Worked my a** off. Fixed my diet, started hitting the gym HARD. Got super strong and then got my blood labs back and STILL my A1C is higher than last time when I was still drinking like twice a week. F*CK me man...
Keep going OP. What did you do to fix your diet? I started Keto then switched to Carnivore for a few months and that brought my A1C to normal. For weight and A1C diet > exercise.
A lot. -Cut out the vast majority of non water drinks. -Cut drinking from 1-2 a night to 1 or 2 a month. -Changed my breakfast to a consistent breakfast bowl of rice + egg whites + some leftover meat occasionally. -Changed my lunch to a consistent stir fry (ground turkey veggies and rice). -started drinking protein shakes for more protein that doesn't contain much fat/sugar.
Stop avoiding fat. I am assuming you are avoiding it since you mention egg whites instead of whole eggs and low-fat protein shakes. If you are getting hungry it means you are not eating enough fat and/or eating too many carbs. Skewing to no or less carbs will curb hunger and might improve bloodwork. Give it a try if you’re not happy with results from current diet. If you go no carb you can be satiated even in a caloric deficit.
Are you eating foods marketted as low fat. Are you just counting calories. They are loaded with palm oil , canola oil, coagulants, hidden sugars, etc. Eat whole foods, for better markers. Eat organic.
I don't snack. That said, sometimes my hunger will wake me up in the middle of the night and if I don't eat something I can't get back to sleep. Right now I'm mostly eating fresh mozzarella cheese since it's low calorie and high in protein. Lack of sleep would be just as bad for my weight.
I take a daily vitamin and I take melatonin+diphenhydramine before bed. My blood tests have all been good except for A1C
Drinking alcohol? Fun fact, although it is extremely deleterious to your health, it does have a mitigating factor against diabetes
Drinking alcohol i believe impedes the liver and keeps glucose levels low. I would suggest getting a CGM - track that for 2 weeks and you’ll know what your body is reacting to.
Look up animal based diet. Eat foods with 1-3 ingredients MAX. “Omg not possible!!” Literally ask ChatGPT and it will list 50+ foods you can eat.
Already do.
I think people who eat too often have similar issues. Try to eat at most 3 times a day. If possible just 2 times.
Agree with what others have said re: diet > exercise. Go see a registered dietician.
For how long?
The exercises had been ~1 year, the diet changes have been evolving over 3 years.