I am talking serious amount of weight. I was dx at 110#s and now, 40 yrs later, weigh A LOT. I have always been in tight control, experience hunger frequently, have urge to snack all the time. I am trying Symlin again and going to talk w/ my endo (new) about GLP-1. Suggestions welcome.
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Patricia: I have had T1 for 45 years and gained almost 200Lbs during the first 38 years of being treated. In the last seven years I have lost almost 160 lbs. Will I get back to 170? Doubtful, but I do hope to get to 190.
So how did I do this? There are no short cuts. I went to my endocrinologist and told him I needed to lose weight. I entered an endocrinologist diet control program (another endo at my endo’s office). I was able to lose 100 lbs. using a a highly restricted diet. For 8 months I never ate more than 800 calories. All food was pre measured shakes and meal replacement bars). I did eat some salsa and salad occasionally. I had to weigh at the office once every two weeks and attend classes.
At the end I had dropped 100 pounds and I was ready for the reintroduction of food. For that part I have been doing weight watchers (now called WW) for six years. In that time I have lost an additional 60 Lbs. I am not where I want to be yet. But I am still going.
Diabetes wise my A1C has improved slightly, but my insulin use has dropped dramatically. So yes it can be done. Yes I was very hungry until my body adjusted to reduced calories and no I could never have done it without docotr supervision. Oh and one more thing, I am not special or gifted. I am blessed to have terrific doctors (even if I do not like the news sometimes).
I hope you find your answers. It can be done. I promise and i think you will get there.
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I was inspired by Dr. Now (My 600 lb life) and yes he is a real doctor.
Basically 1200 calories a day diet. The obvious restrictions fried food, pizza, chips, etc. Lost about 32 pds and I exercise basically cardio 3-5 times a week and drink lots of water. It is a lot of work and slow but you will lose excess weight.
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Thank you, for sharing your experiences. I hope I can get back to about 125-145#s. My body holds on to the weight - lost only about 10#s doing the YMCA program of cardio and weights. Tried low CHO and lost about 45#s only to stall and regain the weight. Doing low calorie, high fiber, mostly vegetarian + cardio daily to see if I can start the trend downward again. Appreciate your insights and inspiration!
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When I had to shed some lbs., I did low carb (No more than 25 carbs per meal) and limited my calories to 800 per day. The weight came off at 2+ lbs per week until I reached 125 lbs. I did no exercise during this period because any kind of exercise made me really crave food and I kept finding excuses to have just a few little snacks and the weight would no longer come off.
I have a digital scale and weigh myself every morning since reaching my goal and if I am over 125, I skip breakfast even if scale shows 125.1 lbs. If I am over 125.6 then skip lunch as well as breakfast and if over 126.4 skip all meals for the day.
I know that sometimes the scale cheats me out of one or more meals because I could possibly just wiggle around on it when at 125.1 or use one of the hundreds of excuses available to modify protocol.
Using this method has totally flat lined my BG’s, brought my DP under control and given me overall BG/TIR/SD results that are mind blowingly good and never even thought could be possible. There is a direct correlation between weight control and BG control. I can look at my CGM in the morning and know if I will be over 125 lbs before even weighing myself as there will be a slight uptick in my BG over past 4-5 hours.
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One idea is to make sure you are getting your nutrients. I take a multivitamin a day. I take one with iron , luetien and vanadium. It is also important to have fiber and lots of it with lots of water. I eat All-bran, steel cut oatmeal with chia seeds. Yes, these are high in carbs but IMHO that are worth the adjustment that may be needed for the foods for the fiber content, I substract 1/2 the fiber from the carbs to use for insulin calculation and sometimes I need to add a 1/2 unit based on Chia or brand of oatmeal. Every one may be different.
I try to eat beans 3-4 times a weak, usually at lunch as they are easy to carry.
