It definitely was. It was colder than usual, and we had 3 really warm winters previously. Quite the change! Before though, I was also much more worried about covid, and didn’t want to be in the gym any longer than I had to.
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Recently my exercise has been limited to pickleball (inside only past few weeks) and stretching/weights videos and a bit of walking. But yesterday I was thrilled to get back out to the lake trail to run. Only did a little bit on packed snow, preferring to stick to the dry sidewalks. That meant some back/forth to get to my usual 5k, but at 48 degrees it was rather enjoyable. Time was 39:40, yay (these day anything under 40 minutes pleases me).
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I’ve been playing pickleball since 2022, and this is the first winter we’ve had to pay to play (inside) way more than we played outside (we will play outside when it’s in the 30s, and even high 20s when it’s not wet).
In addition to pickleball, I continue to do walking and riding my indoor bike. My son in Northern VA actually rode outside ON THE SNOW last weekend and then rode to work yesterday (20+ miles each way, IIRC). I am not as hardy as he is I guess :).
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I’m looking for a good source of information on balancing competing nutritional boundaries. My cardiologist put me on statins but wants me to watch fat intake and be eating lots of fiber – 25 g hopefully. And that was going fine. Lots of beans, lentils, brown rice, fruit…
In Dec. my regular doctor decided an A1C of 5.7 is borderline prediabetic, and will retest in about 6 weeks. Meanwhile, I’m reading how to bring that number down and seems to be less than 100g carb/day. Well, my high fiber breakfast is a huge chunk of carbs…
DH is celiac, so I generally eat gluten free as well bc who wants to deal with two separate meals…but combining all of this is pretty challenging.I know we are not doctors here, but I feel overwhelmed. I do exercise regularly (I row 25 min/stationary bike 20/ minor sets of handweights 5 days/wk) and I am a normal weight.
Should I just ask for a dietician’s help? Resign myself to diabetes? Try harder? Read more?
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I’m sorry @greenbutton . That sounds complicated. I would definitely consult a dietitian.
I’ve asked similar questions (high triglycerides, climbing A1C and celiac) and have never gotten a good answer. I even asked my PC for a referral and they don’t have any type of diet or nutrition coaching. There was a class for people that were prediabetic, but I lost faith in that praticioner when they couldn’t get beyond “eat a turkey sandwich on WW bread for lunch”. My health insurance covers “coaching”, but it was just a diet/calorie/macro tracking app with someone that checked in virtually periodically (mine never did- but at least it was free). It’s pretty unbelievable to me that a profession that tells us to change our diet for health benefits has no coaching available.
There is some research that points to a vegan diet as a way to improve both cardio and glucose measures. Also, high fiber carbs are absorbed differently than low fiber carbs. Some diabetics do okay with beans and others don’t.
As far as reading more, I feel like all that it’s done is give me “analysis paralysis”. Too much conflicting info to sort through.
I’d really love to get someone to work with me and base follow up on data driven measures like lab results, but have not been able to find anyone. It’s hard to ask around because you end up with a lot of “the guy that works out of my gym” or “my chiropractor” recommendations. I looking for someone that is completely science driven.
So, no answers, but I completely understand how you are feeling.
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All carbs are not the same. Increased consumption of fiber rich carbs, presumably including the breakfast you mention, are associated with a decrease in A1C. An example study is at Dietary fibre and whole grains in diabetes management: Systematic review and meta-analyses - PMC . The first few sentences of the conclusion section are quoted below. That said, these sound like questions that are better answered by your doctor and/or nutritionist than random people on the Internet.
Aggregated data from intervention trials and cohort studies provide strong support for current nutrition recommendations [90,96], which advise that those with all types of diabetes should be encouraged to have adequate intake of dietary fibre. Vegetables, pulses, whole fruits, and whole grains are excellent sources. There is no suggestion from cohort studies or controlled trials that relatively high intake of these carbohydrate-rich foods are associated with deterioration of glycaemic control or weight gain. These findings do not detract from the widely accepted recommendation to reduce intakes of sugars and rapidly digested starches [97].
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Whenever diet questions involve a health concern (like pre-diabetic) I think dietitian is the way to go. You need a professional who can read your stats, know your lifestyle to make the best decision - will your insurance cover a visit to a dietician? One or two conversations might be all you need.
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Probably it will cover it. It’s so exasperating – neither my cardiologist nor my primary did anything other than observe things were problematic. No advice, no direction (other than “you should maybe consider dietary changes”) no coaching of any kind. I think cardio might have said the AHA has good info about a heart healthy diet, but my primary just said we’ll retest in a fewmonths and then talk about medications you can start on.
