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[ianian40]

Hello I am Ian , I'm in my fifties and I have been living with Diabetes since my late thirties , I struggled for a very long time , but in the last 12 months I have changed a great deal in my lifestyle , although I have lost weight and feel better , I feel I still have a long way to go , so any help and advice would be appreciated .

 

[ianf0ster]

Hi @ianian40 and welcome to the forum.
You've had Type 2 for a lot longer than me, but It's only in recent years that the evidence has become overwhelming for Type 2 remission via lifestyle without requiring either surgery or medication.
How are you controlling your blood glucose? Do you test your meals with a Blood Glucose meter?

I'm also Ian and I am/was a slim Type 2 diabetic (aka TOFI) so I opted for Low Carb (testing my meals until I got it low enough rather than the most popular method on here which I feel is still a starvation diet. However I still lost 30lbs ( a sixth) of my maximum body weight before transitioning into maintenance mode.

 

[ianian40]

Hi Ian , thanks for the reply , I don't use a glucose meter and I'm not very good at checking my bloods , but the doctor is happy with my levels , l have lost over 10 stone , but just feel I need to do more , I watch what I eat , I don't smoke or drink , exercise is hard due to a dodgy back , probably just need a more exciting diet and maybe I will feel healthier

 

[Leadinglights]

Hello I am Ian , I'm in my fifties and I have been living with Diabetes since my late thirties , I struggled for a very long time , but in the last 12 months I have changed a great deal in my lifestyle , although I have lost weight and feel better , I feel I still have a long way to go , so any help and advice would be appreciated .

I think the best advise would be to test your blood glucose with a home monitor so you can identify foods and meals which push your blood glucose up by more than you want to keep within a acceptable level. Testing before and 2 hours after you eat would allow you to make better food choices.
You have done marvellously well to lose the weight so you are obviously doing something right but may need to tweak things a bit to get blood glucose to a normal level.
Many people find a low carbohydrate approach successful, that being less than 130g per day.
If you would like to post the sort of meals you have then people might spot any problem foods and suggest some substitutes.

 

[ianian40]

I think the best advise would be to test your blood glucose with a home monitor so you can identify foods and meals which push your blood glucose up by more than you want to keep within a acceptable level. Testing before and 2 hours after you eat would allow you to make better food choices.
You have done marvellously well to lose the weight so you are obviously doing something right but may need to tweak things a bit to get blood glucose to a normal level.
Many people find a low carbohydrate approach successful, that being less than 130g per day.
If you would like to post the sort of meals you have then people might spot any problem foods and suggest some substitutes.

Thank you for your reply , that is good advice and I will definitely start doing that

 

[Mrs Mimoo]

Myfitness pal or another diet/exercise app is helpful in sticking to carb limits. well done on losing 10 stone!

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Hello I am Ian , I'm in my fifties and I have been living with Diabetes since my late thirties , I struggled for a very long time , but in the last 12 months I have changed a great deal in my lifestyle , although I have lost weight and feel better , I feel I still have a long way to go , so any help and advice would be appreciated .

Welcome to the forum @ianian40

Well done on the changes you have been making - and great to hear that you’ve lost weight and are feeling better.

Sustaining those changes over 12 months is a great achievement, so you have every right to feel proud of yourself. Don’t underestimate the importance of having recognised you were struggling, and working to try to turn things around.

Great to know that you still want to take things further though, and to continue your improvements. Setting yourself some incremental goals can be a good way to keep focussed. Points along your journey of weight loss or fitness to help you continue to see improvements. Those life-coach type SMART goals - Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Timely? Can sound a bit toe-curling, but breaking down a Big Thing into smaller steps is a proven way of making change happen 🙂

Diabetes management is a marathon not a sprint, and the folks on the forum are right here willing you on towards a happier, healthier, livelier you 🙂

 

[Rich DUK]

Hi @ianian40, welcome to the forum. It is fantastic to hear that you have managed to regain control and are feeling considerably better as a result. Sustaining this over a year is commendable and that should be something to be proud of.

If you wanted to gain some further ideas to vary up your diet, we have lots of recipes that you can peruse at your leisure which can be found here - https://www.diabetes.org.uk/guide-to-diabetes/recipes and we also have some meal plans which can be found here - https://www.diabetes.org.uk/guide-to-diabetes/enjoy-food/eating-with-diabetes/meal-plans.