Understanding Insulin Dose Adjustment

by

Simple guide on insulin dose adjustments when discussing with your care provider.

Insulin dose adjustments sound hard but is a must learn if you’re serious about taking control of your Type 2 diabetes.  Most people with uncontrolled diabetes get little info on this, probably only when starting insulin for the first time.

But a lot of things can change blood sugar over time and taking insulin should match what your body actually needs. And learning about insulin management can reveal changes affecting blood sugar you weren’t aware of:

  • Hypoglycemia or hyperglycemia: These blood sugar conditions are serious so your insulin may be the issue.
  • Insulin dose not meeting needs:  Prescriptions are often standardized but people’s needs are different. Your total daily insulin dose may not be giving you the results for your diabetes.
  • Lifestyle changes affecting blood sugars:  Eating a better diet or adding exercise can greatly improve high blood sugar and help insulin sensitivity so your dose could be giving too much insulin.

This guide includes three sections: 1) know how your insulin works, 2) check blood sugar targets and reading times, and 3) the expected insulin adjustments based on the American Diabetes Association’s (ADA) dosing guide.

You should consult your doctor or care provider’s diabetes team before making any change to your insulin dose. This guide provides helpful background when you talk to your doctor about dose adjustments to better meet your body’s current needs .

Step 1: Know How Your Insulin Works

There’s two types of insulin for controlling high blood sugar, basal and bolus. They differ in duration of blood sugar controlled and in peak times, which is when the insulin is the strongest. The peak time is also when to take a glucometer reading, usually listed as ‘x hours after meal times.’

Basal Insulin

This is a long acting insulin and lowers high blood sugar to a healthy level. Many T2 diabetes patients are prescribed a basal-only insulin regimen.

There are many basal insulins with the common generics being  NPH, glargine, detemir, and degludec.

The example below charts how this long acting insulin generally keeps high blood sugar “leveled.”

Quick note on basal-only insulin regimens: if your total daily insulin dose in units is over 50% of your weight in kilograms, and your blood sugar is still not in control, you’ll likely need to start a bolus dose.

This would be better way to lower high blood sugar by adding a rapid acting insulin while being on a lower total daily insulin dose.

Bolus Insulin

This is a rapid acting insulin meant to lower or prevent high blood sugar spikes. This is usually taken before meals, sometimes called a “mealtime insulin.”

The common generic bolus insulins are regular, lispro, lispro-aabc, aspart, and glulisine.

It’s not common for T2 patients to be only on bolus. Usually, someone taking bolus insulin doses also has a basal dose.

The example below charts how this rapid acting insulin quickly lowers high blood sugar after meals.

This basic info of rapid acting insulin and long acting insulin seems minor but is important if you want to change insulin therapy to suit your lifestyle.

Wanting a lower insulin dose sounds simple but you should know how your insulin works before making changes.

Step 2: Check Target Blood Sugar and Reading Times

The glycemic target ranges below are “healthy” blood sugar levels based on the ADA 2021 Standards of Medical Care. Most care providers use these for patients but you should confirm the ranges your provider gave you.

  • Pre meal (or also fasting): 80 – 130 mg/dL
  • Post meal: less than 180 mg/dL

Below is when you should check blood sugar:

  • Basal: measure in the AM before breakfast. But if you’re on morning NPH insulin, checking before dinner is also needed.
  • Bolus: measure around 2 hours after a meal.

You can see how the insulin type, either long acting or rapid acting insulin, affects when you check blood sugar.

Important note before dosing adjustments

Any time you get a glucometer reading below 70 mg/dL, immediately consume at least 15 grams of fast-absorbing carbohydrates. After 15 mins recheck blood glucose results to see if above 70 mg/dL.

Repeat this until you get above 70 mg/dL and then eat a meal or complex carb to keep blood sugar from dipping.

Being under 70 mg/dL is hypoglycemia and can lead to hospitalization or other serious issues. So you should treat this first before working on any change to insulin doses.

Step 3: Expected Insulin Adjustments

The ADA’s 2021 Standard of Care has a guide for care providers to review a diabetes patient’s blood sugar levels and make adjustments to insulin doses (called “insulin titration”).

We summarized the ADA’s guidance below into a simple chart to show what changes to insulin doses you can expect when discussing with your doctor.

(FYI, we don’t go into detail about dosage or units of insulin because it depends on the insulin and is pretty technical. Your doctor sets the units of insulin and can explain to you if interested.)

Expected Basal Insulin Dose Adjustments
Blood Sugars (mg/dL) Expected Adjustments Notes
Under 54 Decrease dose by  20% First treat low blood sugar (see above).
After, check readings to see if consistently low or something caused it (changed in medication, skipped a meal, etc.).
55 to 70 Decrease dose by 10% Same as above – first treat blood sugar and then monitor for pattern or causes.
71 to 80 (or low end of target) Monitor to see if readings consistent If inconsistent, adjustment may not be needed. If consistent, then nearing hypoglycemia and dosage should be decreased.
Above 130 Increase by 2 units every 3 days Talk to doctor to evaluate if the change is temporary.
Expected Bolus Insulin dose adjustments
Blood Sugars (mg/dL) Expected Adjustments Notes
Under 180 None But if blood sugar is close to pre-meal target blood sugar, insulin doses may be too high.
Above 180 Increase of 10% per week until on target Before talking with doctor, check if sugar levels are consistently high or if you have high blood sugars before meals.

This gives you an idea of expected changes to insulin doses when talking with your provider.

Final Notes to Keep in Mind
  • Treat hypoglycemia first: we said this above but anytime your glucometer reading is under 70 mg/dL, consume 15 grams of carbohydrates to keep it above 70 mg/dL.
  • Write down glucometer readings: give your care provider actual blood glucose results from the last 1-2 weeks. This gives them helpful, recent data to decide how to adjust your dosage.
  • Total daily insulin dose: means the total doses for basal and/or bolus insulins. It’s easy to confuse total daily insulin dose as talking only about one of the insulin doses.
  • Steroids impact insulin: people on steroids (ex: prednisone) usually have a fasting blood sugar within range. But after the first meal, blood sugar increases and stays high during the day.  Let your provider know you’re on steroids but you can expect an insulin dose adjustment.
  • “Sliding scale” or correction factor dosing: if you’re given a ‘sliding scale’ or correction factor for dosing but without a fixed dose regimen, know that it’s only for short-term dosing.
    • Providers may prescribe these while in the hospital or recovering from treatment (e.g. chemotherapy) where an insulin dose adjustment was needed at that time.
    • But the sliding scale or correction factor regimen is less effective than insulin doses meant for long-term blood sugar management. You should follow-up with your provider to move away from sliding scale or correction factor dosing.

