Operation Get Healthy

Warning: This is a long post. Like... really long. I started it about a year ago. Additions I've written tonight are in bold.


Disclaimer: I am not a doctor.


However, I am a woman who just hit 30. About to hit 31.


I live in a cold climate. This May is supposed to be the coldest on record for over 100 years.


I love to bake chocolate chip cookies. Mmm...


I would like to think that I can still fit into my wedding dress, but I probably can't. This was confirmed over the Christmas holidays. Tear...


I am twenty pounds over my ideal weight ("my ideal weight" being the weight my doctor puts on all of my medical papers as "ideal weight"). 


I have Type 1 Diabetes, which makes it very, VERY hard to lose weight.


Here's why:


Insulin is a hormone that helps you process carbohydrates and gain weight. The more insulin you produce (or inject or pump) the more you gain weight. That's why people who cut carbs lose weight. I'm not saying that everyone should cut carbs, I'm just stating facts here.


Anyway, when a healthy person decides to diet, her pancreas just adjusts the levels of insulin secreted by the pancreas, and that's it. Boom. Done. I have to fiddle with my rates manually, which can be frustrating, annoying, and potentially dangerous.


I can explain why if you can hang in there for about one minute of science reading. If you want to read on, read on. If not, I understand.


You're continuing on? Thanks, friend!

Background for Understanding Basal and Bolus Insulin

When food is eaten, it is digested and converted to glucose(sugar) so it can be used for energy. Virtually every cell in the body, including your brain, needs glucose to function properly. The hormone insulin is needed to carry that glucose into cells in all parts of the body so that it can be used for energy.

Some of this glucose is stored in the liver as a reserve fuel (called glycogen) that is released when glucose is not available through food. So, between the glucose that is consumed through food and what is gradually released from the liver, the body gets a constant supply of glucose. This also means that there needs to be a constant supply of insulin in the body to keep the amount of glucose in balance.

Since more glucose is produced after a meal, the pancreas secretes more insulin. When the amount of glucose is lower, such as between meals or at night, there is less insulin needed -- but there is always at least a small amount of insulin present in the body at all times.

Defining Basal and Bolus Insulin

Basal insulin is the background insulin that is normally supplied by the pancreas and is present 24 hours a day, whether or not the person eats. Bolus insulin refers to the extra amounts of insulin the pancreas would naturally make in response to glucose taken in through food. The amount of bolus insulin produced depends on the size of the meal.

In the person with type 1 diabetes, the pancreas no longer automatically makes insulin regardless of the intake of glucose. The beta cells that produce the insulin have largely shut down. Both the basal, or long-term background insulin, and the bolus, or quick bursts of insulin needed at mealtimes, must be obtained through injections or an insulin pump in order to process all of the glucose taken in through food or released by the liver.

Source
I'm not sure why the science-y bit is formatted all crazy, but I can't fix it. Sorry.


So basically my blood sugar has to be within a safe window. Too high, and I get tired, emotional, and my limbs feel like I have Chinese jet lag. Long term complications from too many highs include eye problems, kidney problems, poor circulation leading to loss of limbs, etc. Too low, and I get dizzy, faint, shaky, and sweaty. There are no long term complications from being too low because if you get too-too low, you go into a coma and die. Don't worry. That won't happen.


Anyway, besides adjusting my levels for healthier food choices, I also have to factor in exercise. Exercise, exercise...We already talked about how I hate it. It definitely affects my levels. It's extra scary because I'm afraid I'll go low and then have to eat or drink sugar and cancel out my entire work out in 30 seconds. Frustrating!


And that's where I stopped writing. I just couldn't finish because I didn't know what else to say.  


I'm revisiting this post because I've recently started (April 23rd was my first day) a new eating plan. I'm not calling it a diet on purpose. It's called Whole 30, and you can read more about it here. It's kind of like a jump start for my body. A detox. A cleanse. A new beginning. It's for 30 days.


The main purpose for me doing Whole30 is not weight loss, but if that happens I will definitely not complain - especially after all of the rich food on the cruise. I just really need to get my diabetes back on track. According to my doctors, it's been just fine (my last A1C was 6.7 if you must know), but I am not happy with it (I'd like it to be around 6.0). They've had to bump up my insulin basal rates the last two visits, which, in an attempt to get blood sugar numbers down, has led to more weight gain. 


So, what do I eat on this Whole30 plan? I get to eat meat, fish, eggs,vegetables, fruit, nuts, and seeds. Doesn't sound too bad, right? The hard part is that there are no grains, dairy, legumes, sugar, fake sugar, or processed anything allowed. I cleaned out our pantry of the no-no foods. Two big boxes went upstairs to the guest room. Grits, cornbread mix, chocolate chips, taco seasoning, ranch seasoning, refried beans, mayonnaise, granola bars, Altoids, peanut butter... and on and on. Do you know what was left after the big clean out? Two cans of tuna. That's it. Yikes.


Like any new change (and I consider overhauling the way you eat a big one) it was overwhelming at first, and I thought about it all the time. However, planning and prepping my food for the week on the weekend before was key. Pinterest was a life-saver. Check out my Whole30 recipe board here. The first grocery shop sticker shock just about made me cry at the check out (a jar of coconut oil is $10!), but luckily we will not have to spend as much every single week because many staples will last a while.  


After only a few days eating this way, I settled in okay. I reached for dried mangoes instead of digestives. I ate every bite of my loaded sweet potato guilt-free. I made my own fruity ice cream for dessert. And you know what? My blood sugar numbers have been perfect. I mean it! PERFECT. And my skin has been awesome. The biggest downside - aside from the cost and the extra time it takes to plan and prepare meals - has been terrible breath. Detox fumes perhaps? Hopefully it will go away soon. Since gum/Altoids are no-nos (fake sugar) I brought my toothbrush and toothpaste to work and just put more mouthwash on this week's grocery list.

A delish loaded sweet potato. Recipe here.

Nathan has been very supportive, and he's eaten everything I've prepared for him. He's always been one to compliment my cooking, but now he adds, "Thank you for working so hard to make our family so healthy." What a pal! He didn't have to do the Whole30 with me, but he said he would (in my presence at least).


We did not start out on the best foot. He put milk in his morning tea on Day 1, and I cried (embarrassing to admit!). I told him that it was really disheartening for him to "cheat" on this 30-day eating plan before breakfast on the first day. We went back and forth about it. I am a major rule-follower, and he is a major rule-breaker/bender. To me, Whole30 was all or nothing, while he thought a tablespoon of milk in his tea was just fine. I told him that I needed him to be fully committed to it - 100% - and gave him another chance to opt out of the plan. You know what he did? He dumped his tea and said he was all the way in with me. He is such a good husband! Now he puts coconut milk in his tea, and he doesn't taste a difference.


Anyway, this is long enough. I just thought I would catch you up on the latest with the Parkers... :)