material of Roy Taylor's just hit my door mat which I am getting stuck into.
Very low cal diet - like the Newcastle/Fast 800 sounds like it's the way to go for me - plus the dog is getting more walks! 🙂

You have to stick to the method you have decided that will work for you.
I went the same way, it's very easy.

I was successful, all I do is watch the mirror now, and occasionally the scales.
I do plan for holidays, Christmas, mostly by a dry January and a refresher on the shakes if I need to, then enjoy the rest of the year normally.
 
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