I first learned that I was prediabetic in January of 2015. My workplace was doing a wellness check for free, and we could receive health insurance for free by completing it. When I saw the numbers and the range that I fell into, I wasn't surprised. At first I thought, "oh well, that's what happens when you're fat." Since then, though, it's been slowly eating away at me. The idea that I could be diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes within 10 years is terrifying. I'm not even 30 yet, and I'm already at risk for something so serious and life-changing.
It's hard to adjust habits and derail a lifetime of eating whatever I want when I want. But how long can I sustain this? I have too many health risk factors to continue this way if I want to live long and semi-comfortably. That's why I've decided to start making slow and steady changes for the better.
After talking to my physician and getting advice on where to start, I decided to read up about diabetic diets. My doctor told me the best way to lower blood glucose is to eat the diet of someone who already has Type 2 Diabetes. If you think you may have it or if you're curious, I recommend a trip to your doctor to check and get advice for your situation.
and The End of Heart Disease: The Eat to Live Plan to Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease
. I haven't read them yet because I received them in the mail today, but they have a lot of information and recipes.So far in my journey, I have stopped drinking soda and juices. This has been a long struggle that I've gone back-and-forth with it for years. I've been drinking soda since I was a child, so breaking the habit and addiction has been difficult. Sometimes just the thought of those popping bubbles makes me crazy. Of course I can't say that I won't have a sip now and then, but it's not a daily part of my life anymore.
What I'm currently working on is improving my breakfast, lunch, and snacks. I'm focusing on portion control and removing unnecessary carbs. For example, most mornings I would eat a sandwich with two pieces of white bread, ham, eggs, mayo, and cheese. Sounds delicious right? It was, but I always felt weighted down for the first few hours of my day. Removing the cheese from my breakfasts has helped with some of my morning queasiness and taking out the extra bread helps regulate my blood sugar so I don't crash before lunch. I will share a quick and (pre)diabetic-friendly breakfast recipe later after I do some further experiments. My favorites so far, though, are peanut butter with a small toasted english muffin, bananas, and scrambled eggs with salt and pepper.
I don't want to lose what makes me happy, though, while I'm trying to improve my health. I still want to eat delicious foods with my fellow blogger Warren, and I want to celebrate with cake and ice cream when the day calls for it. I just shouldn't live every day like it's someone's birthday. I need to find my balance and self control. More to come as I try some new recipes and continue my small and systemic lifestyle changes.
Are there any changes successful changes you've made to improve your life? Anything you want to try?
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