There’s beauty in the struggle, happiness in the success - J Cole

On your way to an A1c of 7.0 if you start at 9.5.

In order to get there, you have to pass through 8.0. Sure, 8 isn’t where you want to be.

But it’s a stop on the destination.

A lot of people will see their A1c higher and IMMEDIATELY compare to what they see on social media.

They see all the flat Dexcom lines and wonder “why not me?” The FIRST step to getting where you want to be with your blood sugar levels…

Is bringing your A1c down a little.

9.5 to 9.4.

9.4 to 9.3.

If you want to lose weight and drop 30lbs, you first have to drop 3lbs.

If you’re going to get to a 7.0 A1c from a 9.5, you have to first get to 9, then to 8, etc.

Enjoy the journey.

Enjoy the process.

That is where the beauty of everything is.

Quite frankly: that is how you get to the final destination. You take little, single steps every single day.

Suddenly, you’ll look up, and think...

Close your eyes for a second and image this:
You are sitting at your table in a restaurant and there is something on the menu you’ve always wanted to try. Maybe it's chicken alfredo from an authentic Italian restaurant or an epic Chinese dish. Maybe it's your ultimate comfort food.

Your food arrives and you're ready to assess.

You dose.  

Your blood sugar stays amazing.

Not just right afterwards, but also hours and hours later into the night. How awesome does that feel?!

Once upon a time, you may have been nervous to consume that food.

Once upon a time, it was out of your comfort zone to even TRY that food.

I would bet that somewhere along the way you were given a list titled “Diabetes Food to Eat” “Blood Sugar Foods.” 

But, what happened?

You said, “Hey, I’m gonna figure out how to do this so my blood sugars can be amazing while I enjoy foods that I love.”

Diabetes isn’t cookie cutter.

Each of us have...

I was a freshman in high school in a computer class when I heard a specific Ludacris song for the first time.

The entire song was meaningful, but one lyric in particular stopped me in my tracks.

“It’s not the hand that you're dealt but how you’re playing ya cards.”

This lyric has stuck with me ever since because of how it relates to diabetes and life. It’s amazing how a few words rocked me to my CORE then, and they still do today.

Mental health awareness has been a huge topic of conversation in recent years. In my humble opinion, mental health surrounding life with diabetes is not talked about enough.

We all know living with Type 1 diabetes can be tricky, sucks, and none of us asked for it.

How’s that for candid?

But, at the end of the day, it doesn’t have to slow you down from what you want to do. There are professional athletes with diabetes.

There are musicians with diabetes.

Actors and actresses who are well known for living with...

It’s no secret that your diabetes tech is likely to show at the beach.

Almost EVERY time I go, people always come up and ask me what my insulin pump is.

Or what my Dexcom is.

Or why I have oddly shaped tape on my body.

Or (fill in the blank with everything imaginable)

While I was in college, a kid came up to me and thought my pump was a video game.

I told him it was an automatic tattoo maker, since it left a nice tan line.

He fell for it.

Most of the time, I simply just say what it is: it’s my insulin pump for my diabetes.

This statement always seems to be taken as an invitation by other people to start listing all the stereotypical statements about diabetes:

“Well you don’t look like you have diabetes.”

“Wait, you’re not fat.”

“Only old people get diabetes.”

What does diabetes even look like?!

A friendly PSA: there is no definition.

I know many who would agree with me in suggesting that more people were aware of terms...

When you workout, you’ve probably got a few goals in mind:

Build some muscle.

Improve body composition.

Increase insulin sensitivity.

Get that AWESOME endorphin rush afterwards where you feel like you can conquer ANYTHING. 

Maybe you’ve got some more too that I didn’t list.

But here’s a fun fact you PROBABLY didn’t realize you knew:

Higher blood sugars make it harder to build muscle.

High blood sugars, as you know, make EVERY process in your body a bit more difficult.

But during or after a workout?

It can make building strength considerably tougher than it has to be.

If you’re not able to absorb your nutrition at the rate your body needs, well, you’re running in quicksand while everyone else is running on perfectly manicured grass.

Don’t be that person.

It is IMPERATIVE you get those blood sugars on POINT to make the most of your workouts.

And of course, to feel, look, and be your best.

