my doctor recently prescribed metformin to help with my insulin levels. She said they were pretty high (sorry dont know the exact numbers). I have been on a sub 100 grams of carbs a day diet for about 6 years, but my glucose levels still range between 98 and 106 regularly. I try to take a fasted glucose reading using a glucose meter 2 - 4 times a month.
I have been taking metformin for about a week and a half now.
some observations and questions:
My weight is starting to drop, and my urine smells really really sweet. Obviously I am happy with the weight loss, but I am not sure whether the sweet urine smell is good or bad.
muscles seem to ache all the time now and this has effected my workouts. Its like I am constantly sore. any ideas on whats going on here?
I get cramps in my calves regularly, but now I am getting cramps in my quads and hamstrings. I drink about 70 - 100 oz of water a day. I also take potassium and zma. any idea on how I can help this?
Also, I have heard that this drug will lower my testosterone levels. Any ideas on how much, or what I can do to minimize it?
I know very little, execept that there is a potential for a condition with taking Metformin called Lactic Acidosis, and it kills a few people occasionally.
I would suggest that you get yourself checked out by your doctor, or at least read up on the symptoms to make sure this is not what you have.
the serious ones are:
muscle pain or weakness;
numb or cold feeling in your arms and legs;
trouble breathing;
feeling dizzy, light-headed, tired, or very weak;
stomach pain, nausea with vomiting; or
slow or uneven heart rate.
The mild ones are:
headache or muscle pain;
weakness; or
mild nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, gas, stomach pain.
notice how muscle pain and weakness or both serious and not serious at the same time?
Those glucose levels are completely normal as far as I can tell. Is there some other factor involved? Why did she prescribe the metformin? Maybe the insulin is really high to get those numbers? Is she an endocrinologist or a GP? If she can’t explain it, find a doctor who will.
[quote]jehovasfitness wrote:
I wouldn’t call 106 normal, then again by today’s society it is ;)[/quote]
True, but it’s very far from needing intervention, and well within the error limits of modern glucose meters. I know mine tends to read a few points high. I’ve taken my own reading in the car minutes before getting labs done, and the glucose meter is always higher than the lab by 5-10 points.
ill try to find out the A1C, i have some of the paper work, but not all of it.
she is a bariatric specialist. Her specialty is in helping diabetics and pre-diabetics lose weight through non-surgical alternatives including the use of “anti-obesity drugs”.
it was actually the fasting glucose number of 106, combined with some insulin count, and a third thing that I cant remember that caused her to prescribe metformin (i think). The 106 number actually came from a lab report. My home meter probably needs to be re-calibrated, as it read lower. It generally puts me right around 100. She said anything over 100 is considered pre-diabetic. She also said that with insulin levels like mine and probably being very insulin resistant, it was going to be hard to lose weight. I probably just grabbed on to that statement and read into it.
I was eating 6 meals a day, but I cut back to 4 about two and half years ago (around the birth of my first son). I just could not keep up with the meal planning. The recent theory on 6 meals a day is interesting, but it probably does not apply to me now.
it was prescribed for the prevention of diabetes in someone who is pre-diabetic. I brought in my meal logs for the past couple of years, to show her that I have been eating clean for some time. Along with my list of supplements. I just cant seem to lose weight or get my glucose levels down to healthy levels.
My current bod pod stats are 182 lbs lean muscle mass - total weight 250 ~ about 27% body fat.
she said i was an unusual case in that I appeared to be doing just about everything right as far as diet/supps/ and exercise that I could (she had a couple tweeks). And i had the logs to prove it.
she said (almost a direct quote): “most of my patients come in eating 3000 to 4000 calories a day, all right before they go to bed, don’t exercise, and say ‘I just cant figure out why i am not losing weight’”
google Berberine and you can PM me for a link if you’re interested for the brand I use, one of the doctors that sells that brand contributes for Precision Nutrition.
[quote]jehovasfitness wrote:
what supplements are you taking?
I’m going to assume fish oil and R-ALA?
google Berberine and you can PM me for a link if you’re interested for the brand I use, one of the doctors that sells that brand contributes for Precision Nutrition.[/quote]
insuline resistance related supps that I take:
4.5 gm fish oil
1 gm cinnamon
10 gm taurine (also lowers my BP quite a bit)
400 mg R-ALA
coQ10 200 mg
zma 30 mg zing 450 mg magnesium
EGCG - 500 mg (I think)
chromium - cant remember what I am at now (this is one that she changed, she said what i was using was not very bio-available)
Resveratrol - 400 mg
on occasion apple cider vinegar. I cant do this for very long though.
she has also put me on a potassium supp (595 mg) to treat muscle knots. cant say that this dosage has helped a lot though.
I am not familiar with Berberine, but based on my initial google of it, it looks like I should get familiar with it. Thanks for the tip.
the DR has asked me to start a multi, but normally I dont take one. I started one about two weeks ago.
i get magnesium in my zma supp
aside from that, when my knots get real bad, ill take 1600 mg of magnesium at night time for a couple of days until my wife has them all rolled out with a rolling pin. but i dont do that on a regular basis, just as needed when the rolling pin alone isnt working.
