Type 2 Diabetes

[[old] kwadams]

gaffano--<br /><br />It sure wasn't my lifestyle as I've always been quite fit and a work-out fanatic. It also wasn't my diet, although I have had to alter it significantly since the diagnosis. (I'm currently following a lower carb/higher protein diet.) So that leaves family history, but there's not much there either. My dad's mother had it very late in life, as does his sister now, and my dad has a very slightly elevated level. Not a real strong link. For some reason, my pancreas has slowed down production of insulin or my cells are less receptive to it. My focus these days is trying to stick with my work-out regiment and diet to control it, and not how I got it. <br /><br />BTW, the research they are doing these days is very promising--between an inhaled version of insulin all the way up to transplanting the cells in the pancreas that produce insulin. I'm sure hoping that a cure comes along in my lifetime.<br /><br />Please let me know if any other questions.<br /><br />Kevin

[[old] Canoeist]

"Sir Steven Redgrave won a gold medal in Sydney with diabetes - so it is possible to be a great athlete with the disease. "<br /><br />Falcon, you might want to read some of Sir Steve's books both for motivation and for tips on how to exercise whilst controlling the disease.<br /><br />I am close to 49 years old and have been trying to put on muscle for several years in the hopes that more muscle will allow me to row faster. I have concluded that it just ain't goin' to happen. Some body types will not gain muscle weight. I suspect that when you were 225 pounds, much of the weight was not muscle. I am 6'3 1/2" and have shoulders about as big as anyone would want, but am only 208 pounds. What I am saying is, you might be trying to chase a mirage.<br /><br />Best of luck overcoming your troubles,<br /><br />Paul Flack<br />

[[old] Yoda1]

Paul,<br /><br />I'm going to disagree with you on whether or not you can gain solid muscle mass at your age or for that matter, older. It has absolutely nothing to do with diabetes. Once under control, anyone, male or female can gain muscle. It's simply a matter of finding the correct program and getting on with it. In the 47 years of being around resistance training I have NEVER run into anyone that could not gain muscle. There were a lot of people that said they couldn't gain, but not one that didn't once they were willing to work at a good program. And that's both male and female.<br /><br />Just my opinion and experiences. No Yelling!!!!<br />Yoda

[[old] BobD]

I'm 65 and I gain strength and tone, but I do NOT gain bulk. At some age the natural hormone household just does not allow it in my opinion. <br /><br /><!--QuoteBegin-Yoda1+Apr 6 2005, 04:14 PM--><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><div class='genmed'><b>QUOTE(Yoda1 @ Apr 6 2005, 04:14 PM)</b></div></td></tr><tr><td class='quote'><!--QuoteEBegin-->Paul,<br /><br />I'm going to disagree with you on whether or not you can gain solid muscle mass at your age or for that matter, older.  It has absolutely nothing to do with diabetes.  Once under control, anyone, male or female can gain muscle.  It's simply a matter of finding the correct program and getting on with it.  In the 47 years of being around resistance training I have NEVER run into anyone that could not gain muscle.  There were a lot of people that said they couldn't gain, but not one that didn't once they were willing to work at a good program.  And that's both male and female.<br /><br />Just my opinion and experiences.  No Yelling!!!!<br />Yoda <br /> </td></tr></table><br />

[[old] Canoeist]

Yoda, <br /><br />You may be right. I haven't been 100% dedicated to gaining muscle mass. But, I must say, that I have put in a fair bit of exercise and tend to eat properly, but haven't seen any significant gain in muscle mass since I started erging. I have gained strength, tone, and endurance, but no mass. If I could gain mass, it must be an extremely difficult task to achieve. I am not a diabetic, so it should be easier for me to gain muscle mass than someone such as Falcon. <br /><br />Regards,<br /><br />Paul Flack

[[old] Yoda1]

