No quick wins I am afraid…
Let me preface this by stating that there are no quick wins unfortunately. You may see various items on social media promising results but I am afraid hard work is still required.
Intermittent Fasting (IF)
Before I get into the food aspect of what to actually eat I want to highlight the important aspect of Intermittent Fasting (IF) in order to actually help treat your Diabetes Type 2. IF can have a positive impact on Insulin Resistance, for more information please look at my blog post here.
Food Products
My biggest weakness to date has been a combination of my sweet tooth as well as portion size control and a love of carbs. I would make a bowl of pasta and beef mince that would in reality probably feed two people comfortably and wolf this down.
The good news I think is that I have managed to find some good substitutes for pasta and rice as well my beloved mashed and/or roast potato.
If like me you after the diagnosis you were thinking you are going to face a life time of forcing down salad despite detesting it fear not. Now there is nothing wrong with liking a good salad and vegetables, I do keep trying new things but alas unless they’re in a soup its just not for me.
Cost
Now there is a downside, unfortunately getting keto products is not the cheapest option out there. I am still on the journey myself and finding new options some cheaper and others more expensive. I have the products I have tried listed out below, links to products are included along with my review and the cost of purchase.
Whilst I do use Keto Products its worth noting I don’t consider myself to follow a strictly Keto Diet, I may have done so in the beginning to shift as much weight as I could initially. At the beginning I would be having typically under 30g of carb a day if I could manage it, now I aim for between 50g and 75g. Whilst there are no enforced guidelines under 100g is considered low carb whereas Keto is usually under 50g and possibly even 20g.
I will list out the various products I use on a continuous basis here. I am on the look out for new options and regularly attend Keto Festivals when I can to get new ideas. If you are aware of any great substitutes please don’t hestitate to get in touch.
Gym
Below is an example workout that I typically follow when at the gym. As stated before I am neither a nutritionist nor a gym personal trainer this is just what works for me.
As Gimli stated within LOTR, I was built for short sprints not long distance. Amazing if you are able to get on the treadmills and run a cheeky marathon here and there, alas that is not me.
Cardio
I start with some cardio by striking the heavy bag to warm up. In my youth I trained in Ju Jitsu and then did Krav Maga for 6 years. Alas due to my snow boarding accident no more fighting for me as on blood thinners, thats another story.
I used to detest rowing, mainly due to the fact I was so fat I couldn’t actually row properly. My forearms would ache and as my belly would get in the way my legs would bow sideways out meaning I could not perform the movement effectively.
Now I finish my cardio with a rowing session, I flit between doing a slower 20 minute rowing session trying to get to over 2km vs as fast as I can to 1km currently 3 minutes 45 at the time of writing with the damper setting at 12/13 (Nuffield Health uses SkillRow machines). I know for you purists this is too high but I am going for more of a strength workout here to activate muscles not cardio and rowing technique.
Weights
Weights wise I focus on compound exercises to work as many muscle groups at once. Not afraid to admit it may be an ego thing but I like to lift heavy low rep, nowhere near in the leagues of strongmen but 200kg reverse row for 3 rep max is my current limit.
I typically do 5 sets of 5 across various exercises, I will attempt to add videos of these during a gym workout hopefully without looking like a crazy person.
I may start with combination of alternate overhead presses and standing rows with 50kg on the bar, doing 5 of each movement before resting.
Due to shoulder injuries from Ju Jitsu, a favourite of mine with the dumbbells is to alternate between lifting a heavy and lighter one in each arm whilst doing side crunches. Side Crunching 32kg and holding up 24kg in an overhead press movement.
I work my way up on the sitting reverse row from 120kg up to 200kg adding plates after 2 reps of 5.
Working on my chest I start lower at 80kg working my way up to 120kg. Typically I like to use the machines so that I can lift heavier. I may then use dumbbells with a lighter weight to activate the stabiliser muscles.
The rowing machine works my legs and having carried around 150kgs they are ok for now, that being said I will occasionally go on the bikes with a heavy resistance or do a few leg extensions at 180kg to keep my strength up. Its worth noting if you lose considerable weight your legs will get weaker, as will you in general until you build it back up again.
Below you can see I was much bigger, I like to work out my shoulders due to issues from Ju Jitsu with them. I do need to focus from next month on the stomach and tone up a bit. I do prefer to focus on compound exercises to build strength rather than isolate muscle groups.
More exercise and progress updates can be seen in my blog posts here.
