How to lose weight with Type 1 diabetes

[magkenmare]

My daughter has had diabetes for 10 years and has experienced significant weight gain.  She has tried over the years to lose with diet and exercise but to no avail.  She has recently done Weight Watchers for one month and followed it religiously.  She lost practically no weight.  She also exercise at least five times a week for an hour and a half.  She is very frustrated and I don't have any answers.  Unfortunately, her doctors over the years don't seem to be able to help.  Should we be looking at type of insulin?  She presently talkes Lantus and Humalog.  Does high protein help?  Her weight is in her back across her shoulders, in her middle and thighs.  She usually injects in her stomach and sometimes her thighs.  Does site matter?  Any suggestions would be so appreciated.  Thank you.

[Sarahbethko]

I have been type one for 20 years.  I have had issues with my weight also.  I talked to my docs about it in 2008 and was told a lot  of it is based on the amount of insulin.. so the key is to cut it back, They told me to eat lunch dinner etc THEN work out.. this way you can reduce thee insulin need to cover the carbs and types.. It takes a few weeks to really get the numbers right and I recommend to eat the same amount of carbs and do the same work/ time every time.  It worked for me.. I was able to eat around 25 carbs for dinner and not take any insulin to cover it on the 3 days i worked out.   had a lot of highs an lows the first 2-3 weeks.. but after about a month it was easy and had good control over my sugars again while doing this.  I lost 60 pds over 1 year and as my weight went down was actually able to cut back on my over all insulin needs by about 20% for my normal daily usage. I tried for about 5 years before this to loose weight with out any results.

[Connie_001]

word around town is...lantus makes you put on wieght? dont know how true that is?

I was surprised to see the areas your daughter was putting on weight...i have noticed more than anything that my stomach and back are really fat! I have never had that before.

i too have had D for 10+ years...taking lantus for the past 2-3...I suspect lantus is causing it or my once over-active thyroid has now become under active!?

Stuntman...i think your advice might be the way to go....lower HBA1c...lower the carbs...lower the insulin...lower the tip on the scales :)

[Stuntman1]

     I have had type 1 diabetes for 42 years and over that period of time I have seen many changes in diabetic therapy due to the changes in technology.  I am 6'1" at 220 lbs, and I worked as a stuntman in Hollywood for many years, so, there was a lot of stress on my body. I am not a doctor nor claim to know everything but I have found things that work for my diabetes and don’t work.  All diabetics are a little different due to our DNA make up so what works for one diabetic may not work for another.  The first step to losing weight is to get into a target range of your A1C hemoglobin if that is high it will be hard to lose weight. The second step once A1C is controlled, then lower insulin doses and decrease carbs until you find a good balance.  There are so many diet plans on the market and really none of them will work better then a diabetic diet set up by a diabetic nutritionist, most professional athletes follow a made to plan diabetic diet.  Exercising is the key ( something that I don’t do but need to).  There are so many complications with diabetes over the long term and I am sure most of you with diabetes know the complications. The key to the whole equation is the A1C or blood testing, lower the insulin, lower the carbs and calories and increase activity and you should lose weight

[type1teen]

Hello :)
Im 14 and i have had type 1 diabetes for nearly 10 years and i recently got an insulin pump about 5 months ago and have noticed that where I used to give myself injections has flattened out a bit....i also used to have about 5 injections a day and was taking novo rapid actrapid protophane and lantus.
Im pretty sure ive lost about 2 kg without trying so yeah :)

[triskit82]

I've been type 1 diabetic for 17 yrs, on tight control therapy for 16, I'm a woman and I'm a professional dancer. So the weight issue has always been a big one in my life.

You've got some good info already. However, I didn't read through everything, there were some rather long posts...so if I'm repeating anything I apologize but here's my two cents ;)

First off, insulin is a growth hormone, if you are taking more then you need, you will gain weight. So number 1 it's important to work closely with your physician to make sure your basal or base insulin is the right amount for you. (body type, lifestyle, diet and exercise all affect this)

Secondly, cutting back on unhealthy fats is good, especially since its important for diabetics to have really good cholesterol numbers. But the biggest diet change that will help to lose weight is carbohydrates. If you eat a piece of cheese or some almonds do you take a shot? no, why? because there is no carb content and what you ate will not significantly alter your BG.

