If you’ve been diagnosed as prediabetic you’ve undoubtedly heard, read, or maybe been told your doctor that weight loss can help. But- you’ve still got questions.
So let’s start with this: What’s been shown in studies is that there is an undeniable relationship between excess weight and insulin resistance.
Insulin resistance, a hallmark of both prediabetes and type 2 diabetes, occurs when the body’s cells become less responsive to the effects of insulin. This condition results in elevated blood sugar levels and, over time, can lead to type 2 diabetes.
Excess body fat isn’t just a passive spectator; it’s been shown to be a driving force.
Prediabetes is like a warning light, telling us our blood sugar is higher than normal but not diabetic-high yet.
Extra weight pushes this progression, making insulin resistance go even more haywire, leading to type 2 diabetes.
This means that getting a grip on prediabetes early on is crucial.
Taking action quickly gives us a shot at slowing that progression and even the possibility of reversing prediabetes. Introducing lifestyle changes, including weight loss, helps restore insulin sensitivity.
In fact– studies show that shedding even 5-7% of your weight can have a significant impact on blood sugar and insulin sensitivity.
It is possible to turn your prediabetes story around through weight loss. Studies show that early action, combined with dietary and lifestyle changes, can yield fantastic results.
Strategies for weight loss to reverse prediabetes
Starting the journey to weight loss needs a well-rounded strategy. Sustainable weight loss doesn’t come from magic pills; it comes from a balanced mix of healthier eating, regular movement, and lifestyle changes.
Keep in mind that slow and steady wins the race. Quick weight loss might sound appealing, but it often drags down muscle mass and slows metabolism.
Muscle mass is really important because it helps increase your sensitivity to insulin, thereby helping with blood sugar balance.
Gradual weight loss lets your body adjust and holds onto precious muscle. It’s not just about dropping pounds; it’s about losing body fat while retaining that muscle, and making changes you can stick to in the long run.
Common mistakes in trying to lose weight after a prediabetes diagnosis
Here are the 5 most common mistakes to watch out for when planning weight loss after being diagnosed with prediabetes, working backwards down to the #1 mistake.
Mistake #5: Jumping into keto
One popular dietary trend that has gained substantial attention is the ketogenic diet, commonly known as the keto diet. While the keto diet has garnered a reputation for its rapid weight loss potential, it’s important to approach it with caution, especially if you’re grappling with prediabetes.
The allure of the keto diet lies in its promise of quick results. By significantly restricting carbohydrates, the body starts relying on stored fat for energy, leading to initial weight loss. However, it’s essential to consider the potential downsides, especially in the context of prediabetes and diabetes prevention.
While this approach can yield impressive victories on your scale, it can also inadvertently trigger the loss of lean muscle mass.
This muscle loss is counterproductive to the goal of improving insulin sensitivity, which hinges on maintaining and even enhancing muscle mass—especially since we begin losing 3-5% of muscle mass each decade after the age of 30.
Insulin sensitivity is closely intertwined with muscle health. Muscles are highly responsive to insulin because they act as a key player in regulating blood sugar levels. So, when muscle mass diminishes, insulin sensitivity can decline, potentially worsening blood sugar and A1C levels.
The other thing is that it can extremely hard to maintain keto long term. This is VERY restrictive diet, and many people find it very hard to stay in ketosis. If you’re not in ketosis, you’re essentially eating a ton of fat with just enough carbs or protein to keep your body from burning fat.
⚡It’s really important to adopt dietary approaches that promote not only weight loss but also the preservation of lean muscle mass while giving your body what it needs to be nourished and heal, while being sustainable long-term.
Mistake #4: Skipping meals
Unless you’re following a very specific intermittent fasting schedule and you know what you’re doing, skipping meals can lead to erratic blood sugar levels and excessive hunger, potentially causing overeating later in the day.
Another factor in skipping meals, whether or not in an intermittent fasting protocol that isn’t widely known is that this approach needs to be timed correctly for women that are are not in menopause. This is because of varying levels of hormones throughout the month. It’s better to work with your cycle in this context, in the correct way.
⚡As a general rule, aim for regular, balanced meals and include healthy balanced snacks to keep blood sugar stable.
Mistake #3: Overemphasis on supplements and/or medications
The supplement market is flooded with products claiming to accelerate weight loss. Relying solely on supplements and/or medications without addressing dietary choices and lifestyle habits is a common mistake.
Focus on obtaining nutrients from whole foods, and consult your doctor before starting supplements—especially since supplements can interfere with medications and certain conditions.
Being prescribed medication to help your blood sugar is sometimes one of the first things a doctor will do at a prediabetes diagnosis. And many of these medications boast weight loss benefits as well.
The thing is, each medication works differently, it affects each person differently, and guess what—it’s not a magic pill.
You STILL have to do the work to make dietary and lifestyle changes to sustainably and safely lose the weight.
⚡So don’t take the medication you may have been prescribed with the mindset that it will fix the issue. If you’re staying in the same unhealthy dietary and lifestyle pattern that got you into a prediabetic state, a medication won’t be able to provide your body with nutrients, movement, and stress relief.
⚡YOU have to do that part of the equation—especially getting your blood sugar balanced.
Mistake #2: Neglecting physical activity
Weight loss isn’t just about what you eat; physical activity plays a vital role, especially in terms of prediabetes.
Many people diagnosed with prediabetes solely focus on diet changes and ignore exercise.
Part of this is about what we already covered with maintaining and hopefully increasing that lean muscle mass to help with blood sugar control. Regular physical activity helps burn calories, improves insulin sensitivity, and supports overall health.
⚡Aim for a mix of cardio, strength training, and flexibility workouts while also increasing overall daily movement.
Discover How to Lower Your A1C Without Worrying About Weight Loss or Medications
70% of adults with Prediabetes progress to Type 2.
Learn how to be the 30% that stops Type 2 in its tracks.
Enter your name and email below 👇 to download the free Balanced Blood Sugar to Reverse Prediabetes Quick-Start Guide.
This guide gives you the 8 essential first steps to understanding your prediabetes diagnosis and lowering your A1C level with balanced blood sugar (before even thinking about weight loss!)
Mistake #1: Not learning to balance blood sugar before diving into weight loss
Here’s the thing- high A1C levels are what dictate this prediabetes diagnosis. A1C levels are an average of your blood sugar levels over a period of 3 months.
So- yes- studies have shown that losing body fat can help restore insulin sensitivity which will help blood sugar *some*, but if you’re still eating foods that aren’t right for YOUR body and instead keep your daily blood sugar levels high, you’re ignoring the basic driving factor to this condition.
When you learn to balance your blood sugar levels and monitor the changes you’re making in your diet and lifestyle, these changes will inherently initiate weight loss while healing your body.
Once you have a grip on that, if you want to accelerate weight loss with a caloric deficit, that’s a great way to lose the body fat.
But doing that before balancing your blood sugar levels and preventing muscle loss is really doing a disservice to your body because you NEED that lean muscle mass, and you NEED balanced blood sugar to heal that insulin resistance and the damage that higher blood sugar levels have done.
This is what learning an anti-inflammatory diet + lifestyle can do for your body.
Reduce the inflammation, increase muscle mass, and balance your blood sugar.
⚡Here are two thing you can do right now to get more guidance learning to balance your blood sugar for good:
- Read the rest of this Prediabetes 101 series,
- AND check out our 4-Week Blood Sugar Bootcamp program linked below {click the image to learn more!}👇👇👇
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