BobD and Paul,<br /><br />You know all of the discussions on this forum about losing weight? Well, gaining weight is the reverse of losing. Obvisiously, both of you paid close attention to eating and I'll bet that you're not taking in enough chow to allow yourselves to gain. That's the first thing. The second thing is are you, in your weight training allowing yourselves the time to recover before hitting the iron again? The third thing is what type of training protocol are you using? If, as most people do, your working out to a point that allows you to feel a little bit of a pump and move on to the next exercise, you're not going to gain. This is where the kids have an advantage over us older folks. We have to push a little harder, not say to ourselves, "Oops, that's the third set, I better stop cause I'm an old fart and the they say I shouldn't push to hard." Training only to a point and not taking it to almost failure will help you to be in condition, but it won't allow you to gain. <br /><br />I don't know how tall you guys are, but if you're anywhere around the 6 foot mark, it's going to take you much longer to gain muscle size than someone that is 5 foot tall. And the reason is simply that your muscle bellys are so much longer. That takes more time to grow. It might be great for rowing, but it sucks for putting on some size.<br /><br />So, what do you think of those pineapples? Gimmie some feed back.<br /><br />Yoda

[[old] gaffano]

This might be a little too much...even for Diesel....however..anyone know if there is a Weight Gain powder/etc that is good for people with Diabetes and Kidneys that are a little damaged? I know somone in this condition looking to gain weight, but i think too much protein is bad for kidneys that are not 100%...

[[old] starboardrigged1seat]

If you're worried about kidney health, I wouldn't recommend any "supplement" that's not explicitly "OK'ed" by your doctor. You can get enough protein to fuel weight gain through a protein rich healthy diet, with an emphasis on recovery. One thing that many people forget is that to gain muscle mass, you have to consume enough carbs (for your muscles to burn, so that the protein goes straight to repair and growth) and enough fat, (for body maintence as well as energy.) Great sources of protein are milk, tuna fish, lean red meat, nuts and whole grains, eggs, beans and lentils. No need to look into "supplements" if you're getting all you need from your diet. Variety and nutritional value reign supreme. I always make sure I have a carb-rich snack before a workout, and a carb rich snack or light meal, with fat (unsaturated, like peanut butter) and protein shortly after. One thing I did when gaining weight was having a peanut butter and banana sandwhich, and a glass of whole milk before going to sleep every night, changing nothing else in my diet. This simple change (and addition of calories, protein, and fat) fueled a gain of about 1 lb every 2 weeks.

[[old] BobD]

The point is I'm happy with my weight (81Kilos and 6'1") and would happily bulk up, but it is a fact that you need a young man's hormones to build mass. I refuse to take steroids, etc. I do eat a lot of protein by the way.<br /><br />You must also appreciate that we at 65 and maybe even younger have joint problems that simply do not allow us to lift the weight that a young fellow does, i.e. I can curl it but the pain in my elbows becomes so intense that I forget that idea fast. I can press, but the pain in my shoulders becomes extreme. <br /><br />Yes I know lighter weight more reps, but it's a question of how many reps to get any effective gain in bulk at age 65. After all I don't want to spend more than about 1.5-2 hours daily on my workouts, (I'm a runner on the alternate days).

[[old] Yoda1]

Ahhh Bob,<br /><br />Age is a problem for all of us. I believe the hardess time I ever had in my life was in my early 50's when it suddenly dawned on me that I could no longer compete with the kids. Now, this is competitive weight lifting I'm talking about. You're so right about the joints not wanting to do what you want them to do. It's was the main reason that I began using Super Slow. The weight is light enough to allow the joints to function the way they are supposed to and if taken to failure those old muscles will respond almost as quickly as the kids do. You just have to feed them. But, for you, it is going to be doublely difficult because of running. And I'm not suggesting you quit running to be sure. But, here you are, going out and running and the old grey matter is saying to itself, "This could be easier if I didn't have to carry all that upper body weight." And the body responds accordingly. On the other side of the coin, you're doing your resistance program and the old grey matter is saying, " Damn, if he'd only quit that stupid running I could add some mass." So, at this point, I would say that your old grey matter is confused about what you want your body to do. Of course, if you're like me, it's always confused. The grey matter that is.<br /><br />Seriously, if you are having problems with your joints, you should consider using Super Slow. When done correctly it is amazing the results, especially for us old farts.<br /><br />Hey, hang in there. And you're absolutely right about the steriods. With the exception of some of the new stuff that's out on the market right now, it's the worst thing a person can put into their body.<br /><br />Yoda