Carbs are important for giving us energy, so I don't think it's healthy to cut them out completely as in the Atkins diet, but just being mindful of your carb intake can make a huge difference.

Another factor is low blood sugars. The more hypoglycemic episodes a person has, the more excess calories and carbs one is taking into their body. It also means that the body is receiving more insulin then needed. So really that's a double whammy.

For women we have a wonderful hormones called estrogen and progesterone which affects the bodies response to insulin. Now this is the tricky part, because it's different for each woman. Take me for example, I use an insulin pump and my Dr. and I recently figured out that I need 3 different patterns to go with my cycle. I have my base pattern, then I have another pattern for the week before my period and a third for the week of and after, then it's back the my base pattern.

Each pattern has a different daily base rate, low, middle, and higher, to follow my hormone cycle. Until we set this up, I was constantly up and down with my BG. One week everything would be text book perfect numbers, the next I'd be getting low more then once/day, another week my numbers would sky rocket.

Diabetes is a very complex disease, but the medical industry is learning more and more all the time and new technology is changing the face of diabetes for the better.

The important thing is to keep on truckin! Work closely with a good Dr. and a diabetes educator (can't recommend that one enough) and hopefully you can stay on top of it.

[dagis]

Some background: I've been diabetic since I was 3 and am now 25. I got an insulin pump about 5 years ago and it makes a big difference in my ability to control what I eat. I have played competitive sports my entire life - all star ice hockey, soccer at the provincial, national and college level, mountain bike racing, snowboarding, XC running, tennis and volleyball. I now rock climb, run and lift weights.

Unfortunately, due to working on my grad degree, I put on about 25 pounds of unwanted weight. However, I discovered that by balancing my calories in with calories burned I was able to lose all of that weight.  Through reducing my food (and my insulin pump basal rate), increasing my workout times or intensities, and keeping a journal of what I ate, I lost all of the weight I desired.

Here's the trick:
1. you need to figure out how many calories you burn (your basal metabolic rate + activity level):

For women: 661 + (4.38 x weight in pounds) + (4.38 x height in inches) - (4.7 x age)= Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR)

Then add your BMR to the calories you burn during activities: look this number up on the internet - type in something like "calories burned running" (or more generally: BMR x activity level.
Sedentary: BMR x 1.15,
for light activity-normal everyday stuff: BMR x 1.3,
moderately active-exercise 3-4 times a week BMR x 1.4,
Very active-more than 4 times a week: BMR x 1.6,
Extremely active-exercise 6 or 7 times a week: BMR x 1.8

2. You need to figure out how many calories you are eating (keep a journal and write everything down)

3. If you want to lose 1 pound of body fat in 1 week, you need to reduce the calories you need to maintain your current body weight by 500 per day for 7 days (this is equal to 3500 calories or 1lb of bodyfat). 2 pounds of bodyfat per week = 1000 calorie deficit per day. Can't lose anymore than 2 lbs of bodyfat a week, most people with their activity level can only burn 1.

4. Don't drop below 1300 calories a day or you'll lower your metabolism and gain weight.

5. Most people think just becasue they exercise they'll lose weight. If you're just starting out, working out for 20 mins is great, but consider the average female will only burn about 200-250 calories during a 20 minute run. That's 1/2 a cup of granola or less than a full bagel in most cases.

6. here's my personal example I started out weighing 160, I followed the above advice and lost 2 pounds of bodyfat per week. My schedule: Monday, Wed, Fri 5:45am - 30 min weight circuit, work 7:30-5:30, 6-7 bouldering at indoor rock gym for 1 hour (get to hang out with friends and family). Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday 5:45am - 1 hour run, work 8-6, occasional walk with the family and dogs 20 mins in the evenings. At some point in time in the evenings I also worked on my thesis - so weight loss can be done even with a very busy schedule.  

7. Figure out how many calories you need to eat per day to lose your desired amount of weight in a week. Adjust your insulin according to this new eating plan. Ensure you are still getting the proper percentage of carbs, protiens, fruits, veggies and fats. Remember not to drop calories below 1300 pounds for women or you'll put on weight.

Hope this helps, good luck to all of you.