Healthy eating help

niamh.brady

Hi all,

I have religiously read all the stickies and applicable posts but I was wondering if anyone could advise me any more - G'em, I know you have helped people on their way before - so maybe someone can help me.

I am a 5'3" and 160lb female (26) looking to lose about 34lbs to put me within my healthy BMI. I am diabetic so try to eat as well as possible but I think that I have lost all memory of what is good and what normal portions are. I have just gotten back into the gym and I am going for about an hour 4 times per week. 30 mins mixed cardio (bike, crosstrainer & treadmill) with my heart rate at about 80% of my max and about 30 mins between weights and tummy - 3 sets each of leg press (45kg), both types of leg curl type machine (25kg each), shoulder press (7.5kg), chest press (20kg) and pulldown (30kg), bicep curl 2* 4kg dumbell, lateral raise 2 * 2kg and ab work. I am also trying to get some swimming in (I am very weak at swimming) and get to 5 days per week.

I've been doing this for a couple of weeks without results (weight or measurements) and I want to make sure this is enough. I would also appreciate any adice on how much I should be eating and whether protein shakes would make a difference - I am looking at Slender Pro at the minute.

Thanks in advance!

barbiegirl

Watch the portion sizes, and talk to your doctor about maybe a referral to a dietician due to your diet concerns. A spoon of potatoes is about the size of a kiwi, a portion of steak, the same size as a fist (roughly). Plenty of fruit and veg, keep processed and refined foods to a minimum, cut down on take outs and alcohol. Best of luck, I know you can do it :-)

CathyMoran

Being a diabetic you really need professional help (see a qualified dietician in the hospital you attend for your diabetes) to help loose the weight.

Am also a diabetic (type 1) but need to gain weight and have other medical conditions which hinder this but I feel your pain.

rubadub

niamh.brady wrote: »

I have lost all memory of what is good and what normal portions are.

g'em has a great post here on calculating calorie needs.

barbiegirl wrote: »

Watch the portion sizes, and talk to your doctor about maybe a referral to a dietician due to your diet concerns. A spoon of potatoes is about the size of a kiwi, a portion of steak, the same size as a fist (roughly).

I know a lad whos fists are the size of a sunday roast!. The kiwi is a good standard size. I would recommend getting a scales to calculate stuff properly. After a few weeks you will be able to eyeball it.

niamh.brady wrote: »

I am looking at Slender Pro at the minute.

Slender pro gets good comments here. Most will say stick with whole foods but it can be handy. Protein also satisfy hunger a lot so you are less prone to snacking. Also I no longer really consider my whey a supplement, I like it and just see it as another dairy product. I would have small shakes along with other food though. Like a steak, onions, maybe oven chips and a strawberry shake, all small portions mind. I also mix whey powder in with oats, honey & milk for breakfast. Or instead of honey, maple syrup or nesquik strawberry.

I just made some angel delight stuff with milk & whey earlier and it was really nice.

CathyMoran

Please bare in mind that looking after your blood sugars is the most important thing - often with these diet products they replace fat with simple sugars - please consult your doctor/dietician before using any of these products.

The_Conductor

As a diabetic- you should be very careful when considering supplements such as SlenderPro (and other products from Nutrition X and other companies) as they can contain very high concentrations of fructose and/or lactose in their constituent ingredients which can play havoc with your blood sugars. Some of the flavours have higher sugars than others (in the SlenderPro range- the mint chocolate for example).

You really should consult a dietician before taking protein supplements such as these etc- as your diabetes means you are not subject to the same sort of regime that a suits non-diabetic when undergoing weight loss/training programmes.

rubadub wrote:

I also mix whey powder in with oats, honey & milk for breakfast. Or instead of honey, maple syrup or nesquik strawberry.

I just made some angel delight stuff with milk & whey earlier and it was really nice.

Be very careful- you are looking for complex carbohydrates- not simple sugars. It may not be high in carbohydrates- but maple syrup for example, will cause you big problems. As a diabetic you need to consult a clinical dietician prior to considering things like this for a breakfast.