[[old] Danb7183]

[quote=Canoeist,Apr 6 2005, 12:54 PM]<br />"Sir Steven Redgrave won a gold medal in Sydney with diabetes - so it is possible to be a great athlete with the disease. "<br /><br />Falcon, you might want to read some of Sir Steve's books both for motivation and for tips on how to exercise whilst controlling the disease.<br /><br />I could not agree more Canoeist, I was diagnosed with Type1 diabetes nearly 5 years ago (when I was 17) and although it was very tough at first it does very little to hamper my workouts in the gym and in the boat now! <br /><br />Don't ever think it is a constraint on your workouts Falcon, exercise is encouraged by my diabetic specialsist dr to regulate my sugar levels, i'm sure the same applies to you!

[[old] The Catch]

There's some excellent information in this thread. I'd just like to add my 2 cents.<br />I'm also a Type 2 diabetic. There are many risk factors for diabetes: family history, inactivity, age (45+), obesity, hypertension, ethnicity (African>Hispanic>Native American>Asian American>Pacific Islanders). I'll come clean and admit mine happen to be hereditary, not enough activity, and obesity. And high stress. Yours are probably different. Whether it's insulin resistance or not enough insulin production, they result in high blood sugar which can eventually lead to serious health complications - kidney, eye, vascular diseases - much more serious than what size your pecs are.<br /><br />As Kevin already said, if you don't have a blood glucose monitor, you absolutely need to get one and USE IT. You need to learn what high quality carbs will work for you (I can't touch potatoes or bananas), how your body responds during and after exercise. If you're on medication, you'll start to see if you're under or overdosing. If you need to take in more or less carbs. Diabetes is a serious chronic disease, completely controlable, and the burden is on you learn as much as you can, get the best medical advice available and to take control of it.<br /><br />Sounds like you've already figured out that you probably need more frequent meals. Even for someone like me trying to lose weight, I'm eating 3 small meals a day, with 3 small snacks in between, every single day. I'm trying to level out my carb and caloric intake over the course of the day, to avoid spikes. On endurance days, I sometimes need to eat during workouts. Sounds like you need even more!<br />Another really great book, which it sounds like you're ready for is "Diabetes Burnout: What to Do When You Can't Take It Any More" by William Polonsky.<br />Keep up the hard work; it's worth it.<br />

[[old] Angelina Strupakova]

You must try biolean II + in combination with Winergy !!! you can get it from win-nutrition.com , they have very good stuff !!!<!--QuoteBegin-falcon42+Mar 28 2005, 11:56 PM--><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><div class='genmed'><b>QUOTE(falcon42 @ Mar 28 2005, 11:56 PM)</b></div></td></tr><tr><td class='quote'><!--QuoteEBegin-->Hello. <br /><br />I realize mine is probably an unusual situation, but it is a huge problem for me personally. <br /><br />I am a 42 year old male with type 2 diabetes. I've had this horrible disease for about 7 year now and have been able to control my blood sugar levels through diet & exercise. My problem is this: I used to weigh 225 pounds, which, at 6'3" tall, was quite acceptable. I had a positive self image of myself and was content with my appearance. After 7 years with diabetes, I now weight 190 pounds and I hate it! I feel as if I'm too thin and I no longer have a positive self image. Weight lifting hasn't helped at all because my diet is so restricting.<br />I know that this doesn't seem like a problem to most people, as it seems like the whole world is trying to LOSE weight, but it has really affected my life in a very negative way. I just can't get used to it.<br /><br />Is there any way someone with type 2 can gain 15-20 pounds safely? I don't have to be 225 pounds again, but 210 would be nice. Are there foods that can help me gain healthy weight without shooting my blood sugar levels too high? This is a very real problem that I need to solve, and I'm hoping someone here can be of help.<br /><br />Thank you.<br /><br />falcon <br /> </td></tr></table><br />