Category Archives: Weight and Diet

The 12 Pieces of the Puzzle Part 3 Reverse Diabetes (Breakthrough and Game Changers)

Because I needed to reverse Type 2 Diabetes naturally in 2016 and 2017 I first spent more than 200 hours researching the problem.
I knew I had to look outside the boundaries of the conventional treatment for diabetes type 2 because conventional treatment focused on managing diabetes; not reversing it.
I didn’t want to manage it.
I wanted to end diabetes for good.

I’ve documented all of this in a case study available for download at https://fuelupshapeup.com/diabetesgone-3bt

Starting as a 62 year old who’d been fat — actually; “morbidly obese” at 300 lbs and more — for more than 30 years I knew I needed to find something extraordinary. And I did. I lost 120 lbs in 2016 and 2017; and since mid-2017 my HbA1c numbers have been close to 5.1 while a side-benefit is that my blood pressure is regularly  in the 100 over 70 range; often lower. You can’t get those numbers from what the doctors tell you to do.

My research was vital to all of that. I was able to come up with a plan that was supported by science; it was safe; it cost me nothing (in fact I saved money) and — most importantly — took a shape that meant I wasn’t hungry during the journey.

Out of all my research I did, I came up with 12 “pieces of the Diabetes Puzzle” and 3 game Changers. Each of these was crucial. Collectively these led me to develop the plan I followed.

Those 12 Pieces of the Puzzle covered a great deal of information. In the first 2 videos in this series I dealt with a lot of basics — conventional treatments for diabetes type 2; recommendations for diet and exercise and weight loss; the treatment of the symptoms aimed at how to lower blood sugar levels. The topics started to zero-in on insulin related issues.

I also covered some little known concepts that are fairly advanced. The 2nd video in the series  especially dealt with a concern and puzzle about my own HbA1c and blood sugar numbers. I needed to understand how something that seemed impossible had happened; this brought in issues around dietary habits and insulin resistance that almost no-one understands; the definition of “no-one” unfortunately includes the medical profession. Because they don’t understand this issue; nutrition specialists and doctors often make recommendations that are entirely contradictory to good health and can genuinely lead to serious illness and even death.

In this 3rd video, I cover the 2 final pieces of the puzzle including an absolute breakthrough. These led me to search and discover 3 game Changers that in turn generated my action plan. I address the game Changers in this video, too.

There’s plenty of “hype” about the diabetes topic nowadays but there are actually very few people who have genuinely set out to reverse diabetes type 2, and achieved it. I’m one of those who has. How To Reverse Type 2 Diabetes Naturally – 12 Pieces of the Puzzle Part 3 (Breakthrough and Game Changers) explains the most important final “Pieces of the Puzzle” that made it possible.

Oh, and in the first video, I mentioned a Tedx talk by a Dr Sarah Hallberg who explained exactly how the guidelines for diet and treatment issued by the American Diabetes Association guaranteed that Diabetes would not be reversed or even improved if you followed them. Here’s the link to that;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=da1vvigy5tQ
And it’s on the web site I share with my daughter: https://fuelupshapeup.com/diabetesgone-3bt

12 pieces of the puzzle part 3 Reverse Diabetes – 12 Vital Pieces of the Puzzle (Breakthrough and Game Changers)

In order to reverse diabetes type 2 naturally in 2016 and 2017 I started by spending more than 200 hours in research.
I knew I had to look outside the boundaries of conventional diabetes treatment because conventional treatment focused on managing diabetes; not reversing it.
I just want to manage it.
I wanted to get rid of diabetes for good.

I’ve documented all of this in a case study available for download at https://fuelupshapeup.com/diabetesgone-3bt

I was starting as a 62 year old who’d been fat — actually; “morbidly obese” at 300 lbs and more — for over 30 years I knew I needed to find something extraordinary. I did. My weight loss in 2016 and 2017 was 120 lbs; and my HbA1c numbers have been close to 5.1 since mid 2017 while an additional benefit is that my blood pressure is routinely  in the 100 over 70 range; and it is often lower. You can’t get those numbers from what the doctors tell you to do.

My research was vital to all of that. I was able to develop a a plan that was supported by science; it was safe; cost me nothing (actually I saved money) and — very important — took a shape that meant I wasn’t hungry during the process.