Summary

Insulin dose adjustments is important for taking control of Type 2 diabetes and diabetes management overall. As you make lifestyle changes to improve high blood sugar or insulin sensitivity, you only want to inject the amount of insulin your body actually needs.

We provide a simple guide on how your insulin works, checking blood sugar against target blood sugar ranges, and what to expect for insulin dose changes talking with your provider.

We wrote an article on diabetes self-care (link here) and reviewing insulin dose is a self-care task that should be prioritized.

As always, to talk to your provider about insulin dose changes. We like to suggest that people make lifestyle changes (diet and exercise) to lower high blood sugars rather than relying only on insulin. But adjusting insulin dose is still important so you can match insulin to your body’s current needs.

News: Shift to Weight Loss for Treating T2 Diabetes

by

The study suggests that treatment forT2 diabetes should start focusing on weight loss, which is shift from the current focus on blood sugar.

Study Background

A recent study was published in the medical journal The Lancet supporting a shift in how Type 2 Diabetes should be treated. The research suggests a more weight-centric approach, rather than just focusing on glycaeima (glucose in the blood).

The study was conducted by an international panel from the University of Texas Southwest Medical Center, Univ. of Melbourne, the Diabetes Complications Research Centres in Ireland, and others. They reviewed clinical evidence spanning over 30 years related to weight loss, obesity and other terms in combination with T2 diabetes.

Study Findings

exercise

A key finding was the clear benefits of weight loss seen across the diseases of weight-related T2 diabetes.

The study found that the benefits of weight loss extends beyond just blood sugar to also include other improvements. This included reversing microvascular complications such as in the eyes, kidneys or nerves.

Another key finding was that studies on intensive lifestyle interventions showed strong data related to blood sugar control and even reversing the severity of diabetes.

Such studies support the benefits of losing more than 10% of bodyweight on the disease process of type 2 diabetes, diabetes-related endpoints, and complications in the long term, including cardiovascular events.


Ildiko Lingvay, Priya Sumithran, Ricardo V Cohen, Carel W le Roux. Obesity management as a primary treatment goal for type 2 diabetes: time to reframe the conversation. The Lancet, 2021

Study Conclusion

The research concludes by proposing a new way to treat Type 2 diabetes. Setting a principal treatment goal of weight loss of at least 15% of body weight.

They believe that this goal is most likely to disrupt the disease course of T2 diabetes than smaller losses. And that this change would recognize that obesity complications are reversible and requires a shift in clinical care.

Our Opinion

The study is encouraging because it asks medical providers to focus on weight-loss, not just blood sugar, as a key goal for Type 2 diabetes treatment.  And it shows the data is clear that lifestyle interventions benefit blood sugar control and even remission of T2 diabetes.

Because the study’s audience is for medical providers, it’s likely that providers will try to achieve weight loss goals through medications.  (In fact, the study explored current and developing medications effective for weight loss.)

We don’t discourage or disagree with taking medications. And you should always consult your care provider with questions. But knowing that providers may suggest medication to treat weight loss may be something to consider.

Our goal at DiaBettr to help you with lifestyle changes to manage diabetes so you can rely on less medication.  You can read more about us here (link)

We think this study aligns with our approach and is a good sign of the healthcare industry taking a more holistic approach to treating Type 2 diabetes.

3 Things Stopping Your Diabetes Self-Care

by

Living with Type 2 diabetes (T2DM) is not easy. And proper self-care suffers when we deal with busyness of work, family and life. Here are the common reasons we’ve heard stopping self-care and what you can do about it.

“There’s a lot going on in my life right now”

Stressful jobs, busy households, and a dozen other thing can distract us from our health. But if you’re reading this, you likely know that putting off T2DM self-care can have serious consequences.

If left uncontrolled, high blood sugar levels (hyperglycemia) can lead to severe complications affecting your eyes, kidneys, nerves and others. And adding other stressors can lead you to produce more blood sugar and can make your T2D worse.

What you can do:  Block off time in your day for self-care.  Start small (30 minutes) and just do one task. Things like logging your glucose level, planning tomorrow’s meal, or a quick exercise. Rocket jumps (which we wrote about here) are a great exercise option since it burns tons of calories in only a few minutes.

After a week or so, increase the time or add other tasks.  For example, give yourself 30 days to reach at least 1 hour a day of self-care (can split throughout the day).

The key is to set realistic goals.  If you make it at the first shot, great! If not, just adjust your time or activity and try again. Taking small steps will makes it easier for self-care to be part of your daily routine.

“Too many things to keep track of”

Between figuring out what to eat, taking medication and checking blood sugar – there can be a lot to keep track of.

The tasks can become inconvenient, fatigue sets in and people eventually stop.  But remember, these are important and often recommended by your health care provider.

What you can do: Prioritize your tasks and keep it simple.  When you commit to self-care (see above) use that time for high priority tasks first – such as taking medication or checking blood glucose levels (which is important in case an insulin dose adjustment is needed) – then add tasks when you’re able to.

But keep things simple!  If you need to exercise, focus on 1 or 2 exercises. That’s it. Then add another routine or more time when able to.  For meals, stock up on 3-5 proteins and vegetables and base your cooking around those. You’ll save time when buying groceries and by learning how to cook those meals faster. Use a slow-cooker or crockpot and you can save even more time!  (We have post on meal planning hacks you can read here.)

Also, look into technology to make things easier or efficient. There are smartphone apps to track glucose levels and medications, and can set reminders. There’s also “smart” insulin pens and glucometers that sync up to your smartphone. We use our smartphones for pretty much everything so use it to help you get prioritized.

“Self-care is too hard or unenjoyable”

Living with diabetes is not easy and we understand that. Restricted diets, exercising and regular medication is not fun. But remember, you’re not alone!

What you can do: Get family and close friends involved. Have your spouse keep you accountable with dieting. Ask them to keep restricted foods away or even help make meals. If you have kids in the house, have them join you for a brisk walk or a bike ride. There’s also a lot of websites with tasty recipes with the diabetic in mind. And plenty of YouTube videos on exercise you can do at home (stay tuned for a DiaBettr post on this topic).

Just start with simple recipes and exercises so you don’t overwhelm yourself. Plus having family and friends join in can make things more enjoyable!

Summary

We know living with Type 2 diabetes is not easy. But try to commit some time, set realistic goals and get other things involved – and you can take a big step to controlling Type 2 diabetes.

Review: Portions Master Portion Control Plate

by

Portion control is a great way to lose weight and help people with diabetes manage blood sugar levels. But we know it’s not easy because of the extra time to measure food or count calories. Well, Portions Master’s Portion Plate tool is designed to portion your meals and is claimed to make weight loss “easy as 1-2-3.” We did an in-depth review and looked at convenience, durability, and cost to see if it actually lives up to its claim.

