Atkins Diabetes Revolution (23 page)

Get Moving

Exercise is so essential for controlling blood sugar and improving insulin resistance that it’s not an option. It’s mandatory. Following the dietary aspects of the program will do a lot to improve your health, but the addition of moderate daily exercise will improve your health a lot more—and a lot faster. It’s also easy. To make a noticeable difference all it takes is a daily walk or some other moderate daily exercise for a minimum of just half an hour. Any exercise is better than none. No excuses. Even if you’re very out of condition or have health prob lems that limit your activity, the information in Chapters 22 and 23 will help you incorporate exercise into your life in a safe and enjoyable way.

PRESCRIPTION DRUGS AND THE ABSCP

As you reduce your carb intake, your need for insulin (if you take it) and other prescription medications will almost certainly decrease or even vanish. You may be able to work with your doctor to decrease your medications gradually as you control your carb intake and thus take back control of your metabolism. When you have reduced or eliminated medications (especially the ones for blood sugar control) and your fasting blood sugar levels have stabilized in the normal range (below 100 mg/dL), you can experiment a bit with your ACE.You may be able to eat a few more carbs without gaining weight or making your blood sugar go up.

If you take any drugs—prescription or over-the-counter—discuss your decision to follow the controlled-carb approach with your doctor before you start. Work with him or her to monitor your condition regularly and lower your doses in a systematic way that will avoid sudden changes and possible over- or undermedication.

We hope we’ve convinced you that the ABSCP will help you restore your own health by solving underlying metabolic imbalances. The program requires a permanent change in the way you eat and the amount of exercise you get. Is that difficult? Thousands of Dr. Atkins’ patients say just the opposite. Once they were under way on the program,they felt so much better that making the long-term commitment to the Atkins approach was a very easy choice.It will be for you too.

TRACK YOUR PROGRESS

Before you start following the Atkins Blood Sugar Control Program,visit your doctor for the tests listed below.(Refer to Chapters 6, 8, and 9 for explanations of these tests and what they mean.) Record your starting numbers and then track the changes as you repeat the tests over the next year. We've suggested intervals, but items such as blood pressure and waist-to-hip ratio and lipids can be monitored more frequently.

A LUCKY HOSTESS

Glenda Carter used to be the pharmaceutical industry’s dream, taking prescription drugs for diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and arthritis. But a fortuitous reservation at her bed-and-breakfast helped her become medication- free and 56 pounds slimmer.

I’ve had a perennial weight problem since I was 13 years old. Over the years, I have probably lost a cumulative 1,000 pounds and gained
back
1,000 pounds. By the time I was 37, I was already having troubles with my blood pressure. And at 44, I was diagnosed as a diabetic. My doctor put me on a low-fat diet, and I really did stick to it most of the time, but I didn’t lose any weight. I used to feel shame when I went in for an office visit because I thought they believed I was cheating on their diet and lying about it. I began to go in for appointments only to get my prescriptions refilled. I was taking insulin for diabetes, Cozzar and Lozol for high blood pressure, Lipitor for cholesterol, Vioxx for arthritis. My drugs cost between $600 and $700 per month. As a former nurse and mental health therapist, I can tell you I was not a happy camper.

Everything changed for me in August 2003. My husband, Bob, and I run a bed-and-breakfast near Jasper, Alberta, in the Canadian Rockies. A lady from Virginia called to make a reservation with us. I asked, as I routinely do, if she had any dietary restrictions. She said she followed the Atkins program. I had heard about Atkins in the seventies and even tried it for a while,but found it too restrictive.She talked my ear off and told me that she was absolutely sure it would work for me.

