Any diabetics using the FB?

[llchevy56]

Wondering if there are any diabetics out there who are using the FB and working towards weight loss?  I'm insulin dependent and trying to lose weight but more importantly trying to regain my health and physical strength while balancing everything.  A challenge a day! Love to hear your stories....

[yesitsamy]

Hi! I am a type one diabetic, Insulin dependent on an Insulin pump. I have had diabetes for 27 years. I asked for a FB fir Christmas for the same reason, to stay healthy. Ive tried apps on my phone and logged food, but I am loving the Fb! I try each day to beat my previous steps 🙂 Amy

[yesitsamy]

Proudmommy--- I feel your pain.. U rock though with a 7.5 A1C--- I am struggling to get mine from 10.9 lower.. I watch what I eat, do everything the way I am supposed to, just feel that nothing works, so I am sure trying with this thing! Good luck to u!

[MatildaT]

Hi Amy...Yeah, you have the right idea (challenging your self day to day)  the FB keeps me motivated to move and I would like to chalIenge myself daily,  but I have a 10hr day desk job and 1 1/2 hr round trip to work 5 days a week in dispatch. Totally whipped out by the time I get back home. It does give new life to the weekend though, gonna see what I got over the weekend. Maybe break weekend records lol....

[GoldaT]

@MatildaT: Every step counts so please make sure you're always wearing your
FB. Good Luck on breaking weekend records too. You'll find excuses to
walk even at work (stairs, bathroom breaks, coffee breaks) --- walking
around the house counts too; to and from the car, etc. Golda T.

[yesitsamy]

Matilda ---that's what my life is! I work 4 tens a dispatch desk job and have a 40 mile commute each way!!!

Sent from my iPhone

[socchic]

Hi I'm Jodi. I was diagnosed with diabetes in 2010, At the time when I checked into the hospital with high blood sugar (off the meter), I weighed 119. I gained 40lbs within the next 9 months, probably due to depression and lack of activity. I really hated my body, I was a soccer player and fairly active. I started going to the gym and used a personal trainer, I'm now at 136 and happy with that. My A1c has been consistently under 6 for the past 2 years. I got the Fitbit for Christmas, figure there's always room for improvement. Not a big fan of running, I like to bike instead. I was wondering if there was a way to track that. Rides aren't leisurely, pretty intense, Thanks!

[LewWagner]

---

@socchic wrote:

Hi I'm Jodi. I was diagnosed with diabetes in 2010, At the time when I checked into the hospital with high blood sugar (off the meter), I weighed 119. I gained 40lbs within the next 9 months, probably due to depression and lack of activity. I really hated my body, I was a soccer player and fairly active. I started going to the gym and used a personal trainer, I'm now at 136 and happy with that. My A1c has been consistently under 6 for the past 2 years. I got the Fitbit for Christmas, figure there's always room for improvement. Not a big fan of running, I like to bike instead. I was wondering if there was a way to track that. Rides aren't leisurely, pretty intense, Thanks!

---

Unless the new devices (like Charge HR and Surge HR) have GPS built into them and can track movement, you would have to manually enter such activity in the logging section of the Fitbit website from your dashboard.  If you're using a stationary or recumbent bike that doesn't have the wheel exposed, you wouldn't be able to purchase activity devices that place a sensor on the wheel and therefore provide a more accurate account of your ride.  If riding a bike on roads or trails, then I would recommend buiying such a setup.

I wear my Fitbit Zip on my waistband of my gym shorts when I ride on my recumbent bike.  While not probably accurately recording full exercise metrics, I use the recumbent bike display distance travelled in thirty mintue segments (I do thirty minutes about 4-6 times every other day).  I then go into UnderArmor's Map My Fitness and manually log an entry to get the calories burned.  I then go into Fitbit logging and enter in the same data along with the calories burned.

Not saying there isn't a better way, but it's a way I've come up with to provide some consistent metrics.  It's working because I'm maintaing my weight and have done so for over five months. 

Hope this is of value add

[JerriAnn]

To those that are young and lost weight to get off insulin your lucky. I lost 40 pds since I began a diabetic.