Portions Master Portion Plate

Pros

  • Easy way to portion control
  • Lightweight and portable
  • Easy to clean
  • No need to buy new plates

Cons

  • Some foods don’t fit well

Product Description

The Portion Plate by Portions Master (PM) is a portion control tool with compartments for vegetables, protein and carbohydrates. To use, simply put it on your plate and place food in the compartment.

The default portion sizes will fill half your plate with vegetables, and about a quarter of your plate each with carbohydrate and protein. Turning the dial makes the compartments smaller if you want to eat fewer calories, which you can set to ‘goal weights’ listed on the tool. But no matter if you adjust down or up, the vegetables section is always the large portion which helps with healthy eating.

It’s made of two-pieces of lightweight plastic. The blue piece has the portion sections and the gray piece is what turns to make the portion sizes smaller or bigger. And the two pieces are attached in the middle and come apart easily.

Portion Control and Weight Loss

So why do you need a tool to help portion meals? To put simply, weight loss is about creating a calorie deficit: eat less calories than your body needs, and the body starts using fat for energy. The idea behind portion control is to limit the amount of calories you eat so you create a calorie deficit that leads to weight loss.

Portion control is effective because most people eat more food than they actually need. The standard American meal is full of high-calorie processed ingredients with a large serving size.

But portion control can be hard to do. It often means measuring food, using a food scale, reading nutrition labels or calorie counting. The PM portion control tool is meant to solve all this by making portion control simple.

Our Experience with the Portion Plate

The DiaBettr team tested the Portions Master’s portion control plate with a few different dishes.

We wanted to see how the portion control tool worked with common ingredients and dishes that are easy to make. So we made baked chicken thigh for the protein section, white rice and corn for carbs, and steamed broccoli and cauliflower for vegetables.

What We Like

The first thing we really liked is that that the tool’s food group portion sizes match closely to the plate method for people with diabetes.

The American Diabetes Association recommended plate method for people with diabetes is to fill a 9-inch plate with 50% vegetables, 25% carbs and 25% protein. This is almost identical to the portion sizes used by PM portion control tool. And it even measures just at 9-inches just like the plate method.

Planning meals that work for diabetic meal patterns can be very hard. Not only do people with type 2 diabetes have to limit carbs but also have to limit calories because obesity is common with diabetes.

This tool is a great option for people with diabetes because it gives a healthy portion of veggies, carbs and protein, while keeping the carbs low to help lower or manage blood sugar levels.

Lightweight and Portable

The product is made of lightweight, BPA free plastic. It does feel slightly flimsy but we weren’t worried about it breaking. It has enough flex to help prevent it from cracking easily or breaking if you drop it on the floor (which we tried).

And because it’s lightweight, you can take it with you to restaurants or even vacations where it’s easy to overeat. This may sound a bit silly but if you’re serious about weight loss, bringing this portion control tool will help you stay on track wherever you go.

Easy to Use and Clean

The PM tool is very easy to use and clean. Each compartment is clearly labeled with each food group. The instructions on the packaging are easy to understand, though you don’t really need to read them because the product is so simple to use.

Cleaning is also super simple. It’s dishwasher safe and the compartments are big enough to clean by hand with no problem.

Use for Meal Planning

The PM plate is also great for prepping dishes ahead of time. For people with diabetes, meal planning is a great life hack to control carb intake for each meal.

Prepare a large batch of vegetables, protein and carbs, use the PM tool for proper food portions, then store. You can have pre-made meals for days, not worry about portion size, and save time during your week.

What We Don’t Like

One thing to be aware of is it may take extra time or prep to completely fit food in the portion sizes. You’ll likely have to slice or dice certain foods in order to fit into the physical dividers and make sure you’re getting the right amount of food.

For example, we made baked chicken thigh for our protein source but didn’t fit. The thigh didn’t fit not because the piece was too big but because the chicken bone was too long. So we had to de-bone the chicken thigh to make it fit.

Another example is with corn on the cob. We cut a piece to fit into the carb section but realized that we didn’t top the section with all corn, which means you’re getting less calories. So in this case we scraped off the corn until the compartment was full (see images below).

This not a huge problem but it does add time. Some foods will need to be cut in order to plate your food and you may have to plan dishes a bit more. It’s a little extra hassle but we didn’t expect PM to design their product to fit every type of food.

Portion Plate Competitors?

The PM Portion Plate seems to be a one-of-a-kind product. We searched online for a portion control tool, that’s adjustable, and can be used on any plate. But we couldn’t find a true competitor!

However, what you will find are portion control plates or divided plates with fixed compartments for carbs, vegetables and proteins (like the one’s below). These are fairly common, budget friendly, and made in plastic, ceramic and other materials.

But the downside is finding a portion control plate or divided plate with the portion sizes you want. Especially if you’re doing the diabetes plate method, the plate needs the correct portion sizes and has to be 9-inches. You’ll have to spend some time to find the right plate. And there’s also a chance of not finding the right plate and have to settle with the closest thing.

We also found that most portion plates simply don’t look very nice. These remind us of the plates in elementary school or plates for toddlers, something you wouldn’t want to use when eating with others.

Our Verdict

We give the Portions Master Portion Plate a score of 9/10! They claim it makes losing weight “as easy as 1-2-3” – and we mostly agree.

Counting calories, measuring or weighing food – all the hard things about portion control, the PM portion control plate tool makes easier. Simply place it on top of any plate, fill with food, and you’re done. You get the right portion sizes to lose weight and it promotes healthy eating habits. The price is also reasonable at just under $30. You can find fixed portion control plates at lower prices but none of those are adjustable and you’ll probably need to buy more than one plate.

The one downside with this portion control plate tool is it may take some extra prep time to make foods fit in the compartments. Be sure to factor in a few minutes extra to cut or dice up foods so you can fill the compartments fully.

Overall, we think the PM Portion Plate is a great tool to start working on your weight. You should still prep meals with healthy, minimally processed foods to see even better results. But just getting the right-sized portions on your plate is big step in the right direction that this tool makes super easy!

Review: FitVille Footwear

by

For people with Type 2 diabetes, foot issues can make getting around painful and frustrating. That’s a big problem because walking is actually one of the best exercises for diabetes. Most shoes don’t have the comfort you need if you suffer from diabetes-related foot conditions, and can even make foot condition worse. So the DiaBettr team tried out FitVille shoes, one of the few shoe brands designed for people with diabetes or foot conditions.

