ShoutYourHeadOff

Category: Health & Diabetes

Diabetes management, fitness recovery, and healthy living

  • Where I Am Now — A Health Update

    Some of you have been with me since the very beginning of this blog. You followed my New Beginnings diary in early 2022, when I set out to reverse my diabetes and lose weight following Dr Mosley’s 8-week blood sugar diet. You cheered me on through the 1 Million Steps Challenge for Diabetes UK. You read about the Covid isolation ward, the breathlessness, the slow walk back to fitness.

    And then I went quiet.

    So I think you deserve an honest update. Here’s where things stand.

    The diabetes

    I have been a diabetic since 1992 — over thirty years now. When I started the New Beginnings diary, my blood sugar levels were not where they needed to be and my weight had crept up to 95kg. I set myself the goal of getting to 85kg and bringing those numbers under control.

    I successfully maintained my weight, achieving a level of 90 kgs that my doctor deems acceptable. While my blood sugar levels initially fluctuated, I established a routine that stabilized them. My HbA1c readings are now within the range that doctors consider to be in acceptable control. I’m pleased with this progress, and I consistently work to keep my glucose levels in check. Adopting a healthy, high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet has been a key factor in my success. I also commit to exercising daily, even if it’s just for thirty minutes. These health challenges certainly keep me proactive and engaged in my well-being.

    The walking

    Walking became my medicine after Covid. What started as circuits around the living room — genuinely, just walking from the lounge to the kitchen and back — became 10,000 steps a day, then a million steps for Diabetes UK, then regular outings with the Windsor and District Ramblers through the most beautiful corners of Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Hampshire.

    I left the Ramblers about two years ago to go on my adventure abroad, but I kept up with my daily walks and soaked in all the nature around me. My favourite walks happen in the gorgeous Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, and I can’t help but feel so happy every time I’m there. Whenever I visit my sister, I make sure to take in those stunning views because Canada is just so beautiful and clean. The walking trails and paths that zigzag through the estates and beyond are like a dream for any nature fan. Recently, I had an awesome time doing a circular walk from Cooper’s Hill in Englefield Green, taking in the amazing Runnymede meadows, the beautiful River Thames, and checking out three incredible memorials: the John F. Kennedy Memorial, the Magna Carta Memorial, and the Air Forces Memorial. When I need some alone time to think, I love wandering around the peaceful Runnymede meadows, where every step makes me feel more relaxed.

    The general health picture

    Overall I am in a better place than I have been for many years. The combination of walking, eating well and staying active has made a real difference. I still manage my diabetes daily — it never fully goes away — but it no longer runs my life the way it once did.

    What’s next

    I’m back to writing regularly — or at least, that’s the intention! I have stories to tell, walks to share, and plenty more to say about the ongoing business of keeping body and mind in reasonable working order as the years tick by.

    If you’ve been here from the start, thank you for sticking around. If you’re new — welcome. Pull up a chair and stay a while.

    — Anil

  • New Beginnings- Conclusion

    Firstly, an apology to my followers and readers for not posting for over five weeks. I went on a vacation to Portugal for a week during the last week in March and then flew to Canada, where I stayed just over three weeks. I went to see my younger sister, whom I had not seen for nearly three years due to the Covid pandemic.

    As far as my journey during the past eight weeks is concerned, I am carrying on with the process to reverse my diabetes by losing weight and controlling my carb intake to bring sugar levels down. The weight loss has been maintained at 88kgs despite a little overindulgence during my vacation. This was something I could not control as I was being looked after and spoilt by my dear sister.!!

    I have to also mention that the walking journey of 300k steps for Marie Curie Cancer care went extremely well and I have achieved over 400k steps in total and raised £471 in the process. I went on some wonderful walks in Portugal and Canada to complete them. More on this in a new post later!

    I have now taken on the challenge of completing 500k or more steps in the million steps campaign run by Diabetes UK. This will take place from the 1st of July 2022 and finish in September 2022, so I have plenty of time, and I’m confident that I will achieve more than I have taken on, bearing in mind, how many steps I did in March 2022. I will be posting links and stories on my JustGiving page for Diabetes UK.

    Why am I taking on another challenge you may ask? Well, as you all know, I went through Cancer and also have diabetes and a heart condition. In taking up these challenges, I have been able to prove to myself that anything is possible, especially as my recovery from Covid 19 in January 2021 took its toll on my ability to walk even short distances. And as you have all witnessed from my posts, I managed to recover quite well and started to take on challenges to spur me on.

    Thank you to everyone who follows my journey, supports me with likewise content and encourages me along the way. I really appreciate all of you for taking the time out to read my story. I hope that I have kept all of you interested enough to stay the course and keep on following me.

    Thank You once again.