I replied that maybe it was related to statin dosage and could we lower it and rather than give me a new script, she said just cut what you have in half. Literally.
I appreciate the input, it is reassuring to know I am not imagining that this is not simple.
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It can be a challenge when chasing multiple goals. For example, when younger I didn’t have much concern on sugar as long as calories were in check. Then I had 5.7 A1C a few years ago and had to work to get it a bit lower. (but never better than 5.4).
The backup PCP who originally noted borderline condition was more concerned with the 5.7 A1C than my regular PCP (or the new PCP after my guy retired) . Still it got me in better habits.
As mentioned in various threads, my go to breakfast about half the time is Fiber One Original cereal with 2% milk (though you could opt for skim or almond milk). A 2/3c serving of it has a hefty 18g fiber, 33g (12%) carbs, zero sugar. Half banana adds 16g more carbs. If not a fan of the cereal you could mix it with a cereal you prefer.
I also like steel cut oatmeal. My husband makes a big batch in instapot, and we refrigerate leftovers.
Another fiber boost I like is avocado. I mix half an avocado with hummus and chia seeds and a bit of everything bagel seasoning. Spread it on toast, sometimes add cherry tomatoes.
If the bread carbs are too much try thin varieties. Dave’s and Pepperidge farms have some good ones with fiber.
IF you can find eggs, it’s easy to make a “poached” egg in a custard dish or mug. Add parm on top if desired. Cover loosely with paper towel and microwave 30sec.
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There’s a lot details missing, but generally speaking, I would focus on whole foods, minimally processed, and preferably no (not absolute) foods from boxes (e.g., cereals) or bags (e.g., chips, cookies, etc.).
A diet of lean protein (eggs, chicken, fish, beans, cottage cheese, etc.), vegetables (lower carb variety), nuts (walnuts, pistachios, almonds, etc.) seeds (pumpkin, hemp, flax, chia, etc.) and a little fruit.
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A breakfast I love that has great macros is
1/2 c. quinoa
Veggies. I usually go with arugula or spinach, leftover spaghetti squash or zucchini,
mushrooms and any other leftovers that look good.
1 c. of egg whites
I start with the veggies and quinoa in the pan, pour over the egg whites, and put the cover on until set. Roll it up and top with avocado and salsa or sriracha. I have a great set of non-stick pans that I have been cooking eggs in with no oil for over a year and they just slide right out.
I’ve brought this to work for breakfast for the entire year and it keeps me full and satisfied until lunch.
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Also, not to “beat a dead horse,” but…
My personal favorite are squats.
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In case this info is helpful …
If you have a university near you, that can be a resource for getting recommendations.
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You’re totally right!
Kashi, flax seed, blueberries, plain almond milk is breakfast 90% of the time. Occasionally I will have just the almond milk and a banana. I used to eat oatmeal but it doesn’t have enough fiber/serving to meet a 25g goal. I don’t eat chips, soda, red meat, bread, pasta, white rice, or processed baked goods.
Gonna read the article about resistance training and see what I could work on there 
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Sounds like you’ve done a good job adjusting your diet and getting enough fiber. I assume you also try to get plenty of water.
Do you have daily goals on carbs and/or sugars? I do careful food tracking, but I’ve had trouble finding a good source for prediabetic guidance there.
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I use FoodNoms. My Fitness Tracker is probably better known, but for it to be useful for me I had to spend more time with it than I found helpful. FoodNoms will let you select what you are following, and it is pretty streamlined to use. The only timesuck is inputting recipes, but I usually do that on weekends while I watch TV and have almost all of our regular ones in the database.
Yes to the water. All I drink is water, seltzer, and almond milk (I switched to that to try and meet calcium goals)
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I got Good Measures for free through my insurance. While the “personalized recommendations” part of it is ridiculous, the rest of it is an excellent tracking tool.
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I’ve been using MyNetDiary app (paid version) for about 7 years. Originally it was mostly for calorie tracking. But I got to appreciate the nutrional breakdowns too.
I think(?) the nutrient breakdown goals are based on my 120lb weight, without any profile override for the A1C concerns. Target is 178g/day. Looking at charts for average over past year it is a little higher (though I also do a fair amount of exercise that I can hope compensates).
I do also track at total sugars. It averages about 65g/day, though MyNetDiary calculates it could be 25% of calories … ie 98g - seems high to me.
I have noticed that my goal of getting more protein and allowing moderate unhealthy snacking has resulted in too much saturated fat. Will try to improve there in 2025.