Carbs. No high GI!

This is the fourth installment of Diabetes Blog Week. Some people believe a low carb diet is important in diabetes management, while others believe carbs are fine as long as they are counted and bolused for. Today we are supposed to talk about meals, snacks, special occasions... Whatever we deem food and bolus worthy.

First, I must say that there is a typical "diet" I follow most days. "Most" days being "workout days" during the 5 day work week. If I dont exercise in the mornings I tend to not care so much about what I eat all day. So, for the life of me I try my darnedest to stick to my workout on the week days to help with my food choices during the day. I eat lower carb (under 100) mainly on my workout days and get most of my carbs from fruits. I LOVE fruit and could survive on that alone! My main concern with ANY food is its GI index. Some foods I just wont eat because they are too high glycemic. (sugar candy, pretzels, some sauces, many cereals etc)I don't buy white bread or eat crackers or anything unless it is whole wheat. I LOVE Triscuits! Other than Triscuits I avoid anything "processed" or out of a box. I MUST have my fancy coffee creamer in my morning coffee. No opting out of that! It is my one indulgence that can never be changed, I don't care how high GI or processed it may be!

After my morning workouts I usually make a smoothie with milk, chocolate protein powder and a banana mixed in. Sometimes I mix in PB. Sometimes I go with a Vanilla protein powder and mix with yogurt, milk and frozen fruit. Just depends. If I'm really hungry I will add a slice of PB toast. I guess about 35-40 carbs...the key is a good balance if you ask me! If I'm lazy and don't work out in the mornings I usually eat an apple and almonds at my desk when I get to work. Or, maybe cheese and almonds. Yogurt and almonds. PB sandwich and milk. Soy nuts and some kind of fruit. I have alot of favorite combinations! On the weekends I eat whatever I feel for the day, not paying much mind to "good food" or "bad food" and I always eat a carby breakfast on Sunday since I make a super yummy one each week for the kids!Some mornings I wont eat at all. Some weekends, I may not eat until late afternoon. Depends on how busy I am.

I snack ALOT. PB and celery. Almonds, cheese sticks, apples, oranges, mangoes, pineapple, yogurt....mostly all low carb stuff, except for fruit...but I don't count fruit as a carb because its fruit!

Lunch is usually similar to breakfast since I work all week. I guess I eat the same stuff for lunch as I do for breakfast! Sometimes I will be super hungry and eat a Lean Cuisine (which still leaves me hungry!) or a turkey sandwich, tuna, wheat tortillas, soup, salad....I'm not really big on lunch since I snack every 2 hours. Dinner is my time.

We eat dinner as a family every night that Hannah doesn't have Vball practice. We make big yummy dinners. Chicken, Basmati rice, salads, steak, tacos, fajitas, rice and beans, casseroles, breads, shrimp dishes, spaghetti, potatoes...lots of veggies......All the yummy stuff you see on a menu at your favorite home cooking place. I eat whatever I want for dinner. Sometimes passing on the crescent rolls and such that the rest of the family eats. Sometimes. Once a week we usually have pizza, and I eat as much as I want!

I never say no to ice cream, cookies or other sweet yummies when they are in my house, so I dont buy them cuz I will eat them all! We make the occasional batch of cookies or brownies, but, I secretly throw away the left overs so I dont eat them the next day! I will avoid donuts and sweet breakfast items (especially when they bring them to work!) like they are the plague, because I will FEEL like I have the plague after I eat them. Maybe once every few months I will indulge in those super sweet iced coffees.....I LOVE them....but I dont love how I feel the rest of the day because I fail to gain back control of the high that crashes to a low. Some things just aren't worth it in the end! PMS....OH WATCH OUT! Ladies, you know. A week a month I want to eat EVERYTHING! All the "naughty" foods in HUGE portions! HUGE! I eat all day!! Some things you just let be. If my hormones force me to eat all the crazy things I don't typically eat I don't argue! Don't argue with a woman and PMS dang it! :)

Holidays? Party's? Its game on. No limit to what I eat. But, the same base rules apply. No high GI!

Oh...you were wondering about Maddison's Diabetes and eating? Ummmmm.....that I DID NOT want to discuss. Maddison is a picky eater and LIVES for sweets. She is allowed one sweet treat per day, no high GI!! She wont touch fruit unless it is an apple, and then she wants the peel off. The only veggie she will eat is Broccoli. She eats ALL of her food separate, not touching. That means if we have spaghetti she just has plain noodles. Casseroles? We make her meat separate from her carbs. No food can touch. Its ridiculous, and angers me to no end. Yes, I know she got this way because we "let" her. Yes, I've tried EVERYTHING to stop the insanity! She has issues far beyond what is normal. Trust me, this isnt normal kid pickiness!

The one meal you can predict for Maddison is breakfast. She is not "allowed" to have cereal in the mornings unless it is the weekend and I can manage the spikes and crashes it inflicts. Sugar free syrup only. No pop tarts, sweet cereal, muffins or any of that morning nonsense. Eggs, turkey bacon, waffles or pancakes with PB is the norm. No chocolate milk unless it is made with the 2c chocolate pack. No morning sweetness. No juice, just Orange Crystal Light! That's the rule MOST days. Of course I have days where I just dont have the time or energy to obsess about what she is eating. Maddison eats WAY too much crap from boxes. Goldfish, Gogurt, granola bars, graham crackers. I HATE that she eats out of boxes all day! Maddison gets all the same "treats" at school that all the other kids get when they have parties and such, no matter what her BS is. She needs to be a kid. BUT, I will never let her eat sweet candy or sweetened drinks just because she wants too. I advise her to make a better choice and save that candy when trending low. Lunch for Maddison at school is plain PB (wont try jelly) on whole wheat bread, milk, a 100% simply fruit roll up, and a cracker type carb. Maybe yogurt or gogurt or SF pudding. She drinks 2c Minute Maid "Just 10" drinks. No sweetened drinks allowed and no sweet treat allowed in her lunch because she will eat that and nothing else. I always put in apple slices or Broccoli, but I'm sure she throws it away! Some Fridays I will throw in a sweet treat if she's actually eaten her lunch all week. I always tell Maddison I would be more lax on the sweets if she actually ate a good balanced diet. Some day........

So, to sum it up....I do believe lower GI is the way to go. Lower carb? Not necessarily, but for me it keeps me thinking I'm healthier because I choose to do so. I think the typical "American Diet" today is disgusting and 80% of the food out there is pure crap, and yes, I'm guilty of buying it for my kids. Too many preservatives and empty additives in ALL our food, yet my T1 daughter is victim to all of it and it makes me nervous every damn time she eats! We too are a victim to busy living! I think fried foods should ALWAYS be avoided and we do avoid them for the most part....but, we have our days and occasionally MUST have those french fries! I think fruit and vegetables are THE MOST important thing to include in your diet. Good thing I LOVE them all!