  • New Beginnings- Week 8

    This final week has taught me that losing weight is not easy, but doable. And it takes time and perseverance. The good news is that I haven’t put any weight back on and have ended the 8-week journey at 88kg. The other health stats remain the same and in good stead. I haven’t given up though. The 8-week period may be over but the journey continues. The only difference will be is that there will be no weekly updates.

    I have learnt a lot during these 8 weeks, for example, I have learnt about which carbs are good for me and which are not. The foods that have protein and nutrients and wholesome goodness. I have got used to not eating bread or potatoes for weeks at a time. I don’t miss sandwiches and instead will go for a piece of fruit when feeling hungry. Apples and oranges are my favourites. I like bananas, but I’m not allowed these as a diabetic because of the spike in sugar and carbohydrate levels. My smoothie drinks consisted of either oat milk or unsweetened almond milk with a scoop of Nutriseed powder. I would add blueberries or a couple of small strawberries for flavour. I am also an Indian and for obvious reasons, curries and rice and chapattis are a staple diet, but I have managed to cut down by nearly 75% on my Indian food consumption. I eat a lot more salads, and try and make vegetarian or vegan items to go with the salads. For example, vegan sweet potato burgers or beetroot burgers. And stuffed mushrooms with a hint of garlic are my favourite.

    I intend to carry on with my diet and exercise routine. And I have signed up to complete 10000 steps a day for the month of March for the Marie Curie Cancer Care Charity. I hope to raise £2000 for this challenge and look forward to any donations to reach my target. Please visit JustGiving and donate to Anil’s fundraising page. Many thanks in advance for any donations received.

    Finaly, I would like to say that it has been a great experience sharing my journey with the outside world and showing my vulnerabilities in public. The encouragement I have received has been nothing short of fantastic. So Thank you all for being part of life and I will connect again very soon with another new adventure or something I have already done…eg, My National Trust Journey, that I started in 2020.

    Looking forward to sharing some amazing photos of sites I have visited and stories of tbhe places I have been to. Until Then……….!

  • New Beginnings-Week 7

    I am one more week away from my goal of weight reduction and diabetes reversal. The good news is that my weight is halfway to my target and my sugar levels are doing ok, but not great. But I am not feeling dejected at the diabetes target, not being achieved in the eight week period. It is a tall order for such a dramatic achievement, and am certain that eventually,I will achieve my goal.

    I have had sleepless nights all week, possibly from long covid. It is one of the side effects of covid 19. I don’t like to make excused and say that my diet is being affected by sleepless nights. Although not sleeping enough has its own knock-on effects, I have not let this get in the way. It’s a tougher slog, but very doable. My exercise level has increased by 15 minutes from an hour. I’m still practising my walks to achieve the 10000 steps a day challenge that I am taking from the 1st of March, for the Marie Curie cancer care charity. I’m including the link for the donations if anyone wishes to do so. No pressure though!

    The mental state is good. I have found that meditating daily, even for short half-hour sessions can be very helpful in achieving the calmness of the mind, gaining perspective for your daily life and achieving your best potential. Mediating, for me, was quite difficult for me in the beginning because I could not concentrate my mind on the techniques. I say perseverance is the key, but the most important thing is either doing it alone in a quiet place or in a group session where everyone is on the same path. Good luck to all that may take on this very important part of our lives.

    Photo by Marcus Aurelius on Pexels.com

    So, this is my update for week 7. So close to my target and yet so far. But stay with me, as your continued support is my encouragement. Take care and be safe…….

  • New Beginnings-Week 6

    I should be jumping for joy. Six weeks into my diet to reverse my diabetes and lose at least 10 kilos of weight was in my sights. But, I am still level pegging with last week, but if the “myFitnesspal” app is anything to go by, then I should not get disillusioned. The prediction to come down to 77kilos is still on track.

    Here are images of some of my healthy option meals, which make up part of my daily intake with almond milk juices made with superfood mixes and blueberries, strawberries and kiwi fruit but not altogether as that would definitely spike my sugars.

    Breaded Vegan Kiev served with a sprouted legumes salad
    Salad with a vegan cheese made in a soda bread ciabatta roll.
    Braised Tofu and Mushroom Salad
    Sprouted Legumes salad only

    So above are some of the creations that keep me on track with the diet. As far as exercise goes, I am now achieving over 1 hour of elliptical training and between 6k to 7k steps, burning on average 700 calories.

    But the weight loss is slow, and it should suddenly start to go down. Mentally, I am coping better than I expected as doing this alone is hard work. To inspire me, I have signed up for the “Marie Curie Cancer charity by doing a 10000k steps challenge daily for the whole of March. Look out for my fundraiser, where I have set a target of 2000k pounds sterling.

    More next week…..until then, my dear readers take care and be safe.

  • New Beginnings- Week 5

    This week has been a big booster to my morale. I’ve lost 2kgs and come down to 89.1kg.

