The content in this article should not be taken as medical advice. Please consult with your healthcare provider regarding your individual health needs.
Figuring out how to lose some weight often feels like navigating a maze of diets, exercises, and lifestyle changes. There are overflowing sections at the bookstore chock full of advice. And it can seem like everyone you meet has a new fad diet that you just have to try.
The truth is everyone’s different, and what’s right for one person might not work well for another. Whatever path you decide is best, one way to help you feel more in-the-know about your health is by tracking and monitoring your glucose levels.
Why does it matter?
Our body uses glucose, a type of sugar, for energy. Once we use up the glucose needed for immediate energy, the excess is stored as fat. High glucose levels can lead to weight gain and make weight loss challenging. Understanding your glucose is a window into how food, activity, stress, and environmental factors influence our glucose levels. And that knowledge can pave the way for more effective weight management.
Let’s dive into the details of three key benefits of understanding how glucose can affect your weight:
1. The impact of food and drinks
Knowing how different foods affect your blood sugar can be a game-changer for weight loss. There’s a lot to consider.
Avoiding spikes
Simple carbohydrate-only meals or snacks often cause glucose spikes. Recognizing these can help you reduce or avoid these foods.
Simple carbohydrate-only meals or snacks often cause glucose spikes. Recognizing these can help you reduce or avoid these foods.
Nighttime patterns
Late-night snacks can cause prolonged high blood sugar.
Late-night snacks can cause prolonged high blood sugar.
Balanced meals
Meals with fibers, proteins, fats, and complex carbs create smaller glucose spikes compared to simple sugars and carbs.
Meals with fibers, proteins, fats, and complex carbs create smaller glucose spikes compared to simple sugars and carbs.
Reducing cravings
Stabilizing glucose levels can decrease cravings for sugary and high-carb foods.
Stabilizing glucose levels can decrease cravings for sugary and high-carb foods.
Frequent small meals
Eating small amounts of carbs every 2-3 hours prevents glucose spikes and excessive sugar storage.
Eating small amounts of carbs every 2-3 hours prevents glucose spikes and excessive sugar storage.
Optimal meal timing
It’s also important to know the best times to eat for stable blood sugar, reducing cravings, and controlling appetite.
It’s also important to know the best times to eat for stable blood sugar, reducing cravings, and controlling appetite.
Eating mindfully
Understanding how glucose works can help you spot patterns linked to stress, boredom, or other emotional triggers, helping you address the mental aspects of eating.
Understanding how glucose works can help you spot patterns linked to stress, boredom, or other emotional triggers, helping you address the mental aspects of eating.
2. Real-time exercise insights
Exercise is essential, and knowing its effects can be super motivating.
Movement as medicine
Physical activity can lower glucose levels. For example, a walk after a meal can do a lot to prevent spikes.
Physical activity can lower glucose levels. For example, a walk after a meal can do a lot to prevent spikes.
Optimizing workouts
By knowing how exercise affects glucose levels, you can tailor your routines for maximum benefit.
By knowing how exercise affects glucose levels, you can tailor your routines for maximum benefit.
Staying motivated
Simple changes, like post-meal walks, can regulate glucose levels and inspire more proactive health steps.
Simple changes, like post-meal walks, can regulate glucose levels and inspire more proactive health steps.
Timing workouts
It’s important to find the best exercise times, enhancing effectiveness and promoting greater calorie burn
It’s important to find the best exercise times, enhancing effectiveness and promoting greater calorie burn
3. Improving insulin sensitivity
Insulin sensitivity is a term for how much impact insulin has on our blood sugar. There are factors that make it both more effective (“sensitive”) and less effective (“resistant”). Let’s break it down.
Insulin resistance and weight gain
Insulin resistance means cells don’t respond well to insulin, leading to higher blood sugar levels and weight gain.
Insulin resistance means cells don’t respond well to insulin, leading to higher blood sugar levels and weight gain.
Effective fat burning
Better insulin sensitivity aids in more effective fat burning and reduces fat storage.
Better insulin sensitivity aids in more effective fat burning and reduces fat storage.
Avoiding hangry episodes
Hunger triggered by falling blood glucose can lead to carb cravings, poor food choices, and irritability. Insulin helps move glucose into cells, but too much glucose leads to excess fat storage.
Hunger triggered by falling blood glucose can lead to carb cravings, poor food choices, and irritability. Insulin helps move glucose into cells, but too much glucose leads to excess fat storage.
Stable blood sugar
Diets low in simple sugars and carbs enhance insulin sensitivity, aiding in weight loss.
Diets low in simple sugars and carbs enhance insulin sensitivity, aiding in weight loss.
Revealing glucose levels
A glucose biosensor is wearable tech that tracks glucose over time. It measures the amount of glucose in your interstitial fluid (the fluid around your cells where glucose ends up after it leaks from your bloodstream), which allows you to get an accurate reading of your glucose level. This is key because high glucose levels over extended periods cause glucose to convert into fat. Also, when glucose levels are high, your body struggles to burn that fat.
The not-so-secret secret to weight loss
The key to weight loss is not following the latest fad but a strategic approach to carbohydrate intake. And by understanding how glucose affects your body, you’ll gain the motivation and knowledge to make healthier decisions and achieve your weight loss goals.
Curated & reviewed by: Deborah Greenwood,
PhD, RN, CNS, CDCES, BC-ADM, FADCES
PhD, RN, CNS, CDCES, BC-ADM, FADCES
Deborah Greenwood is a clinical nurse specialist, diabetes care and education specialist, board certified in advanced diabetes management.