Ps- This is especially important if you are a Type 1 insulin dependent diabetic......

niamh.brady

Hi guys. Thank you all for your help and advice. I have been seeing a dietician but I always feel that I am being rushed in and out and neither her nor my diabetic consultant seem to worry to much about the potential side effects of not looking after yourself as a diabetic (I am looking to move hospitals at my GPs recommendation).

My previous dietitician was great though and thought me how to count carbs etc to counteract snacks, shakes and different sized meals - I just seem to have gone down hill a lot over the last few years and want to get healthy and prove that a diabetic can be very healthy otherwise.

I am not a crash dieter - no Lipotrim, Slimfast etc - I love my food - probably too much. I just want to start seeing results for my work.

Off to the gym now so wish me luck!!!:)

g'em

Hi Niamh With regard to your diet I think smccarrick brings up some good points with regards to your sugars and it's something that would definitely need to be considered when using something like Slender Pro (a product which I personally love ). I'll have a look into that for you - I know the guys who are behind the product and will have a word with them about sugar content and get back to you.

Exercise wise what you're doing is a great start - 4 sessions of one hour of exercise a week is pretty much bang on but if you're still struggling with portion size you'll find it hard (if not impossible!) to out-train that.

At this point you probably don't even need to look into supplements - a healthy balanced diet that has plenty of lean protein sources, complex carbs, good fats and lots and lots of fibrous veggies within your daily calorie allowance will be enough to start you seeing changes. I *know* at this point it can be very frustrating when you put all the effort in and don't see much of a difference, but be patient - it's just going to take a little bit of figuring out to get you on the right track and then the results will come thick and fast

rubadub

smccarrick wrote: »

Be very careful- you are looking for complex carbohydrates- not simple sugars. It may not be high in carbohydrates- but maple syrup for example, will cause you big problems. As a diabetic you need to consult a clinical dietician prior to considering things like this for a breakfast.

Agreed. I was just throwing out ideas that I use, i.e. you do not have to just take whey on its own. I would presume any diabetic is well versed in reading labels and well aware what they should avoid.

niamh.brady wrote: »

My previous dietitician was great though and thought me how to count carbs etc to counteract snacks, shakes and different sized meals

Good. The slenderpro info is here http://www.nutritionx.ie/products/slender-pro/

Hi Niamh,

Have a look at www.sparkpeople.com.
It is packed full of tools to help you assess and improve your diet.
Try using the fitness and nutrition journals or plans, for a couple of weeks, and weigh your portions.
That should readjust your portion perception.
You'll also find support forums for diabetes, you'll automatically be added to these when you register.

niamh.brady

Moonbaby wrote: »

Hi Niamh,

Have a look at www.sparkpeople.com.
It is packed full of tools to help you assess and improve your diet.
Try using the fitness and nutrition journals or plans, for a couple of weeks, and weigh your portions.
That should readjust your portion perception.
You'll also find support forums for diabetes, you'll automatically be added to these when you register.

Thanks Moonbaby. I have used Sparkpeople a few times but I know that I should really start diarying all my food as I think that the problem must be there. My exercise routine works me hard - which I love - all those endorphins. I have been contemplating going back to weight watchers. I have only ever gone for max 1 month at a time as I get bored and haven't felt that it worked. I like to blame all my hormone issues (diabetes, PCOS and borderline underactive thyroid) but they don't stop a lot of people losing the weight so I have to face the fact that it is me.

I love to cook and make all meals from scratch so I am dedicating January to re-educating myself on healthier meals and portion sizes. Fingers crossed it will start working. I have cut alcohol to max 1 regular size glass of wine per week so I'm going to need to find some new ways of recducing my calories. Fingers crossed for me.

All sugestions welcome!!!

g'em

niamh.brady wrote: »

I like to blame all my hormone issues (diabetes, PCOS and borderline underactive thyroid) but they don't stop a lot of people losing the weight so I have to face the fact that it is me.

That's a tough admission to make, so good on you

You're right though, an underactive thyroid and PCOS will certainly make things a little trickier, but if you eat smart, you'll find that the symptoms of these ailments will improve massively. Diabetes and PCOS are largely intertwined - by following a low GI diet you'll find that your insulin resistance improves and your PCOS symptoms alleviate greatly.