Here you see the implement of torture my dietitian has me consuming in an attempt to get my glucose under control! Yes, the Galligan brothers come from a long line of diabetics, and having my luck, I’m the one with all the fat and all the sugar in my bloodstream! Recently it has gone a little haywire. I try to keep my glucose between 90 and 140, but lately it has been climbing up into the 2 and 3 hundred range. I am trying to keep from having to take mealtime insulin, so my dietitian recommended I do what she calls a re-boot, and what I call torture.
If I can get things under control by restricting calorie and carbohydrate intake I might be able to actually reduce some of the medications I am currently on, and just be healthier overall . Given that our father just died from complications of diabetes and heart disease (thankfully no sign of the later in my health profile) I thought that drastic measures were needed to “right the ship” so to speak and try to get on a healthy path and get balanced in my life.
So this re-boot is supposed to last a couple of weeks, but honestly I’m thinking it will probably go on a lot longer than that because, although it is hard, I’m liking the results I’m seeing. First and foremost my blood glucose seems to be back in check. I have the occasional elevated reading, but it is more like 175 instead of 250. This is great for my overall health and will have long lasting benefits. Secondly, and equally pleasing is I am dropping a ton of weight. I’m not sure exactly where I am right now, but I have already lost 40 pounds from where I was at this time last year, and I haven’t been weighed since I really started working at it. But all the signs are there, my clothes are fitting better, I’ve had to tighten my belt all the way, my watch is loose, I’m moving easier, and I just have a bit slimmer look in the mirror as well. I’ll let you all know where I am at when I have my next appointment on the 19th.
I tell you all this to tell you this, one of the byproducts of this crazy diet is 1) no beer at all, and 2) I have to limit my whiskey intake a bit too. Not because the whiskey is so bad, it is far better for me than the beer, but because my digestion has been giving me fits, and whiskey doesn’t even remotely sound good right now. I think it wouldn’t sit real well in my stomach.
I’m sure some of you have noticed that I have slowed my posting a bit, and the reviews have basically stopped. (I do reviews, Jim doesn’t because he doesn’t want to work that hard!) Don’t worry, I’m planning to slowly work back into them, but for now while the re-boot is happening I’m taking a bit of time off from the actual drinking. Hope you can hang in there with me, and in the meantime I will be covering industry news etc. like we usually do.
In the meantime it is two shakes a day and a sensible dinner! Have any of you done this before? What were your results?
-Don
Beer & Whiskey Brothers 
This is good news, especially the part where you don’t want to only do it for a short time, rather do it for an extended period of time. Sometimes we all need a “wake up call” in some way or form and even if it is one we don’t like, we somehow try and pull something positive from it. It’s not just doing it for a month, a year, or awhile…it’s gotta be a lifetime to some respect. Gradually you can introduce those small vices (beer and bourbon) in small amounts but you need to counteract it with healthy eating and light exercise. My dad is probably about the same size as you (not as hairy thankfully) and he hit a point to where he needed his ship righted as well. With simply eating right, cutting out beer, and exercising the weight came off. Like all, he plateaued and got through it. My best wishes for you. Diabetes is a serious bad-ass.
Thanks John, and thanks for the encouragement. I know things need to change forever, not just during this couple of weeks, and I have been trying hard to make the adjustment. The thing with my Dad really didn’t scare me too much, as we have been expecting it frankly for the last couple of years, but I felt like it is just time to take better care of myself. So far, so good. I am actually really surprised at how quickly the transformation is taking place. My blood glucose is now in check, and the weight is coming off, and the moderate exercise isn’t that tough, especially since my wife has been doing it with me too. That actually makes it enjoyable, unless she wants to “Talk”. So things are going good, but I will eventually work beer and whiskey back into the mix, but right now there really isn’t room for them.
Good to hear, least you aren’t complaining about your back hurting like some pansy.
Let me just say that I feel sorry for your toilet.
Yeah, apparently it isn’t getting its usual amount of hops from me either! 😉
Yeah, but all those shakes have to go somewhere… 😦
Good luck with the diet/lifestyle change, Don! If you don’t have your health, everything else really doesn’t matter.
Good point Alex. Thanks for the encouragement!
I like how the name on the shake is Chocolate delight… I bet it’s a delight… I’m a big guy too and have done these diets before… I wish you the best of luck… I was eating these health bars for breakfast for awhile and the one was called Chocolate Caramel Surprise….the running joke in my house was “Surprise!!! that shit doesn’t taste like chocolate or caramel…) haha…
I haven’t ventured into the other types of fare they offer yet. Just the shakes, and only the milk chocolate ones. I tried the dark chocolate ones and they were far less agreeable. I haven’t seen any Chocolate Caramel Surprise bars yet, but i’ll look out for them. 😉
The key, as always, is moderation. Young folks think they’re invincible, but as the years start to pile up, ya got start making changes. And the older ya get, the harder it is to keep those pounds off, cholesterol down, sugar down, etc.
Sounds like you’re taking a sensible approach (although I don’t think I could handle those shakes.) Once you’re back on an even keel, you can reward yourself w/ small amounts of the things you really like. Believe it or not, you really can get used to one beer or one shot a day.
Yeah, my invincible days are over, that’s for sure. They were fun while they lasted though! The Shakes aren’t bad, they would be better if I could put a banana or some other fruit in them, but for now, they are ok. I’m sure over time I will learn all the stuff I can do with them to make things better. I will also begin to integrate some drinking back in too, that is a must!
Bummer to hear about the loss of whiskey and beer, but it’s great to hear that you’re doing well and heeding your doctor’s advice. Keep up the great work, Don!
Thanks John. The whiskey and beer thing is temporary, and I think I can integrate them back in slowly and in a controlled way. The main thing is just to control the carb intake, and I can do that over time.