Could You Have Metabolism B?


Have you heard of Metabolism B? Insulin resistance? Metabolic syndrome?

Could you have Metabolism B?

(This post may contain affiliate links which were added to make it easier for you to find the items. If you click on an affiliate link and make a purchase, I will receive a small commission (at no extra cost to you). You are free to use the links or not - if you do, I thank you!) 

If you follow my blog, you've probably heard me talk about being diagnosed with insulin resistance. It was a long, frustrating road to discovery, as it is for many who suffer from this.

One of the things that has helped me the most is a book called The Metabolism Miracle by Diane Kress, RD, CDE. It is available in hardcover, paperback, and as an e-book. I have the Kindle version so I can access it on all of my devices, but I'm thinking about also purchasing the paperback version, because sometimes, I just like to hold a paper copy in my hand. (Update: The link is now for the second edition, published in 2016. I purchased the paperback, and I highly recommend it. It contains updated info.)


Metabolism Miracle by Diane Kress, RD, CDE

And yes, I was immediately skeptical because it had the word "Miracle" in the title. You know, the old "if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is"? I'm naturally a skeptical person, and this threw up a red flag for me.

But when I was checking out the book and read this sentence, I knew I wanted to read the rest of the book: "Individuals with Metabolism B will never succeed at following a traditional weight-loss diet because their alternative metabolism follows a different set of rules than those of standard metabolism." How many times had I been told that I wasn't losing weight or my lab values weren't getting better because I must be eating something I wasn't supposed to - when I knew that I was following the diet that I had been given?

In the book, there is a list of the "symptoms" of Metabolism B - if you experience 12 or more of these on a daily basis, you likely have Metabolism B. This was kind of a moot point for me since I had already been diagnosed with insulin resistance (which is really the same as Metabolism B), but it was still interesting to see how many fit. I had 14 of them.

Do you have any of these symptoms?

Some symptoms of Metabolism B

There is also a list of medical conditions that are linked to Metabolism B. Again, if you identify with several, you likely have Metabolism B. I had 11 of these.

And lastly, you can look at your fasting lab values. If you take medication for your blood sugar, blood pressure, or cholesterol, your values may look falsely low. But if you're already taking meds for those issues, then you can pretty much figure you have those issues.

The program itself is broken down into three steps, or phases. 

Step 1 basics of the Metabolism Miracle program

During Step 1, which lasts for 8 weeks, you are resting the pancreas. Carbohydrates are kept to a minimum, and on a strict schedule (you must eat at least every 5 hours). This keeps the blood sugar on an even keel, and prevents the liver from storing and dumping glycogen. If the liver has no glycogen to dump into the bloodstream, then the pancreas has no reason to make excess insulin. And if there's no glycogen to burn, the body has to burn fat or muscle. If you're exercising, the muscle is active, so the body will choose the inactive fat to burn. The author stresses that this is NOT a low carb diet - because in the next steps you will be reintroducing carbs in the correct way. This is a temporary phase to rest your pancreas and liver.

Step 2 basics of the Metabolism Miracle program

Step 2 lasts 8 weeks or until you reach your desired weight. This is where you start reintroducing healthy carbs in proper amounts at the proper times, so that you will continue to burn fat and lose weight without raising your blood sugar and stimulating excess insulin production. You will still eat at least every 5 hours, but now you will consume 11-20g of carbs. Eating this amount of carbs at these intervals keeps the liver from dumping glycogen into the bloodstream, and just like in Step 1 - no glycogen means no excess insulin.

Step 3 basics of the Metabolism Miracle program

Step 3 is the maintenance step. This one allows you to have a few more treats, yet still maintain your weight loss and more importantly, your health. There is a chart that allows you to figure the proper amount of daily carbs for your age, size, and lifestyle. You eat at least one 11-20g carb serving per meal, but no more than four at any one time. According to the chart, my daily allowance would be 7.5 carb servings or between 82.5-150g per day once I'm on this step. My endocrinologist has told me to keep my carb intake at 20-45g per meal, which would be 60-135g per day - so that falls approximately in the same range once in Step 3.

