Weight management and diabetes

You can be successful at losing weight, so don't get discouraged. Losing weight takes time and having a plan.

When you have diabetes, there are some important reasons to achieve or maintain a healthy weight:

• Weight loss improves blood glucose* levels.
• Weight loss reduces your risk of heart disease, which is the leading cause of death in people with diabetes.
• Losing as little as 5 to 10 percent of your total body weight can make a big difference in your health. (That's 10 to 20 pounds if you weigh 200 pounds.)

Forget about fad diets

It is common to lose weight on a fad diet and then gain it all back — and more! Fad diets won't help you learn healthier food habits. Remember, you're looking for a healthier life, not just the immediate future.

What it takes to lose 1 pound in 1 week

There are 3,500 calories in 1 pound. This means that to lose 1 pound in 1 week, you need to cut 500 calories out of your diet each day.

You can do this by eating and drinking fewer calories than normal and by exercising.

The healthiest way to lose 1 pound in 1 week is to:

• burn 250 calories with exercise each day, and
• cut 250 calories out of your diet each day.

To make this work, try the following.

• Keep track of your current eating habits and look for easy targets to cut out. If, for example, you eat at a fast food restaurant, a hamburger and small fries is about 500 calories but a quarter pound hamburger and medium fries is about 900 calories. By choosing the smaller meal, you save 400 calories.
• Keep track of your exercise and activity habits for a few days. Do you always look for the closest parking spot in the parking lot? Do you take the elevator rather than walk up a few flights of stairs? You can increase your activity by making a few simple changes.

The chart below shows how many calories are burned in 10 minutes by doing certain exercises and activities, according to how much you weigh.

Exercise/activity	Your weight in pounds
	120-130	160-170	190-200
Walking 2 mph (30 minutes per mile)	30	40	45
Walking 3 mph (20 minutes per mile	40	50	60
Walking 4 mph (15 minutes per mile)	55	70	85
Aerobic dance	60 to 105	75 to 140	90 to 165
Bicycling (outdoors)	40 to 145	50 to 195	60 to 230
Bicycling (indoor stationary)	25 to 145	30 to 195	40 to 230
Calisthenics	40 to 105	50 to 140	60 to 165
Dancing	30 to 80	40 to 150	45 to 120
Jogging 5 mph (12 minutes per mile)	90	115	135
Jogging 6 mph (10 minutes per miles	105	140	165
Skiing (cross country)	60 to 145	75 to 195	90 to 230
Swimming	50 to 125	65 to 165	75 to 200

Remember to check with your doctor or health care provider before starting any new exercise program.

Meal time weight loss tips

• Don't skip meals. It slows down your metabolism and you may get so hungry that you overeat.
• Eat more slowly.
• Find ways to include a variety of fruits and vegetables.
• Limit snacking when you watch TV.
• Drink a full glass of water before a meal.
• Drink skim or 1 percent milk instead of 2 percent or whole milk.

Dining out tips

• Share an entreè with a friend.
• Ask about child-sized portions.
• Get a to-go box when you are served and put half of the meal into it before you start eating.
• Order an appetizer as an entreè.
• Limit your alcohol because it may interfere with your resolve to eat wisely.

Cooking at home: Tips to decrease fat

• Buy lean cuts of meat such as round or loin.
• Trim all fat from meat before cooking.
• Remove skin and fat from poultry before cooking.
• Bake, roast, broil, barbecue or grill meats instead of frying.
• Choose white meat more often than dark meat.
• Drain off fat after cooking and blot with a paper towel.
• Use a non-stick surface to pan broil foods.
• Avoid gravies made with fatty drippings.
• Microwave, steam, or boil vegetables in a small amount of water and season with only a small amount of fat or with spices.
• Use low-fat or fat-free margarine, mayonnaise, salad dressings, cream cheese and sour cream more often than regular versions.

Don't get discouraged if you slip

It's hard to make several positive changes all at once. Don't get discouraged if you skipped a couple of days of exercise or ate too many cookies! Get back on track the next day.

Need help?

Reasons for overeating can sometimes be complicated. Talk to your doctor or health care provider or check for local resources if you need help.

Food and exercise diary

Use the following example for how to fill out the food and exercise diary. You can make print copies of the diary or keep track of the information in a notebook.

Meal	Food/beverage	Amount	Food group	Physical activity/exercise
Breakfast	bran flakes banana milk toast light margarine orange juice coffee, regular	1 cup 1 small 1/2 cup 1 slice 1 teaspoon 1/2 cup 1 cup	carbohydrate carbohydrate carbohydrate carbohydrate carbohydrate carbohydrate free	Walked for 30 minutes before breakfast.
Lunch	whole wheat bread lean roast beef lettuce tomato mayonnaise (low calorie) apple water	2 slices 2 ounces 1 leaf 3 medium slices 2 teaspoons 1 medium 8 ounces	carbohydrate protein vegetable vegetable fat carbohydrate free
Dinner	salmon, broiled vegetable oil potato, baked margarine green beans (with margarine) carrots dinner roll, white	3 ounces 1 1/2 teaspoons 1/2 medium 1 teaspoon 1/2 cup 1/2 cup 1 medium	protein fat carbohydrate fat vegetable vegetable carbohydrate
Snacks	popcorn margarine	2 1/2 cups 1/2 teaspoon	carbohydrate fat	Watched movies.

Related Links

Food: Eating healthy

Physical activity (Exercise)

Allina Medical Clinic - Diabetes Education

Dialog: Living with Diabetes (free e-newsletter)

First published: 12/01/2006
Last updated: 12/01/2006

Reviewed by: Allina Patient Education experts