Hi

K

Kazzy65

Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 2
Hi,
I have Type 2 diabetes, I’m not newly diagnosed but I am trying to lose weight and cut carbs, I have a raging craving for chocolate all the time and I’m looking for tips on how to control cravings and how to get in the mindset of losing weight, any advice appreciated I have joined Diabetes UK as a member and I know there is a lot of advice there, I just could do with advice from people who’ve been in the same situation as me.
 
Kazzy65 said:
Hi,
I have Type 2 diabetes, I’m not newly diagnosed but I am trying to lose weight and cut carbs, I have a raging craving for chocolate all the time and I’m looking for tips on how to control cravings and how to get in the mindset of losing weight, any advice appreciated I have joined Diabetes UK as a member and I know there is a lot of advice there, I just could do with advice from people who’ve been in the same situation as me.
Click to expand...
Welcome to the forum
The cravings will become less once you re-educate your tastes for less sweet things but having a small amount of dark chocolate as a treat every so often will be OK for many people. Replacing the chocolate with alternative lower carb things like nuts or a high protein cereal bar which are low carb and can be cut into bite sized pieces.
However looking overall at a way of achieving both reducing blood glucose and loosing weight then this link may give you some ideas of where to start. https://lowcarbfreshwell.com/
To satisfy cravings then the website sugarfreelondoner has low carb recipes for cakes and biscuits if you are into baking.
 
I found once I lowered my carb intake enough I stopped craving the sweets and chocolate and I was a self confessed sugar addict and chocoholic pre diagnosis. I still eat chocolate but it is the odd square of 70% with a spoon of crunchy peanut butter which I break into 4 pieces and take my time to chew well and savour.

Ensuring I ate enough fat to keep me satiated once I reduced the carbs right down (about 70g per day) was also important to making my low carb way of eating sustainable. I eat much less now in terms of food than I used to because hardly ever feel hungry or have cravings. I don' actually have to stick to following a low carb way of eating because I am Type 1 and inject insulin for whatever I want to eat, but I stick with a low carb diet because it has given me so much control over my disordered eating and cravings and there have been a lot of other health benefits, like pretty much curing my long term acute migraines and a much happier gut/bowel and less joint pain. The odd occasions where I have bread and stuff, I have a day or two of battling cravings before I am back to normal again and it is such a relief.

I should say that I still enjoy my food, but I have very different treats to those that used to cause me problems. For instance my morning coffee now has real double cream instead of 2 or 3 sugars. I always said I would rather not drink it as drink it without sugar, but every morning I really savour my coffee with cream. I eat lots of lovely cheeses but I don't have them with bread or crackers, sometimes with olives or half an apple which is one of my standard lunches or occasionally a dried fig if I am feeling a bit naughty. I eat lots of veggies and many of them are zapped in the microwave with a knob of real butter. I have creamy Greek Style natural yoghurt almost every morning with berries or some other low carb fruit and mixed seeds and a good dusting of cinnamon. Evenings I usually have meat and veg or salad and full fat coleslaw, or a veggie curry or beef chilli on a bed of shredded cooked cabbage or bolognaise sauce over broccoli with sour cream and chive dip served as a sauce.
 
Leadinglights said:
Welcome to the forum
The cravings will become less once you re-educate your tastes for less sweet things but having a small amount of dark chocolate as a treat every so often will be OK for many people. Replacing the chocolate with alternative lower carb things like nuts or a high protein cereal bar which are low carb and can be cut into bite sized pieces.
However looking overall at a way of achieving both reducing blood glucose and loosing weight then this link may give you some ideas of where to start. https://lowcarbfreshwell.com/
To satisfy cravings then the website sugarfreelondoner has low carb recipes for cakes and biscuits if you are into baking.
Click to expand...
Thank you for the advice
 
rebrascora said:
I found once I lowered my carb intake enough I stopped craving the sweets and chocolate and I was a self confessed sugar addict and chocoholic pre diagnosis. I still eat chocolate but it is the odd square of 70% with a spoon of crunchy peanut butter which I break into 4 pieces and take my time to chew well and savour.