So now that you know a little about the book, let me explain why/how it helped me...

In the post about being diagnosed with insulin resistance I mentioned that I was finally able to lose 15 pounds after my diagnosis. Unfortunately, life events occurred in the following months that caused me to gain some of that weight back. I had surgery on my left ankle and was essentially incapacitated for several weeks. I had to rely on Gus for my meals (and pretty much everything else). I didn't feel right asking him to prepare special meals for me when he was working 8 hour days, then coming home and taking care of me and the house. So I ate microwave meals during the day, and whatever he fixed for me for dinner. I wasn't eating horrible stuff, and I was staying within the carb limit the doctor gave me (at that time the dr. had given me a carb allowance of 60g per meal), but it was more carbs than I would usually have eaten. Between that and the inactivity, the weight gain was inevitable. Before I could completely recover from surgery, I was diagnosed with osteoarthritis in my right knee. This all happened between late Oct. 2014 and late March 2015.

In April 2015, my lab tests came back with my triglycerides really high at 495 (they should be under 150). My total cholesterol was 305, and they couldn't even check my LDL (bad cholesterol) because the triglycerides were so high. My fasting blood sugars had been hovering around 100-110, when they had always been in the high 80's in the past. Not good.

So I knew this was serious business, folks. I had to do something different. I was staying within the carb limit the doctor gave me, and I was taking all of the meds that they had prescribed. I was going to physical therapy twice weekly, doing my exercises at home, and I wasn't losing any weight and my lab values were terrible.

So I started the Metabolism Miracle program.

There is a chart in the book, based on your sex, height, and weight, to show how much fat/weight you will most likely lose during Step 1. Mine said I should lose 6-13 pounds. I lost a total of 13 pounds during Step 1, so it was right on track. The book says you will look and feel like you lost twice as much. I don't know if I look like I lost 26 pounds, but you can definitely tell that I've lost a significant amount of weight. I've gone down two clothing sizes, so I'm pretty happy!

But here's the best part...Remember those horrible labs results?

I started Step 1 on May 4. On May 29, my lab work was repeated. My triglycerides were 104. Yes, that's correct. In less than 4 weeks, they dropped from 495 to 104!! I should mention that in the 20+ years I've been seeing a doctor for my cholesterol and triglycerides, my triglycerides have never been that low. Ever.

My total cholesterol dropped from 305 to 214, which is still high, but I have familial hyperlipidemia, so that's actually a decent number for me. My LDL was 156, which again, is a little high - but for someone with my condition, it's actually an acceptable number. To give you a comparison, the last time they were able to get a LDL reading, it was 215, so 156 is quite good!

I've been battling this for many, many years, and I've tried many different things. The Metabolism Miracle is the only thing that has ever made a significant difference in my lab values, my weight, and in the way I feel.

This book/program/lifestyle has literally changed my life. It has made such a difference that I have decided to make it part of {enjoy the view}. I'm still going to blog about all of the stuff that I usually blog about, but I'm going to also have a section devoted specifically to the Metabolism Miracle lifestyle. I'm not affiliated with nor am I receiving any type of compensation from Metabolism Miracle or Diane Kress. I am just simply a person with Metabolism B/insulin resistance who has been able to make major changes in my health by adopting this lifestyle - changes that medication was unable to make, changes that the diets the doctors gave me were unable to make - and I want to share my journey in the hope that it can help someone else.

Right now, I'm just finishing up the first week of Step 2.

I've spent a lot of time talking about the program in general in this post, so in my next Metabolism Miracle post, I'll talk more about what happens during Step 1!

DISCLAIMER: This post is not meant to be medical advice. Please see your doctor if you have any medical questions/conditions or before starting any new diet program.

Have you experienced difficulty losing weight even when you knew you were taking in less calories than you were burning?




Kim
0 Comments

No comments:

Post a Comment

I love reading your comments!!