FitVille’s Stride Core Running Shoe

Pros

  • Comfortable
  • Non-slip, feels steady
  • Prolonged walking/standing

Cons

  • Mediocre design
  • Limited color options
  • A lot of ankle space

FitVille’s Stride Core running shoes are designed for people with foot issues, like diabetes-related nerve damage. These conditions can make walking more painful because most shoes are too narrow and create friction. And you may not feel that friction due to numbness, making the foot condition worse.

FitVille’s shoes are made with their patented “PropelCore” dual-density soles, which they’ve designed to east foot discomfort. The Stride Core has a wide toe box to give extra room and uses a breathable upper (the entire part of the shoe that covers the foot) for more breathability and comfort.

Our Experience with FitVille shoes

We used FitVille’s Stride Core shoes doing mostly light-intensity walking, and short bursts of jogging on a treadmill. Our tester, Jeff, is a 43-year old male with a high BMI and exercises about once a week. Our tester used the men’s version but from our research, should be similar to the women’s version.

Photo Credit: DiaBettr.com

What We Like

One of the first things we noticed was how comfortable the shoes are. The padding and the sole gave the right amount of cushion. The shoes did feel a little loose around the ankles – which took some getting used to – but our feet felt snug and secure. We imagine the extra space is to let the shoes breath better. Our tester spent about 45 minutes with the shoes but said he could have spent over an hour walking in the shoes and would have little discomfort.

The other thing we noticed was walking felt more steady and balanced. The shoe’s wide base and anti-slip helps ‘plant’ your feet to the ground so you’re less likely to stumble. Even during light jogging, the shoes kept our tester steady and didn’t have to worry about slipping or tripping on the treadmill.

Lastly, we thought the Stride Core’s price was reasonable, which sells for about $90. That’s priced below from competitor Orthofeet.com where their shoes for diabetes are priced well above $100.

What We Don’t Like

The Stride Core’s bland design and limited color options are the biggest negatives. The azure colored shoes we tested had some yellow trim for contrast but is mostly just blue. The other color options are black and tan so you don’t have a variety to choose from.

The overall design is clean but does look a little bland. The brand’s “F” logo is on each side and doesn’t look too busy (a plus for us). But aside from basic lines and stitching, the overall design doesn’t really catch the eye.

There’s nothing wrong with simple designs but having only two other colors available is a drawback in terms of looks and appearance. And according to their website, FitVille only sells four other shoe models designed for diabetes. While competitor Orthofeet sells over a dozen models.

Our Verdict

We give FitVille’s Stride Core a score of 8/10. The shoes really do provide extra comfort and cushioning that you don’t find in most shoes. And the wide toe box and anti-slip feature makes your feet more secure, which is important when exercising.

But the bland design and lack of color options is what lowered the score for us. With competitor brands offering more styles (but at higher prices), it would be nice for FitVille to offer more colors to choose from.

If you care more about performance than design, then the FitVille’s Stride Core is a reasonably priced athletic shoe to start exercising and getting fit.

Why Walking is Perfect for Type 2 Diabetes

by

Getting active is important for Type 2 diabetes self care but is one of the hardest things to do. Managing diabetes has a lot of daily tasks and exercise is often last on that list. If that’s the case, starting walking program is one of the best things to do to improve your overall health. Walking is an aerobic exercise that offers physical health benefits like increased blood flow and lower blood pressure, and reduces stress for mental wellness. It’s also a low impact movement which is best if you have aches, pains or mobility issues related to diabetes.

We go over the many health benefits of walking for people with diabetes, how to set realistic goals and things to do before taking a walk.

Disclosure: this post may contain affiliate links. This means we may get a payment if you make a purchase through the link – at no extra cost to you. Read our disclosure for more info.

How Walking Helps Diabetes

1) Low Impact on the Body

Walking is the perfect starter exercise because it’s low intensity and can fit any age and fitness level. Many people with diabetes have limited mobility or have higher body weight. This can make other exercises, like jogging or weight lifting, hard at first and even prevent someone from starting any exercise.

What’s great with a walking routine is that you control how easy or hard to go. If you have arthritis pain, joint pain or get tired easily, start with short walks or go at a slower pace. Over time taking a walk as part of your daily routine will strengthen muscles to help alleviate joint aches and help regain mobility.

And don’t worry if you can only do short walks at first. Even a 10-minute daily walk is valuable physical activity when you have a sedentary lifestyle. Eventually you want to work towards longer walks or moderate intensity walking (like a brisk walk) to see more health benefits.

2) Controls Blood Sugar Levels

Adding walking to your daily routine can lower and control blood sugar levels. Regular brisk walking is a moderate exercise that uses blood glucose for energy, which helps lowers blood glucose levels.

If you don’t get a lot of physical activity even short walks will improve your blood glucose. This study from the American Diabetes Association showed that short bouts of light intensity walking or simple resistance activities helped slow after-meal blood glucose and insulin increases.

People with diabetes often have other complications such as high blood pressure, heart disease, and nerve damage. These complications are associated with diabetes because chronically high blood glucose levels can restrict blood flow, damage blood vessels and lead to high cholesterol.

Like other aerobic exercises, regular walking boosts your cardiovascular fitness and heart health. Brisk walking increases heart rate as the heart pumps more oxygen throughout the body, which strengthens the heart and lungs. Blood circulation also increases and helps heal damaged blood vessels and nerves (or prevents damage from happening).

4) Doesn’t Make You Hungry

Walking is actually an exercise that doesn’t make you hungry, which is a huge benefit if you’re trying to reach a healthy weight. This study of overweight participants found that after 40 minutes of moderate pace walking, their hunger didn’t change and did not need to eat more calories.

Weight loss is mostly about eating less calories than your body uses. While more intense workouts can burn a lot of calories, they often leave you hungrier and more likely to overeat. Since you’re less likely to overeat after taking a walk, this makes weight loss easier if you’re on a restricted diet.

5) Improves Mental Health

Not only does walking boosts physical activity but it also improves mental wellness. Long walks alone gives you time away from distractions and clears your mental state. And walking with other people is a healthy way to maintain social relationships and peer support (important when managing diabetes).

Scientific research shows aerobic exercises (like walking) reduces anxiety and depression and walking through forest areas is effective in lowering negative moods. Also, a study published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease & Other Dementias showed that nursing home patients who participated in a certain walking program was associated with slower cognitive decline.

6) Walk Anywhere and Anytime

Not having enough time or inconvenience are common reasons that make diabetes self care hard for people. But a major benefit of walking is convenience!

