Exercise

The National Weight Control Registry

1. Expect failure, but keep trying. Most of the Registry participants made the decision to lose weight because of fear for their health. Motivation like this makes it easier to stick to your plan because everything you eat or don’t eat is a conscious decision based on your top priority—your health. If improving your health through weight loss is a high priority in your life, your eating (and exercise) decisions will reflect this, not just today, but over the long term. [Sticking to your hypoglycemic diet should also reflect a personal health decision since I believe that getting your blood sugar under control now can reduce the risk of many serious health problems! Don’t expect perfection – just keep trying.]
2. Don’t deny yourself. Feeling deprived is why you binge. Rather than completely eliminating all of the so-called "bad foods", try to keep it to a taste instead of a whole helping, have just one spoonful of the foods you crave. [Keep in mind that even a small amount of sugar can cause symptoms and setbacks for a hypoglycemic, so don’t cheat on the sugar, at least for the first 6 months.]
3. Weigh yourself often. Motivation, motivation, motivation! Your primary concern should be improving your general health, but if watching your weight fall motivates you to stick to the diet, do it!
4. Plan at least an hour a day of serious exercise. In addition to making you feel energized and terrific, aerobic exercise helps increase your metabolic rate, and you will use calories faster. Adding some weight lifting will increase your muscle mass, and muscle burns more calories than fat. Improving your muscle tone will also make your daily activities easier. [Great for hypoglycemics and non-hypoglycemics alike!]
5. Add little bits of activity throughout your daily routine. Park at the far end of the lot; take the stairs; walk over to your neighbour’s house rather than calling on the phone; walk to the corner store for milk rather than driving—and then turn all of these changes into habits. [Saves the environment, too!]
6. Eat a high carbohydrate, low fat diet. Not all of the experts would agree on this, but most of the participants in this Registry have increased their carbs and reduced their fat intake. [A diet lower in carbohydrate and higher in protein is often quite successful for hypoglycemics.]
7. Eat at least 5 times each day. Just goes to show; this works for hypoglycemics and non-hypoglycemics as well. The theory is that if you eat small amounts often, you will be less tempted to overeat. For those of us who are hypoglycemic, this survival skill may actually help us lose weight in addition to reducing symptoms.
   

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Disclaimer: I am not a doctor, so please don't use these articles to diagnose yourself. They are only intended to provide information.