I cook them fresh from (dried bean bag) on a Sunday with garlic, turkey wings, onions, cayenne pepper and salt to taste. I divide them into 1/2 cup servings and freeze. Probiotics are key as well. I also eat a lot of yogurt. I make my own. I use fat free, lactose free milk with Belle+Bella starter. I add fruit or cinammon and equal to taste. I use a yogurt maker. Just remember it is a slow process, no quick fixes. slow and steady win the race.
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Hi @Patricia5 – This is a tough struggle. I’ve had better luck over the years but it has not been without some challenges. We are all different in our ability to lose weight as each of our bodies has considerable control over any weight loss. It is not a simple-minded calories in, calories out analysis. We are hormone driven systems and I think women often have more roadblocks to sustained weight loss than men.
I went low-carb (<100 grams/day to as low as < 30 grams/day) back in 2012 and lost 25 pounds or about 14% of my body weight. I regained about 10 of those pounds over the next several years.
Last fall, I eliminated all grains and added sugars in a response to an adverse heart diagnosis. That easily put me at fewer than 30 grams/day. I lost those 10 pounds I regained and about 6 more.
One of the things I learned with my most recent efforts is that an out-of-range thyroid function can lead to stubborn weight loss. I have changed my hypo-thyroid treatment this year with the hope that it will help my heart disease and overall health. I did learn that for every man with a malfunctioning thyroid, there are 7-8 women experiencing this.
My thyroid treatment is a slow work in progress and I can’t report any breakthroughs but I believe I’m headed in the right direction. I’m not certain if my thyroid resisted my weight loss efforts but it could have. I have read many accounts online, however, of women like yourself who struggle with sustained weight loss. They often report that getting their thyroid hormones leveled out permits them to drop their weight.
Sorry for the thyroid topic detour if it doesn’t apply to your case. Thyroid disease is very prevalent and often under-diagnosed. It is more common in those of us with another autoimmune condition like T1D. Unfortunately, the current standard of care does not do a good job of treating thyroid disease. Many of us now consult with naturopaths to get the thyroid treatment we need.
Good luck with your weight-loss goal. Don’t give up!
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I also fought the excess weight problem for most of by diabetes career. I was always carrying more weight that I should have and I hated myself for not having the power to change it.
But, it is something that can happen but each of us will go at it differently.
My biggest change was insulin. I was just taking way to much insulin! And I was just feeding the insulin-day in and day out. And all those calories feeding the insulin added up to an extra 40 pounds that I couldn’t shake. So with some help from some smart doctors I was working with at a clinical trial, I just cut everything. I was taking almost twice as much basal as I really needed. So I was no longer eating empty calories to fix the lows from too much insulin.
That was a huge one for me. Next thing I did was I tried an off label type 2 drug. I went with Victoza, mainly for weight loss possibilities and appetite suppression. It was amazing how much it helped curb my appetite. I just wasn’t hungry. Side effects trip up some people but I never seem to have problems. Just a little stomach issues but after the first week it was good. It is an injection a day but not a deal breaker for me and again it might be for some.
I also picked this vs a SGLT-2 because I didn’t want to go down that yeast infection problems/UTI infections. (Personal nightmare from many years ago).
And last thing was exercise. I have been a big walker. I walk a lot. About 80 miles a week. But I stepped it up and had a goal of running a 5k. Did one of those phone apps, took it slow and did run a 5k.
So it was a few different changes. Nothing major but those little changes made a big difference.
I know many people say that insulin is the reason for their weight gain and it was in my story but because I was taking so much.
Good luck with whatever treatment plan you try. And remember, give it some time. Nothing happens right away. Just like side effects with meds, many of them go away if you can work through the first week or so.
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In my 40’s I just ate too much and gained about 20 pounds. I was a vegetarian but ate a lot of pasta and fat etc. I also had low thyroid for many years and found that hard to regulate.
I found the very low carb way of eating when I was looking for a way to lose weight. I quickly lost about 18 lbs which, after about 9 yrs of low carbing,I started gaining back.
