Type 2 Diabetic - Atkins has stopped working!

[Patch]

Hi - I'm a new member here . I'm 27 years old, male, 6'1", and currently 243lbs. Just trying to get some info from people with Type 2 diabetes.

When I was first diagnosed (at a weight of nearly 280lbs) I was put on a low fat, high carb diet, and lost over 30 pounds. My cholesterol went down, my triglycerides went down and my blood sugar was nearly always in control. Great I thought - I was eating lots of baked potatoes, lots of rice and lots of pasta. After about 2 years on this high carb, low fat diet the weight started to creep back on, and even more worryingly my triglycerides had rocketed and my doctor warned me about the dangers. His advise was to stay on the high carb, low fat diet and be more strict.

I ignored this advice and went on the Atkins diet. In 1 MONTH i had again lost about 30lbs and my diabetes was in control better than it had ever been before. Atkins seemed like some kind of miracle cure - I had loads of energy, I went to bed at night tired and woke up in the morning refreshed. It gave me the motivation to start playing Basketball again, and this helped greatly with my weight loss. I was lighter that I'd ever been and all was great - for about a year. Once again the weight started creeping back on and my blood sugar is getting more eratic. I have great trouble sleeping and wake up completely drained. My blood sugar levels, though, do not go that high.

It feels like deja vu...

It seems to me like my body wants to be fat. And has twice now adjusted to me losing weight.

Have any other type 2 diabetics had this experience? I have never felt as good as I did when I lost the weight on Atkins, again, for about 2 years - and try as I might I cannot get that feeling back. My body seems to have adjusted - and will not be happy until I put all the weight back on. I first tried to treat it as a "Plateau" - that didn't work. So I went back onto Induction for a month - that didn't work. I CANNOT get back into Ketosis...

I seriously think that my body has adjusted to this eating regime. Anyone have any similar experience of this? How did you get over it?

I really like eating the Atkins way - I was very rarely hungry and do not eat anywhere near as much as I used to. This was the biggest boost for me. Before Atkins I thought I deserved to be fat, because I could not stop eating. I was never full. Then with Atkins - I was missing meals because I was just not hungry - this was completely new to me, and made me feel great.

Any help/input will be greatly received...

[2big4mysize]

Re: Type 2 Diabetic - Atkins has stopped working!

Welcome to ADBB

we need more info to assit you getting your Atkins going again. you are telling us you ate induction chaptr 11 foods only for a month and never were in ketosis? how did you confirm this?

Has you doc checked you insulin levels and your A1c?

Did you follow OWL and back your carbs back down when you started gaining until you were losing once again? did you make any what dactor atkins calls life still changes less exercise seated job less moving around?

Any new meds?

[BabyDreamer]

Re: Type 2 Diabetic - Atkins has stopped working!

Patch,

I am a type II diabetic and I have already gotten to cut my meds in half on the plan. I am NO DOCTOR at all, but it sounds to me like you might be overmedicated. What I mean is that as a type II, our bodies still produce insulin...they are just silly and have forgotten how to use it. It sounds like your body is figuring out how to use that insulin on its own again. It helped me when my meds were lowered. I think you need to have a new A1C run and do more checking during the day with you evil little pin pricker. Consult a diabetic specialist my friend! Good luck.

Deb

Hi - I'm a new member here . I'm 27 years old, male, 6'1", and currently 243lbs. Just trying to get some info from people with Type 2 diabetes.

When I was first diagnosed (at a weight of nearly 280lbs) I was put on a low fat, high carb diet, and lost over 30 pounds. My cholesterol went down, my triglycerides went down and my blood sugar was nearly always in control. Great I thought - I was eating lots of baked potatoes, lots of rice and lots of pasta. After about 2 years on this high carb, low fat diet the weight started to creep back on, and even more worryingly my triglycerides had rocketed and my doctor warned me about the dangers. His advise was to stay on the high carb, low fat diet and be more strict.

I ignored this advice and went on the Atkins diet. In 1 MONTH i had again lost about 30lbs and my diabetes was in control better than it had ever been before. Atkins seemed like some kind of miracle cure - I had loads of energy, I went to bed at night tired and woke up in the morning refreshed. It gave me the motivation to start playing Basketball again, and this helped greatly with my weight loss. I was lighter that I'd ever been and all was great - for about a year. Once again the weight started creeping back on and my blood sugar is getting more eratic. I have great trouble sleeping and wake up completely drained. My blood sugar levels, though, do not go that high.

It feels like deja vu...

It seems to me like my body wants to be fat. And has twice now adjusted to me losing weight.

Have any other type 2 diabetics had this experience? I have never felt as good as I did when I lost the weight on Atkins, again, for about 2 years - and try as I might I cannot get that feeling back. My body seems to have adjusted - and will not be happy until I put all the weight back on. I first tried to treat it as a "Plateau" - that didn't work. So I went back onto Induction for a month - that didn't work. I CANNOT get back into Ketosis...

I seriously think that my body has adjusted to this eating regime. Anyone have any similar experience of this? How did you get over it?

I really like eating the Atkins way - I was very rarely hungry and do not eat anywhere near as much as I used to. This was the biggest boost for me. Before Atkins I thought I deserved to be fat, because I could not stop eating. I was never full. Then with Atkins - I was missing meals because I was just not hungry - this was completely new to me, and made me feel great.

Any help/input will be greatly received...

[RunAwayMichelle]

Re: Type 2 Diabetic - Atkins has stopped working!

I also have Type 2 diabetes and I also have trouble with gaining back the weight I lose but I know that the real reason for me is that I have way to many "Just-one-bites" Summer icecream undid most of what I lost during 6 months of Winter dieting.

Take a good hard look at the number of carbs you are really eating. Measure and weigh your foods, check portion sizes and watch out for all those little extras!!!!

I use Fitday.com to keep myself in line. Somedays I and absolutely shocked at how a few little extra carbs really add up to a high carb day.

[norweaver]

Re: Type 2 Diabetic - Atkins has stopped working!

Hi Patch,

I am an old Atkineer who lost 60 lbs on plan during 2003 and can relate to your experiences. I am also Type II, and am again trying to use Atkins to lose, since I have now had to go on Lantus at night, and gained all my weight back when I went off plan. It was easy the first time, but it seems that since my first Atkins experience, what I call my "set point" at which carbs affect my weight negatively, dropped to 5 or 10 carbs/day. Nothing I could do would keep my sugar under control unless I ate virtually NO carbs at all. I haven't been back on plan long enough to see results, but I hope that I can still respond to the diet. I have added significant exercise this time, which I didn't do before, and hope that helps.

I wish you luck in your struggle. Have you read Canuck's posts about Dr. Bernstein's diabetic diet? Take a look, it was enlightening to me. I have sent for the book and will try it. Maybe testing to see what individual foods might be causing a sugar spike might help your weight loss.

[ipopup]

Re: Type 2 Diabetic - Atkins has stopped working!

What you really need is an introduction to your liver: because The liver takes protein and fat and turns it into glucose. This is important if we have no food to eat. We can use the fat we have saved, and make it into glucose to use.
http://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liver

You have to eat the right amount of carbs so this doesn't happen. Doing Atkins by the book re: carbs each meal keeps your liver from turning protein and fat into glucose.

I am a type 2 diabetic. I have been off meds since 2003.
BJ Webb

[KX4SAM]

Re: Type 2 Diabetic - Atkins has stopped working!

Are you exercising?

I can be very very low carb (5-10 grams) and NOT show ketones without exercise.

If I understand correcty (read filter) you can be in ketosis but not enought to show ketones on the urine test strip. A blood ketone test would show, but those cost big money!