Ensuring I ate enough fat to keep me satiated once I reduced the carbs right down (about 70g per day) was also important to making my low carb way of eating sustainable. I eat much less now in terms of food than I used to because hardly ever feel hungry or have cravings. I don' actually have to stick to following a low carb way of eating because I am Type 1 and inject insulin for whatever I want to eat, but I stick with a low carb diet because it has given me so much control over my disordered eating and cravings and there have been a lot of other health benefits, like pretty much curing my long term acute migraines and a much happier gut/bowel and less joint pain. The odd occasions where I have bread and stuff, I have a day or two of battling cravings before I am back to normal again and it is such a relief.

I should say that I still enjoy my food, but I have very different treats to those that used to cause me problems. For instance my morning coffee now has real double cream instead of 2 or 3 sugars. I always said I would rather not drink it as drink it without sugar, but every morning I really savour my coffee with cream. I eat lots of lovely cheeses but I don't have them with bread or crackers, sometimes with olives or half an apple which is one of my standard lunches or occasionally a dried fig if I am feeling a bit naughty. I eat lots of veggies and many of them are zapped in the microwave with a knob of real butter. I have creamy Greek Style natural yoghurt almost every morning with berries or some other low carb fruit and mixed seeds and a good dusting of cinnamon. Evenings I usually have meat and veg or salad and full fat coleslaw, or a veggie curry or beef chilli on a bed of shredded cooked cabbage or bolognaise sauce over broccoli with sour cream and chive dip served as a sauce.
Click to expand...
That’s such good advice, thank you, I’ll try all that, I have the fast 800 cookery books I’ll look in there for inspiration, also I bought some carbs and Cals recipe books so I’ll look into those too
 
Hi @Kazzy65 and welcome to the forum.

Many members will advise on diets, be it low carb or alternatives to sugar etc, so let me offer another way of approaching it and one that motivates me.

Yes, I have removed all know carbs (potatoes, rice, pasta and white bread etc) and sugars from my diet, well that was a start.
Then I set myself some targets (for 3 months) I love targets.

Weight, to lose 2lb per week (currently running at 1.79lbs) per week
Diet, I have mentioned
Exercise, to increase the amount of exercise I do, within my own physical abilities, but measurable.

My view is that all three are important and go hand in hand with each other, but have to be sustainable

As we are all different, it's up to each person to decide what is best for them and how they can best manage things to suit their own life style.

Best wishes
Alan 😉
 
Alan44 said:
Hi @Kazzy65 and welcome to the forum.

Many members will advise on diets, be it low carb or alternatives to sugar etc, so let me offer another way of approaching it and one that motivates me.

Yes, I have removed all know carbs (potatoes, rice, pasta and white bread etc) and sugars from my diet, well that was a start.
Then I set myself some targets (for 3 months) I love targets.

Weight, to lose 2lb per week (currently running at 1.79lbs) per week
Diet, I have mentioned
Exercise, to increase the amount of exercise I do, within my own physical abilities, but measurable.

My view is that all three are important and go hand in hand with each other, but have to be sustainable

As we are all different, it's up to each person to decide what is best for them and how they can best manage things to suit their own life style.