If you’re finding workout blood...

If cinnamon cured diabetes: 

JDRF would be a cinnamon farm.

Events would be doing lines of cinnamon as a group.

The “cinnamon challenge” would have been figured out years ago.

Worrying about your blood sugar control would be a thing of the past.

Cinnamon does not cure diabetes.

Please do not search “cinnamon diabetes cure” on the internet (Unless you want some massive entertainment and don't take it seriously).

If something this simple existed, the world of diabetes would look a whole lot different.

Despite having diabetes, you don’t have to feel stuck where you are.

While there may not be a simple spice to cure diabetes once and for all, we certainly have a plethora of things to help manage it.

From the incredible discovery of insulin in the 1920s to the widely available diabetes technology we have at our fingertips daily today, we have an incredible amount of resources and help to manage today’s diabetes. 

Along with many other things,...

Diabetes is sometimes like those games at the fair where you can win a giant animal if you throw a ring on the bottle or shoot the ball in the hoop. 

You pay the $5 and try so hard and you STILL fail no matter what you try.

It LOOKS so easy but blood sugars can be difficult.

You have a stubborn high blood sugar and try to get it down.

It doesn’t budge.

You try again and again.

Your mindset is starting to tank...

It is so damn frustrating when you feel like you’ve tried everything.

You try the insulin.

You try the walk.

You try the water. 

You pray to the heavens above.

It works sometimes, but not ALL the time.

The frustration mounts.

Diabetes often feels rigged, where the bottle top is slightly larger than the ring and that hoop is definitely not regulation size. 

So how do you breakthrough?
1. KEEP EFFING GOING. Giving up is the fastest way to constantly live in the frustration of the blood sugars. Even if it doesn't work perfectly, use the data you have...

As your friendly neighborhood registered dietitian, we need to talk.

I'll make this pretty simple:

there is a LOT of misinformation out there when it comes to eating with diabetes.

What are the best or worst foods for diabetics is probably in the top number of searches on the internet.

In one corner, you’ve got the ones who won’t touch carbohydrates, since carbs will skyrocket your blood sugars.

In the other, you’ve got the ONLY carbers, who will eat minimal fat and protein since they find that the easiest for them.

Most likely, you are somewhere in the middle but also confused as hell.

You hear people on one end shaming the other and vice versa.

This is a ridiculous practice and does not help anyone.

Here’s what you need to know: 
The best way to eat with diabetes?

Is the way that is SUSTAINABLE for you and your blood sugars. 

I’ve had clients who eat 400g of carbs per day and I’ve had clients who eat 25g of carbs per day.

Both with A1c...

If diabetes can mess something up, it will try its damndest. 

Exercise certainly helps manage blood sugars and can also improve insulin resistance.

The full impact of exercise on your blood sugar is determined by the intensity and duration of your workout as well as how much energy you burn.

Most of us have constantly been told that cardiovascular exercise lowers your blood sugar while weight training raises your blood sugar.

However, just because that's the case most of the time doesn’t mean that’s always the case.

There are no absolutes and the opposite can be true.

Weight-lifting CAN lower your blood sugar.

Your muscle cells will use sugar in the bloodstream which may cause your blood sugar to drop low during strength training.

Cardiovascular exercise can raise your blood sugar (I’m looking at you sprints).

Adrenaline and cortisol can increase blood sugars during cardio workouts such as running, HIIT, biking, and swimming.

So be aware of the exercise...

If you’re going to stack anything, stack paper.

Stacking insulin is beyond dangerous.

If you aren’t familiar with stacking insulin, here’s how it works:

If you give yourself an insulin correction within three hours of a previous correction, you are stacking insulin. 

A narrative I’m sure you have experienced:

1. Your blood sugar is high. You feel (insert any number of adjectives here).

2. You’ve taken a correction dose but your blood sugar didn’t come down.

3. You take another correction, and another, and another...until:

That insulin hits all at the same time.

You’d have a ton of active insulin on board when your blood sugar finally decides to come spiraling down.

This can be extremely dangerous.

The best-case scenario is a minor low blood sugar.

The worst case?

We won’t go there.

It is obvious that we want to lower high blood sugar levels when necessary.

Unfortunately, there is no magic formula that dictates how long it will...