Kristen's Diabetic Story

About Kristen Beireis


I'm a tie-dye wearing, entrepreneur and life_enthusiast who happens to have type 2 diabetes. Right off the bat at diagnosis, I was determined to get my diabetes in check.  I have several family members with diabetes and I've seen what happens when you ignore and deny it.  So, I knew I had to do something.  I'm a big "take the bull by the horns" kind of person.  So, that's exactly what I did.  

I started testing my glucose every day as my Dr. directed.  I started counting carb servings (15g of carbs per serving) and I found fun things to be active in.  In just 8 months, I dropped 25 pounds and brought my A1C down to 5.9.  

My Stats
Starting A1C - 8.0
Current A1C - 5.3

Meds - 1 Metformin/day
Diet - Low carb (my cholesterol and blood pressure are excellent, thanks to the meds I'm on)
Starting BMI - Obese
Current BMI - Overweight


Food (I refuse to say "diet"!)

I absolutely hate cooking.  It's just too much work!  However, I absolutely LOVE eating good food.  When Hubby and I went to that diabetes education class, I learned all about serving sizes, how carbs effect glucose levels, how I'm supposed to exercise every day etc...  You know.  All those things they tell you to do to be "healthy".  Yeah, that's pretty much what I found out I needed to in order to keep my diabetes in check. 

As I started to discover what a carb serving was, I realized that eating out on a night when Hubby was going to be home late, meant that I had to either go to a sit down restaurant alone (um, NO!) or cook (ugh!).  I actually chose to cook.  Yikes!!

I cooked at home for me, at first.  Now, I actually cook dinners for me AND Hubby.  He actually likes it and no longer has the right to claim that I can't cook.  Ha!!  Having said that, I refuse to spend 4 hours in the kitchen making food.  If I can't do it in a minimal amount of pots/pans and prep time, I'm not doing it.  I have a marketing coaching/consulting business, I don't have time to spend all day in the kitchen.  Geeeez!  Simple, easy food is all I have time for.  

As for leftovers...eh...not a fan of those either. 

Cooking ahead?  Not a fan (who wants to cook something you're going to eat later? Not me).

Activities (I refuse to say "exercise")
So, I used to live near NYC where I was walking all over the city and doing semi-professional musical theater.  I was HUGELY active, constantly moving and rarely had time to sit...which meant I had no life.  Having no time for Hubby, no time for non-acting related activities and family were several of the reasons I left NYC and returned home to the midwest where I have all sorts of time.  Time to sit in front of the tv, work at my desk, watch movies and play games with friends and family etc...  Yeah, it's a lot more sedentary. 

For a while I was able to maintain my NYC weight.  I wasn't a skinny minnie by any stretch.  I was a size Medium with a BMI right on the borderline of "normal weight" and "overweight".  In 2007, I developed hypothyroidism and I gained 30 pounds in 3 months.  We got it under control (not before gaining another 10 pounds).  Then my thyroid got off again in 2011, causing me to gain another 15 pounds.  Losing any of it was impossible (believe me, I tried working out and I even got to be in a musical where I was dancing a lot...still couldn't lose diddly squat!).  I came to a point of accepting that having an obese BMI was just my new body.  

My blood pressure got high and the next thing I know I have diabetes.  Now I HAD to make a change.  

Gym?  I hate doing exercises for exercise sake.

Exercise videos?  I had a Wii Fit and hadn't touched in years.  I also didn't like the way it nicely degraded me every time I logged in..."You haven't been here in a while, you'd better get your butt in gear."

None of the normal exercise things were fun.  Although, as a musical theater person, I enjoyed singing and dancing.  I enjoyed being in the woods and playing in nature.  So, I found a meetup group that hiked in my area.  I also got a membership to the Y so I could go do Zumba (it's like a dance class in NYC...fun!).  I did some pilates at times.  Hubby and I started getting out more too.  We would take advantage of walking when we could and I started inviting my friends to be active with me.  I found fun things to do that kept me active.  Now, I average one big activity a week and sometimes I'll do another little one each week.  

Just so you know, I don't step on a scale and weigh myself all the time.  I look at my weight when I go the Doctor or Endocrinologist's office.  I don't worry about it.  I've lost over 20% of my body weight (recommended is 10%).  My Doctors are all happy with my A1C.  So, my focus is to remain active and eat healthy. 

My purpose for this blog
Again, I'm not a Doctor, so PLEASE check with your Doctor before making any changes to your health management.  

I'm guessing there are others out there who want to eat healthy, but hate cooking.  I'm sure there are some who aren't "exercise" oriented but like being active.  So, I thought I'd start a blog where we can interact, share tips, tricks etc. on how to honor our hatred for cooking and exercising while still finding a way to live healthy.  And, maybe, just maybe we can all learn something from each other.  Oh, and what a great place to put my recipes!!  

Create a great day!
Kristen Beireis
Life_Enthusiast
Marketing Coach/Consultant
Diabetic
http://www.kristenbeireis.com