I eat a high carb very low fat diet which certainly doesn’t include the foods that are listed for a high carb meal.
Me too. Except I do eat fruit. Nothing else on that list
I eat lots of fruit, vegies and grains. My latest labs showed a 4.6 A1c and I had a day where I was 99% TIR and had a standard deviation of 17, with no lows or highs, and best of all my LDL is finally down to 65. It took 5 yrs of eating this way to lower my LDL so much. Also for some unknown reason I am using less insulin. Total of 16 1/2 units of insulin while eating about 265 healthy carbs. MDI. I have cut my bike riding in half, since
I am usually outside pulling weeds.
I am very pleased.
It’s all about the insulin resistance of eating fats. Especially animal fats. My insulin requirements have gone down too, just not as much as you because I don’t adhere to low fat as much as you. I aim for under 20% and some days I’m a lot lower.
Diets are weird because you realize how much of the thing you are avoiding is in everything.
But also how much you get used to anything if you do it long enough.
I really love hummus. But most premade adds lots of sesame oil. I had some last week and the oily feel was a real turn off, where I used to love it.
When I walk passed a KFC I think to myself, there really is nothing in that restaurant I would want to eat even if I wasn’t sticking to high carb diet.
Maybe I’m just getting older but the foods I loved as a teen and in my 20s do nothing for me now.
Hostess cakes, remember those. They are like oil sponges with wax. When I was 12 it was the best part of school lunch
Yes, the longer I am away from those foods the less I desire them. Some I find disgusting because they are so bad for everybody. I like knowing that every bite of food I eat is good for me and not harming me.
This is something that should be given to people when they are first diagnosed. I mean how many of us struggled with that darn pizza or for me, clam chowder. I wasn’t until around 2010 that fat and protein started coming into the mix for me with insulin dosing.
So I now use extended most times with high fat/proteins. And unfortunately with the Tandem IQ I might need that second bolus later than the 2 hours they give us.
But this chart is great! Anything to help those newly diagnosed and some of us old timers!
I gave up on pizza even before I started HCLF.
It could never time it right. I was taught from day 1 that it’s best to mix carbs w fat to slow the absorption and get a flatter glucose trace.
However it’s just not true. It used to take me 12 units to metabolize 2 slices of cheese pizza. Where most of my high carb meals require. 5 or 6 units.
It’s just a crazy amount of insulin and the roller coaster that follows. It’s was just never so good that I wanted to keep going back to it. Now the thought of all that cheese is unappetizing.
I grew up in Chicago. Everything is about pizza, hot dogs and a good Italian beef! I know I have been on the west coast for over 30 years but you will never take the pizza out of me!!! I love pizza. And before Tandem IQ I had it nailed! But now, I am back to trying to figure out the how to handle my favorite pizza. I will never give up on my favorite which is pizza!
And my thinking here is food is a joy for me and I will not let my diabetes get in the way. Sure sometimes it doesn’t work but I do find food a very social and fun part of my lifestyle and take the good with the bad.
Chicago pizza is even harder to dose than NY pizza that I grew up on. Everyone is about NewHaven Pizza lately. Where toppings go all the way to the edge.
And if I was in NewHaven or Chicago I would have some.
The point I was making is that you can get used to eating healthy foods just as easily as you can get used to eating unhealthy ones.
Just like with adding sugar to things. I really dislike added sugar in coffee and tea. Where I loved it when I was younger because I was used to it. Then I switched to artificial sweeteners and I got used to that.
Now I drink it with no sweeteners and I like it just the same after some time.
My all time favorite dessert was Banana cream pie. But now I would need to make it myself or else it’s just too damn sweet.
And if I made myself I would talk myself out of it before I was done making it.
By the way. Plantains made with no oil at all in an air fryer are just as delicious and ones deep fried in lard or what ever they fry them in. And yea there is a lot of carb in that but it’s sooo good once in a while.
Tim,
I have found a couple Hummus brands without OIL! Cava is one. They do have tahini, but seem to work for me.
I am also LFHC and realize ITS all about the FAT!
Fantastic Labs! You rock the LFHC diabetes world, Marilyn.
I do less good at times, but hate feeling insulin resistant for hours on end, that I have lost my desire to be lazy with food. I do fine with nuts and olives but NO OIL!!
Keep up the great work!
Wonder why u r using less insulin now.
I have been eating a low fat, whole plant food diet for 5 yrs now. I imagine that my body is just working more efficiently. I am actually exercising less, but I plan on increasing my exercise again, because at 71, I need to stay active.
I am going to talk to the two guys who started Mastering Diabetes, and see what they think about my theory. Most of the people who follow this plan are having great success managing their diabetes,
You are a diabetic to look up to Marilyn. I really try but it’s hard for me to get under 20% fat. Although I know that it really makes a difference.
My diabetes has never been as easy to control as when I started restricting fat and esp oil.
My insulin requirements are less with more carb because there is so much less fat to cause resistance.