Finding a place to walk is easy and walking different areas makes for more interesting walks to helps keep you from getting bored. You can also walk faster or a take brisk walk when you don’t have much time and still see the many benefits of walking. In this 2018 study, older adults tried walking sessions based on high intensity interval training (3-minute bouts of intense walking) and saw significant reductions in their blood glucose.

How much walking is good exercise?

The most important thing at first is to start walking regularly. This makes you commit time and get your body used to the physical activity. Questions like how to long to walk or how many miles to lose weight become more important after you have a walking routine.

Once you’re ready, an easy starting goal is to walk at least 2,000 steps per day, which is roughly equal to 1 mile or 30 minutes. After a week or so increase the goal to at least 2 miles / 4,000 steps per day or about an hour. The American Diabetes Association recommends an optimal goal of at least 3.2 miles or 6,400 steps a day for people with diabetes to see greater health benefits.

You can also set goals by increasing the intensity level such as walking faster, walking up an incline (either on a hill or treadmill), or using ankle weights.

Getting Ready for Walks

Walk After Meals

Time your walks after meals so your body uses up carbs released from eating. This helps keep blood glucose from spiking and make any blood glucose increases more gradual. This also helps lower the chance of having excess glucose in your blood.

Warm up

It’s always a good idea to warm up before exercising, especially if you don’t have an active lifestyle. Warming up increases blood flow to muscles and joints to prep the body for physical activity. For light walks you can gently stretch or deep breathe. Or do deep stretching, jumping jacks or stationary squats to get ready for a higher intensity walk.

Wear Proper Shoes

Some people with diabetes have foot numbness caused by nerve damage related to their diabetes. However, walking shoes that fit too tight can create friction and cause sores or blisters. And you may not feel the friction due to the numbness which makes the situation worse.

You can help prevent this by using shoes with a wider width or have good cushioning. There are actually companies that specialize in shoes for people with foot conditions or designed for diabetes, such as FitVille.com.

Take Care of Foot Pain

Having minor foot pain or aches is common (even in healthy adults) but can lower the quality of your walks. Over the counter products such as capsaicin cream or other pain relief ointments can help alleviate common pain or soreness. However you should consult your care provider for any severe or persistent pain.

Summary

Walking is one of the best ways for people with Type 2 diabetes to exercise regularly and start getting in better health. Regular walking offers many physical benefits – like reversing heart disease and controlling blood sugar – and mental health benefits of reducing stress. At the same time, it’s a low impact movement that’s safe for people with mobility issues or haven’t exercised in a while.

Over time you’ll want to add other exercises to maintain healthy blood sugar levels. But adding a daily walk is the best ‘first step’ to optimal health and diabetes self care!

Resistance Band Squats: Get Strong the Easy Way

by

Banded squats are an easy and safe way to burn calories and get stronger.

Strength training burns tons of calories, helps lose weight and is effective at lowering blood sugar.  This 2017 study on strength training and the risk of Type 2 diabetes found participants who did any strength training saw a 30% reduction of Type 2 diabetes.  But strength training can be hard if you have some aches or pains, or if you haven’t exercised in a while.  Using resistance bands can solve this and banded squats are a simple and effective way to ease into strength training.

What are resistance bands?

A resistance band is an elastic band and when under tension, creates resistance or “load.”  Using a resistance band with bodyweight exercises adds load to contract muscles and build strength.

Types of Resistance Bands

Resistance bands are made of latex, nylon or rubber and come in different levels of resistance.  The amount of resistance can be labeled “light,” “heavy,” etc. or by weight such as 20 lbs., 50 lbs. and so on.

They also come in a variety of lengths, thickness and styles.  They have loop bands, free bands (non looped), tube bands with handles, and others.  Ultimately, the type of band you need will depend on the exercise or movements you want to do.

For the banded squats we talk about below, you’ll need loop bands in both large and small sizes. But it’s good to have a combination of bands so you can try other exercises as well.

Why Use Resistance Bands

Easy, safe way to build strength

A resistance band is easier to manage than weights, which is important if you haven’t exercised in some time or have minor aches. This allows you to focus first on proper form and movements, which helps prevent injury.

In fact, resistance bands are commonly used for physical therapy to strengthen muscles and rehabilitate body movement.  You control the resistance from the band by your movements and band placement so you can workout on your own pace.

Focus on specific muscles

By simply changing the placement of a resistance band, you can target specific muscles or create more or less resistance. This is a huge advantage over using weights where you’re more limited in how you hold or place weights.

Take for example doing bicep curls with a loop resistance band.  Gripping the band with your hands workout bicep and forearm muscles.  But using the forearms for the curl actually reduces load on the forearm muscles (by not having to grip the band) and limits the curl movement to focus on the biceps.

A resistance band allows you to easily target weaker muscle groups and is a big reason why they’re widely used in fitness.

Convenience

Resistance bands are lightweight and very portable so you can exercise anywhere.  Not having time to workout is one of the most common reasons we hear that limit peoples’ diabetes self care (which we wrote about here).  We know self care is hard when you don’t have much time in your day but if you start by committing 15 minutes a day for self care, that’s a big step towards controlling diabetes.

Resistance bands work wonders for if you have limited time. Doing just 5 minutes of the bands squats we talk about below is enough to start burning blood sugar. Keep a pair of bands in your car or at work and you can easily get 15 minutes of quality exercise every day.

Adds variety to exercising

One of our favorite reasons to use a resistance band is that you can add them to any body weight exercise and even create different exercises.

With weight training, the movements are more controlled because of the added load. And changing movements usually means changing body positions, weights or even the whole exercise.

But a resistance band gives flexibility with body movements and allows you to work out different muscles at a time.  And doing a variety of exercises keeps you from getting bored to help stay motivated with working out.

In this article we only go over a few variations of banded squats but you can easily find a dozen other versions for this one exercise.

Learning How to Squat

Before doing banded squats, learning proper squat form is critical. The classic squat is an important movement that we learn as kids and use in everyday life.  It’s a compound movement that uses muscles in the legs and thighs (quads and hamstrings), bottom (glutes), as well as the core (lower back and abs).

But most of us don’t use correct form when we squat. Think of all the times we reach down to the floor but don’t bend our knees. It’s a common mistake but can lead to muscle pain and sometimes injury.

Below are steps to do a body weight squat which is used for many banded squat movements.

1. Starting position

Stand with feet shoulder width apart and weight balanced evenly.  Don’t lock your knees and tilt your chest slightly forward, like you’re getting ready to run.

2. Squat down

Squat downs slowly with knees bent and butt back, keeping your chest and head facing forward. As you move down, keep your knees outward and back straight.

3. Bottom of the squat

Squat down until your butt is level with your knees and thighs parallel to the ground.

