Report card, week of August 6, 2008

As I write this, I am well into my diet and exercise program.

After a visit to my doctor (due to a spike in sugar levels to 310 mg/dl and some heart palpitations) in the last week of June, after hearing what he had to say I had to really think hard about my life which I always took for granted.

He said to me if you don’t do something about your situation ASAP, you wont live to see your daughter (2.5 years old currently) as a grown up.

That statement hit me, and I started exercising and changed my eating habits immediately on June 27, 2008. I shall write about my diet in detail in another post.

At that point in time, I was weighing 325 lbs. My fasting sugar was averaging > 175 mg/dL and sugar reading in the evening prior to dinner was averaging > 190 mg/dL, often reaching 300. My current oral medications for diabetes management are Amaryl (Glymepride) 2mg daily, and Actos 15mg daily.

I started maintaining a spreadsheet of my daily sugar readings, both in the morning and the evening. The AM readings are fasting sugar levels and the PM readings are taken when I come back from work. I also started maintaining sugar readings after my exercise so as to keep track of the effect exercise was having on the sugar levels in my body. My aim is to exercise 20 minutes daily on the elliptical machine, although I do miss it on some days.

I have made very decent progress in terms of my sugar levels, as well as my weight. The following graphs below show my sugar levels since June 27, 2008 which are trending lower over time.




















My first goal is to get my sugar readings to the normal level, within the range of 80 to 120 mg/dL. For that I really have to work hard on my diet and exercise. I am still not there yet, but have to keep a close watch as the sugar levels shoot up at times for reasons I can’t explain. My weight over this time period has gone down to 316 lbs as of August 4, 2008.

Summary:
1) Sugar levels (June 27 to August 6, 2008) – AM fasting levels have come down from a weekly average of 165 mg/dL to a weekly average of 138 mg/dL; PM fasting levels have come down from an average of 155 mg/dL to 102 mg/dL.

2) Weight - down from 325 lbs on June 27, 2008 to 316 lbs on August 4, 2008.

More to write about very soon!

The Journey Resumes

My struggle with type II diabetes has been going on for the last five years. Obesity has been another issue that I haven't really been able to resolve all my life although there have been many attempts, some that were partially successful, only to gain all that weight back.

Both of the above issues are linked. Also, heredity may have played a part in this for me, as my mom suffered from both diabetes and obesity. Diabetes took her life at a young age.

I know that there are millions of people in this world who battle these diseases continuously every day, with the hope that they are able overcome /manage the same, and are able to lead a healthy life.

My aim with this blog is to reach out to everyone, write about the things I am doing to eventually overcome my Diabetes (yes overcome it!) and stay within the golden 80 to 120 range. I have also set myself the goal of losing 100 lbs in the process.

I would like to share what worked for me in terms of diet, food items, and exercise as well as other helpful tips I may find on the web.

I would like readers who are suffering from diabetes or obesity share their ideas and experiences here, and we all can gain some inspiration and hope. Lets kick some ass on this disease so we can live better and stay healthy!