I wouldn't be content with 6.4, an average of 137.
Thanks Gerri! I'll try and see what happens. I will be happy if I can get closer to your levels.
Do you subtract fiber when you count carbs? Do you bolus for protein? Also, do you have any good low carb recipe books or sites that you recommend?
Me neither. However I am not a doctor. I've heard about T1 doctors. I wonder what their A1Cs are?
We've had a couple of members who were T1 doctors, endos & CDEs. Their A1cs weren't low.
I only subtract fiber when a food is 40% fiber or above. I bolus for protein. You may want to join Danny's TagGER's group. It's about how to calculate for protein.
http://healthyindulgences.blogspot.com/ (the most decadent low carb desserts!)
www.foodnetwork.com (you can search their site for low carb recipes)
Also, Google "almond flour, coconut flour & flaxseed meal low carb recipes" for more baked goodies. There are a ton of low carb recipe sites, but these should keep you busy for a while.
Well, you wouldn't want your A1C to be low either, that's DANGEROUS!! .
I've been doing a low carb (not Bernstein, never bothered to read the books, just low carb - ~60 g carb/day) for 2 years now. I've been doing CrossFit for about 3 months. I've gained 11 lbs, and it isn't muscle. My BGs are totally out of whack and I'm about to give up on the Crosssfit and go back to bike riding and weight lifting, which I've been doing for years.
I am a T1 for 33 years, I am also overweight for my entire life. So, I might not be a good example. On the low carb diet I've been able to keep my weight in the "over" category instead of the "obese" category.
Typical Crossfit - go in at 108, 15 min later my BG will be 180 and climbing - that's on an empty stomach. I eat a light "meal" 1 hr before - same thing. By 2 hr post Crossfit, I'm well into the 200s - that's despite taking more insulin than I would for a McD's super-meal! Thank goodness for the CGS, so I know there are no lows in there.
Last time I tried to eat a sandwich (first slice of bread I've had in a year) - and it may have helped - I was ~120 when starting and only 220 2 hr later.
I've also tried Symlin to keep my BG down, no good from that, either.
My energy is in the toilette, too. I think that's because of the super high BGs, not because of the combo of the diet and the CF, though. If I can get the BG down, I think the low carb and CF routine will work.
I did it for a while until I got pregnant with twins (and needed more carbs or I'd be dizzy all day). For the time I did it however, I was really happy with the results. My pms subsided (meaning I went from reallyyy bad pms symptoms that made me miss work to barely feeling anything at all). I also lost weight. I had an A1c of 4.6 which felt really good because I guess I was having blood sugars closer to what a nondiabetic has. My mood swings were gone. My insulin needs decreased a lot. I didn't talk to a doctor before starting (but, I'm a rebel like that, I think it's always a good idea to talk to a doc).
After my kids were born I did the low carbs again although taking care of two newborn twins and breastfeeding them was tough, my blood sugars still stayed pretty level-but, I did run my numbers more around 110 than 80 for safety with the babies. Lately, me leaving my career, and my husband not having consistent work has meant serious financial woes for us and honestly, some days all I can afford to eat is rice and beans. So now I don't do as much low carb as I would like. I do the best I can and right now my A1c is 5.3.
Anyway, I just wrote about why the low carb thing works so well to achieve lower glucose numbers (and yet, stay level, instead of swinging up and down). It's about what Dr. Bernstein has to say...Here is the link: http://thegirlsguidetodiabetes.com/2010/12/13/science-type-1-diabetes-weight-gain
There are many discussions here you can search for the healthy benefits of low carb eating. I didn't need to lose weight when I changed. Been thin my entire life. With sufficient protein, I maintained my weight. Cereal & bread aren't the best choices for diabetics. Seriously unwell is having BG all over the map.
My endo is a Type 1 and he wears a pump. I'll ask him his A1c next time I see him (not til March), and let y'all know!!!
You get rapidly diminishing returns as your A1c goes down. Moving from 9 to 8 is big. 8 to 7 is less big. 7 to 6 is good. 6 to 5 yields much diminished returns. There are other things you can do to improve your health and quality of life rather than fight your way from 6.0 to 5.5.