Out of all my research I conducted, I came up with 12 “pieces of the Diabetes Puzzle” and 3 game Changers. Each of these was crucial. Together these led me to develop the plan I followed.

Those 12 Pieces of the Puzzle covered a lot of territory. In the videos that were Part 1 and Part 2 of this series I explained with a lot of basics — conventional treatments for Type 2 Diabetes; recommendations for diet and weight loss and exercise; symptomatic treatments aimed at how to lower blood sugar levels. The topics started to zero-in on insulin related issues.

I also covered some fairly advanced and little known concepts. Part 2  especially dealt with a concern and puzzle about my own HbA1c and blood sugar numbers. I had to understand how something that seemed impossible could happen; this pulled-in issues around dietary habits and insulin resistance that almost no-one understands; the definition of “no-one” unfortunately includes the medical profession. Because they don’t understand this issue; doctors and nutrition specialists often make recommendations that are entirely contradictory to good health and can genuinely lead to serious illness and even death.

In this Video part 3, I walk you through the 2 final pieces of the puzzle including an absolute breakthrough. These 2 peices led me to search and discover 3 game Changers that in turn generated my action plan. I address the game Changers in this video, too.

There’s a lot of “hype” about the diabetes topic these days but there are actually very few people who have genuinely set out to reverse diabetes type 2, and achieved it. I’m one of those who has. This video explains the most important final “Pieces of the Puzzle” that made it possible.

Oh, and in Video 1, I mentioned a Tedx talk by a doctor Sarah Hallberg who explained exactly how the guidelines for diet and treatment issued by the American Diabetes Association guaranteed that Diabetes would not be reversed or even improved if you followed them. Here’s the link to that;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=da1vvigy5tQ
And it’s on the web site I share with my daughter: https://fuelupshapeup.com/diabetesgone-3bt

Reverse Type 2 Diabetes – 12 Pieces of the Puzzle Part 2 (Marinating in Insulin)

In this video which is part 2 of 3; an ordinary businessman explains what he discovered about type 2 diabetes and the 3 game changers that emerged from his 12 pieces of the puzzle that {helped him to|that enabled him to|led him to his plan to|helped him form his plan to|helped him work out a plan to to successfully and safely reverse his type 2 diabetes while shedding 120 lbs and lowering his blood pressure.

This video discusses so much including Insulin Resistance.

Weight loss and lower blood pressure are 2 of many health benefits achieved. And even some benefits that are not health related!

You can learn more about how to reverse type 2 diabetes here to start improving your health:

https://fuelupshapeup.com/diabetesgone-3bt

How To Reverse Type 2 Diabetes Naturally – 12 Pieces of the Puzzle Part 1 (The guidelines are wrong!)

Part 1 of 3 videos a 63 year old man describes how he went about how to reverse type 2 diabetes and the 12 pieces of the puzzle plus the 3 game changers he discovered that that enabled him to form a plan to get rid of his type 2 diabetes while lowering his blood pressure and losing 120 lbs.

Plus his health benefitted in other ways too.

You can learn more about how to reverse type 2 diabetes here to start improving your health:

https://fuelupshapeup.com/diabetesgone-3bt

“Morbidly Obese” Vancouver Man Reverses Type 2 Diabetes and Drops 120 lbs Naturally

A Vancouver businessman, Tony Jackson, is one of the first to set out to independently get rid of  Type 2 Diabetes without medications — and succeed. One major side effect of his simple program was 120 lbs weight loss. Another, his Blood Pressure is consistently in the range 105/60 which is healthy. His A1c and fasting blood sugar numbers  would be excellent even for someone who had never been overweight or had Type 2 Diabetes.

In his book “3 Boxes Ticked – Diabetes Gone,” Jackson detailed his research, his program, his experience and the health and quality-of-life results.
A key element in his approach was that being hungry could have been a deal-breaker for him — constantly being hungry had caused every diet approach he’d tried over 30 years to fail — so he developed a strategy that created the excellent outcomes without ever going “urgently” hungry.

3 consecutive successful “gold standard” blood tests over a 9 month period confirmed the reversal of the diabetes, and his medical records were formally updated on 30th May, 2018.

Jackson’s book “3 Boxes Ticked – diabetes Gone” is available online for download as a PDF and in epub format.