    This feels good because I am still on target with all my measurements, ie, Blood pressure, sugar levels all below or within expectation. I have to admit that on Saturday 5th February, I thought I would be struggling to keep to my target and diet, as I had been invited to a dinner by my brother and sister-in-law, to celebrate 45 years of marriage!

    So obviously, I did indulge a bit more than my normal daily intake. I was reading to get on the scales. But I gave my stomach rest on Sunday by just eating one main meal and a liquid breakfast of a superfood drink made from almond milk and blueberries. I am using, or rather trialing for myself a superfoods powder made by Nutriseed. This one drink in the morning gives me enough nutrients, protein and carbs until lunchtime.

    I also have to bring back my state of mind because we all know how food affects mood swings. Well, mine does anyway, and I did have an episode for two days, where I was down in un dumps and couldn’t easily pick myself up. I couldn’t really work out what was weighing me down, and it came quite suddenly. However, I did some meditation, mind searching, and deep breathing exercises to overcome my problems. I still don’t know what had happened to make me feel like this. It was a debilitating type of feeling, constantly questioning myself. And did I find the answer? NO ! and that is a little frustrating because if it happens again, I want to be able to deal with it quickly.

    On a positive note, I am receiving positive feedback from the readers of my journey, so thank you to all the comments and likes, which only encourages me to get that goal.

    Until week 6 then……….!

  • New Beginnings-Week4

    Back so quick after my delayed input last week. The diet is still on track and today’s weigh-in showed the same small difference as last week, which is just under a kilo. The blood pressure and sugar readings have steadied markedly. I.E Blood pressure is normal and sugar levels are below 8 every day. This means I am feeling much better in myself, and my hands are not as shaky as before.

    My exercise regime is continuing with me having added an elliptical trainer to my equipment along with a different static bike which I was lucky enough to source from Facebook for only £15! Yes, £15 only. I can’t believe it myself as they are both very good makes.

    What about my food? Well, I did lapse once during the week and had too much carbohydrate in the diet. The dreaded plate of chips. I have been very good though, having almost taken bread and potatoes out of my diet, replacing it with pasta made from peas, adding a small sweet potato or butternut squash. all within acceptable limits, otherwise I will be fighting a losing battle.

    And my mental well being has been tested once more as the quest for my goal continues and without going into detail, just like buses, trouble comes in three’s. Maybe, when I am up to revealing things, I might write in a future week. But for now, it’s locked away. I know that the readers of my story will be keen to learn what has happened, but do not worry. It is all in hand.

    I was encouraged to seek employment today by, someone, I know through Facebook and so I took the steps necessary and created a CV. It’s very short as I was employed for 35 years with the same company!

    And to top that, I was in conversation with a car mechanic about fixing my daughter’s car and we got chatting about things. He asked me if I would like to work for him in an admin capacity 3 to 4 days a week. I am truly blessed is how I feel, when an opportunity comes knocking at your doorstep.

    My next write up should be with more good news I hope. Until next week…..!

  • New Beginnings-Week 3

    Once again a delay in my update. I’m almost into week 4! The diet has been going well and the progress is slow but on track. Another kilo down, with eight more to go. The App I am using has predicted a that I should weigh 83.1kg in five weeks if I carry on the way I am doing. It has been tough though. There are moments when I feel so down, I feel like just stopping and enjoying what I have left. Then, my thinking process brings me back to my goal. I keep reminding myself that if I want to enjoy life as I want to, then having a healthy body, and mind will be better than struggling through. For example,I had covid in early January of 2021, and the breathing problems I had after I got discharged, were so frustrating and debilitating, that it was at this low point that I had made up my mind to get fit again. The exercise regime I followed was as recommended by the physio at the hospital, and I persevered. Not being able to climb the stairs without getting breathless to walking continuously for over an hour on a treadmill and using the indoor cycle, gave me the boost I needed, mentally to achieve this goal I have set for myself. When I said, it’s been tough, this is mainly because of maintaining a single person diet that is enjoyable, interesting and not hard to cook or create. I’m learning new tricks, creating my own recipes that suit my lifestyle and taste. For example, I created a scrambled tofu recipe, with peppers, tomato and onions, with garlic as optional to have in a wrap or on toast or by itself.

    The exercise routine has been hard to keep up it this week because of family demands. But I am now on track again since today. I invested in a static cycle and elliptical trainer. Now I have to make use of them daily by setting myself goals.

    What is my mental/emotional status? That’s one for later. I believe that if the mindset falters, all goals fall by the wayside. And I must say that doing things alone is doable but harder I think. It’s like not being able to show someone your pride in yourself for your achievements, getting that well done pat on the back. Sounds egotistic right? It’s my state of mind. Although these things don’t normally bother me, when the gloom button hits the mind, so does the negative thinking get worse.

    Let’s see what week 4 brings…..soon