I switched to low fat plant based way of eating and quickly got down to 107 lbs. I have stayed here for 3 yrs. I am only 5’1” and would like to be 5 lbs lighter than I am now, but am unwilling to work at losing it only for the sake of vanity. I am almost 70 so I should be pleased with my weight. For me it is definitely a matter of how many calories I take in and it always has been. It I eat more calories than I expend I will gain weight.
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Weight control has been one of the major defeats in my diabetic care. Devoted all of 2017 to losing weight and did lose 20 lb but in a non sustainable manner i.e. went krtogenic with the help of invokana I cut TDD from 110 to 30 per day but had to pee every 1/2 hour day and night.
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I stopped using WW because it doesn’t offer Carb counts for meals. I’m on a pump & need to enter carbs. I’m using an app called Lose It which is very helpful but would like to be able to follow a 1200 calorie meal plan. I’ve also gained 50 + pounds over the 45 years of being T1, am now 77.
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Margert41:: I do understand the issue. But I have a very different experience, I find carb counting is so easy with the online app which I use on my telephone it is amazing. Each entry gives the nutritional breakdown of the item and I simply collect them into a meal and count the carbs for each meal. It is amazing how versatile the app has become. Int he old days when we used paper it was a pain in the butt, but the modern telephone based system is remarkable and so accurate for counting carbs, I would keep the app going just for the carb counting feature. It has made my pump operation so much better than any system i have used in 20 years to manage carb intake.
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@Rphil2 Which app are you using? Is it for android, iPhone, or either?
Hi @Patricia5
After 50+ yrs of T1D and having being blessed with good genes, my weight ballooned from about 155 lbs to close to 180 last year. The biggest contributor to that was a more sedentary lifestyle due to 3 other comorbidities I have.
I’m on a pump and CGM and made 2 big lifestyle changes
First, despite having difficulty walking (I use a cane) I forced myself to walk on a treadmill 5 or 6 days a week.
Second, I eliminated all refined and processed food from my diet, which essentially meant a low-carb (keto) lifestyle. By low carb I mean as close to zero as possible (no more than 10-15 grams a day).
The combination of those 2 things, combined with eliminating all snacks and eating only one meal a day, has brought me back to a more healthy weight (I’m 142 lbs today). My energy is better and my A1C’s are in the non-diabetic range.
For the past 2 months I’ve transitioned to a more Carnivore diet, and only eat meat. My macros are roughly 75% fat / 25% protein, and I keep the protein limited to under 50 grams a day.
I feel a lot better than I did 15 months ago. I just wanted to feel better, and I knew losing the weight would go a long way to helping.
Along the way, many of my inflammatory processes and symptoms have been minimized or completely eliminated. I no longer have edema and haven’t worn compression socks in a year (I have CHF). My arthritic symptoms have all but disappeared, and of course my insulin resistance has been substantially reduced.
There are many ways to lose weight but as you know, you need to find the one that fits your lifestyle. I hope that between some of the options others have described, you find something that works for you!
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Are you talking about the Weight Watcher app? If so, I may try it again.
It is the WW app. It comes with being a participant in WW. It is amazing.
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Margaret44. Yes the app for WW is outstanding and the points calculation is much easier than when I first started. The improvements in the plan have been so worthwhile.
Metformin made a big difference for me. T1s can develop insulin resistance just like T2s, and untreated insulin resistance leads to weight gain. If your extra weight is on your belly in particular, might work asking your endo about trying metformin ER. I worked my way up to 2000mg a day (split into two doses) and it both lowered my basal dose and helped with control and it made it much easier all the sudden to lose weight I’d gained the previous few years that otherwise wasn’t budging no matter how carefully I ate.
Thanks! I’m going to download it (again) now! I’m actually a “lifetime member” & was a facilitator many, many years ago.
Hi Jim, so happy that you are forcing yourself to exercise even though very difficult for you. Also congratulations on losing the weight. You are doing a great job!
Just want to add that a low fat plant diet is another way for people to eat non processed, non refined extremely healthy food.
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