Biotin for hair loss how long to see results

What Biotin provides for your body?

biotin belongs to Vitamin B complex household also in some cases referred to as Vitamin H or Vitamin B7. This is soluble in water, which suggests, if the body has a high level of Vitamin H on a specific day or time, it passes through Urine.

This vitamin is produced in the intestinal tract with the assistance of germs in the intestinal tract. Biotin helps in the metabolic process of carbs, fats, and proteins and assists in preserving constant blood glucose.

So, it benefits the individuals experiencing Diabetes. Diabetes is a significant illness around the world and impacts numerous men and women.

Biotin does processing of glucose and we understand glucose is among the sources of energy of our body to carry out work and keeping wear and tear on the body.

Biotin also helps in making DNA, RNA and nucleic acids and production of fats. Development and duplication of cells depend upon Biotin.

Therefore, on one hand, Biotin assists in preserving excellent hair health and it is very important for a number of physical functions.

Biotin hair growth Rate

For those who choose to utilize enriched supplements, it is encouraged to start it with a low dosage of around 10,000 micrograms of biotin.

After taking this supplement, a client might right away see outcomes like having more powerful and versatile hair, the fast growing of hair, much healthier and radiant skin, and long nails. Males who took the compound might also observe the substantial development of beard.

THE IMPORTANCE OF BIOTIN
Biotin is also called the Vitamin H which is a B complex vitamin that plays a substantial function in body’s metabolic process. This compound in fact assists in taking co2 from cells and in processing energy. In truth, this is extremely necessary particularly for the enhancement of hair in addition to skin and nails.

HOW BIOTIN WORKS IN HAIR GROWTH?
Lots of people, in fact, question the function of Biotin in the total development of hair. After all the arguments and experimentations, it lastly exposed its abilities to stop extreme loss of hair particularly those brought by health diseases and tension.

biotin for hair loss how long to see results

Manage My T2 Diabetes

At first, I just wanted to get my Blood Sugar in control

without Meds

to help manage my type 2 diabetes

But instead, I

  • Lost 120+ lbs so far (still some to go, to be at my College weight)
  • Got my HbA1c down to 5.1 — which would be great even for a non-diabetic
  • Fasting Blood Sugar down to 75 mg/dl (4.2 mmol/L) — better than most non-diabetics

ELIMINATED DIABETES — 3 consecutive 2-hr Oral Glucose Tolerance Tests prove it!

NOTE: NOT just “controlled it,” ELIMINATED it.

 

Read more about My T2 Diabetes & Blood Sugar Control Story

Dining Out Without ‘Diet Cheating’

 

Article-Logo-300x106.pngEating out occasionally can be a nice alternative to cooking at home, but it can also throw your healthy lifestyle for a loop. Restaurant food is often delicious, but can also have hidden health consequences.

Here’s the good news – there are healthier choices that you can make while eating out.

Whether you’re trying to loose weight, manage high blood pressure or diabetes, follow these guidelines and your body will thank you later.

Eating-healthy-while-dining-out-300x205.jpg

Go healthy…Most restaurants offer healthier, low salt alternatives on their menu. While most of us aren’t willing to order a grilled chicken salad every time we eat out (me included), we can still make small, but important changes.

Order vegetables, like broccoli, as your side instead of french fries. Also, take a break from fried fish and choose the ‘grilled’ for a change. You get the picture? These small changes add up.

Eat less. Many restaurants serve fairly large portion sizes. Use this to your advantage and share a main dish with a friend or only eat half and take the rest home. A healthier choice, plus you’ll save money at the same time.

Here’s another strategy – Since it can be tempting to eat everything on your plate, divide the food in half before you ever begin eating. Just push one half to the side and you’ll be ready when it’s time to ask for a ‘to go’ box.

Savor your food. Eat small bites and pay attention to the taste and texture. Chew slowly and thoroughly and try putting your fork down for a while between bites. Staying focused on your food may help you feel satisfied while eating a smaller amount as well. If you find this challenging, make sure to have plenty of interesting conversation planned for dinner. It’s difficult to eat and talk at the same time! This strategy has never let me down.

Stay-healthy-while-eating-out-300x200.jpg

Say no to bread. It’s easy to scarf down multiple pieces of bread without even noticing, while you’re waiting for your meal. This can add many calories that you weren’t planning to consume.

