Not lardy but need to lower blood sugar and fat

[PomBstard]

Went to the docs recently about something, and she noticed I hadn't had any blood tests done for a few years. As I'm now in my early 40s, she thought it advisable to get a few checks done, so off I went. And a good job too. Cholesterol, liver, kidneys, thyroid, platelets, white blood cells - all good and well within healthy range.

However, triglycerides were high, and blood sugar put me at near-diabetic. All a bit of a surprise as my diet isn't crazy high in either fat or sugar. I'm 6'2' (189cm) and about 14st4lb (90kg) with a 34" waist so don't consider myself lardy. I mountain bike regularly, a few times a week, and keep active with three kids - bikes, scooters, swimming, walking, skateboarding.

The fat I can tackle - I put it down to liking sausages and pies and quiche (not a real man, I know) - and whilst I don't eat them every day, will simply leave them out of my diet, along with a few other things.

The sugar is a trickier one. I've switched to wholegrain carbs - rice, pasta, bread - I usually eat lots of fruit too, so will cut this down.

But what should I eat before, during and after any decent exercise? I went on a 3 hour ride yesterday and ran out of fuel about 30mins from home. Usually would have topped up with a muffin when I stopped for coffee, instead made it back and inhaled beans on toast when I got home but felt a bit rough.

[HonestIago]

The one thing you need to do is stop eating breakfast. Fast for 16hrs a day (say 9pm till 1pm) each day and within a few weeks/months your bloods will be much better. My Dad reversed Type 2 diabetes JUST by introducing intermittent fasting to his lifestyle.

[PomBstard]

HonestIago said:

The one thing you need to do is stop eating breakfast. Fast for 16hrs a day (say 9pm till 1pm) each day and within a few weeks/months your bloods will be much better. My Dad reversed Type 2 diabetes JUST by introducing intermittent fasting to his lifestyle.

Yep, intermittent fasting is, ahem, on the menu. Not sure how to make it work with cycling though, which is why I'm after some pointers as to what to eat when exercising for a couple of hours or more.

[Warnie]

Cut all that wholegrain crap (sugar). Up the fat and after a couple of weeks your body will start to use fat for fuel. On your bike ride, if you need to although I doubt it, then top up on nuts. You will only run out of fuel when you run out of fat, you'll be dead then so I wouldn't worry....

Google Marks daily apple, Tim Noakes

[PomBstard]

Thought I'd update this as it might be of interest to others.

Had the repeat blood results back this week, and after 9 weeks, all back to normal with a 15% reduction in blood sugar and 50% reduction in triglycerides. All cholesterol readings improved too. What did I do?

As the previous poster had noted, I upped the fats, cut the sugar, reduced the carbs, and fasted. Made sure I went a minimum of 12 hours between evening meal and breakfast - usually 14 hours. Started eating lots of nuts, and I mean lots! Also lots of veg and lean meat. No sausages, quiche, pies or burgers in that time. No pasta at all, rice is always brown and smaller portion, and fish is about 2-3 times a week.

Bike rides have all been done fasted, and whilst the first few were a struggle to get over two hours, I'm now comfortable to do four hours of full-on mountain biking with just water. A bit peckish at the end of that, but nothing that scrambled eggs on multigrain toast can't cure

The two other side effects have been that I've also lost about 4kg, which is about 5%, and my blood pressure has come down even though I'm now dealing with three kids and running my own business.

All in all, I'm chuffed, esp as its all sustainable - no special foods, nothing that can't be done as part of just getting on. Next check in a year's time.

[kev b]

Thanks for the update, you must be pleased with the result.

What substitute would you suggest for someone allergic to nuts?

[PomBstard]

kev b said:

Thanks for the update, you must be pleased with the result.

What substitute would you suggest for someone allergic to nuts?

Very pleased thanks

As for the nut alternative - no idea! I picked up on them after reading several articles mentioning the health benefits, and that they were a great source of protein to just snack on. And for me having something to snack on meant that I steered clear of carb-based food. Are you allergic to all nuts? I don't eat peanuts, but that's cos I'm not keen on the taste. What about seeds - sunflower, pumpkin, others???

I should've also mentioned that I also upped my dairy intake - cheese, eggs, and lots of natural, full-fat, no-added-sugar yoghurt - and didn't stop eating cereals. Breakfast is still low-sugar muesli with milk, and I still eat bread but its now multigrain and in smaller portions.

[markcoznottz]

Warnie said:

Cut all that wholegrain crap (sugar). Up the fat and after a couple of weeks your body will start to use fat for fuel. On your bike ride, if you need to although I doubt it, then top up on nuts. You will only run out of fuel when you run out of fat, you'll be dead then so I wouldn't worry....

Google Marks daily apple, Tim Noakes

+1. Remember it's easier and cheaper to lose weight in the kitchen than ona push bike/gym. I still say low carb/ high fat etc is easier without fasting. Nobody can realistically keep that up you will fall of the wagon at some point. At Least with low carb you can keep eating, I mean salmon and vegetables is still palatable etc. If you have a stall have a day of eating utter st, eg Krispy kreme, to fire your metabolism up and avoid hypothyroidism. To really give your body a pummelling try a fat fast fir 3 days....

[kev b]

I'm allergic to peanuts, hate all nuts and have developed a mild intolerance to dairy products which makes things tricky.

I eat too much bread as a sandwiches are easy, tasty and filling, chocolate biscuits are hard to resist so I'm probably beyond hope.

[74merc]

There was an interesting episode of Horizon on BBC2 about 6 months ago. They took 2 identical twins, both of which were GPs. One was given a high fat, low carb diet, whilst the other was given a low fat, high carb diet.
Guess which one was on the verge of being diabetic after the experiment?
The first one, high fat, low carb...

[DuncanM]

74merc said:

There was an interesting episode of Horizon on BBC2 about 6 months ago. They took 2 identical twins, both of which were GPs. One was given a high fat, low carb diet, whilst the other was given a low fat, high carb diet.
Guess which one was on the verge of being diabetic after the experiment?
The first one, high fat, low carb...

You'll blow up the internet (or at least PH/Health Matters) with that kind of talk!

I think more information would be needed but it is interesting.

[PomBstard]

Another update, another bonus...

Have just been to the dentist. He commented that my teeth were cleaner than usual, less scraping required, and asked if I'd changed anything in my routine. Nope, says I. Well, what about my diet, asks he.

I filled him in on what I've done and why, and he reckons there's a noticeable improvement in the amount of scale/plaque/gunk on my teeth, and that my gums looked better too. And agrees it'll be the cutting out sugar that's probably the reason. We all know that sugar causes problems with teeth, but I had no idea the difference could be noticeable in 3 months. Got to be another reason to do it.