The very next day, my husband and I went on the program together using
Dr. Atkins’ New Diet Revolution
and the Internet for guidance. We vowed that we would do the program correctly without breaking any
rules. Within 32 hours, I had to stop taking my insulin. My blood sugar had dropped to 48. I just couldn’t believe it. My doctor was away for three weeks. When she returned I went to see her. She was happily stunned by my improved numbers but was very wary. “Glenda, this is going to wreck your kidneys.” She agreed to support me in continuing the program if I would have the following tests every four weeks: A1C, lipids, ALT, AST (both routine liver chemistries), creatinine for kidneys, fasting glucose, and potassium. After four months of great results, she no longer needed any proof. Now, she is a believer.

BEFORE AFTER

N
AME
: Glenda Carter

A
GE
:53

H
EIGHT
: 5 feet 3 inches

W
EIGHT
B
EFORE
: 245 pounds

W
EIGHT
N
OW
: 189 pounds

B
LOOD
P
RESSURE
B
EFORE
: 165/110

B
LOOD
P
RESSURE
A
FTER
: 100/60

T
OTAL
C
HOLESTEROL
B
EFORE
: 220

T
OTAL
C
HOLESTEROL
A
FTER
: 144

HDL B
EFORE
:48

HDL A
FTER
:52

LDL B
EFORE
: 137

LDL A
FTER
: 113

T
RIGLYCERIDES
B
EFORE
: 313

T
RIGLYCERIDES
A
FTER
: 128

Bob and I both keep our carb level at a maximum of 20 to 30 grams per day. I have never felt so good in my life and I am taking no medications whatsoever. I don’t miss the bread or pasta at all. For breakfast twice a week, I have eggs and sausage; the other days, I’ll have homemade flaxseed muffins or flaxseed porridge with strawberries, whipped cream, and cinnamon. Lunch might be canned salmon salad made with mayonnaise, onion, and celery rolled in lettuce leaves. If Bob and I are working outdoors, we sometimes have a “party tray,” formerly forbidden things like sliced pork sausage, olives, cheese, and dips with veggies. A typical dinner might be baked chicken legs and a spinach salad with avocado and goat cheese.You need to think outside the box for variety. I’ve discovered a recipe for faux mashed potatoes using puréed cauliflower, cream cheese, and sour cream. The beauty of being a diabetic is that because I
test my blood sugar every day I can try adding new things to my food plan and see how my levels are affected. For instance, butternut squash was too high in carbs for me, but spaghetti squash worked just fine. I stuff it with meat sauce, top it with Cheddar, and bake it. It’s just delicious.

Two months after I started Atkins, I bought a Bow-Flex machine and started using it. I also continued curling—it’s like shuffleboard on ice— three times per week in the winter. I used to need a two-hour nap every day. Now when I want to take a break, I read instead because I have so much energy. The arthritis is gone from my spine, knees, hands, and feet. Only two fingers are still gnarled and I am confident they will improve, too.

In December, four months after we’d started the program, I had to shop for a dress for a Christmas party. I went to the big-ladies store where I’ve shopped for 25 years. I had worn a size 44, or a 3X or 4X. Everything I tried on that day hung on me.“Glenda, you can shop at a regular store,” I said to myself, amazed, and didn’t even know where to go. In a department store, I bought a size 16 glittery silver-and-black dress and bought new bras for the first time that didn’t look like horse halters! By the end of six months, I had lost 56 pounds. Bob, who is six feet two inches, went from 275 pounds to 220 pounds in the same time period. His waist measurement dropped from 44 to 36 inches, and he wants to reach his goal of 190 pounds.

I’ve started an Atkins section on a bulletin board for B&B owners across Canada. Fifteen have joined it and many are diabetic. My doctor even suggested that I start an Atkins group. Hinton is a small town, population around 10,000, yet 16 people signed up in less than 24 hours. When I walked into a restaurant recently, one of the waiters said, “Hi, Mrs. Low Carb,” so I know word is getting around. I would like to lose about 30 more pounds to reach a very achievable goal of 160. Rather than focus on a timetable, I rejoice that I am medicine free, eating nutrient- rich foods, and looking better than ever before in my whole adult life. Doing Atkins helped my body heal itself.