I started out on medformin and now also take insulin. Since I am 65 years old the doctor said as you get older it is much harder to get off meds. I have lowered the units I do take with the insulin but haven't managed to get off all together.

I really doubt people gain weight taking insulin. Be trueful to yourself. Are you only eating

the right amount of calories. Write it down . I try for 2100 calories. And to me that isn't much.

But if I cheat I don't lose. IF I look at a potato or bread my sugar count goes up. I love them

both.

I just don't understand why doctors don't encourage their patients to go to classes. I am really

shock how little some diabetics really know about their sugars. I blame it on the doctors.

They should make it , if you want the medicine you need to attend a few classes . My

insurance paid for it. Of course the diabetic center wanted me to extend the classes at my

expense. Really WWatchers is pretty much the same diet plan.

 Good luck to you all . It is tough to keep the numbers down. Every time I see a person with no

legs it reminds me to be thankful and stay on track.

[socchic]

The weight gain was because a steady diet of peanut butter sandwiches and
nuts, I developed cataracts in both eyes, depressed and inactive. Before the
diagnosis, I was playing soccer a couple of times a week, gym and biking. I
have no problem keeping BG levels where they should be, rarely get above 120
or below 80.

[JerriAnn]

socchi,

You look to young to have cateracts. I had both my eyes operated on. As long as you caught it in

time that is no big deal.

Really if your BG level only goes up to 120 I am surprised your doctor treats you as a

diabetic. Your very lucky to have those readings.

Peanut butter and nuts shouldn't of been a big deal either. Unless you are eating

alot of bread during the day.

You should go back to your dr. for a physcial and let him know your concerns. Really hope the best to

you.  

[MarkT2]

Hi Laura, I have been a Type 2 Diabetic for 21 years and insulin dependent for the past 3 years. Over the years my weight continued to increase to 255 pounds when I started insulin. While on insulin I hit a peak weight of 298 pounds in March 2014.  I tried all types of diets and exercise programs and have found that the more I exercise the hungrier I became and the more I ate. In September I started a low carb diet primarily consisting of cheese, eggs, chicken, fish, and vegetable greens. No bread, starches, pasta, fruit of any kind. I reduced my insulin dramatically within a few weeks. I was injecting a total of over 700 units of Novolog (fast acting insulin) a day and 100 units of Levemir  (slow acting). I am now taking a maximum of 12 units of Novolog per day and 20 units of Levemir. On some days, I dont take any Novolog. I have never felt this great in years and my blood sugars are within a tight range of 68-105 24/7. Exercise no longer makes me hungry and helps to keep the body in balance and the metabolism from slowing down. However, the key to blood sugar control is primarily a low carb diet. I recognize that the challenge is carb cravings which are difficult to control. It seems more effective for people over 50 , when carb cravings naturally tend to decline. I am 51.  Good luck to you and hope you are able to bring your insulin requirments down to a manageable level soon!.    

[GoldaT]

@MarkT2: It makes me glad to read posts like yours. Congratulations on a
great achievement. Keep up the good results. I'm trying to maintain a low
carb diet (much of the foods you eat are what I eat too). However, I do
love my pastas and breads; I try to keep these in low amounts and am
sometimes quite successful. It's the sweets that tend to do me in --- I
reward myself once in a while but sometimes I slip up and eat them when
I've already hit my calorie allowance. You give me hope that I can achieve
the same goals in time. Golda T.

[MarkT2]

Hi Golda - I totally understand the challenge in trying to avoid sweets. Sometimes the craving for something sweet could be overwhelming. You may want to consider adjusting your diet temporarily (15 days minimum, 30 days maximum)  to a ketogenic diet. This will put your body into ketosis which within a few days will eliminate or significantly reduce cravings. Ketosis requires that  75% of caloric intake be FAT , 20% Protein, 5% Carbs. During the first few days try eating Cream Cheese standalone, it will help reduce apetite and cravings. On my diet when I feel even a mild craving coming on, I take a container of cream cheese and mix it with a few small bits of Lox and eat a few tablespoons at a time several times a day. After the 15-30 day period, switch back to low carb but keep your carbs to no more than 5%. You can take more protein especially if you are getting plenty of exercise. Best is to consume protein within 2 hours after exercise.... when the body can best utilize protein. Keep it up!

