Well, Here We Go!

On Tue, 25 May 2004 12:29:01 GMT, "JJ" wrote:

Damsel in dis Dress wrote:
On Mon, 24 May 2004 23:55:06 GMT, "JJ" wrote:

Sounds like you are moving in the right direction.

I hope so. At the very least, I know that I have to do
some serious
focusing on what I eat, because I won't be getting
additional help
from medication. It's all on me. I own it now. Better
take care of
it, huh?

Carol

We'll help. If you wish.

I certain do wish! I think I'll start posting my weight again, even though
I hate watching it bounce up and down, which embarasses me, even when I'm
the only one who knows. Off to make a 2-egg broccoli-cheese omelet.

Carol
--
227/227/150 (official weigh-day: Thursday)
Bernstein 5/25/2004
Diabetes Dx 5/15/2001
Diet, Exercise, Oral Medication

carol,
your weight in numbers has a documented (ASDLC) very poor effect on
you................why not skip it for now?

--
rosie
http://www.truthout.org/docs_04/052304A.shtml








"Damsel in dis Dress" wrote in
message ...
: On Tue, 25 May 2004 12:29:01 GMT, "JJ" wrote:
:
: Damsel in dis Dress wrote:
: On Mon, 24 May 2004 23:55:06 GMT, "JJ" wrote:
:
: Sounds like you are moving in the right direction.
:
: I hope so. At the very least, I know that I have to do
: some serious
: focusing on what I eat, because I won't be getting
: additional help
: from medication. It's all on me. I own it now. Better
: take care of
: it, huh?
:
: Carol
:
: We'll help. If you wish.
:
: I certain do wish! I think I'll start posting my weight again,
even though
: I hate watching it bounce up and down, which embarasses me, even
when I'm
: the only one who knows. Off to make a 2-egg broccoli-cheese
omelet.
:
: Carol
: --
: 227/227/150 (official weigh-day: Thursday)
: Bernstein 5/25/2004
: Diabetes Dx 5/15/2001
: Diet, Exercise, Oral Medication

On Tue, 25 May 2004 07:07:36 -0400, "Hannah Gruen"
wrote:

"Damsel in dis Dress" wrote

Carol, I know that stress can really do a number on your endocrine system,
so you may be seeing a lot of improvement as you can dial the stress level
down a little bit. I know, I know - not always easy to do at all.

I am hoping to see some improvement. Crash's health situation seems to be
stabilizing, the mortgage problem is being worked out, the basement is
drying out and we have friends who will help us seal the floor, and I'm on
a definite low-carb plan, instead of building my own to match what I
perceive as my needs. Actually, I never strayed much from Atkins, but
until I can get my BGs under control and start losing weight, it's
Bernstein for me. That plan drove me nuts in 10 short days, but I'm going
to work hard at finding some more creative ways of eating, starting with
the recipes at the end of his book.

One thing I was thinking, as a possible suggestion, would be some active
stress-reduction stuff. I suspect it really works, even when you have a lot
of stressors in your life. Up until a year or so ago I was *such* a stress
monger, for years and years, and I know it really made my efforts at weight
loss, or even maintenance, very hard. I noticed that even after I started
LC, the appetite-suppression thing didn't work as well if I'd get into a
major stress incident - I'd be just *craving* sweets, gooey stuff,
McDonalds... and tired so it was way too easy to give in. It does something
to your hormonal levels, and I've seen lots of diabetics write about it.

Heh ... We were driving back home from a visit to St. Paul around a month
ago, I think. I was screaming at Crash, "I would KILL for a bag of M&Ms!"
He actually offered to stop at a gas station to pick some up (probably to
make the rest of the drive a little quieter), but I didn't give in. So, I
know what you're talking about.

The fatigue you mention is a big problem, too. I've found myself taking
2-3 naps per day. Part of that is so I can sleep through some of the back
pain (which now includes my ribs, as well), and part of it is I'm just
plain exhausted all the time.

Ornish managed to improve people's health even on his almost vegan/very low
fat plan, and a lot of people think it was because he *also* had them
practice active stress reduction and regular exercise. So if you can get in
your *moderate* exercise every day - weights are good, but for stress
reduction I think aerobic stuff, especially outside, may be as good or
better - it would help.

I'll try to get to the gym and see what I'm capable of doing without
hurting my back. As to aerobic exercise, that's limited by asthma and high
blood pressure - it's usually the blood pressure that stops me - but I have
started using the treadmills at the gym. Until I get red and blotchy all
over and have a heart rate that threatens to explode my carotid arteries.
G

And, meditation and/or yoga was part of the Ornish program. For me, even
before LC I noticed, over and over through the years, that when I was doing
my yoga regularly (I did it for my back, mainly) I would always lose weight,
without necessarily dieting. (Hmmm... I should be doing this every day, now,
taking my own advice... lol!) Anyway, it seems to do something good to the
endocrine system or something that other forms of exercise never did for me.
And it's fun and relaxing and gives you more energy. So that would be
another suggestion.