4. Stand up

Slowly stand up back to the starting position using your leg and glute muscles. Be sure to keep feet planted, back straight and chest forward.

3 Simple Banded Squat Exercises

Now that you know how to do squat exercises, we go over three kinds of the resistance band squat. We chose  resistance band squats because they workout the larger muscles (quads, hamstrings and glutes) so you can burn the most calories in a short amount of time.

The banded squat exercises below work best with loop bands in both large and small sizes. We suggest starting with a lower resistance level to work on proper form and get comfortable with the movement, then increase resistance as you’re able to.

Banded Back Squat

This banded squat variation is similar to conventional bar squats but instead of a bar, a large loop band adds the load. Like standard squats this also works out lower body muscles along with other muscles in your core.

Place the loop band on the back of your neck (near shoulders) and step on the inside of the loop. Stand at the squat position with feet shoulder width apart or wider. Keep the band on the outside of your knees as you squat down, using the same movement as a standard squat.

You’ll notice that resistance band squats adds load at the starting position.  This differs from a standard squat where there’s more resistance at the lower part of the movement.  This is because the resistance band is under full tension at the start of the squat position then decreases as you squat down.

Quick Variation: Use a wide standing position.

This is the same as the banded back squat but take a really wide stance for the standing position. Keep about 3 feet of space between your legs. The variation puts more emphasis on the inner thigh and calf muscles.

Banded Squats with Mini Loops

This variation is basically a body squat but with mini loop bands around the thighs.  This resistance band squat isolates the glutes and hip abductors, which can be one of the weak muscle groups for many people. The band pushes the thighs inward and is countered by pushing the knees outward, which then strengthens weak glutes and hip abductors.

Place the mini loop band around your thighs or closer to the knees for additional resistance.  Use the starting position of a regular squat with feet shoulder width apart. You should feel tension from the band – if not, take a wider stance or use a heavier band. Squat down until thighs parallel to the floor.

Quick Variation: add a side step to the squat.

When you squat down, take a side step so that your knees are past hip width. Hold for a few seconds then step in with the other leg and move up to the standing position.  The side step stretches the mini loop band for even more resistance to really work the glutes and hip abductors. 

Banded Split Squat 

The banded split squat is similar to lunge exercise but you hold a resistance band to create an imbalance as you lunge down, which you need to stabilize by using the core muscles.   Aside from strengthening legs and butt muscles, the banded split squat helps improve balance and coordination.

To start the split squat position, grab the looped band (you can also use free band) with both hands and take one foot and step on the middle of the band. Step back with the other foot, slightly bend your knee, and keep your heel off the ground.

Keep your torso straight with weight mostly on the forward leg, and feet and hips pointed forward.  The band should be in full tension at the starting point – if not, the band may be too long and won’t have enough resistance.

Bend both knees to lunge down until your back knee is almost touching the ground. Slowly stand up using the front leg for power and at the same time keep balance using the back leg. Do a couple reps then switch legs for the next standing position.

The standing point and movement are the same as a banded split squat but at the end, add a bicep curl to get a quick upper body workout. The key thing here is using a loop band with the right length.  The band needs to have enough tension at the starting point but not too much that you can’t pull to a bicep curl.  Once you find the right size, this variation is an easy way to combine lower and upper body workouts to save time.

Summary

There’s no doubt strength training is effective at lowering blood sugar and weight loss – two big priorities for people with Type 2 diabetes.  Banded squats work great to ease you into training, especially if you haven’t exercised in a while or have some aches and pain.

We showed you three easy banded squat variations that are guaranteed to burn calories and help make you stronger. Best yet – bands squats only take 15 minutes of your day and can be the easiest part of your daily diabetes self care.

Gestational Diabetes FAQ

by

Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is a health condition caused by high blood sugar levels during pregnancy.  If you’ve been recently diagnosed with GDM or know someone who is, there’s a lot to know about the condition and how to manage it.  We answer common questions on GDM to help find the answers you need.

What is Gestational Diabetes?

Gestational diabetes occurs when the mother has very high blood glucose levels during pregnancy.  It’s one type of diabetes that can lead to problems for the mother and the baby. But GDM can be managed in most cases and blood sugar levels will usually return to normal levels after birth.

What Causes GDM?

Gestational diabetes is due to hormonal changes during pregnancy, typically in the second or third trimester, that reduces the mother’s ability to use insulin efficiently. This is called insulin resistance.

Insulin is a hormone released by the pancreas that absorbs sugar (glucose) in the blood to use for energy (or stored for later use). Insulin resistance means the body can’t absorb as much glucose leading to high blood glucose levels.

Insulin resistance during pregnancy is actually common as the mother’s body tries to reserve glucose for the develop fetus.1 But when too much glucose is in the blood (hyperglycemia), then GDM can occur.

How is Gestational Diabetes Diagnosed?

The American Diabetes Association recommends different screening methods depending on the mother’s risk for diabetes.2

If the mother is at risk for diabetes, screening for GDM may happen before 15 weeks of pregnancy. This usually includes checking blood glucose levels to see if it exceeds fasting glucose of 110–125 mg/dL or A1C 5.9–6.4% (41–47 mmol/mol).

If the mother isn’t at risk of diabetes, GDM is usually screened at 24 – 28 weeks of pregnancy using the oral glucose tolerance test. This test involves drinking a special sugar solution followed by a blood test to see how much the blood sugar increases and decreases over certain times.

What Are Symptoms of GDM?

Gestational doesn’t show many obvious symptoms, which is why screening during pregnancy is important.  More frequent urination can be a symptom of GDM but it can also just be part of the pregnancy.

What Happens if GDM is not Controlled?

The baby becomes exposed to high levels of glucose, which increases the chances of the baby having an above average birth weight. And during childhood, these kids can have reduced insulin sensitivity and are more likely to have impaired glucose tolerance.3

The mother also has a higher chance of developing type 2 diabetes after pregnancy. Studies have shown that women with GDM have are 10x more likely to develop type 2 diabetes than women without GDM.

How Common is Gestational Diabetes?

GDM affects up to 10% of pregnancies in the U.S. every year. And GDM rates are rising due to higher rates of obesity, which is a risk factor of diabetes.

How do I Prevent GDM?

You can reduce the chances of GDM by keeping your blood sugar levels within normal range. But keep in mind there’s a higher chance of GDM if you have prediabetes, are overweight or have other risk factors for diabetes.

How do I manage GDM?

Similar to Type 2 diabetes, diet plays a big role in managing GDM. Generally, you want to limit your carb intake and avoid sugary foods and  highly refined carbs.

Exercise and staying active burns glucose and helps lower blood glucose levels. Exercising during pregnancy can be hard but even regular walking can help control GDM, especially walking after meals.