Want to avoid the temptation altogether? If it’s okay with your friends or family, ask the server not to bring bread to the table, or only to bring one piece for each person.

Fruits and veggies are your friends. Try to make fruits and vegetables a significant part of your meal. Choose a side salad as one of your sides (it’s usually a choice). It will help satisfy your hunger, leaving you with leftovers and the yummy ‘to go’ box that I mentioned earlier (as well as a free lunch for the following day).

Final tip. Let’s say that you can’t help yourself and you pick the least healthy item on the menu every time. First of all, stop doing that…LOL. Secondly, how about making a deal with yourself to order steamed vegetables as a side. Oh, and not the ones that are sauteed in butter or covered with a heavy sauce. 

If you enjoyed this article, be sure to share it with my social icon ‘sharing’ buttons at the bottom of the page.

—————–
Sensational Seasonings
is a gourmet seasonings company located in Johnson City, TN. Our healthy and delicious product line includes:  Cajun Blackening Seasoning, Chicken Seasoning, Jamaican Jerk Seasoning, Italian Seasoning and Pork Rub. Each of our seasoning blends is either salt-free or low-salt (meeting all guidelines of the FDA). 
Reducing the salt content in our seasonings allows you to get more flavor from all the herbs and spices we include, while allowing you take total control of your salt intake.

 

Sources:

Helpguide. “Healthy Fast Food: Tips for Making Healthier Fast Food
Choices.” Accessed January 17, 2014.
http://www.helpguide.org/life/fast_food_nutrition.htm

Medical News Today. “How Many Calories Should I Eat?” Accessed January 17,
2014. http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/245588.php

USDA Choose My Plate. “Tips for Eating Healthy When Eating Out.” Accessed
January 17, 2014.
http://www.choosemyplate.gov/healthy-eating-tips/tips-for-eating-out.html

WebMD. “Estimated Calorie Requirements.” Accessed January 17, 2014.
http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/estimated-calorie-requirement

hearthealthy

Losing Weight – the Healthy Way To Lose Weight

Almost 108 million Americans were overweight or obese in 1999. Until now, obesity continues to be a serious problem and is predicted to reach epidemic levels by the year 2020.

One way to prevent this scenario is to make people aware of the risks of being overweight or obese.

Here are some diseases that you are putting yourself in risk of if you are carrying a lot of extra pounds:

1. heart disease
2. stroke
3. diabetes
4. cancer
5. arthritis
6. hypertension

Losing weight helps to prevent and control these diseases.

The quick weight loss methods which have spread like fire these days do not provide lasting results. More often than not, dieting methods which involve dietary drinks, foods and supplement or pills do not work. If they do, the results are just temporary.

It is better to rely on a healthy weight loss option which will provide lifetime results. You have to set realistic goals and not expect to lose a lot of pounds in a short span of time.

Here are some tips on how you can lose those unwanted pounds the healthy way:

1. Do not starve your self.

The key to a healthier way of losing weight is: Do not diet.

You may seem happy and feel that you are losing that unwanted flab on your belly and thighs by skipping meals. But remember that this will not last long. Your body cannot tolerate having insufficient food to fuel the energy that you use up everyday.

If you get used to skipping one or two meals a day, your stored calories will be used up instead of the energy that should have been provided by your meals. So if you just eat one huge sandwich in one day, it will end up straight to your problem area (i.e. highs, buttocks, hips).

2. Start your day right.

Mothers always say that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Have a healthy meal in the morning to jump-start your metabolism.

Your food intake after you wake up will be used to burn fat all day long.

3. Eat small, healthy meals frequently.

Five small-serving snacks per day is better than three hearty meals. Eating more frequently, and in small servings, can prevent over-eating. This will also increase your metabolism and make calories burn faster.

4. Decide on how much weight you want to lose.

Keep your goals realistic. In the long run, it is virtually impossible for you to lose 40 pounds in 2 weeks. Have a mindset that you want to eat healthy to stay healthy for the rest of your life.

Once you have decided on a weight loss plan or program, stick to it and make sure that you follow your own set of dieting rules.

5. Drink lots of water.

Your body needs sufficient water to burn fat and keep your cells hydrated and healthy.

6. Avoid too much sugar.

Plan your meals around lots of fruits and vegetables, some bread, rice or pasta for that carbo fix that you need, plus lean meat and protein rich-foods. Sweets, sodas and pastries should be once-in-a-while indulgences only.