I have a collection of various exercise tapes, but we still haven't found
the box that contains the VCR. I would very much like to incorporate some
of those exercises into my home plan.

Thanks for your great comments and suggestions!

Carol
--
Fasting BG 145
227/227/150 (official weigh-day: Thursday)
Bernstein 5/25/2004
Diabetes Dx 5/15/2001
Diet, Exercise, Oral Medication

On Tue, 25 May 2004 16:06:39 GMT, "rosie"
wrote:

carol,
your weight in numbers has a documented (ASDLC) very poor effect on
you................why not skip it for now?

Because if I skip it entirely, I'll get sloppy. Guaranteed. Going from
once a day to once a week is a giant step for me. Even if the weight stays
the same but the BGs improve, I'll be happy. Not ecstatic, but happy.

This time, I'm not going to worry about getting "enough" calories. I'm
just going to eat the recommended amount of the right carbs, and only
enough protein and fat to satisfy my stomach's hunger. Not my mind's
hunger. My stomach's. I know you understand what I'm saying there.
*smile*

Carol

Carol
--
Fasting BG 145
227/227/150 (official weigh-day: Thursday)
Bernstein 5/25/2004
Diabetes Dx 5/15/2001
Diet, Exercise, Oral Medication

Damsel in dis Dress wrote:

On Tue, 25 May 2004 00:40:16 GMT, (The Queen of Cans
and Jars) wrote:

Damsel in dis Dress wrote:

Basically, she said, "Eat less. Exercise more."

hee!

I giggled all the way home. She didn't use those exact words, but the
sentiment was there. It was like she was channeling JC.

I'm making gradual changes. 2 eggs instead of 3 in my morning omelet, no
cream on my SF Jell-O, that kind of thing.

i think that's a good way to do it. it took me a while to figure out
*how* to eat, but once i figured out how (and what) to eat, it was
pretty easy to get a handle on quantities.

And I'm thinking we should be able to hit the gym on Wednesday. Doc says I
should exercise right after breakfast to try to prevent dawn phenomenon.
As IF, but I'll go along with it and see what happens.

try it. you might like it. i feel better all day if i exercise a
little bit in the morning.

On Wed, 26 May 2004 00:59:42 GMT, (The Queen of Cans
and Jars) wrote:

Damsel in dis Dress wrote:

I'm making gradual changes. 2 eggs instead of 3 in my morning omelet, no
cream on my SF Jell-O, that kind of thing.

i think that's a good way to do it. it took me a while to figure out
*how* to eat, but once i figured out how (and what) to eat, it was
pretty easy to get a handle on quantities.

Yeah, I think I've got a decent handle on what to eat, but I think I've
been overdoing the quantities. I've discovered that I really don't care
much for plain SF Jell-O, and have been eating each serving with a
tablespoon of cream. I've cut that back to a teaspoon. Tablespoons of
butter to cook my eggs have become teaspoons instead, too.

And I'm thinking we should be able to hit the gym on Wednesday. Doc says I
should exercise right after breakfast to try to prevent dawn phenomenon.
As IF, but I'll go along with it and see what happens.

try it. you might like it. i feel better all day if i exercise a
little bit in the morning.

I'm doing it at home, and managed to keep my post-breakfast reading just 15
points higher than fasting. That's an improvement, but not enough to make
me happy. I'll just keep plugging away. We should be going to the gym
tonight.

Carol
--
Fasting BG 144
227/227/150 (official weigh-day: Thursday)
Bernstein 5/25/2004
Diabetes Dx 5/15/2001
Diet, Exercise, Oral Medication

Jenny wrote:


My endo was thrilled with my numbers too--though my fasting was unchanged
and I was still about 20 mg/dl too high after meals.

Jenny, what are your target numbers?

Just curious. I keep hearing different things. Bernstein wants
*normal* numbers, which I read as "under 100 at all times" - but my
doctor seemed pretty pleased with a week of readings that never got any
lower than 123. I've also read a lot of folks aim for not over 140
post-meal, which seems high to me.

My doctor (not an endo) gave me huge bottles of samples to work with...
I'm supposed to find my appropriate dosage and he'll write me a script
in a few weeks.

I've been upping the dosage very gradually from the 1000 mg I was on my
last doctor visit because I have severe gastrointestinal stress for
several days every time I up the dosage.

I'm at 1700 mg now, and have stayed here a while cause I had that whole
tiredness thing happen and wanted to get past that before I moved on.
It lasted about 10 days and was *really* discouraging given how good
I've felt the past few months, I was just utterly exhausted. I'm
feeling OK now, and am considering whether to start upping again in the
next day or two cause I'm *not* at normal bg yet. But I'm not gung-ho
about adjusting to a higher dosage again either...

--
As you accelerate your food, it takes exponentially more and more energy
to increase its velocity, until you hit a limit at C. This energy has
to come from somewhere; in this case, from the food's nutritional value.
Thus, the faster the food is, the worse it gets.
-- Mark Hughes, comprehending the taste of fast food