Insulin can also be prescribed to reach blood sugar targets, which is generally safe for the mother and baby.

What Can I Eat with GDM?

You can eat the same foods as before but will need to limit the amount of carbs you eat per meal and spread out those carbs throughout the day. The goal is to keep your blood glucose at a steady level – not too high and not too low.

So a typical day would include eating 3 meals a day with 1-2 servings of carbs. And 3 snacks between those meals with 1 service of carbs. Each serving of carbs should be no more than 15 grams.

Review: Portions Master Portion Control Plate

by

Portion control is a great way to lose weight and help people with diabetes manage blood sugar levels. But we know it’s not easy because of the extra time to measure food or count calories. Well, Portions Master’s Portion Plate tool is designed to portion your meals and is claimed to make weight loss “easy as 1-2-3.” We did an in-depth review and looked at convenience, durability, and cost to see if it actually lives up to its claim.

Editor’s note: this article is not sponsored but includes links from our affiliates. Read our advertising policy here.

Portions Master Portion Plate

Pros

  • Easy way to portion control
  • Lightweight and portable
  • Easy to clean
  • No need to buy new plates

Cons

  • Some foods don’t fit well

Product Description

The Portion Plate by Portions Master (PM) is a portion control tool with compartments for vegetables, protein and carbohydrates. To use, simply put it on your plate and place food in the compartment.

The default portion sizes will fill half your plate with vegetables, and about a quarter of your plate each with carbohydrate and protein. Turning the dial makes the compartments smaller if you want to eat fewer calories, which you can set to ‘goal weights’ listed on the tool. But no matter if you adjust down or up, the vegetables section is always the large portion which helps with healthy eating.

It’s made of two-pieces of lightweight plastic. The blue piece has the portion sections and the gray piece is what turns to make the portion sizes smaller or bigger. And the two pieces are attached in the middle and come apart easily.

Portion Control and Weight Loss

So why do you need a tool to help portion meals? To put simply, weight loss is about creating a calorie deficit: eat less calories than your body needs, and the body starts using fat for energy. The idea behind portion control is to limit the amount of calories you eat so you create a calorie deficit that leads to weight loss.

Portion control is effective because most people eat more food than they actually need. The standard American meal is full of high-calorie processed ingredients with a large serving size.

But portion control can be hard to do. It often means measuring food, using a food scale, reading nutrition labels or calorie counting. The PM portion control tool is meant to solve all this by making portion control simple.

Our Experience with the Portion Plate

The DiaBettr team tested the Portions Master’s portion control plate with a few different dishes.

We wanted to see how the portion control tool worked with common ingredients and dishes that are easy to make. So we made baked chicken thigh for the protein section, white rice and corn for carbs, and steamed broccoli and cauliflower for vegetables.

What We Like

The first thing we really liked is that that the tool’s food group portion sizes match closely to the plate method for people with diabetes.

The American Diabetes Association recommended plate method for people with diabetes is to fill a 9-inch plate with 50% vegetables, 25% carbs and 25% protein. This is almost identical to the portion sizes used by PM portion control tool. And it even measures just at 9-inches just like the plate method.

Planning meals that work for diabetic meal patterns can be very hard. Not only do people with type 2 diabetes have to limit carbs but also have to limit calories because obesity is common with diabetes.

This tool is a great option for people with diabetes because it gives a healthy portion of veggies, carbs and protein, while keeping the carbs low to help lower or manage blood sugar levels.

Lightweight and Portable

The product is made of lightweight, BPA free plastic. It does feel slightly flimsy but we weren’t worried about it breaking. It has enough flex to help prevent it from cracking easily or breaking if you drop it on the floor (which we tried).

And because it’s lightweight, you can take it with you to restaurants or even vacations where it’s easy to overeat. This may sound a bit silly but if you’re serious about weight loss, bringing this portion control tool will help you stay on track wherever you go.

Easy to Use and Clean

The PM tool is very easy to use and clean. Each compartment is clearly labeled with each food group. The instructions on the packaging are easy to understand, though you don’t really need to read them because the product is so simple to use.

Cleaning is also super simple. It’s dishwasher safe and the compartments are big enough to clean by hand with no problem.

Use for Meal Planning

The PM plate is also great for prepping dishes ahead of time. For people with diabetes, meal planning is a great life hack to control carb intake for each meal.

Prepare a large batch of vegetables, protein and carbs, use the PM tool for proper food portions, then store. You can have pre-made meals for days, not worry about portion size, and save time during your week.

What We Don’t Like

One thing to be aware of is it may take extra time or prep to completely fit food in the portion sizes. You’ll likely have to slice or dice certain foods in order to fit into the physical dividers and make sure you’re getting the right amount of food.

For example, we made baked chicken thigh for our protein source but didn’t fit. The thigh didn’t fit not because the piece was too big but because the chicken bone was too long. So we had to de-bone the chicken thigh to make it fit.

Another example is with corn on the cob. We cut a piece to fit into the carb section but realized that we didn’t top the section with all corn, which means you’re getting less calories. So in this case we scraped off the corn until the compartment was full (see images below).

This not a huge problem but it does add time. Some foods will need to be cut in order to plate your food and you may have to plan dishes a bit more. It’s a little extra hassle but we didn’t expect PM to design their product to fit every type of food.

Portion Plate Competitors?

The PM Portion Plate seems to be a one-of-a-kind product. We searched online for a portion control tool, that’s adjustable, and can be used on any plate. But we couldn’t find a true competitor!

However, what you will find are portion control plates or divided plates with fixed compartments for carbs, vegetables and proteins (like the one’s below). These are fairly common, budget friendly, and made in plastic, ceramic and other materials.

But the downside is finding a portion control plate or divided plate with the portion sizes you want. Especially if you’re doing the diabetes plate method, the plate needs the correct portion sizes and has to be 9-inches. You’ll have to spend some time to find the right plate. And there’s also a chance of not finding the right plate and have to settle with the closest thing.

We also found that most portion plates simply don’t look very nice. These remind us of the plates in elementary school or plates for toddlers, something you wouldn’t want to use when eating with others.

Our Verdict

We give the Portions Master Portion Plate a score of 9/10! They claim it makes losing weight “as easy as 1-2-3” – and we mostly agree.

Counting calories, measuring or weighing food – all the hard things about portion control, the PM portion control plate tool makes easier. Simply place it on top of any plate, fill with food, and you’re done. You get the right portion sizes to lose weight and it promotes healthy eating habits. The price is also reasonable at just under $30. You can find fixed portion control plates at lower prices but none of those are adjustable and you’ll probably need to buy more than one plate.