[GoldaT]

Thanks for the advice. Don't know if I can do it --- have to watch the
dairy intake. I do like my cream cheese and lox though. GoldaT.

[Mrsaireysson]

I have used the Charge for two days and am sold on it It is fantastic and it is  one huge motivator to me. My history is my father died in 1972 when I was 14 which was a slight surprise, and six months later, the trauma caused my pancreas to stop functioning and the prize was Type 1 diabetes! However, you always should take a positive away from a negative, and 42 years later, I am still in far better condition than my schoolfriends.

Diabetes teaches me something new every week - it does things neither me, my diabtic nurse nor my Consultant can explain, but I know I am in the driving seat. I exercise regularly to improvre my physical health, my mental health  and to ensure my blood keeps flowing seemlessly through my body.

My last A1C was 8.1, the highest it has ever been, but I have recently taken early retirement, and am going to the gym nearly every day which  has caused me a few new challenges.

I learnt early on that exercise is vital if I intend to outlive my school friends, and I am optimistic the FB will assist me reach my goal. If anyone wants any advice from  a 57 year old Liverpudlian who owes his life to the National Health Service, please feel free to ask me.

[snowflurry]

@ socchic If you have one of the new fitbits like the charge HR or the Surge there is a stopwatch feature when you begin your exercise.  Although it is harder for it to track activities like bike rides it does know to pay more attention to that timeframe and it monitors your heart rate.  You can also log the activity.  I haven't used it for bike riding yet but I like the stopwatch feature when at the gym.

[JoeBib]

Hi Laura,

I take pills, but i'm hoping to beable to stop taking even those. I beleive it is a realistic goal even though every year I talk about how much I have to lose weight. The Fitbit has been great for me. I don't know if it is accurate or not, but it motivates me to do so much more than I was. I'm fairley competitive. So when I see groups I can join, I can move up the ladder so to speak within those groups. Some of them have leaders that to me are untouchable, but if I can move from the middle of the pack to the top 40% then the top 30% and so on, that helps me with my other goals. Since christmas I have lost only 6 lbs, but i'm having fun and not about to quit and say i'll never reach my weight goal.

[anrento]

Pre_Diabetes A1c 6.2  I want to reverse this number.  I am getting very active now and using the myfitnesspal.com for the last 44 days connected to Fitbit.I am determined to changing my lifestyle and changing my numbers. I attend the YMCA diabetes control group(Vanderbilt) and it is helping me become very successful.

[anrento]

Just take baby steps and you will get there. I love gadgets and this one helps me track. I could use some competition to connect with a buddy. 64yrs and getting move and more active each day.

[glenncarp]

I am 47 and I have been a type 1 diabetic for 42 years. I lost 40 lbs 4 years ago and I felt amazing. I could stop taking my meds for BP, cholestorol and I stopped snoring. I lost the weight by going toa  eight clinic and taking ephedrine and eating no carbs. Fast forward 4 years and I am back to the original weight. Back on all meds and now use a CPAP machine to sleep.

I had a Fitbit ultra and used it for a few wekks when it was new and got bored so I stored it away. The wife bough a new surge and she asked if I would wear mine. I wore the ultra a few days and ordered the charge HR. Having the mobile app and challenging the wife on work week challenges has made us both sooo into this now. Until you count your calories, you really do not kow what you are putting into your mouth. I have lost 3 punds in two weeks and I am so much happeir with that since I know it is now a life change and not a fad. 

I go the the gym daily and when I do, I suspend my pupmp amnd leave it in the bag. By exterig yourself for an hour, you certiianly do not need a basal. I usually have to get some Jelly beans. FYI-Jelly Belly beans are 150 callories for 35 pieces and per my endo who is also a type 1, 2 Jelly Bellies raise your BS by a point. So it is simple math and you wont over sugar. 

Warning to the diabetics: I have had three eye surguries and recent cataracts removed due to my bloodsugars being out of contraol for years. It is NEVER too ealry to pay attaention to our disease and get in control now.