If you have little strength your chances of accidents are greater - ankle sprains, shoulder strains, broken legs and hips. And your recover time will be much greater.
If your heart and lungs can't stand the strain from repeated and exhaustive exertion, you are at greater risk of heart disease and related complications.
One can sit very still, and eat very little, have a wonderfully low A1c like 5.5, and croak like a smoker at 60.
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You mean a SMALL bowl of cereal! If I weren't drinking milk, I could probably hit Bernstein's 30g of carb a day. What he's going for is eating a lot of low-carb vegetables, nuts, seeds, cheese, fish and meat. I know several people who are doing that and who remain healthy. One of them, David Mendosa, went from a BMI of over 30 to 19. Personally, I think 19 is too low (normal is supposed to be 20 - 24.9), but he feels healthy and wants to get it lower. He hikes and photographs nature nearly every day. And has a website of his own, and blogs on Health Central. His writings are very interesting.
I think low-carb is particularly valuable for obese Type 2's because of the weight loss. For Type 1's, the weight loss doesn't usually matter, but it prevents extreme spikes as well. The trick is to get enough calories to maintain the weight you want to be at. The nutrition is there.
Bernstein says his Type 1 patients are able to do that, and he's a Type 1 also, and has maintained his health -- he's in his 80's now, and mostly complication free.
Like I said, I drink milk, so I'm not by any means a true low-carber, but just limiting carbs to about 70-75g a day has kept my insulin doses down, minimized spikes, and I have lost weight, which I needed to do. Only 12 lb. to go before I have my BMI at 24.9, and then I will decide if I want to lose more. I probably will do that, but not as extreme as David did!
I've actually come to the conclusion that BMI is actually irrelevant. What really matters is bodyfat levels. If you are 10% bodyfat at a BMI of 30, that is far better than being at a bodyfat of 30% at a BMI of 20.
Ya mean I gotta go exercise in order to build muscle instead of fat????
Chuckles,
Natalie ._c-
You are one funny gal. Unfortunately, my endo recommended a starvation diet (medifast) because I had too high a BMI and needed to reduce my muscle mass. I did not need a medical supervised starvation diet to achieve his goals, I could do that with the "twinkie couch diet."
Where's the research about diminishing returns? I've seen nothing to back this up. I have seen evidence for lipid profiles vastly improving, neuropathies healing & retinopathies improving from getting A1c's below 6. While my retinas are fine, so far, I've personally experienced the other beneficial effects of good control. I'm not alone.
That's quite a leap from people scaling mountains to someone sitting very still doing nothing & dying at 60 like a smoker. Huh? No one disputes the importance of exercise, but one doesn't have to be kayaking constantly & chopping fireweood to have cardiac health & be physically strong. Most of us have lives that don't allow for cross country bike rides.
I had a neighbor, once, with a perfect diet... ran every day... was a marathoner, athlete, in top shape... died right at the age of 42 of a sudden heart attack. No warning. No family history.
People think going insane with exercise and perfect diets is going to protect them from dying... And they get downright abusive of others who embrace different lifestyles than they do, sometimes... Boy, can life have some rude awakenings for us when we're so high and mighty with ourselves. I'd hate to see what Joe would be like if his precious way of life failed him.
If Joe wants to think we're in a wheelchair, at home, and going to die at 60... Let him. That's fine. Even if I died at 60... I would still die with a lot more friends and supporters because I wasn't so smug, and full of myself. And THAT is healthier than any amount of mountain climbing and marathoning I could ever do.
And that's all I have to say about that.
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Oh, how I wish I could buy desert landscaping right now. While I appreciate that shoveling is technically exercise, I would be so happy to never to it again!
My great great aunt died at 97 & lived alone without assistance until she was 93 or 94. Oh & she was a heavy smoker & the first woman to work for Philip Morris as a tobacco salesperson. She went into the wilds of Central America with bandilleros to buy tobacco. She died 35 years ago to give a time frame. Aunt Fanny credited her longevity to never taking herself seriously & living life as if she was going to die tomorrow. Her idea of excercise was raising an arm to hail a cab.
Me, too, Hope. To never shovel snow, rake leaves or mow a lawn would be heaven.