7. Watch your fat intake.

Fat is not the culprit to being overweight. You need this to keep your weight at the proper level.

There is such a thing as healthy fats. Olive, peanuts and canola oil have them. Tuna, salmon and mackerel have omega-3 fats which is good for the heart.

8. Exercise.

Leave your car if you are only going a few blocks from home, take the stairs instead of the elevator, jog, cycle or skate. Use these activities and other home chores if you are too lazy to go to the gym and take exercise classes. Make sure that you do this regularly and you will not even notice that you are already shedding pounds with these mundane activities.

It does not matter how much weight you plan or need to lose. What is important is that you set realistic goals for yourself.

Go slow. If you have already lost 5 or 6 pounds, give yourself a break then try to lose the next 5 pounds.

Eat healthy, drink lots of water, have enough sleep and exercise. This will give you a higher chance of losing weight and improving your health, which would result to a new, healthier you.

The Atkins Diet – Common Mistakes

The Atkins diet is one of the simplest weight loss plans to follow. Although the principles are clearly set out in the books, there are some common misconceptions that occur for dieters. These mistakes can make a big difference in the amount of weight you lose and effectiveness of the diet overall. If Atkins isn’t working for you, or you find yourself suddenly gaining weight after weeks of effective dieting, make sure you aren’t making any of these common mistakes.

First, make sure to be patient with your weight loss. If you lose 8 lbs per week on the Induction phase and then slow down once you enter ongoing weight loss phase, this is perfectly normal. The level of carbohydrate grams that are acceptable on the Induction portion of the diet are not meant to carry you through the rest of your dieting experience. Induction is meant to break you of carbohydrate cravings and detoxify your body from sugar. Starting with the ongoing weight loss phase, you will begin introducing small levels of carbohydrate grams each week. This may slow down weight loss a bit from the level it was at during Induction, but this is completely normal.

Also, people are different and react differently to the diet. Some people lose weight in spurts, and other lose weight more steadily. A plateau can last for a few weeks and then voila, you’ve lost five pounds in a matter of a few days.

Make sure you are avoiding caffeine in all of its forms as well as aspartame, a common artificial sweetener. Both of these chemicals can impact blood sugar levels negatively. Look out for caffeine in coffee and diet sodas. Watch out for aspartame in diet sodas and sugar-free gelatin. These can cause cravings for sugar and take your body out of ketosis after just one serving.

Watch your daily intake of cheese. Although cheese is on the acceptable foods list, it does have small amount of carbohydrates. Your best bet is to limit your cheese intake to 4 oz per day. You can have more on special occasions, but it should not be used as your mainstay for protein. Meats, eggs and tofu are much better choices and don’t contain carbohydrate grams.

Remember to emphasize vegetables during Induction and beyond. Your carbohydrate grams should be primarily derived from leafy, green vegetables and other acceptable vegetable choices. Vegetables fill you up without spiking your blood sugar. They provide essential fiber and nutrients that help your weight loss efforts and overall health. After induction, you should have 3-4 cups of salad and 1 cup of cooked vegetables each day. Make sure the vegetables you are using are on the acceptable foods list. Eliminating vegetables from your diet can shut down your metabolism and cause your weight loss to stall.

It is also very important that you eat regularly while you are on the Atkins plan. Never go more than five waking hours without eating a combined snack of protein and fats. Two things happen when you skip meals. First, you cause a blood sugar drop that will have you craving carbohydrates like bread and sugar. Secondly, continued periods of not eating will slow down your metabolism and make it even harder to lose weight.
Finally, make sure you are drinking enough water each day. Water has a myriad of benefits for every human being, not just those on the Atkins diet. Thirst can sometimes be masked as hunger, so staying well hydrated will keep you from craving foods you shouldn’t be eating. Water also helps you avoid constipation, which is an occasional side effect of the Atkins diet. Drinking 8 eight ounce glasses of water per day will also help you flush out the toxins from your system that are produced when you burn fat.

These common mistakes can make people frustrated with the Atkins diet when there is no need to be. If you are just starting out on the diet, make sure to prepare yourself for these mistakes. If you’ve been on the diet for some time, evaluate your eating habits and make sure you are following the program correctly.