Hi dina1957--

Don't know how others have done it but, after getting two Hb A1c readings of 11+ in April, I went onto Atkins Induction in May. Initially, my FBG was 300+, but after 2 weeks on Induction it was running about half of that. I stayed well within the 20 carb/day limit (still am now, in fact), and within 6 weeks I was usually getting 95-110 Waking, <110 pre-prandial, and never over 120 2h pp. (often <100)!

I had dropped almost 30 lbs by week 6 on Atkins, but was unsure if it was the weight loss or the carb restriction that was responsible for the improvement. Around the 4 month (40+ lbs lost) point, I celebrated my wife's birthday at her favorite pizzaria, splitting a large pizza and a big hunk of garlic bread with her (estimated at about 240 carbs per serving). My pre-meal reading was 102. My 2hr pp. was 171. At 3 hrs pp. I was at 164, at 5 hrs pp. I was down to 145, and my waking (17 hrs. pp.) was at 127. I ate a light breakfast (a couple of strips of bacon and a cup of coffee), a snack of sliced beef a few hours later, and then registered a pre-dinner BG of 92. After a dinner of sliced ham and cheeses (3 carbs), my 2 hr. pp. was at 94.

My conclusion is that heavy carb loads still run my BG up and sustain it for extended periods of time. But the amount of rise and duration are substantially lower than levels tracked a week before starting Atkins (a test with a similar meal then produced a 363 2 hr. pp., falling to 152 after 21 hrs.)

I intend to test this again after I've lost a total of 80 lbs., and yet again when I've reached my goal-weight. This should give me a good idea as to the role that weight loss has played in my BG improvement, and a good measure of what my eventual daily carb allowance will be to keep my BG's in the normal range.

I should add that mine is an unusual case. I had a complete physical (including a normal FBG) only 5 months before my Type II dx. If it hadn't been for a required pre-surgical physical (cataract surgery), it is likely that the problem wouldn't have been spotted for at least a year. My weight at that time had soared to an all-time high, following a back injury that had severely limited my motion and exercise for some time. I am still unable to exercise in a normal fashion, as I am limited to specific activities that fall within my PT routine, and those fall far short of a reasonable cardio workout. For now, lifting is not an option for me. I understand that if it were, I could probably look forward to even better progress than I have made by an LC diet alone. It is my hope that, as I approach my goal weight, I will also be able to handle a more ambitious workout schedule. If not, I will have to reset my goal-weight to a lower point, as my initial target was selected in anticipation of rebuilding a reasonable amount of muscle mass.

Again, this is my experience and my plan for dealing with my situation. YMMV significantly!