Insulin and the Weight Loss Connection

In December of last year I was diagnosed on the low end of prediabetes. It was a wake up call for me that it was now or never on losing weight and getting control of my health. At 40 years old and 80 pounds overweight, I was eating your typical American diet of high carbohydrates and low fat, thinking that was a “healthy” diet. I knew that I should eat less sugar and had heard that eating less carbs was better for diabetes, but I wanted to know why. Why was it so “hard” for me to lose weight and why did I struggle with intense food cravings? So I started to research and dig deeper into the world of insulin and how it affects the body. Google soon gave me this information…

Insulin is secreted in response to a type of carbohydrate called glucose … Insulin tells muscle, organs and even fat cells to take up the glucose and use it for fuel. It also tells fat cells to store fat for later use. As long as insulin levels remain high, fat cells retain fat, and the other cells preferentially burn glucose (and not fat) for energy

Basically when you eat carbohydrates, they spike blood sugar (glucose). A high level of blood glucose, often due to excessive carbohydrate intake, causes insulin secretion. The insulin in turn then delivers the glucose in your body to cells which it uses for energy. This process is what becomes broken in diabetes as the insulin in your body either isn’t used properly or you are not producing enough. My prediabetic state meant my body wasn’t using this energy source well. I was constantly bloated, my feet hurt and I had nerve pain. And the weight? I just kept gaining.

WHAT TO DO ABOUT IT

To lose excess body fat, according to this view, carbohydrates must be restricted and replaced, ideally with fat, which does not stimulate insulin secretion.

This research lead me to try the Keto Diet, which has helped me shed almost 30 pounds so far. I truly believe that fat does not make you fat. Carbohydrates (and processed food and inflammatory fats and lack of sleep and exercise) makes you fat. If your goal is to shed body fat and you struggle with carbs like I did, the recipe is quite simple – limit carbohydrate intake and make healthy fats your preferred source of energy.

Want to learn more? I highly recommend Mark Sisson’s book, The Keto Reset Diet. I also love listening to the podcast The Natural State, by Anthony Gustin. The more you know the more empowered you will be to improve your own health!

How to make salad interesting

Salad. That five letter word that was my nemesis for so many years. I just couldn’t get into them. Side dish? Yes. Main event? No no no. They just never satisfied me. When I went Keto in January I read Mark Sisson’s book, The Keto Reset Diet. And he touted something called the “big ass salad.”

Maybe it is the way he worded it, but my mind warmed up to it. Basically add what you want to it to make it tasty. You into hot sauce? That’s ok too 😂 Here is what I commonly use in mine.

Lettuce (I prefer a mix of romaine and iceberg)
Shaved Cheese
Cherry Tomatoes
Cucumbers
Nuts (Pistachios)
Protein Source (chicken, eggs or salmon for me usually)
Dressing (I use Avocado oil and Balsamic Vinegar)
Seasonings (I keep it simple with salt and pepper)

Then eat and repeat. It has been working for me. I actually am enjoying making new “creations” with what I have on hand. So for all you fellow “foodies” out there try it. You May get into “big ass salads” too 😉

Keto Diet Progress

In January I decided it was now or never with losing weight. I was tired of being tired. I hated that my feet hurt constantly. The prediabetic diagnosis scared me. I was and am determined to change the course of my health.

But how? I always believed what I learned growing up. That fat was bad, that you need to eat “good” carbs and low fat. That all you have to do is count calories. And lord I tried! I have tried so many diets over the years. So the fact that the keto diet is working for me after so many others have failed still is amazing me.

In January I read the book The Keto Reset Diet by Mark Sisson. I started listening to popular keto podcasts and started unlearning everything I had ever been taught to eat! Seriously eye opening.

Like I never knew that the body doesn’t need carbs. Your body can actually produce its own glucose by a process called gluconeogenesis. And that your body can run on two types of fuel. Carbohydrates or Fat. I decided that for 40 years I was not doing too well as a carbo so why not try fat?

And here I am. 25 pounds lighter and still going. You know what frustrates me though? That I had to do all this research to “unlearn” all the nutritional guidance I had ever been given. When my doctor told me I was prediabetic in the fall all she told me was to “eat less” and maybe try to eat less carbs. That’s it. No clear guidance. No maybe you should try to be a fat burner instead of a carb burner. No you have to overhaul your relationship with food. Just a “let’s just see what happens” attitude. Ugh.

I guess I just wish the medical community would research nutrition more. It is obvious with the current obesity epidemic in this country that we don’t have it right. And it is not just junk foods fault. Let’s start with the fact that the government subsidizes farming to help with the food supply. That’s great right? Sure. All those wheat, corn and soy plants make people grow. And grow we have. In all the wrong places!

I am not saying everyone should be keto. There is no one size fits all diet. I personally think nutrition probably has more to do with your genetics and current health than anything else. And for me, as a person with family diabetic and obesity history, getting rid of the sugar and carbs is the answer.

I used to think there was something wrong me. Why was dieting so “hard?” I seriously struggled with near constant hunger. I “had” to eat every few hours else I would feel like I would pass out. I was always looking for that next snack or meal. With keto I finally have control over my appetite. I get hungry yes but it doesn’t have that frantic yo yo feel to it. It probably is what “normal” is and I just never had it.

It has been quite the journey these past few months as you can see. I encourage you to research the diet for yourself if interested. Now more than ever our health needs to be protected. Feed your immune system don’t suppress it!

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  Before – so bloated!

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  After – 25 pounds down!