Low Carb

So about two months ago, I went to the doctor for my physical and although my fasting blood sugar was okay, he wanted to do an additional test because I am at such a high risk for developing Type 2 diabetes. On my dad's side, an aunt and an uncle have it. My mom's mom was on dialysis at the end of her life and probably pre-diabetic. Most importantly, one of my brothers developed Type 2 in his 40's (and is now on insulin), and another one is pre-diabetic. Add that to the fact that I was pushing at least 30 pounds overweight a few months ago and it put me at high risk.

So they did another blood test of my non-fasting sugars and the consensus was that my levels are consistent with pre-diabetes. So the nurse called and left a message for me to go on a low carb diet. 150 grams or less of carbs a day. Okay, I thought, I can do this. I have a two year old I need to stay healthy for.

Now, I know 150 grams is still a pretty decent amount. It's not like I can't eat bread at all. For the first week, though, it really was a shock to my system. I was suddenly aware that everything I wanted to eat...that I would normally be eating was going to eat through my carb allowance like a kid plowing through Halloween candy. I had a fairly healthy diet. I mean, I like all sorts of veggies and most fruits and try to eat lots of whole grains and lean meats, although I like my steak (on the rare side of medium rare, thank you very much) as much as the next good little Texan.

However, I've never met a carb I didn't like and I had to give up sweet tea, which was my guilty pleasure. I spent the last 10 years or so removing artificial sweeteners from our diet. Now if I want something sweet, it's back to the artificial stuff. And I know cokes are bad for me. But it's hard to make it through a long day without one. Giving up my full sugar Dr. Pepper was painful. I live in Dr. Pepper country and at least Diet DP is available in a lot of places, but still. And full sugar regular Coke. Had to give those up. The first few weeks were brutal. To get me through my initial sweet/carb withdrawals, I was drinking diet DP like I had and intravenous line. Plus, it took me a while to figure out what snacks I could have as I was running out the door to art lessons or the park, so I would just drink more Diet DP to get me through the afternoon. Now I eat a piece of cheese or some nuts.

I've been pretty lax with the diet the last week or two and I really need to get back on it. The doctor wants me back in six months to check my blood sugar again,but I think I may go back sooner just to get more guidance on what it is I am trying to accomplish. I'm confused about how often I can splurge on something with a low glycemic index.

No pasta or rice dishes. Or at least, very little. My cooking has had to change. I used to fix a pasta dish at least once a week or so and rice was our usual starch with dinner. Now I have found some pasta that is supposed to have a low glycemic index, but a) it isn't all that tasty and b) it still isn't like that can be the whole meal...just a bit of it. so no more tuna casserole. No more bowtie pasta with asparagus and chicken. No more stir-fry piled onto a bunch of rice. But then, I look in diabetic cookbooks and they have pasta dishes. So I'm confused about how much pasta is okay. Is the carb count as important as the glycemic index of the carbs I eat? I need to go back to the doctor...an possibly book an appointment with a dietician. One of my sheeple is a registered dietician who works for the VA and does a lot of dietary counseling for diabetics.

For a long while we have been eating whole wheat pasta and I'm totally a whole wheat bread person, and that helps with the carb count because of the dietary fiber, but when a half cup of something gives you 20-30 carbs, it means that you can't make a whole meal out of it. The fruits I like to eat are the higher carb ones, like bananas and pineapple. The veggies C likes (and therefore the ones I fix at home) are the higher carb ones. Flavored yogurt is right out unless I eat the aspartame stuff. Have you ever looked at the sugars/carb count of a regular Yoplait or, heaven forbid, a Brown Cow Cream on Top?

So in the first 2-3 weeks, I lost ten pounds. Probably mostly water weight. I've evened off and haven't lost more, but the ten pounds was, at least, encouraging. I mean, it is nice when you start a diet and see something happen pretty quickly. Losing the next 20 pounds will require more effort on my part. I'm not big on working out, but I think I am about to start that up again. This last weekend I fell pretty hard off the low carb diet and I'm trying to climb back on. It's been hard. I feel like a carb addict who went on a bender.

I lost ten pounds pretty quickly, but have leveled off and now I am starting to head back to the gym, a place I haven't been to for quite some time. I wish I liked working out, but I don't. It's a necessary evil.

And because no post is really complete without a photo, here's my cute kid playing Hi Ho Cherry-O for the first time. :-)