How do you all eat to keep your bsg level. My readings seem to hop all over the place, sometimes I have been a real good girl and am surprised at how high the reading is. I find it somewhat stressful when I am trying so hard.
What are you eating?
I have always had the same problem but since October, I have really been restricting the carbs. I'm eating approximately 70-75g a day. I have cut out bread, pasta, rice, corn, cereal and potatoes. When I eat a reduced-carb meal, I don't spike. When I drink my beloved tea with milk all by itself, I can go up 100 mg/dl.
If you don't want to give up carby foods, then I think moderation, plus always eating them with protein is the key, because protein and fat slow down the digestion of the carbs. Plus eating more vegetables to make you full. And of course, an after-dinner walk (you look out your window and there's a foot of snow on the ground???) is ALMOST always a good idea.
I'm sure other people have other ideas, and you have to find out what works for you. You are your own science experiment, LOL!
Well... I eat about 60-85 grams of carb a day, depending on the day... I have three meals a day, and sometimes 1 or two snacks. I try not to eat past a certain hour... 8:30 pm - 9 pm is about the maximum of lateness I can eat. I drink lots and lots of water, and I don't do sodas, coffee, teas (very seldomly), I exercise about every day... I eat intuitively (only when I'm physically hungry, and stop when I'm satisfied, and not stuffed). I'm not on a diet. I have a few tricks to either keep my blood sugars stable, or to put a serious dent in my glucose bell curve.
1. When I want a taste of pasta, or rice, or potatoes... I make a dish that makes 4 servings, with only 1 serving of pasta... The other 3 servings come from non-starchy veggies FULL of fiber, and maybe a little bit of lean meat - chicken or turkey. I also make my own turkey crumbled sausage by adding all kinds of spices to ground turkey, and just browning it. Good stuff.
2. I eat a Flaxseed Meal muffin every morning. I swear, this has put a serious dent in my numbers all throughout the day... And it is soooooo filling. Each muffin is 100% fiber, which doesn't spike blood glucose, and is like 248 calories, or so. I have one with Omega 3 margarine, and sometimes I add walnuts to it when I make... and it's wonderful. It takes a minute to make in the microwave. So easy. BadMoonT2 showed me these, and I have never looked back. lol Plus, flax has all kinds of benefits -- Omega 3, helps HDL, binds excess testosterone and helps with menopause, helps with PCOS (which I have), etc... It just makes me feel good all around. http://www.tudiabetes.org/profiles/blogs/flaxseed-meal-muffins
3. If I mess up, I go for a short casual stroll around a few blocks with my husband. I don't do anything strenuous, or make it into a workout, or anything... Just a casual walk. We don't even make a "pace." lol We just go talk, and enjoy the Christmas lights. When I come back home, blood sugar is much lower... And it keeps lowering, and lowering. Sometimes I go for the walk right before bed, or right at rising before breakfast, and it helps with morning numbers, too.
4. I put noodles or red potatoes, in the fridge... for 12 hours or more, sometimes, and eat them cold... It lowers their glycemic load because the noodles develop resistant starch, which the body can't process. YMMV on this, but I've seen the proof in the pudding -- my glucose meter -- so I am happy with that trick. lol Even when I've reheated the food, it has still been MUCH lower than if I had eaten it without first refrigerating.
5. I eat 7-Grain Wasa Crackers. Three LARGE crackers, that taste really fluffy (unlike the regular Wasa crackers), and have just 13 grams of carb for all three, total. I often just have 1 cracker or 2, with hummus on it and 3 slices of pepperoni... Sabra makes the best kind of hummus... And it makes me feel like I was naughty, without the naughty. lol It's also a low calorie snack that helps me keep my BG stable. Those three crackers have only like 60 calories, and I never eat 3. lol
6. Like I mentioned before, I drink boatloads of water... Not drinking enough water can and will raise your blood sugar... Particularly at night, when if we didn't drink enough water during the day, the body will get very dehydrated for all those hours we spend sleeping, and especially during Winter... That's become another serious trick of mine. Powerade Zero helps with this, too, when I struggle with Winter, as it has electrolytes to help retain the hydration.
7. At the end of the day, I try to just find things to destress... and to be kind to myself. I many not always know why I may have a high... or even a low... and I may even have a cold, or the flu... That messes me up big time... But I can always be kind to myself... and reducing stress also helps keep things not get worse. Bubble baths, reading books, doing sudoku, going on walks, getting into a hobby... all good things. :)
Thanks for all the tips, Queen. I think I might make a flaxseed meal muffin this morning. I do drink lots of water, especially now when it is getting really hot (summer here). I can't give up my coffee, but I do have a water chaser. I rarely eat potato, pasta, rice, etc. because I am supposed to be losing weight, wish someone would tell my body that. I exercise every day, I have a very energetic poodle who won't let me backslide. But I like the idea of a little walk when I have indulged a little too much, unless it is 40C outside, guess a little housework would help there<g>
Thanks so much for taking the time to answer so thoughtfully.
Thanks Natalie, I am not so concerned about snow here in Perth, but when it is 40C and the heat beyond bearing I rarely walk! I don't have much carb, but the thought of all those food substitutions make me feel ill,like using cauliflower to make pizza crust. Yuk, I like my cauliflower raw or lightly cooked. I really eat quite sensibly, just don't understand why sometimes my blood sugars go high, will have to do more experimentation I can see.
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I don't do food substitutions, because I'm not a cook! If you like cauliflower, eat it as is! Eat larger portions of low-carb veggies to your heart's content. Test frequently, and you might be able to identify which foods spike you. Sometimes a food will surprise you -- I ate some peanut butter and celery last night, and didn't go high from it until 4 or 5 hours afterward.
Also, remember that sometimes the body has a mind of its own -- BGs can go up for no apparent reason, so don't beat yourself up for an unexplained high -- it's just part of the game.
I'm lucky, because I'm on insulin, and can take more insulin to bring down a high, but if you're d+e, then you just have to look at patterns and try to identify reasons for highs, but accept that sometimes it's simply inexplicable. All you can do is your best!