The one downside with this portion control plate tool is it may take some extra prep time to make foods fit in the compartments. Be sure to factor in a few minutes extra to cut or dice up foods so you can fill the compartments fully.

Overall, we think the PM Portion Plate is a great tool to start working on your weight. You should still prep meals with healthy, minimally processed foods to see even better results. But just getting the right-sized portions on your plate is big step in the right direction that this tool makes super easy!

Using the Diabetes Plate Method

by

The diabetes plate method is an easy way to control your calories and should play a big part of your diabetes self care. Being overweight is a common risk factor for people with type 2 diabetes and if left unchecked, will only make your condition worse. We know portion control is not easy, which is why this plating method is the best option if you want something that’s simple and works!

The Plate Method Explained

The plate method is a visual way to control meal portions. You start with a 9-inch dinner plate, then fill the plate with certain amounts (usually a %) of vegetables, proteins, and carbohydrate foods.

For example, the plate below is made up of 30% vegetables, 30% carbs, and 40% proteins.

You can always change the portion % to match your dieting goals but the key is to use 9-inch plate. It’s also ideal to make vegetables at least half your plate but at minimum, vegetables should be no smaller than portions for carb and protein foods.

Why You Should Use the Plate Method

Easy Meal Planning

For most people, using this method will be the easiest way to meal plan in a way that controls calories. There’s no calorie counting, no measuring or weighing, and something you can even do at restaurants.

Portion Control Is Great for Weight Loss

Obesity is one of the most common risk factors for people with diabetes. In fact the CDC estimates that nearly 90% of people diagnosed with diabetes are overweight or obese. Portion control can be an effective way to lose weight and reduce the risk of heart disease, while improving type 2 diabetes. Chances are the portion sizes of your current meals are too big, giving you more calories than you actually need. Controlling portion size is a sure way to lower your calorie intake, causing your body to use fat and lose weight.

Diabetes Plate Method

For people with diabetes, the plating method not only helps with losing weight but can also lower carbohydrate foods to lower blood sugar levels. The American Diabetes Association (ADA) recommends to fill half your plate with non starchy vegetables (50%), a quarter of your plate with lean protein (25%), and another quarter of your plate with carbohydrate foods (25%).

The ADA also recommends water or a zero-calorie drink with meals. This is very important because a lot of flavored drinks are packed with sugar (sodas, fruit juice, sports drinks, iced tea, etc.), making it too easy to gain weight and spike your blood glucose.

Watch Out for Carbs

The ADA’s diabetes plating method is a good start to lowering calories and controlling blood sugar levels. However, a problem we have with this method is that the carb portion includes grains, legumes and fruit. Examples of carbohydrate foods the ADA gives include:

  • Whole grains such as brown rice, oats/oatmeal, and whole grain products (whole grain bread, pasta)
  • Starchy vegetables such as winter squash, plantain, potato, and sweet potatoes
  • Beans such as black, pinto, and garbanzo
  • Fruits and dried fruit
  • Dairy products like milk, yogurt, and milk substitutes (i.e. soy milk)

Many of the carbs include food with high sugar content (especially bread, potatoes, and fruit). Dealing with carbs is already difficult for people with diabetes so your meal plan shouldn’t make it harder to lower blood sugar levels.

Modified Diabetes Plate Method

At DiaBettr, we recommend a modified diabetes plating method made up of 50% nonstarchy vegetables, 35% proteins, and 15% carbs. We believe that this modified version can help lower blood sugar levels faster, while still having different foods to choose from.

Higher Protein, Lower Carbs

A key difference with our modified method is that we lower the carb portion (15%) while increasing proteins (35%). Remember that protein foods, especially animal-based protein sources more so than plant-based, contain many essential amino acids. Animal-based protein is also more satisfying and make your feel more full than carbs which is ideal for lowering calories.

Limits the Grains and Fruit

Another difference is that we don’t recommend grains and fruit for your carb portion. Instead, our modified plate method replaces those with starchy vegetables, legumes or beans. These foods generally fall into the complex carbohydrate food group that take longer to digest and thus, don’t cause as high a blood sugar spike. So starchy vegetables, legumes and beans are “OK” options – not as low carb as non-starchy vegetables but a much better option than grains and sugary fruit.

How to Make the Plate Method Easier

We know diabetes self care can be a lot of work and meal planning can add more to your plate (pardon the pun). Here are some tips to make it even easier to practice the diabetes plating method.

Use a disposable plate as a guide

The plating method relies on a 9-inch plate but you may not have a plate of that exact size. Using a larger or smaller plate can affect how well you reach your diet goals so you want to be as close to 9-inches as possible. So what if you don’t have any plates that are 9-inches? One trick is to use a disposable plate as a measuring guide.

A lot of the disposable plates will say the size on its label. Once you have the right size (or close), place the disposable plate over your regular plate to see the difference in size. This visualizes what 9-inches should look like and you’ll memorize over time how big your plate should be.

If you already have disposable plates but are too big, just cut it down to 9-inches. Measure from the back of the plate, cut down to 9-inches, and place over your regular plate (see image above). Now you basically have a 9-inch template.

Use Plate with Set Portions

If you don’t mind buying new plates, find ones that have the portions built in. A quick search for “portion control plates” on Amazon or Google Shopping and you’ll get tons of options. They have plastic and ceramic plates, different portion sizes and combinations, and even plates with pictures of food groups.

One problem you may run into is not being able to find the exact portion for the plate method. Also, many of these portioned plates don’t look appealing (maybe even cheap) and something you want not want to use with guests.

Use a Portion Control Tool

If you don’t want to buy new plates, the Portions Master’s Portion Plate is a one-of-a-kind gadget that makes it easy to portion meals on any plate. The Portion Plate has adjustable portions for your greens, proteins and carbs. Simply place it on top of your plate, fill each section with the matching food group and you’re done.

What’s great is that Portion Plate sections closely match the diabetes plating method portions of 50% vegetables, 25% protein and 25% carbs. And the Portion Plate is adjustable so you can set the portions to match your dieting goals.

Summary

The diabetes plate method is one of the easiest ways to eat balanced meals that will help you lose weight and control type 2 diabetes. Obesity is commonly associated with type 2 diabetes and can often make diabetes-related conditions even worse. Portion control is an effective way to lose weight because the size of our meals often give us more calories we actually need.

The plate method is a simple way to portion control – no calorie counting or measuring. Just a simple formula: 9-inch plate with 50% non starchy vegetables, 25% protein and 25% carbs (or our modified version of 50% non starchy vegetables, 35% protein and 15% carb). And we know diabetes self care can be hard so make the plate method more convenient by using Portions Master Portion Plate or other tips we mentioned above.