I initially rejected the idea because I had blood tests to determine insulin resistance and it came so low that my doctor told me I don’t have insulin resistance.
However there is some normal insulin resistance that can make a big difference.
When my sugar is very high it takes astronomically more insulin to drop it to normal than if it’s just in range.
I also did quite a bit of testing on myself.
I ate many foods. Then add fat. Like toast and toast w peanutbutter, or butter.
And it takes 3x the insulin to metabolize the same carbs. It’s difficult to argue it.
On my diet I really don’t eat things like toast anyway, but I eat a lot of whole carbs like corn and potatoes sweet potatoes.
I eat fruit, these are all things I used to minimize and avoid before. I have dropped almost all animal protein but I still eat chicken once a week because I feel so tired if I don’t.
I just have not been able to get enough protein through legumes and tofu. But I really like tofu.
My first step was simply cutting out oil and it was dramatic. That’s what convinced me. I think I can get to 18% with trial and error.
Thank you very much Timothy. I wish I had known about this woe, before I suddenly needed two heart stents in 2010 after having had diabetes for 51 yrs. It is very close to the diet that Bill Clinton started eating after his heart surgery.
I was a vegetarian before my 11 yrs on the Bernstein diet, so it wasn’t hard for me to cut out animal products again. I eat a lot of legumes, fruits and vegetables. I too eat a lot of different potatoes. I eat quinoa and oatmeal daily. I regularly eat pumpkin seeds, but not too many because of their fat content.
I don’t do well with rice, and I don’t eat tofu because of the fat content. I have to eat garbanzo bean chocolate chip cookies and cocoa covered banana balls, because I really like dessert. Those items satisfy me. I also eat a low carb, low fat tortilla most evenings. I love roasted seasoned garbanzo beans. They satisfy my need to crunch on something.
The two guys who started Mastering Diabetes eat a huge amount of healthy carbs, because they are both very athletic. One eats over 600 carbs daily and doesn’t take a lot of insulin. He is pretty amazing.
I am really glad that you enjoy this woe too. It is so amazing to realize how much fat affects insulin resistance.
I eat tofu to get protein and this is why I can’t get my % fat that low, I can’t figure out how to drop fat and still get protein sufficient enough for my needs. Still tofu is better than meat in fat content.
I went to a raw foods restaurant last week and the food was so impossibly good they also have low fat options however I have no idea what the actual content was. I know it has no animal products.
I think it is possible, I just struggle to find the right balance.
When I don’t get enough protein, I get tired and I get brain fog.
I eat some protein and it gets better immediately. That’s how I know it’s protein related.
My doctor warned me off of protein powders but I might try some in small doses.
I feel much better than when I tried low carb keto diet.
I used to be a runner and that mitigated most of my diabetes issues as well as controlling weight and muscle mass.
I can’t really run long distances anymore so I’m doing hiking and swimming but it’s not the same.
I’m continuing to search for a balance.
I know that Cyrus from Mastering Diabetes who is very muscular and fit, eats enormous amounts of garbanzo beans. He eats the equivalent of 4 cans of garbanzo beans a day. Have you tried eating a greater quantity of legumes? Of course I realize that not everybody can eat legumes. Can you eat salmon? It has a lot of fat, but is better for you than chicken.
Did your doctor tell you why he didn’t think that you should use protein powder?
I have a difficult time eating out, because of the oil that is used. I end up getting a green salad without cheese unless I can get a dish made with garbanzo beans. Of course it is usually made with oil, so I rarely do it. I would love to know what low fat looks like at the restaurant you went to. It is hard for people to realize that olive oil can’t be used.
I eat garbanzo beans, and I make my own hummus. It’s just a pain to make but I still eat them 3-4 cans a week.
I can’t eat fish because I am allergic to it. I could handle salmon with mild discomfort but it creates swelling of my gums which is a risk to dental health. But I can’t eat any saltwater fish at all.
My doctor told me that protein powder can put extra strain on my kidneys but I feel like it’s a matter of volume. I don’t have any kidney issues. It’s just a category issue.
So I’m going to research a plant based protein powder and see how much will help me avoid the tiredness without taking too much.
As far as flavor and palate I could easily be vegan.
Being vegan and low fat is more difficult then I thought.
So I live this modified MD diet and it seems to work pretty well.
I ve been in Seattle alone for 3 weeks and I’ll be here alone until my daughter starts college.
Strange thing is is is easier to eat well when it’s just me. It’s a good opportunity to fine tune it.
Thanks for the chart, Mila. Like others, I have found that the standard “take insulin 30 minutes before a meal” just does not work with every meal. We also all are different, and a swallowing test showed that when I eat, the food stays in my lower esophagus for longer than normal before it hits my stomach, so my digestion is even slower than normal. I am sure I am not the only one out there with this condition, so we all must pay attention to how your bodies react. What works for one does not work for all, but the chart is a good guideline on which to start making decisions.