Best wishes
Alan 😉
Click to expand...
Hi Alan,
My mobility is a bit rubbish, walking stick needed and movement not good at all, fibromyalgia and osteoarthritis, so exercise is rather difficult, I do keep losing weight then the sugar monster creeps back in and I’m on a spiral again , I believe we do need some carbs like wholewheat and beans, I eat hi lo bread which is really low in carbs, my motivation is zilch. I have actually just done an online course Level 2 in Managing diabetes (all types) and passed, I have the info just not the inclination, that’s what I need the help with, thank you for the advice, I will take it on board, maybe I can walk round the house a bit more for exercise until I lose more weight, then something more.
Karen
 
Kazzy65 said:
Hi Alan,
My mobility is a bit rubbish, walking stick needed and movement not good at all, fibromyalgia and osteoarthritis, so exercise is rather difficult, I do keep losing weight then the sugar monster creeps back in and I’m on a spiral again , I believe we do need some carbs like wholewheat and beans, I eat hi lo bread which is really low in carbs, my motivation is zilch. I have actually just done an online course Level 2 in Managing diabetes (all types) and passed, I have the info just not the inclination, that’s what I need the help with, thank you for the advice, I will take it on board, maybe I can walk round the house a bit more for exercise until I lose more weight, then something more.
Karen
Click to expand...
If your mobility is restricted then diet is all the more important and looking to reduce high carb foods like pasta, rice, bread, breakfast cereals even the brown version as they are just as high carb as white.
My motivation was the fear of medication and suffering the unpleasant consequences of not doing anything and becoming a burden to family but seeing people who were in the same room when my other half was in hospital who were there with amputations.
You know what you need to do so look around the forum and you will find lots to help you. Whatever approach you choose has to be a new way of eating for life.
 
Kazzy65 said:
Hi Alan,
My mobility is a bit rubbish, walking stick needed and movement not good at all, fibromyalgia and osteoarthritis, so exercise is rather difficult, I do keep losing weight then the sugar monster creeps back in and I’m on a spiral again , I believe we do need some carbs like wholewheat and beans, I eat hi lo bread which is really low in carbs, my motivation is zilch. I have actually just done an online course Level 2 in Managing diabetes (all types) and passed, I have the info just not the inclination, that’s what I need the help with, thank you for the advice, I will take it on board, maybe I can walk round the house a bit more for exercise until I lose more weight, then something more.
Karen
Click to expand...
Are you sure we need carbs?
I eat green and french beans in small amounts, also garden peas, but a couple of tiny servings a week at most, no bread, no grain at all - I can't find any need for it.
I eat chocolate, as it is fairly low carb - it is the loads of added sugar which need to be avoided. I buy the highest cocoa content chocolate I can find. Actually - they are called cocoa beans - I wonder if that is botanically correct.
A few years back I did need to use sticks - Nordic walking poles as I already had them, as my lower legs and feet were badly affected by the Covid vaccination, but I seem to have overcome that now.
 
My joints improved significantly when I cut the carbs. I was hobbling down hills and down stairs prior to diagnosis and I live at the bottom of a steep hill that I walk pretty much every day. Now I can run down it and run up and down stairs 40 times on the trot (my morning cardio workout) and feel so much fitter and healthier. Changing to low carb really was a revelation to my general health. It wasn't easy at first but definitely well worth it for all the benefits. I am now fitter and healthier at 60 than I was at 40!
 
Alan44 said:
Hi @Kazzy65 and welcome to the forum.

Many members will advise on diets, be it low carb or alternatives to sugar etc, so let me offer another way of approaching it and one that motivates me.

Yes, I have removed all know carbs (potatoes, rice, pasta and white bread etc) and sugars from my diet, well that was a start.
Then I set myself some targets (for 3 months) I love targets.

Weight, to lose 2lb per week (currently running at 1.79lbs) per week
Diet, I have mentioned
Exercise, to increase the amount of exercise I do, within my own physical abilities, but measurable.

My view is that all three are important and go hand in hand with each other, but have to be sustainable

As we are all different, it's up to each person to decide what is best for them and how they can best manage things to suit their own life style.

Best wishes
Alan 😉
Click to expand...
I am in process of doing the same and setting mini rewards for each target reached a small thing from amazon or a non food treat i really want gives ur mind something to aim for. I do understand that this is easier for some then others so its about finding what works for you also.
 
Hi @Kazzy65 and welcome to the forum!

