Fighting Temptations and Diabetes

On February first I am going to make a serious shift in my life. For 90 days I will eat no animal products and I will increase the intensity of my exercise routine. My goal here is to take off the last 30 pounds which have followed me even though I have taken off 60 pounds already. Maybe YOU can have things around when you are not supposed to eat them. But I do better when temptation is not there in the fridge whispering. “Come and get me. I am a lovely piece of cake, hamburger, pasta, high fat yummies, etc.”

For the past 2 weeks I have been eating items from my freezer, fridge and cabinets that include animal and high fat content products. I have tried eating just one of the recommended 3 oz pieces of meat which look tiny to me. So far that plan has not worked for me. If you can stick with these portions – great.

BTW, I refuse to write that I have “lost” weight. It is NOT lost. I am not looking for it. In fact I am power walking away from it as fast as my legs will carry me. Words do have power. I use other words like the one above “taken off” or even “escaped.” Any other suggestions for word choices?

So many chronic diseases are attached to weight that it seems logical to me that I work on avoiding them. My mother was a diabetic for over 40 years. She did not have the same choices we get now. As she took off weight, eventually getting down to below 140 pounds her insulin use went down from 36 units to 8 a day. Her MD was even looking at eliminating the evening shot before Mom passed.

Watching my mother wrestle with this disease taught me a lot about great strength of character and determination. She NEVER gave up. She also told me on several occasions that I needed to do my best to avoid getting diabetes if I could. This was very sound advice – as usual.
According to medical research risk factors for Type 2 diabetes are:
• Over age 45
• Body mass index (BMI) greater than 30
• A family history of diabetes
• Race (diabetes is more common among American Indians, Hispanic/Latino Americans, African Americans, Asian Americans, and Pacific Islanders)
• High blood pressure or high levels of blood fats (such as cholesterol and triglycerides)
• History of gestational diabetes
• Physical inactivity
Read more: http://www.healthline.com/sw/wsc-how-weight-affects-diabetes#ixzz1CTcHEjGx
Healthline.com – Connect to Better Health

I am over 45 , have BMI just under 30, a family history of diabetes and am African American. So several points are against me, but I am both my parent’s children. Like my mother, I will NOT give up. My father used to say, ”Honey, you can do anything you set your mind to doing.” I was Daddy’s Little Girl. A great gig if you can get it. My point is I was raised not to give up. Not on me and not on you.

If I still weighed over 220 pounds I am pretty sure I would already have diabetes. Working out 4-6 times a week has kept this disease at bay – for now. To get my BMI into the “normal” range of 18.5-24.9 I need to weigh under 150 pounds. So I am making a change to reach a change. 90 days of fruits & veggies will be fun as I try to figure out what to eat. I am already a subscriber to www.bostonorganics.com . They bring me a basket of fruit & veggies every week. It will help to keep me out of the grocery store where pizza and friend chicken will try to tempt me.

To check your BMI click here: http://www.nhlbisupport.com/bmi/

A few of my friends with diabetes have had Gastric Bypass surgery and within a few moths they had lost 30-50 pounds and no longer needed to take any diabetes medication. Some other friends took the weight off without surgery. They too are now off medication.

For some actual research try this info:
RESULTS—A total of 1,079 participants were aged 25–84 years (mean 50.6 years, BMI 33.9 kg/m2). Weight loss was the dominant predictor of reduced diabetes incidence (hazard ratio per 5-kg weight loss 0.42 [95% CI 0.35–0.51]; P < 0.0001). For every kilogram of weight loss, there was a 16% reduction in risk, adjusted for changes in diet and activity. Lower percent of calories from fat and increased physical activity predicted weight loss. Increased physical activity was important to help sustain weight loss. Among 495 participants not meeting the weight loss goal at year 1, those who achieved the physical activity goal had 44% lower diabetes incidence.
CONCLUSIONS—Interventions to reduce diabetes risk should primarily target weight reduction.

http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/29/9/2102.abstract

History and science tell us now something different needs to happen or a lot of us will not live even as long as our parents did. My choice is to push myself while I am still healthy. My plan to avoid diabetes may not work with so many risk factors beyond my control. BUT I will know that I have done my best.

If you want to observe my journey become a member of “RFW-90dayVegan” on FB.

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This blog was written by Rhonda F. Waters, Ph.D.
President of The Mutare Group
617-266-3057
rfw@mutaregroup.com
“Helping motivated adults achieve key goals through education and training.”

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Tags: fighting diabetes, healthy living, vegan, weight loss

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