I'm sorry you're going through all of these things at once. I can see how you're motivation can fall down to zero, when the general advice for diabetes is diet and movement, while the latter causes you pain. If I may throw my two cents in, often 'mobility' can be considered as something 'big' as in going on long walks, runs etc, but even a small increase in your movement (in comparison to the day to day) can help you build up strength. It can bring your body to a point where previously more straining movement can become manageable, step by step. There are plenty of exercises online for things like chair yoga (if most of your pain is in the legs), balance exercises (if it's more in the arms) etc. There were some starting ideas shared on the thread here that you might find useful: https://forum.diabetes.org.uk/board...-wheelchair-bound-person.114663/#post-1388723
 
Leadinglights said:
If your mobility is restricted then diet is all the more important and looking to reduce high carb foods like pasta, rice, bread, breakfast cereals even the brown version as they are just as high carb as white.
My motivation was the fear of medication and suffering the unpleasant consequences of not doing anything and becoming a burden to family but seeing people who were in the same room when my other half was in hospital who were there with amputations.
You know what you need to do so look around the forum and you will find lots to help you. Whatever approach you choose has to be a new way of eating for life.
Click to expand...
Thank you
 
Ieva DUK said:
Hi @Kazzy65 and welcome to the forum!

I'm sorry you're going through all of these things at once. I can see how you're motivation can fall down to zero, when the general advice for diabetes is diet and movement, while the latter causes you pain. If I may throw my two cents in, often 'mobility' can be considered as something 'big' as in going on long walks, runs etc, but even a small increase in your movement (in comparison to the day to day) can help you build up strength. It can bring your body to a point where previously more straining movement can become manageable, step by step. There are plenty of exercises online for things like chair yoga (if most of your pain is in the legs), balance exercises (if it's more in the arms) etc. There were some starting ideas shared on the thread here that you might find useful: https://forum.diabetes.org.uk/board...-wheelchair-bound-person.114663/#post-1388723
Click to expand...
Thank you
 
Leadinglights said:
Welcome to the forum
The cravings will become less once you re-educate your tastes for less sweet things but having a small amount of dark chocolate as a treat every so often will be OK for many people. Replacing the chocolate with alternative lower carb things like nuts or a high protein cereal bar which are low carb and can be cut into bite sized pieces.
However looking overall at a way of achieving both reducing blood glucose and loosing weight then this link may give you some ideas of where to start. https://lowcarbfreshwell.com/
To satisfy cravings then the website sugarfreelondoner has low carb recipes for cakes and biscuits if you are into baking.
Click to expand...
I do have the Freshwell app, I need to look at it properly
 
Kazzy65 said:
I have a raging craving for chocolate all the time and I’m looking for tips on how to control cravings and how to get in the mindset of losing weight, any advice appreciated.
Click to expand...
I can only speak of my own experience but I noted that as I got more control of my BG ie no more wild swings the cravings definitely became less. What I mean by that is i didn't have breakfast so my BG would be low and mid morning I'd be craving something to eat ....2 pain au chocolat later my BG would rocket for a bit before crashing bringing on another craving. That would see saw the whole day. Now by having some porridge with added bran for breakfast I don't get that BG crash hence no cravings or very little. I also found having a healthy snacks with me helped along with not having 'bad' snacks/food in the house which also massively helped.
Good luck!
 
indio02 said:
I can only speak of my own experience but I noted that as I got more control of my BG ie no more wild swings the cravings definitely became less. What I mean by that is i didn't have breakfast so my BG would be low and mid morning I'd be craving something to eat ....2 pain au chocolat later my BG would rocket for a bit before crashing bringing on another craving. That would see saw the whole day. Now by having some porridge with added bran for breakfast I don't get that BG crash hence no cravings or very little. I also found having a healthy snacks with me helped along with not having 'bad' snacks/food in the house which also massively helped.
Good luck!
Click to expand...
Thank you
 
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